Blood on the Midnight Roses
EIGHT-The Ex And The Past Clash
CALISTA POV
I do not move, I don’t dare to. I don’t speak, nor think or look in his eyes. I just stand there, letting Crawford’s nails dig into my arms.
Calista’s Mind; This is what happens when you disobey mother. This is what you deserve
I knew that it was wrong to leave home, but something in me screamed for freedom. To get away for an hour and forget about everything, to act like a teenager. That’s all I want, however getting it and getting people to listen to my hearts desires is hard. I am trapped in this world.
Crawford; Cali darling, I hate harming you in anyway but you know not to break the rules. Anything could have happened to you, people have been talking and a lot of them are not happy with you. They could have hurt you, which is why your mother wanted you to stay at home today
He pulls me in way too close to his chest, the strong smell of his cologne making me sick to my stomach. He always wears too strong, designer stuff. I want to push him away, however I don’t want to get hurt anymore so I’m still as a statue.
Crawford; It’s ok now, I am here. We can give it another go and then no one will say a word to you
What? Is he fucking crazy? He wants to get back together? It would please my family, me the Mayor’s daughter and the son of the vicar as the perfect, popular couple. However I can’t go back, I don’t want to. He cheated on me, he hits me and makes me feel like shit. Why would I want that? And why is everyone so keen on me to get back together with this scam-bag? The only one who understood me and hated Crawford was Autumn.
Calista (mutters and scared); I, I, I don’t, don’t think, that’s, a, a, good idea. I, I, um, n, n, need, to, be, by my, myself
Crawford (angry); Why? We’re perfect for each other, and our families will be so pleased
Calista (shaking, yet getting more confident); But I don’t want to get back with you. You cheated on me. You hurt me and control me. I can’t be in a relationship with someone like that
I can feel Crawford’s rage boiling, his hands grip getting tighter. I shaking with fear, beating my lip so he doesn’t hear me cry. He likes it when I cry.
Calista (scared); Cr, Cr, Crawford. You’re, you’re, hurting, me. P, p, ple, please stop
Crawford (losing his temper); You seen to forget that I am the man and I can do whatever I want to you
Calista (crying a little); P, pl, pl, please. St, st, stop, it
Crawford (snapping); I just don’t understand you. I thought that now Autumn is gone that you’ll snap out of this behaviour. She clouded your mind and I thought that now you are free, we can be together
I can’t believe he just said that. That he would run Autumn’s name in the fucking mug. Now I’m pissed, I feel the rage and hate exploding in my gut. I don’t care what happens to me, I have to stand up for my friend. I look him dead in the eye, hate and anger glaring back at each other.
Calista (yelling); SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH! HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT AUTUMN THAT WAY! HAVE YOU NO FUCKING SHAME! NOW GET THIS THROUGH YOUR FUCKING HEAD, WE ARE NOT GETTING BACK TOGETHER! NOT NOW, NOT NEVER! SO FUCK OFF!
Once I’m done, I feel a little proud. I rarely stand up for myself, but when I do a sense of pride wash over me.
Crawford (quietly growls); You fucking bitch
Pride turns to fear as he twists my arm and his free hand in the air, ready to hit me. I close my eyes, preparing for the slap. It never comes. I open my eyes and I’m shocked at the scene before me. Malachi and Waldron have Crawford pinned to a nearby tree, while I am in Ascelin’s muscular arms. I know it’s him, I can’t explain it I just know. Crawford is just staring at Ascelin and me, his stare scaring me to the core. Ascelin can feel me shaking, so he kisses my forehead and rocks me.
Ascelin; Shhh Calista, its ok. He won’t hurt, never again
Crawford (yelling); GET THE FUCK OFF ME, YOU FREAKS! AND STAY AWAY FROM CALI, SHE’S MINE
Ascelin (laughs and smirks); Funny, I don’t see your name on her. And I believe I heard her say that she doesn’t want to be with you. Am I wrong brothers?
Malachi; Nope, I heard her say that as well
Waldron; She defo said it. I think the whole street heard her say it
Crawford (yelling); SHE’S JUST BEING STUPID! SHE NEEDS ME!
Ascelin (lets Calista go and growls); Don’t call her stupid
Oh shit, it’s going to go down. The look in Ascelin’s eyes screams “I’m going to kill you”. I place my hands on his firm chest, trying to hold him back. I feel so protective of him, I don’t want him to get hurt in anyway.
Unknown Male; What in the high Heavens is going on?
