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Jun. 2nd, 2005 08:12 pmLilly is lying out by her pool. It's quiet and warm and she's almost asleep when the shadow falls over her.
"Excuse me, you're in my sun," she says, not bothering to open her eyes.
”Where are the tapes?” a voice growls at her. Lilly blinks, looks up.
“Uh, hi Mr. Echolls. Logan’s not here.” Her boyfriend’s- ex-boyfriend’s father is standing over her, his face tight with anger in a way that reminds her of his movies.
“Never mind that, you stupid bitch. I know you were at the house, I know you took the tapes, I want them back!”
For a moment, Lilly is confused. She had been at the house, dropping off a box of Logan’s stuff. Same box from the last time they’d broken up, actually. It was part of the pattern. This time, though, she’d discovered his secret video set up at the poolhouse and stolen the tapes as revenge. Why his *dad* wants video of what's probably her and Logan having sex is both creepy as hell and beyond her.
“You want the tapes?”
“Don’t play dumb with me! You think I’m just going to let you show those to Lynn or sell them to some sleazy tabloid?”
And it clicks. The hidden video cameras aren’t Logan’s, they’re his dad’s. He’s been cheating on his wife in their own poolhouse and taping it. Nice, but not unexpected from an alcoholic child-abusing asshole movie star. And Lilly gets an idea.
“I won’t show them to Lynn. I won’t sell them to any tabloids. I’ll give them back to you… on Logan’s eighteenth birthday.” Lilly stands up to face him.
“What are you talking about?” Aaron Echolls stares at her, angry and puzzled.
“I’ll give you back those tapes on Logan’s eighteenth birthday if, and only if, you don’t even touch him between now and then.”
Aaron’s face darkens.
“What the hell are you talking about? Who the fuck are you to tell me how to raise my son?”
Aaron speaks in cliches and his anger is something Lilly’s seen a hundred times in the movies, and maybe that’s why the whole thing feels slightly unreal to her, like she’s playing a scene. Her own anger, however, is genuine.
“I’m his girlfriend!” Lilly retorts. “And I’ve been seeing the bruises you’ve left on him for the past two years, and I’m fucking sick of it! Logan would never let me say anything, but I don’t even care anymore. You don’t get to turn him into the same kind of bastard you are. He’s better than that.”
Aaron’s face contorts with rage, and it’s so ridiculous-looking that Lilly almost laughs.
“You stupid fucking bitch! There’s no way I’ll let you ruin my career over this bullshit!” Aaron’s snarling the last word as he snatches a heavy solid glass tray off the patio table and strikes out at her and there is a searing pain in her temple and Lilly falls…
The next thing Lilly remembers is her brother's voice.
"Lilly! Lilly, wake up! Please wake up Lilly, please!" Duncan's crying and rocking her and she wants to say something but she can't. She can't even open her eyes.
"Duncan!" Her father. "Duncan, what happened? Oh God, Lilly!" he breaks off with a strangled cry. Duncan doesn't respond, he's rocking her still but he's stopped talking and Lilly knows he's gone into one of his things.
"He's having a fit." Celeste's voice, shaken but strong. "He must have hurt her but it was by accident. He won't remember... We can't let him suffer for this, Jake. It's not his fault."
Lilly hears nothing but sobbing for a moment. She's still being rocked, and she still can't open her eyes or make any noise, no matter how hard she tries.
"Oh God, Celeste..." her father trails off. "Is she... is it too late? Is she... dead?" Jake's voice breaks horribly on that word.
"Leave her, Duncan." Footsteps, and Celeste sounds suddenly closer and louder. "Go inside, Duncan. Leave her to me."
Lilly relaxes a little inside, the panic of being unable to move or talk dimming as her mother speaks. Her words to Duncan are tender, soft, soothing. They make Lilly remember when she was much younger, how her mother would buy her pretty outfits and dress her up and show her off, speaking to her in the same tone she's using with Duncan now. Lilly called Celeste Mommy then, and firmly believed Mommy could make everything better. Now, lying broken and bleeding on the concrete she can barely sense beneath her, she believes it again. And suddenly, she is able to open her eyes.
Her vision is blurred, doubled, but she can see. Jake and Duncan are gone, inside the house, and Celeste is leaning over her. Her mother looks shocked, and Lilly realizes with a surge of joy that she knows now, she knows Lilly is still alive, still fighting and she can help and her mommy will make it better.
Celeste turns away from her.
"Jake!" she calls towards the house. "It's too late, Jake. She's dead. Call Clarence, he can help us. We can trust him. No one must be able to say that Duncan did this."
Her mother's words sink in, and Lilly slowly begins to understand. No one must be able to say that Duncan did this. Celeste's precious baby boy is only safe if the daughter she thinks he attacked is dead. There's no other way she can guarantee that Lilly won't recover and contradict whatever cover story they come up with. Her mother isn't going to save her. She's going to save Duncan's future instead.
Lilly closes her eyes and listens as her mother's heels click away over the concrete. For a time, there is nothing but the growing dark and cold and then, briefly, there is the sound of wings.
