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When we pull up in the driveway of the Fuentes house, Vic kisses me one last time before we have to go inside.
I’m scared to go inside so I make the kiss last.
“Kellin, if you keep kissing me, my lips are going to be swollen.” He chuckles and I feel more anxiety rise up in me.
Is he going to be angry with me about that too?
“You okay?” He asks. “You’ve seemed off since lunch.” Vic frowns and I nod.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I lie.
“Well come on, we have to go inside.” He smiles and I nod.
I follow him inside, walking slower than usual, trying to postpone whatever’s going to happen as much as possible.
When we enter the house, we’re greeted by Papa Fuentes.
“Hey boys, how was your day?” He asks.
“It was great.” I grin.
“That’s wonderful Kellin.” Papa smiles then he glances at Vic questioningly.
“Yeah, good.” Vic smiles softly, making Papa smile wider.
“That’s good. You boys need to go put your things away. We’re taking Kellin to the doctors.” He explains and my stomach drops.
“Why? Am I sick?” I ask scared.
I’ve never been to a doctor before.
“I’m sure you’re fine Kellin.” He chuckles. “It’s just a check up.”
“Oh.” I sigh relieved.
“Oh Papa, I think we’ve found what Kellin likes to do for fun.” Vic says pulling out the drawing of him and he hands it to Papa who’s eyes go wide.
“Viv, you have to see this.” He calls and Mama comes into the room.
“What is it?” She questions then papa hands her my drawing. “Kellin, did you draw this?”
I nod blushing a little.
“You are so talented Honey.” She grins, handing Vic the drawing.
“We’ll have to get you some pencils and a sketchbook.” Papa says and my eyes go wide in excitement.
“Really?” I ask.
“Yeah. We’ll get them on the way home. Go on. We need to go.” Papa smiles kindly.
Vic and I then head up to our room. On the way, my anxiety returns. When we enter Vic closes the door making my heart leap to my throat. I anxiously drop my bag on my bed and turn back to Vic.
He steps towards me and I take a step back, hitting the edge of my bed so I can’t go any further. He gives me a confused look but shrugs it off as he takes my hips and kisses me. When he pulls away he looks at me dreamily.
“What was I doing?” He mumbles, with a smirk. “Punishment. Right.”
My breath hitches as he pushes me down onto my bed and climbs on top of me. I’m ridden with fear until he slides his hands up my shirt and he starts tickling me. I shriek and wriggle around trying to escape his fingertips but I can’t move due to him being on top of me.
“Vic.” I cough out between laughs. “Oh g-god. Please. Don’t. Stop.”
“What was that? Don’t stop? As you wish.” He says as his fingertips dance over my skin mercilessly and I laugh loudly, not being about to help it.
“Vic,” I whine breathlessly. “Please.”
“Promise me that you’ll stay with me forever. Promise me that you’ll marry me some day.” He whispers, as he stops tickling me.
I’m still trying to recover from the tickling as I run his words through my head over and over again. Vic just stares at me with the most blank expression, maybe even a bit of fear.
Does he really want to marry me one day? Does he really want to be with me that long? Will I really have a husband one day? What about kids? Could I have kids?
I cup his cheek and pull his lips down to mine and he kisses me tenderly.
“I promise.” I whisper, pulling away.
A grin spreads across his face and he rolls off of me, taking my hand in his.
“You mean that?” He questions hopefully.
“Only if you promise too.” I whisper, the mere thought of us not being together forever scaring me.
“I promise.” He whispers back, pushing some hair out of my face.
We lie in silence for a little bit, completely forgetting that we have somewhere to be.
“You were scared.” Vic says out of nowhere. “You thought I was going to hurt you.”
“I’m sorry.” I say regretfully.
“No, don’t apologise. It’s not your fault.” He says followed by an entire minute of tense silence.
I don’t know what he’s thinking about but he’s staring at me intensely with that blank expression.
“I would never hurt you Kells. Not in any way, shape or form. You’re always safe around me. I will never hurt you nor will i ever let anyone or anything else hurt you.” He explains.
“I know.” I smile. “I trust you.”
