What if the seven dwarfs never really existed and were just branches of Snow White's personality? Happy for the good days, Grumpy for the bad, Sneezy when under the weather and Bashful around that special someone. What if every time you looked into...
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There she was.
Sitting all by herself under the light of a single street lamp, there she was, her eyes swollen and her lip trembling in despair. I'd never seen her looking so devastated before. She looked utterly broken.
I'd always believed that I could fix her up when she cracked, but now, she looked too hard to fix.
"What are you doing out here all alone?" I asked, scared to hear her answer. I knew she'd been through hell, but a part of me always thought of her as the cool-headed one. No matter how much she had to deal with, she came out looking unfazed.
"I have nowhere left to go,"she said, a hint of a smile playing on her lips and her eyes welling up with tears. The reason hit me immediately.
"You told them?" I asked, terrified on her behalf. I bit back a gasp upon seeing her arms that were covered in bruises. She took my hand in hers in an attempt to calm me down, and that was when the absurdity of the situation hit me. I was supposed to be calming her down, not the other way. Yet again, she was the cool-headed one.
"I did,"she sighed. I found myself starting to tear up too, upon hearing her confirmation. It was just too sad, what was happening to her. She deserved better. After all, it wasn't like she could change who she was just for them to accept her.
"How long have you been out here?"I asked, and she refused to answer. She just kept her gaze locked on the ground and furiously wiped away her falling tears.
"Why can't they love me, Ted?" she asked, and I wanted to hug her. I wanted to wrap her in a warm blanket, get her some hot chocolate and tell her everything was going to be alright. She didn't deserve to be treated the way she was. She didn't deserve any of it.
"They don't understand. They probably never will, Em. But you need to look past that. Remember the people who love you for who you are. It's good you came in the open, because if you didn't, you never would've found out how undeserving they are to have you in their lives. They're not worth it if they don't love you for you."
"Ted, this isn't a breakup. THEY'RE MY PARENTS. I got kicked out of my own house. I have nowhere left to go!" she said, agitatedly. "You can stay over at mine,"I supplied, without a second of hesitation. But the both of us knew this wasn't like the old times.
Thea and Emma had been best friends practically all their lives, so just like how Will eventually became close to Thea, I got closer to Emma. Even now, Em was at my house more often than not, either helping out with babysitting or cooking dinner. Emma was the only one who knew about everything revolving around my father's death. Even Will was kept in the dark about a certain number of things. Similarly, Thea and I already knew about Emma's sexuality. We had to act surprised in front of the group when she came out of the closet and I had to be extra careful not to spill anything to Ava, even when she was insanely curious as to why Emma had shown up at the support group the last time. Thankfully, now we didn't have to act quite as cautious since everyone knew.
"And what would your mom say to that?" Em asked, chewing the bottom of her lip nervously. "I'm sure that once we explain everything, she's going to be perfectly alright with it."
"Ted, you're facing financial issues with just the three of you at home. Imagine a third child popping up out of nowhere. Do you really think your mom will be open to that idea?" Em asked incredulously. I sighed hopelessly. She was right. My mother wasn't cruel enough to send her away, but she'd definitely make subtle hints till the point that Em would get uncomfortable and leave. I didn't want her to endure that.
"How about Ava's?" I asked, and Em shook her head.
"Look, your girlfriend is sweet and all, but I barely know her. I think it'd be a major violation if I turned up at an acquaintance's house and asked if I could live with them."
"You know what? It's late. You're coming home with me and you're not arguing with me about it. We can figure out what to do in the morning. Okay?" I asked, and she nodded feebly. Taking my hand, she hoisted herself up from the bench and we made our way home in silence.
The whole time, all I could think about was how brave she'd been through all of it. Unknowingly, she'd inspired everyone around her to stand up for themselves and hold their heads up a notch higher.
She was the one who'd helped Thea break out of her shell, who'd given me the courage to ask Ava out, who'd convinced Elody to publish her poetry online and who'd shown Ace that he deserved to be loved.
Yet here she was, broken beyond measure because she wasn't given back the love she spread.
A/N Here's a little filler chapter to give you some insight on Emma's life. Hope you liked it! Please vote, comment and share <3
