t/w domestic abuse, rape, manipulation

-

The Blackwoods.

The mother fucking Blackwoods.

They may as well have been gods. That's what everyone in Mary's Field saw them as, more or less. Everyone was just scum beneath their designer shoes. Some were a bit more tolerable than others, but all of them had some degree of 'rich people' air around them. All of them.

That's how Emilia Valderez saw them as. She had a class with William Blackwood, but he never talked to her and she never talked to him. In the year above her, there was Brandon Blackwood. He was nice enough, though they didn't really talk. Just a smile at another in the hallway. Two years above her, well, EJ Blackwood might as well have been the Messiah.

He was to run Blackwood Enterprises. Everyone basked in his rich asshole glory. He acted like he owned the damn planet. Emilia should have known this. But she just didn't. And she hates herself for that.

It was lunch when he approached her. "Hey, you're Emilia, right?" He asked. She turned to him, a little surprised. "Are you talking to me?" She asked and he nodded. "Um, yeah. It's Emilia and I know who you are." She smiled, rather awkwardly. She looked back down at her tray. "Would it be okay if I sit with you and your friends? I'd like to get to know you, Emilia."

She kinda wanted to say no. But you don't just say no to a Blackwood. "I don't see why not," She shrugged and he followed her over to a table, where Forest Daniels was. He looked up, he looked at EJ, he looked at Emilia, he looked at EJ and he looked at Emilia. Emilia could see the confusion on his face. "Forest, this is EJ. EJ, this is Forest."

"Hey, Forest." The blonde held out his hand towards the ginger. "Hey," He shook his hand after a second.

Two months later, Emilia and EJ would start dating.

-

That's just the thing about abusive relationships. They do not start out abusive. It's not like Girl saw Boy being a dick to everyone and was like "Yes, please". No, she sees Boy acting nice and Boy is nice to her and says he loves her. That's what happens. They reel you in. And then it's too late.

The first time EJ hurt Emilia was three months into their relationship. She doesn't remember exactly why it happened, it just did. They were in EJ's bedroom, she knew that much. Maybe she said something, maybe she did something, maybe she breathed a little too loudly. She doesn't remember what she did exactly. All she knows is that he pushed her into the wall as hard as he possibly could. She hit her head. He left the room.

Emilia wasn't sure what to do. Should she leave? Should she stay? What in the hell was she supposed to do? It must have been her fault, he wouldn't do that on the regular. Right? He loved her. She'd just made him angry and he wasn't thinking clearly. Twenty-ish minutes later, he came back. He had a small bouquet of pink roses, probably from the floral shop down on Main Street. Pink roses meant I'm sorry.

"I'm sorry, Emmy, I didn't mean to hurt you." He sounded genuinely sorry. He held out the roses. After a few seconds, she took the roses. "It's alright, I forgive you," She smiled and he kissed her forehead. "I'll drive you home."

The fifteen minute drive was lively, alive with happy conversation, as if he hadn't just physically abused her.

-

The Blackwood family felt strange. I mean, it always felt strange in a sense, but now that Emilia was getting an up close and personal look, it was fucking weird. Especially the Blackwood wife, Clarissa. She'd come from privilege as well, though nowhere near the same level as her husband. The Tremblay's were quasi-famous and ran a rather successful Virginian law firm, Tremblay Legal Services. It was now run by Clarissa's older sister, Pearl.

Clarissa's smile was just perpetually sad, always seeming forced.

And then there was Edward "Eddie" Blackwood, who may as well have been God himself. He was always smiling as well, a fake one, though, Emilia didn't quite realize that yet. His arm always seemed just a little too tight around Clarissa's shoulders. Clarissa always seemed like she was about to break down in tears, no matter how wide that smile was.

The Blackwood kids were mostly fine. Brandon smiled and said "Good luck", William scoffed at her, Nathan shook her hand and said she could come to him if she needed anything, Johnny smiled at her and Roxie started a whole conversation with her. They all had that 'rich people' air.