“Good.” He murmurs, pecking my lips then he sits up. “Come on, we should really go.”
I nod and follow him out of the room and down the stairs.
“What took you boys so long?” Mama asks.
“Sorry, got distracted.” Vic shrugs.
I blush and look away, making Papa give me a curious look.
We leave the house and pile into the family car before Papa starts driving towards the doctors–I think.
“Kell, the doctor is going to need to touch you to examine you.” Mama says softly and my heart leaps to my throat.
I’m still not at all comfortable with being touched by strangers, especially adults.
“Uh, I-I don’t want.” I stumble out not even sure what exactly I’m trying to say.
“I know sweetie but it’ll be okay. The doctor is only there to help. She’s not going to hurt you.” She says reassuringly.
I nod still feeling rather uncomfortable with a stranger touching me. Vic gives me a reassuring smile but I don’t even think that could help calm me right now.
When we arrive at the medical centre everyone gets out of the car, everyone except me. I can’t move. I’m frozen.
“Poor kid.” I hear Mama sigh.
“I’ll go talk to him.” Vic says.
The car door opens and Vic kneels down. He rests his hand on my knee and rubs it comfortingly.
“Angel, you have nothing to worry about. I told you, I’d never let anyone hurt you.” He whispers.
“Oh.” I smile in realization. He makes a good point. “Yeah, okay.”
He smiles and quickly kisses my hand. He stands back up and I get out of the car. He closes the door and we begin walking into the building. I’m still anxious but I feel a lot better. I really want to hold Vic’s hand right now but I know I can’t.
Papa goes up to the desk and speaks to the lady while Mama, Vic and I take a seat. Mama wraps her arm around me and I rest my head on her shoulder.
“Why don’t we go get some ice cream after this, yeah?” Mama suggests and I shake my head, even though ice cream would be amazing.
“Oh no. We don’t have to. You do enough for me as it is.” I mumble.
She smiles and kisses the top as it is.
“That’s very considerate of you Kell but honestly, it’s no problem.” She smiles but it only makes me frown.
“I could like do some chores or something.” I sigh.
“Honey, you don’t need to feel obligated to do anything.” She says.
“But you do so much for me. There has to be something I can do to help out.” I mumble.
She looks contemplative for a minute until a smirk appears on her lips.
“I know what you could do for me.” She smiles.
“Anything.” I grin and she leans over so her lips are close to my ear.
“Look after Vic for me and keep him as happy as you can.” She whispers. “Can you do that for me?
“Gladly.” I grin and she hugs me tighter.
A lady steps out of a room and calls my name. I take a breath and stand up along with everyone else. We go into the room and I shakily sit down in a chair.
“Hello Kellin, I’m Dr. McDougall.” The doctor says with a bright friendly smile.
“Hi.” I whisper shyly.
“Now I have a copy of the police report just to get a rough estimate of what injuries and health problems you’ve endeavoured whilst living with your parents.” She says and I feel even more uncomfortable at the mention of my parents. “To get through everything to make sure you’re completely okay, we’re going to need to make more appointments. First of all, we’re going to look at the damage to your skin. Just make sure there’s no serious injuries or infections.”
“Okay.” I whisper.
She’s asks me to stand up and I do. She tells me to sit on the edge of the bed so I do that and then she pulls the curtain around us.
“Can you get undressed for me?” She asks making me panic a little.
“Mama.” I whimper.
“I’m here Kells.” Mama smiles, slipping through the curtain.
“I’m only here to help, sweetie.” Dr. McDougall says.
I nod and do as I’m told, pulling off my clothes, remembering that Vic would never let anyone hurt me.
The doctor tries to touch my arm but I let out a scream and start sobbing as i cling onto Mama tightly.
“Hey, you’re okay. Everything’s fine.” Mama whispers rubbing my back.
Dr. McDougall climbs up on the bed and sits next to me.
“I’m going to have to touch you Kellin. I need go make sure you’re okay. But how about we just sit and talk for a bit?” She asks.
“Yes please.” I whisper.
She smiles and nods.
“Well my name’s Jenna. Feel free to call me by my first name. I was born in Australia.” She says.
“Is that why you talk funny?” I ask and she laughs.
