Desirable

~9. Mario Kart

That night, Louis took Clem back to his house so she could relax. She even said she wanted to stay with him. They cuddled up in his bed and she whispered what had happened in the locker room because Louis kept asking. She told him everything.

Sometimes she would hesitate and sniff, on the verge of tears. But Louis would always run his fingers through her hair and whisper soothing words to her. He knew exactly what to do and say when she was upset.

He listened to every quiet word she spoke and understood everything. He couldn't imagine the amount of pain she must have been through. 

That night, she fell asleep in his arms. Her eyes were red and her lips looked swollen from sobbing. 

~~~

After school the next day, Clem had to go home to change her clothes. She was wearing the same thing as yesterday but with a pair of Louis' boxers. She refused to wear the same underwear for two days straight, she found it disgusting. 

Clementine saw Sophie a few times during school hours - with a busted lip and a black eye. She made sure to thank Brody. 

However, she noticed that the redhead was texting on her phone and smiling a lot. 

The short girl gets home and puts her backpack on the floor behind the couch. Her father stands from it and smiles.

"Clem! Why don't you come and sit down, I can make you brownies." his kind voice was noted.

"I can't. I'm going round Marlon's with a few other friends, I'll probably be back late." It was true, they had made arrangements for people to go to the ratboy's house and probably watch movies and play video games. She turns and goes towards the stairs but her father's voice stops her. 

"I haven't seen you in days, you're always round a friend's house. Just stay here and eat something at least." he pleads, holding out a small plate of biscuits, no doubt set out just for AJ. 

"Dad, I'm not hungry."

"Oh come on, you must be. You just got back from school," he offers a smile and puts the plate down on the coffee table. 

"I'm seriously not hungry," her voice came out soft yet defensive. 

"I love you, sweetpea. I'm happy you're making friends but I don't want you to grow distant. They say distance is what kills off relations the most," he attempts to joke, sounding matter-of-fact-ly. 

Clem turns her whole body to face him. 

"Are you fucking serious right now?"

Lee didn't know what he did wrong to set her off, so he remained silent.

"Relations? You're not my real fucking dad! We are not related!" she yells, her voice coming out harsher than she wanted. 

Her words hurt Lee deeply.

"Wha- How could you even say something like that?!" his voice raised, appalled by the words that were coming out of her mouth. 

"Because it's true! You adopted me and AJ months after my parents died. You're not my real dad!" she could feel frustration and pinches of anger intertwined in her stomach. 

Lee takes a deep breath to gather his thoughts, not letting himself get upset around her. 

"Why are you bringing this up now? I love you Clem, I just don't want us to drift apart because of the adoption." his voice was now low and gentle, no longer seeming confrontational.

Clem's breathing becomes shaky and she gestures to him.

"That. That is one of my worse fears. That you love me too much as a parent and then something happens and we get separated. I don't want you to be as alone as I felt when my parents died." tears prick at her eyes and she bites her lip.