The violence comes to a standstill, at the sound of my father’s commanding voice. We all turn and face him, his bright blue eyes staring at us in wonder. And he’s not alone. On his right is my older brother Emerson, looking mad and disappointed. On his left is a tall pale man with kind yet firm dark brown eyes, long flowing dark grey hair and a smile fighting to get out. My mind fleshes back to the picture from before, of the Nightingales all dressed in white and it goes closer to this man’s face. It hits me, I know who he is. He’s Ascelin’s father, Idris. I step away from Ascelin, though it pains us both for me to do so, but I have to break this silence.
Calista (nervous); Welcome home father, Emerson
Sterling; Hello Cali, it’s good to be home
Emerson (snaps); Never mind the nice talk. What is Crawford pinned to a tree? And who are these freak shows?
Waldron (lets go of Crawford and pissed); Freak shows?
Idris (chirpy); Settle down Waldron, he means nothing by it. He’s just not use to seeing people like us. And Malachi, please let go of that gentleman
Malachi does what his father asks of him and he and Waldron walk back into the house, Waldron even giving me a secret cheeky wink as he walked by.
Emerson (annoyed); So, is someone going to tell me what is going on?
Crawford (pissed off); I’ll tell you what happened! I was sent here to check in on Cali and she wasn’t in the house, so I called out for her and she came out of THAT (pointing at the Nightingale house) house
The three man look right at me; my brother angry, Idris confused and my father worried.
Sterling; Is that true Cali?
Calista (nodding); Yes, I left the house. I was going to get some food and air and….
Shit, how do I explain what happened? My father and brother will find me crazy and put me into the looney bin if I speak the truth. May God forgive me, I have to lie.
Calista; And all of a sudden I fainted. I haven’t been eating as much, since Autumn pasted away. When I woke up, I found myself in the Nightingale house. Ascelin here (pointing to Ascelin) was taking care of me
Ascelin (jumping in); Yeah, I was helping unpack when I found Calista on the ground. I was worried so I brought her inside and made sure she was ok
Idris; Well you did the right thing Ascelin
Emerson (snaps); Yeah but it doesn’t explain why those two weirdos where pinning Crawford to the tree!
Crawford (snaps); They came out of nowhere and attacked me! Who the hell do they think they are?!
Idris (getting angry); They happen to be my sons, and I know for a fact that they and Ascelin wouldn’t harm anyone without reason. (Turning to Ascelin) My boy, why did the boys pin this man to the tree?
Ascelin sneaks a glance at me, his face asking me if it’s alright to say what happened outside. I nod, it’s ok.
Ascelin; When Calista heard Crawford yelling for her, she seemed a little scared when she left the house so me and my brothers followed her to make sure she was ok. And it’s a good thing we did. He was hurting her and ordering her to get back with him. When she said no, he was about to hit her when we stepped in
Sterling (facing me); And is that all true Cali dear?
Calista; Yes father, all true. I said no to him and get went crazy
Crawford (yelling); WELL YOU’RE NO ANGEL IN THIS CALI! YOU WERE SWEARING AND SCREAMING LIKE A MAD WOMAN FOR NO REASON!
Calista (yelling); NO REASON! YOU DRAGGED AUTUMN’S NAME THROUGH THE MUD, YOU FUCKING TWAT!
Emerson (yelling); CALISTA! MIND YOUR MANNERS!
Calista (yelling) FUCK YOU EM, YOU’RE NOT MY FUCKING DAD!
Sterling (snaps); Everyone calm down. Emerson, call your mother to let her know what’s going on, then call your wife to help out with the party
He turns to Ascelin and shakes his hand, welcoming him to the neighbourhood. He turns to Idris and places a hand on his shoulder.
Sterling; Idris, I’m so sorry for the drama but welcome to Silver Wings
Idris; There is nothing to say sorry for Sterling, let’s just forget the whole thing
Sterling; That sounds good to me, and I’d honoured if you, your wife and Ascelin could come to the party tonight
Idris; The honour is all ours Sterling, thank you. I’ll see you then. Come on Ascelin, let’s finish unpacking
He walks away while Ascelin slowly follows, looking at me until he goes into the house. I am sad that he’s not with me yet cannot wait to see him later tonight. My father pats Crawford on this back.
Sterling; Crawford, I know it’s hard right now but you cannot force Cali to get back together. No matter how much we all want you to. She in a very bad place at the moment, give her time. I’ll see you tonight
Crawford didn’t say a word, didn’t look at me or at anyone. He just walked away with his head down. My father then turns to me, a sad look on his face. We both know what’s going to happen when mother gets home.