“Yes, I have an accent.” She says.
“I like it.” I chirp.
“Thank you.” She beams. “Do you go to school Kellin?” Jenna asks.
“Yep.” I smile.
“What’s your favourite class?” She questions.
“Art.” I nod.
“Oh that’s nice. I never was good at art. I liked music though.” She says.
“Vic likes music.” I murmur, blushing at the thought of him.
“Do you and Vic get along?” She asks.
“Yeah. He’s my b-” I quickly cut myself off after nearly spilling our secret. “Best friend. Vic’s my best friend.”
“Do you have any other friends?” She asks and I shake my head.
“Am I supposed to?” I ask worried.
“No, you don’t have to. Sometimes all you need is that one great friend.” She smiles. “Is Vic the only friend you’ve ever had?”
“No. I had a friend once. His name was Justin.” I chirp, remembering back to the boy that I kissed all those years ago.
“Where’s Justin now?” She asks.
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since I was young.” I frown.
“That’s okay. We all have friends that we lose touch with.” She says.
She grabs my hand gently and examines it.
“Your nails could use some work. You know, my girlfriend gives a great manicure.” She beams.
“You have a girlfriend?” I ask in wonder.
“I do. In fact, she knows you. She doesn’t stop talking about you.” Jenna chuckles.
“Who is she?” I ask confused.
“Tay, silly.” She chuckles.
“Taylor is your girlfriend?” I ask beaming.
“Yes. Do you like her?” She asks.
She begins examining my arm, more specifically, the scars and the healing scabs. I no longer feel so nervous about her touching me. I guess it’s because I trust Taylor and Taylor is dating Jenna so Jenna must be good.
“Taylor is great. She’s so nice.” I grin.
“She is.” Jenna nods.
I look down at my nails as she runs her fingers over my arm.
“Could Taylor fix my nails?” I ask.
“She sure could. She can make them all shiny and smooth. She could even colour them if you like.” She explains.
She lifts my arm up slowly and I grit my teeth as I feel my shoulder ache.
“Does that hurt Sweetie?” She asks and I nod. “How long has it been hurting for?”
“A while before I left Mother and Father.” I explain and she frowns.
“Okay.” She says as she continues to look over me. “And I could fix up your hair if you want. Cut it all little. Style it.”
“Yes please.” I grin.
“Well maybe you can all come over next week for dinner?” She says.
She looks up Mama questioningly.
“That sounds lovely.” She nods with a smile.
“Great.” Jenna chirps. “I’ll talk to Tay later tonight and organise a time and day.”
We talk some more and Jenna tells me stories about her and Tay as she looks over my body.
We she’s finished she tells me to put my clothes back on. I do just that as she talks to Mama.
“He has a few cuts and burns that have gotten infected. I’ll prescribe him some medication and cream. I also think that his left shoulder was fractured and hasn’t healed properly. I’ll put it in a sling but you’re going to need to get an X-ray.” Jenna explains.
She then goes on to put some fabric around my arm and shoulder, making it hang against my stomach.
“This is going to help your shoulder stop hurting. Try not to move your arm too much.” she says and I nod. “Any other pain or uncomfortableness that I need to know about?”
I shake my head not being able to think of anything right now and she nods with a kind smile.
“Okie dokie. We’re finished with that.” She smiles, pulling back the curtain so I can see Papa and Vic.
Vic looks up at me and gives me a gentle smile. I smile back just happy that I can see his handsome face again.
“Kell, come stand on this for me.” Jenna says pointing to a set of scales.
I stand on the scales and numbers come up that Jenna writes down.
“You can take a seat now Kellin.” She tells me and I bounce back over to the seat next to Vic.
Vic glances at me with a blank expression although I can see the little smile tugging at his lips. He probably doesn’t want to be too obvious in front of Mama and Papa. Jenna slides over to me on her wheely chair with a few things in her hand. One of them is a stick that she holds up to my mouth.
“Open your mouth and say ‘ah’.” She instructs and I do just that as she places the stick on my tongue and shines the light in my mouth.
She takes it out of my mouth and then puts something in my ear as she looks into it.
