Sunshine

I stared up at my dad's house, unable to bring myself to to get out of the car. I sat there staring until someone rapped gently on the window beside me. I started and turned to see Henry standing beside my car in the driveway. For a minute we just stared a each other. Then before I could say anything, a girl stepped up beside him. He took her hand and they turned to walk into the house together. I sighed and pushed my door open. I hesitated again on the front porch but Alex opened the door and almost bumped into me.

"Whoa, hey Ladybug," he greeted me happily. I winced at the old nickname.

"Um, please don't call me that," I whispered quietly. He stepped aside to let me inside.

"Sorry," he apologized before letting himself outside. I could see that my family was milling around between the kitchen and the backyard. I quickly ducked towards the staircase, not wanting anyone to see me until I was ready. I sat on the third stair from the bottom and took several deep breaths, trying to calm down. I hadn't been inside this house in six years.

"Hey Sunshine," Henry greeted me, coming to sit beside me on the stairs. I smiled up at him but didn't say anything. We sat in silence until Alex came back through the front door. When he saw us, he came to sit on the stair below me.

"Abigail," Alex said softly. "Are you..." he trailed off. The problem was, that after so long, there was nothing we knew to say to each other anymore. "Are you still not okay after what happened? It's been six years." I stared at him with my mouth open. I closed my mouth and shook my head.

"No," I replied calmly. "I'm not. I never will be. He deprived me of my future. I will never get to have the life you are all getting ready to live. You're all settling down into serious relationships - Chris is married, Mark and Henry are both engaged, and I know that you're not far behind. You're all going to start having kids and live beautiful lives. Meanwhile, no one I've met can look past the scars. And I will never be able to have children after what he did to me. And now, I'm back here in this house, where it all started, where he did so many terrible things to me."

"Someone will love you enough not to care about all that," Henry reassured me. "You are so incredible, and when the right person sees that, nothing else will matter." I rolled my eyes at his naivety.

"Whatever." I stood and walked into the living room. Lisa had redecorated but I could still picture it the way it had been easily. I clutched my hand to my aching heart as I sank to my knees. I felt warm hands under my elbows as someone helped me to my feet. It was Henry, as usual. He kept a hand on one of my elbows as he guided me toward the backyard. My dad and Lisa greeted me in the kitchen. I hugged both of them but didn't stay to chat.

Outside Henry introduced me to his fiancee Erin. I greeted her, then my stepbrothers and their significant others. I was surprised to find a lot of people I didn't know milling around the backyard. It was an engagement party for Mark and his new fiancee, Liz. I recognized a few of their friends but most of the people walking around were strangers. After a few awkward attempts at conversation I slipped away down to the beach.

This had been my refuge once but now it just made me sad. I had almost died on this very beach. I swept my long skirt underneath me and sat staring at the ocean I'd once tried to give my life to. I was startled when someone sat next to me. I turned to stare at the stranger. He was incredibly handsome. I averted my gaze back to the water rather than meet his piercing stare.

"I'm sorry," he said politely. "I saw you back there at the party and you were the only other person who looked as uncomfortable as I felt. I can leave if you wanted to be alone."

"No, it's okay," I assured him quietly. He ducked into my field of vision.

"I'm Matt," he introduced himself. I slipped my hand into his offered one and shook it.

"Abigail," I replied with a smile. "So how do you know Mark and Liz?"

"Liz's mom and my mom have been best friends since they were kids," he explained. "She's basically like my little sister. What about you?"

"Mark is my stepbrother," I answered. His brow furrowed. "What?"

"I didn't know John had any other kids."

"Yeah, well my dad wasn't really there for me much most of my life." I closed my eyes. "Of course neither was my mother."

"Well, it seems like you grew up okay," Matt pointed out. I looked at him and tried to smile, but tears rolled from traitorous eyes instead.

"I don't think I did."