-

EJ hit her a lot. Then, he'd buy her something, ranging from a cheap little trinket to an insanely expensive piece of jewelry, and he'd go on about how he was so sorry, how he never wants to hurt her, he'll never hurt her again. And then he'd hurt her again.

They'd not once had sex, and EJ would keep asking her. Emilia wasn't the first girl he'd been with, everyone in the town knew that. He'd been in a relationship with Chloe Rayman shortly before Emilia. They had sex, Chloe talked about it. And then she left town. She left town and never came back. She went to live with her sister in Maryland. Emilia doesn't know if he hit her, but she would not doubt it.

Now they were in his room. Clarissa and Eddie were at some charity event in D.C. with William, Brandon was out in the woods for whatever reason, Nathan was out with some girl named Freya, and Johnny and Roxie were downstairs chilling. This house was big enough for them not to hear whatever would happen.

He asked if she wanted to 'fuck'.

She said no.

He kept asking.

She kept saying no.

He grabbed her hands, pinning her down.

She told him to let her go.

He slipped her clothes off.

She shouted for him to stop.

He didn't.

-

A little over a month later, Emilia was sitting in her bathroom, leg bouncing, a pregnancy test in her hand. Two lines. Two lines. There was absolutely no way. This was not happening. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. No, there was no way.

She walked out to her mother, Giorgia. They spoke for a few minutes. She wasn't mad, just shocked. They drove over to the Blackwood mansion. They spoke with Clarissa and Eddie and then with EJ. He was the nicest he'd been to her in months.

Over the span of the next nine months, he didn't place a hand on her. He didn't want to risk it. After all, how would it look to the media if the pregnant girlfriend of the Blackwood heir had a miscarriage? No, no, he only verbally abused her.

-

Hadley Clarissa Blackwood. That's what they called her. Hadley, a name Emilia liked. Clarissa, it should be obvious. She wouldn't hurt her. She would make sure she didn't suffer the same fate as her mother and grandmother. She'd protect her.

Now, in the state of Virginia, it is legal to get married at sixteen, so long as the parents are okay with it. The Blackwoods gave the go ahead, as did Giorgia. So, a week after Hadley's birth, EJ proposed. Two months later, they got married, and Emilia Valderez ceased to exist.

He hit her that night, because of course he did.

She held Hadley after EJ fell asleep. "I'm sorry," She said, cradling her daughter. "I'm so sorry."

After that, Emilia started living with the Blackwoods. And it all made sense. Of course Eddie was hitting Clarissa. Of course he was.

-

Hadley was four months old at this point and, as babies tend to do, she was crying. Nothing seemed to work. "God, can you get her to shut up?" EJ said exasperatedly. "What do you think I'm trying to do, Edward?" Emilia said. "So, are you going to help with our daughter or are you just going to sit there and look privileged?"

He groaned loudly, tossing the book he'd been reading across the room. He got up close to Emilia. She thought he was going to hit her again. But he didn't and Emilia gestured to Hadley. He held her for a bit, sitting in the rocking chair they'd set up, and eventually she seemed to just simply tire herself out. They put her back in the cradle and that was that.

And then he hit her. And it escalated from there. Somewhere along the way, her hand got cut. Badly. Emilia ran out of the room and down the hall, before just slinking down the wall and sobbing. And then EJ's youngest sibling and only sister came down the hall. Roxie Blackwood, age twelve.

She sat next to Emilia. "Are you okay?" It was a dumb question, Roxie knew that. They knew a person with a cut hand, sobbing, probably wasn't okay. Hell, they knew anyone dating, married no less, to her oldest brother was not okay.

Emilia shook her head and the blonde placed a hand on the brunette's shoulder. "I'm sorry about my brother. I'll go get you some bandages." She stood up and walked away, soon coming back with wrap bandages. Emilia held out her hand and Roxie bandaged it up.