I do not move, I don’t dare to. I don’t speak, nor think or look in his eyes. I just stand there, letting Crawford’s nails dig into my arms.
Calista’s Mind; This is what happens when you disobey mother. This is what you deserve
I knew that it was wrong to leave home, but something in me screamed for freedom. To get away for an hour and forget about everything, to act like a teenager. That’s all I want, however getting it and getting people to listen to my hearts desires is hard. I am trapped in this world.
Crawford; Cali darling, I hate harming you in anyway but you know not to break the rules. Anything could have happened to you, people have been talking and a lot of them are not happy with you. They could have hurt you, which is why your mother wanted you to stay at home today
He pulls me in way too close to his chest, the strong smell of his cologne making me sick to my stomach. He always wears too strong, designer stuff. I want to push him away, however I don’t want to get hurt anymore so I’m still as a statue.
Crawford; It’s ok now, I am here. We can give it another go and then no one will say a word to you
What? Is he fucking crazy? He wants to get back together? It would please my family, me the Mayor’s daughter and the son of the vicar as the perfect, popular couple. However I can’t go back, I don’t want to. He cheated on me, he hits me and makes me feel like shit. Why would I want that? And why is everyone so keen on me to get back together with this scam-bag? The only one who understood me and hated Crawford was Autumn.
Calista (mutters and scared); I, I, I don’t, don’t think, that’s, a, a, good idea. I, I, um, n, n, need, to, be, by my, myself
Crawford (angry); Why? We’re perfect for each other, and our families will be so pleased
Calista (shaking, yet getting more confident); But I don’t want to get back with you. You cheated on me. You hurt me and control me. I can’t be in a relationship with someone like that
I can feel Crawford’s rage boiling, his hands grip getting tighter. I shaking with fear, beating my lip so he doesn’t hear me cry. He likes it when I cry.
Calista (scared); Cr, Cr, Crawford. You’re, you’re, hurting, me. P, p, ple, please stop
Crawford (losing his temper); You seen to forget that I am the man and I can do whatever I want to you
Calista (crying a little); P, pl, pl, please. St, st, stop, it
Crawford (snapping); I just don’t understand you. I thought that now Autumn is gone that you’ll snap out of this behaviour. She clouded your mind and I thought that now you are free, we can be together
I can’t believe he just said that. That he would run Autumn’s name in the fucking mug. Now I’m pissed, I feel the rage and hate exploding in my gut. I don’t care what happens to me, I have to stand up for my friend. I look him dead in the eye, hate and anger glaring back at each other.
Calista (yelling); SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH! HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT AUTUMN THAT WAY! HAVE YOU NO FUCKING SHAME! NOW GET THIS THROUGH YOUR FUCKING HEAD, WE ARE NOT GETTING BACK TOGETHER! NOT NOW, NOT NEVER! SO FUCK OFF!
Once I’m done, I feel a little proud. I rarely stand up for myself, but when I do a sense of pride wash over me.
Crawford (quietly growls); You fucking bitch
Pride turns to fear as he twists my arm and his free hand in the air, ready to hit me. I close my eyes, preparing for the slap. It never comes. I open my eyes and I’m shocked at the scene before me. Malachi and Waldron have Crawford pinned to a nearby tree, while I am in Ascelin’s muscular arms. I know it’s him, I can’t explain it I just know. Crawford is just staring at Ascelin and me, his stare scaring me to the core. Ascelin can feel me shaking, so he kisses my forehead and rocks me.
Ascelin; Shhh Calista, its ok. He won’t hurt, never again
Crawford (yelling); GET THE FUCK OFF ME, YOU FREAKS! AND STAY AWAY FROM CALI, SHE’S MINE
Ascelin (laughs and smirks); Funny, I don’t see your name on her. And I believe I heard her say that she doesn’t want to be with you. Am I wrong brothers?
Malachi; Nope, I heard her say that as well
Waldron; She defo said it. I think the whole street heard her say it
Crawford (yelling); SHE’S JUST BEING STUPID! SHE NEEDS ME!
Ascelin (lets Calista go and growls); Don’t call her stupid
Oh shit, it’s going to go down. The look in Ascelin’s eyes screams “I’m going to kill you”. I place my hands on his firm chest, trying to hold him back. I feel so protective of him, I don’t want him to get hurt in anyway.
Unknown Male; What in the high Heavens is going on?