"Excuse me, you're in my sun," she says, not bothering to open her eyes.
”Where are the tapes?” a voice growls at her. Lilly blinks, looks up.
“Uh, hi Mr. Echolls. Logan’s not here.” Her boyfriend’s- ex-boyfriend’s father is standing over her, his face tight with anger in a way that reminds her of his movies.
“Never mind that, you stupid bitch. I know you were at the house, I know you took the tapes, I want them back!”
For a moment, Lilly is confused. She had been at the house, dropping off a box of Logan’s stuff. Same box from the last time they’d broken up, actually. It was part of the pattern. This time, though, she’d discovered his secret video set up at the poolhouse and stolen the tapes as revenge. Why his *dad* wants video of what's probably her and Logan having sex is both creepy as hell and beyond her.
“You want the tapes?”
“Don’t play dumb with me! You think I’m just going to let you show those to Lynn or sell them to some sleazy tabloid?”
And it clicks. The hidden video cameras aren’t Logan’s, they’re his dad’s. He’s been cheating on his wife in their own poolhouse and taping it. Nice, but not unexpected from an alcoholic child-abusing asshole movie star. And Lilly gets an idea.
“I won’t show them to Lynn. I won’t sell them to any tabloids. I’ll give them back to you… on Logan’s eighteenth birthday.” Lilly stands up to face him.
“What are you talking about?” Aaron Echolls stares at her, angry and puzzled.
“I’ll give you back those tapes on Logan’s eighteenth birthday if, and only if, you don’t even touch him between now and then.”
Aaron’s face darkens.
“What the hell are you talking about? Who the fuck are you to tell me how to raise my son?”
Aaron speaks in cliches and his anger is something Lilly’s seen a hundred times in the movies, and maybe that’s why the whole thing feels slightly unreal to her, like she’s playing a scene. Her own anger, however, is genuine.
“I’m his girlfriend!” Lilly retorts. “And I’ve been seeing the bruises you’ve left on him for the past two years, and I’m fucking sick of it! Logan would never let me say anything, but I don’t even care anymore. You don’t get to turn him into the same kind of bastard you are. He’s better than that.”
Aaron’s face contorts with rage, and it’s so ridiculous-looking that Lilly almost laughs.
“You stupid fucking bitch! There’s no way I’ll let you ruin my career over this bullshit!” Aaron’s snarling the last word as he snatches a heavy solid glass tray off the patio table and strikes out at her and there is a searing pain in her temple and Lilly falls…
The next thing Lilly remembers is her brother's voice.
"Lilly! Lilly, wake up! Please wake up Lilly, please!" Duncan's crying and rocking her and she wants to say something but she can't. She can't even open her eyes.
"Duncan!" Her father. "Duncan, what happened? Oh God, Lilly!" he breaks off with a strangled cry. Duncan doesn't respond, he's rocking her still but he's stopped talking and Lilly knows he's gone into one of his things.
"He's having a fit." Celeste's voice, shaken but strong. "He must have hurt her but it was by accident. He won't remember... We can't let him suffer for this, Jake. It's not his fault."
Lilly hears nothing but sobbing for a moment. She's still being rocked, and she still can't open her eyes or make any noise, no matter how hard she tries.
"Oh God, Celeste..." her father trails off. "Is she... is it too late? Is she... dead?" Jake's voice breaks horribly on that word.
"Leave her, Duncan." Footsteps, and Celeste sounds suddenly closer and louder. "Go inside, Duncan. Leave her to me."
Lilly relaxes a little inside, the panic of being unable to move or talk dimming as her mother speaks. Her words to Duncan are tender, soft, soothing. They make Lilly remember when she was much younger, how her mother would buy her pretty outfits and dress her up and show her off, speaking to her in the same tone she's using with Duncan now. Lilly called Celeste Mommy then, and firmly believed Mommy could make everything better. Now, lying broken and bleeding on the concrete she can barely sense beneath her, she believes it again. And suddenly, she is able to open her eyes.
Her vision is blurred, doubled, but she can see. Jake and Duncan are gone, inside the house, and Celeste is leaning over her. Her mother looks shocked, and Lilly realizes with a surge of joy that she knows now, she knows Lilly is still alive, still fighting and she can help and her mommy will make it better.
Celeste turns away from her.
"Jake!" she calls towards the house. "It's too late, Jake. She's dead. Call Clarence, he can help us. We can trust him. No one must be able to say that Duncan did this."
Her mother's words sink in, and Lilly slowly begins to understand. No one must be able to say that Duncan did this. Celeste's precious baby boy is only safe if the daughter she thinks he attacked is dead. There's no other way she can guarantee that Lilly won't recover and contradict whatever cover story they come up with. Her mother isn't going to save her. She's going to save Duncan's future instead.
Lilly closes her eyes and listens as her mother's heels click away over the concrete. For a time, there is nothing but the growing dark and cold and then, briefly, there is the sound of wings.