“Everything seems fine.” She says turning to Mama and Papa. “He is still a little underweight. Just keep him eating and he should be fine. I’m going to draw some blood so I can do some tests. Then I’m going to give him two injections. He needs many more but I can only do two today.”
I don’t know what she’s talking about but I decide not to worry about it too much. She won’t hurt me. She seems too nice for that and besides, Vic said that he’d never let anyone hurt me.
Jenna puts something around my right arm and tells me to open and close my hand. I do that as she gets something ready. When she turns back to me, she takes the thing off and holds up something that looks sharp. I start silently freaking out and begin reassuring myself until she says something that makes me lose it.
“This is going to go in your arm, okay?”
I let out a little squeal and leap up from the chair before jumping back behind Vic.
“Kellin, it’s okay.” Jenna says softly and I cower away from her.
“Kell, honey, she needs to do it. It’ll only hurt for a minute.” Mama chimes in and I start crying.
Vic slides off his chair and kneels down next to me.
“Kells, it’ll be okay.” He whispers.
“You said that you wouldn’t let anyone hurt me.” I choke out.
“Kell, some kind of hurts are good hurts.” He begins to explain. “Remember when Dr. McDougall lifted your arm up and that hurt your shoulder?”
I nod seeing as it was only a few minutes ago.
“Well, now it doesn’t hurt so much, does it?” He says making a good point. “This is only going to hurt for now but it needs to be done.”
I nod and stand back up, wiping my tears. I sit back on my chair. Vic sits down next to me and that relaxes me a little.
“Jenna?” I sniff.
“Yes Sweetie?” She answers.
“Why do you need to put that in my arm?” I ask.
“It’s going to take some blood out so I can do some tests on the blood. The tests will tell me if there’s anything wrong.” She explains and I nod.
“What if there’s something wrong?” I ask anxious.
“Then we’ll fix it.” She chirps. “Okay, I need you to just relax for me.”
She tries to stick the thing in my arm again but I flinch and whimper.
“Kellin, it’s going to hurt more if you’re tense.” She sighs.
I frown and look at her pleadingly.
“Kell, turn around.” Vic says and I give him a confused look.
I spin around on my chair so I’m facing him and facing away from Jenna. His soft brown eyes are enough to relax me.
“If you be brave, then we’ll get out of here and go get you a sketchbook and some pencils.” He explains and I nod.
I feel a prick in my arm and I start to freak out. I try to look at my arm but Vic places his hand on my face and pulls it back to his.
“What’s the first thing you’re going to draw?” He asks and I think hard about it.
“I don’t know.” I mumble.
“There has to be something.” Vic says.
“Um, maybe I could draw myself.” I murmur. “I’ve never drawn myself before.”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea.” Vic beams.
“You do?” I ask hopefully.
“Yeah, I definitely do.” He grins.
There’s another sharp sting in my arm and I look towards it. This time Vic doesn’t stop me. There’s just a little dot of blood and it barely hurts. Jenna grabs something out of a drawer and turns to me.
“Do you want a normal bandaid or a Sponge Bob one?” She asks.
“Sponge Bob.” I beam and she puts the bandaid where the blood is.
“That’s all done.” She grins.
“Already?” I question.
“Yep.” She nods. “I just need to give you two injections and then you can go.”
“Injections?” I ask as she starts preparing more needles.
“It’s like what I just did but instead of taking blood out, I’m going to be putting medicine in. These aren’t going to hurt as much as the last one. You probably won’t even feel it.” She says although I’m still scared but Vic starts talking to me about food.
Jenna tells me it’s all done as she puts two more Band-Aids on my arm. I didn’t even feel a prick.
“You’re good to go.” She says as I turn back around facing her.
She prints off pieces of paper and hands them to Papa as she talks to him and Mama.
“Thank you.” I whisper to Vic and he gives me a soft nod.
“I hate needles too. A distraction always helps.” He explains.
After Jenna finishes talking to Mama and Papa we get ready to leave but then Jenna hands me a lollypop.
“This is for being so brave.” She says.
“Thank you.” I grin.
She ruffles my hair and tells me that she’ll see me soon then we leave the doctors.
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