The violence comes to a standstill, at the sound of my father’s commanding voice. We all turn and face him, his bright blue eyes staring at us in wonder. And he’s not alone. On his right is my older brother Emerson, looking mad and disappointed. On his left is a tall pale man with kind yet firm dark brown eyes, long flowing dark grey hair and a smile fighting to get out. My mind fleshes back to the picture from before, of the Nightingales all dressed in white and it goes closer to this man’s face. It hits me, I know who he is. He’s Ascelin’s father, Idris. I step away from Ascelin, though it pains us both for me to do so, but I have to break this silence.
Calista (nervous); Welcome home father, Emerson
Sterling; Hello Cali, it’s good to be home
Emerson (snaps); Never mind the nice talk. What is Crawford pinned to a tree? And who are these freak shows?
Waldron (lets go of Crawford and pissed); Freak shows?
Idris (chirpy); Settle down Waldron, he means nothing by it. He’s just not use to seeing people like us. And Malachi, please let go of that gentleman
Malachi does what his father asks of him and he and Waldron walk back into the house, Waldron even giving me a secret cheeky wink as he walked by.
Emerson (annoyed); So, is someone going to tell me what is going on?
Crawford (pissed off); I’ll tell you what happened! I was sent here to check in on Cali and she wasn’t in the house, so I called out for her and she came out of THAT (pointing at the Nightingale house) house
The three man look right at me; my brother angry, Idris confused and my father worried.
Sterling; Is that true Cali?
Calista (nodding); Yes, I left the house. I was going to get some food and air and….
Shit, how do I explain what happened? My father and brother will find me crazy and put me into the looney bin if I speak the truth. May God forgive me, I have to lie.
Calista; And all of a sudden I fainted. I haven’t been eating as much, since Autumn pasted away. When I woke up, I found myself in the Nightingale house. Ascelin here (pointing to Ascelin) was taking care of me
Ascelin (jumping in); Yeah, I was helping unpack when I found Calista on the ground. I was worried so I brought her inside and made sure she was ok
Idris; Well you did the right thing Ascelin
Emerson (snaps); Yeah but it doesn’t explain why those two weirdos where pinning Crawford to the tree!
Crawford (snaps); They came out of nowhere and attacked me! Who the hell do they think they are?!
Idris (getting angry); They happen to be my sons, and I know for a fact that they and Ascelin wouldn’t harm anyone without reason. (Turning to Ascelin) My boy, why did the boys pin this man to the tree?
Ascelin sneaks a glance at me, his face asking me if it’s alright to say what happened outside. I nod, it’s ok.
Ascelin; When Calista heard Crawford yelling for her, she seemed a little scared when she left the house so me and my brothers followed her to make sure she was ok. And it’s a good thing we did. He was hurting her and ordering her to get back with him. When she said no, he was about to hit her when we stepped in
Sterling (facing me); And is that all true Cali dear?
Calista; Yes father, all true. I said no to him and get went crazy
Crawford (yelling); WELL YOU’RE NO ANGEL IN THIS CALI! YOU WERE SWEARING AND SCREAMING LIKE A MAD WOMAN FOR NO REASON!
Calista (yelling); NO REASON! YOU DRAGGED AUTUMN’S NAME THROUGH THE MUD, YOU FUCKING TWAT!
Emerson (yelling); CALISTA! MIND YOUR MANNERS!
Calista (yelling) FUCK YOU EM, YOU’RE NOT MY FUCKING DAD!
Sterling (snaps); Everyone calm down. Emerson, call your mother to let her know what’s going on, then call your wife to help out with the party
He turns to Ascelin and shakes his hand, welcoming him to the neighbourhood. He turns to Idris and places a hand on his shoulder.
Sterling; Idris, I’m so sorry for the drama but welcome to Silver Wings
Idris; There is nothing to say sorry for Sterling, let’s just forget the whole thing
Sterling; That sounds good to me, and I’d honoured if you, your wife and Ascelin could come to the party tonight
Idris; The honour is all ours Sterling, thank you. I’ll see you then. Come on Ascelin, let’s finish unpacking
He walks away while Ascelin slowly follows, looking at me until he goes into the house. I am sad that he’s not with me yet cannot wait to see him later tonight. My father pats Crawford on this back.
Sterling; Crawford, I know it’s hard right now but you cannot force Cali to get back together. No matter how much we all want you to. She in a very bad place at the moment, give her time. I’ll see you tonight
Crawford didn’t say a word, didn’t look at me or at anyone. He just walked away with his head down. My father then turns to me, a sad look on his face. We both know what’s going to happen when mother gets home.