The Professor's Daughter [Part 2 of 2]

4 | Sacrifices

Leah's POV

Even after both Jennifer and Danielle have advised against it, I am headed back to my parents house. I arrive and I don't see any cars in the driveway and I also find that the door is locked. Obviously when I was storming out this morning the last thing on my mind was grabbing a house key. Looks like I'll be finding an alternate way inside.

I walk to the back of the house and pull my jacket sleeve down and clench it in my fist. I use my elbow to smash in one of the little glass rectangles on the backdoor, and I reach in and unlock it from the inside. Not totally sure how much time I have before all hell breaks loose and my parents come homes rush around to pack myself a bag with as many of my things in it as I can fit and I stash it outside where I can get it later on.

I hear the sound of a key turning in the door, followed by hard, brisk footsteps trailing through the kitchen and down the narrow hallway. As they grow closer, my heartbeat gets louder. My father steps into my view and does a double take when he sees me sitting on the coffee table just staring at him.

"What the hell are you doing back here?" He mutters and sets down his phone and car keys on the closest table. "Came to get my shit." I hiss at him. "Get your shit? And go where? You have no money, no car, no job, no phone... you have nothing, Leah. You are incapable of living on your own." "Why does where I go matter to you? You afraid I'll be too far away from you to hit me?" I ask, being a smart ass. I know what makes him tick. I know what words set him off. Right now I am trying to do just that.

"Shut the hell up, Leah. You are so full of shit. No one will ever believe a thing you say. All you are is the crazy little girl who ran away for another girl." "Jennifer loves me and cares for me a hell of a lot more than you ever did. I love her and there is not a damn thing in this world you can do to change that." "Leah, stop trying to be a badass and get upstairs. We all know you aren't leaving." He says, turning his back on me. I let out a deep, angry sigh and stand up. "It must really suck for you... you know? Realizing you can't push me around the way you can with mom. It must kill you to see that your daughter is bisexual, independent, and has a backbone." As the words leave my mouth he faces me and cuts his eyes at me. Here he goes...

"Excuse you?" "You heard me. You're nothing but a weak, pathetic, piece-of-shit who has to beat on his wife and daughter to feel powerful. Tell me, does it make up for it? That's obviously why you do it... you're abusive because you're compensating for something. What is it, dad?" "You shut your mouth now." He hisses, getting closer and pointing in my face. I laugh and shake my head, "what is it? Did I hit a nerve?" I grin. He finally rares back and slaps me across my face from left to right. I sigh and shake it off, looking at him as if it did nothing.

"Weak." I mutter, my face still hot from the hit he delivered seconds ago. My comment further infuriates him and he strikes me again, this time with a closed fist and making contact at my cheekbone. I glare at him and touch my cheek, when I examine my hand I see a little blood and I giggle, taunting him. "This is what you do to mom all those nights? Wow, I can do more damage than-" I am stopped when he strikes me a third time, only in the mouth.

I look down and see a drop of blood hit the white run under my feet. I take a breath and look up at him, spitting my blood and saliva into his face. "Fuck you." I hiss. He uses his hand to take me by the throat and he pushes me to the wall. "Entitled little brat. You'll never amount to anything. Now get that blood off of my floor." He grits, throwing me down and shaking his fist out. I kneel on the floor for a moment and he starts to laugh.

I stand up and use my foot to flip over one of the smaller tables in the room. He looks at me and shakes his head, "you're making a bigger mess for yourself to clean up." He smarts. I shake my head and lick my bloody lips, "you'll regret this." I mutter and spit into the floor once again before storming out of the house, his voice screaming behind me the whole time.

I get down the street a ways before I call Danielle from Jennifer's phone and she comes to pick me up. I get inside and pull the hoodie off of my head and the glasses from my face. "How is this?" I ask her, eyes black, cheeks gashed, lip busted, and my teeth stained red from blood. She shakes her head and pulls me to her, hugging me.

-

11:00pm comes around and I am lying in the center of Jennifer's massive bed, totally alone. Danielle left about two hours ago per my request and I haven't closed my eyes for a second yet. I can't get my brain to stop. All I can think about is Jennifer. I am lying in her bed, surrounded by her scent and wearing her shirt... how can I not think about her? This is not right.

Hours and hours go by, dragging on forever it seems like. I turn onto my side when my phone vibrates and lights up the entire bedroom. I see Danielle's name and notice the time too. Three in the morning and I haven't slept a blink. Wow.

iMessage: Danielle, 3:43am:

I hope this doesn't wake you if you are sleeping, but are you sleeping?

Me, 3:44am:

Not a blink.

Danielle, 3:44am:

I didn't think you would be. I have to be in court tomorrow for a while, but after that I am planning on going to see Jennifer. From there I can come by her apartment if you want? We can have dinner together or something. I know we do not know each other all that well, Leah. I also know that is is hard on you.

I take a moment and sigh hard. Despite meeting only yesterday, I think that Danielle is the only person I have at the moment who I trust entirely. I feel so lost and distraught. I feel my eyes get watery and a teardrop slides down my left cheek, over the cut my dad created and down to my busted lip.

Me, 3:46am:

Thank you for being here, and for doing everything in your power to make this situation right. I can imagine that I must not be your favorite person in the world, and I'm sure you blame me for a lot of this, but it means more than you know to me that you're here and helping. Dinner tomorrow would be great.

Danielle, 3:47am:

I'll see you tomorrow around 6:00. Get some sleep, Jennifer would want that for you.

There is no way I could get through this situation without Danielle's help. She's smart and she thinks rationally when I can't, which is pretty often apparently. I am not sure of anything right now, which is why I need her guidance through this. The only thing I am sure of at this moment is that I will do whatever it takes, make whatever sacrifices are necessary to get Jennifer back in my arms.