Like A Rolling Stone.| FP JONES ²

III. Lament.

Dani's P.O.V.

When I got back from the Jones' trailer, I knew that Ruby had been home since Dad was trying to hide the fact that he was crying. He was sitting on the couch, having a beer and a smoke, not looking at me at all.

'Dad?' I called out to him, and he broke out of his trance.

'Oh Dani, what happened to my little bird? Why is she so hateful now?' he was crying once again, but he didn't bother to hide it anymore.

I went over to him, and I sat down. Wrapping my arms around him, I cried with him as we wondered why Ruby was so messed up now.

When Gregory, Ruby's former boss, called us up from Germany to tell us that Ruby had gotten arrested and that he had bailed her out, we were devastated. That had hit us harder than when she had decided to run away.

At least then, all we could do was worry. There were no other emotions other than worrying. She could really have been anywhere, and none of us could guess Germany. The letter she had written before she left had really tricked us into thinking that she had moved to California.

That phone call months later almost seemed like a saving grace, but it only turned out to be more negativity in our lives. We couldn't cope with the idea of Ruby coming back after spent a few nights in prison. Gregory assured us he couldn't keep her, so he paid for her to return home the following night.

Now we sit on this tattered couch, and Dad is shivering and has the sniffles. I want to laugh at the situation and believe it untrue, but I know better. Ruby has changed for the worst, and none of us can help her. She's so sullen and moody, and she's angrier.

The phone ringing interrupted our moment, and Dad went to pick it up. He seemed stressed as he answered and talked to the person on the other line, and I knew it wasn't good news. As this continued, I looked at the coffee table.

An opened manila envelope was sitting there, and it had Ruby's full name on it. Curiosity got the best of me, and I looked at the contents of the envelope. I knew it was wrong, and that I probably shouldn't invade, but I couldn't help it.

I looked at it for a few moments before realizing it was in German. There were a few English words here and there, but the one that stuck out the most to me was the word ABORTION.

I was shocked, and I dropped the letter. Ruby had been pregnant with FP's baby, but she had gotten around to getting rid of it before anyone could say otherwise. Had she told FP, he might have broken out of his insanity. Losing Ruby had been hard on him, and Gladys had been talking to him about getting a divorce lately.

As he slowly lost his mind, my sister was living it up in Germany. She partied hard, that I knew for sure. She should be disgusted with herself, as this was a new low even for her.

It was around three in the morning when Ruby dragged her drunk ass back home, and not trying to be quiet, mind you. She yelped and hollered about something or another as she marched loudly up the stairs. Dad didn't get up to yell at her, and I decided it was best if I didn't interfere either.

She slammed the door of her room shut, and I thought there would be silence for the first time since she got home. The waterworks started, and she howled in pain for hours until it was time for Dad to get up to do his morning paper route.

He had started this as a way to try and be a productive member of society, but also to forget about the pain of Ruby running away had caused. I didn't mind, and I had become numb to most of the things that happened since she left.

Jughead broke up with me for Betty, but we remained friends. I started stripping at the Whyte Wyrm, but Dad almost murdered me when he found out. I found that the strip club out of town seemed to have better tippers anyways.

Once it was noon the next day, Ruby marched down the stairs looking like the dead. She groaned about the sunlight and not having a smoke, which I supplied her with.

'Thanks, sis,' she sat down on the tattered couch and lit her smoke.

I nodded, and we started watching some dumb reality show on T.V. silently. She didn't say much, but I got up to make breakfast not long after she joined me. Ruby looked stick thin, and I think a good meal would make her feel better from the night she seemed to have.

'Can I get some coffee, please?' she whined, and I started up the coffee maker.

She complained about the sounds hurting her head, so I got her some ibuprofen and water. She napped while I cooked a meal consisting of eggs, pancakes and bacon. There was store-bought orange juice that I decided would serve as a good source of vitamins for poor Ruby.

She made me pity her, but I had no real feelings left for anyone. Like my sister, I was an empty shell of a person, and nothing I could do would change that.