"Thank you so much for understanding."

"Of course. Let me know if I can do anything to help."

"I will."

I hung up the phone with Andrew and ran back into the family room, where Vera was recounting her story to one of the police officers who was friends with my father.

"That should do it." Sergeant Hanes stood, "We'll take this back to the station and let you know if any further action can be taken."

"Thank you." My father nodded, "We really appreciate it."

"Anytime, Lincoln."

The officers left the house as we watched them go. Vera remained on the sofa, tear tracks staining her face.

"Are you alright, honey?" My mother asked as the three of us walked back into the living room. "Was that too hard for you to talk about?"

Vera shook her head.

"I'm glad that it's out in the open." She took a deep breath, "But I don't want Aidan to get into trouble."

My parents exchanged a glance.

"Honey, it's hard right now." My mother began, "And it's going to be hard for a while. But in the long run, being away from him and being with your family is going to be so much better for you. And he might get into trouble. Your father and I are actually hoping he gets into trouble. Because no one deserves to go through what you went through."

Vera was silent.

I stood up and walked out of the room, unable to see my older sister like that. All my life, she had been my rock, the person I figured I would grow up to be like.

I didn't want to grow up into the shell of a person sitting on the living room couch.

<><><>

"So she's at home now? Officially?"

A week had passed since the ordeal with Vera, and it was the first time I had been able to see Andrew since then. We had spent the better part of the last week moving Vera's things back home, and my father had spent the better part of the week down at the police station working out just how much they could charge Aidan for.

This morning Vera had completed the moving process, and I had been allowed to go out with friends. My parents had kept me away from the outside except for school since everything had happened, since the media had caught wind of it and were prowling around our house in a mad rush to be the first to cover the tragic story.

Aidan was being charged with domestic violence and Vera was filing a restraining order against him. The trial was to be held in just a few weeks, and my entire family was set to show as witnesses; we were all there when Vera came home bruised and beaten.

But for the time being, I was trying my hardest to focus on the good relationship I had with Andrew, and not think about just how good Aidan had been to Vera at the beginning. If I dwelled on that for too long, I started to distrust Andrew, which wasn't fair to him--he hadn't done anything to me.

"She's home now. She wants to find a job, but my father isn't too keen on her going out just yet. She's still worn out and the trial is in a few weeks." I shook my head, "But it's nice to have her around again. I think Jared is coming to visit soon as well."

"Well that's good." Andrew nodded, leaning back in his chair. We were having dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. "I'm glad that she's safe."

"Me too." I nodded. "It's so scary, everything that happened."

"I can't even imagine." Andrew shook his head, leaning forward and taking my hand in his. "Please let her know that I'm praying for her."

"I will." I replied, smiling. He was always the sweetest thing.

We paid the bill and left the restaurant, making our way to his car. The drive home was quiet, as I was dealing with an inward battle: I had promised Andrew that he could meet my family when he dropped me off at home tonight, but I was worried that it would appear to be rubbing my own, currently successful, relationship in Vera's face.

I was just praying for the best at this point.

We walked up my long, winding driveway and I let us in through the front door. I could hear voices in the living room, but they didn't seem too subdued, so I guessed that the topic was not on the case.

"Hello?" I called out, "I have someone for you guys to meet!"

I took Andrew's hand in mine and we walked into the living room, where my parents were sitting on the couch watching television. I was honestly just surprised to see them doing something together.

"This is Andrew." I smiled as my parents looked up at us, pausing the show. "Andrew, these are my parents, Lincoln and Olivia Carter."

"It's a pleasure to meet y--"

"White." My mother interrupted coldly, her eyes sweeping over Andrew.

"Pardon?" I asked, confused. Was she commenting on his skin color?

"Olivia White." My mother repeated. "My name."

"Your maiden name." I shook my head. What was she trying to pull?

"My new name." She snapped, "Your father and I are getting a divorce."

<><><>

I sat straight up in bed, a cold sweat drenching my body. I touched my face and realized that I had been sobbing.

I checked my phone. The date was October 23rd. It was 3:00 in the morning on my 18th birthday.

The day before had been the day that Vera came home with her black eye.

I remembered falling asleep to the sound of my parents' raised voices. They had been arguing again.

The door to my bedroom opened and the light flicked on, revealing my mother in a nightgown and slippers.

"Samantha?" She whispered, walking over to my bed. "What's going on? Why were you screaming?"

"Are you and Dad getting a divorce?" I asked immediately.

She looked appalled.

"Sweetheart, of course not." She sat down next to me and wrapped her arms around me, hugging me as I cried into her shoulder. "What's this all about?"

I shook my head, trying to speak through my tears.

"I'm sorry." I whispered. "I just had a dream where you guys met Andrew and then you told me you were getting divorced and I just..." I trailed off, my voice giving way to sobs.

"Shh, it's alright." My mother continued to hold me, rubbing my back. "Can I tell you something?"

I nodded, pulling away from her and drying my eyes.

"I know that things have been rocky. And I'm sure that Vera's situation isn't helping your fears either. I know that you've struggled with relationships." My mother shook her head, "But Samantha, there is someone out there for you. There was someone out there for me. And it took me a long time to find him. I lost him for years before we found each other again." She took a deep breath, "And we've been fighting recently, and quite often at that. But that doesn't mean that we're separating. Your father is the love of my life. A few fights here and there aren't going to break us up."

"How do you know that?" I whispered.

"Because if we've made it this far, we can make it through anything." My mother nodded, and for a moment I wasn't sure if she was convincing me or herself. "We've had some rough moments recently. I've had my doubts and I've had my tears. But we're going to get through it. We never go to bed angry at each other. We never let the other one leave the house on a bad note. And you're going to find that one day. You're going to find someone who won't let you go despite the arguments and the fights. Someone who will respect your opinion and who won't get violent. Someone who loves you so much that he's willing to do anything to keep you in his life."

"How do you know that?" I repeated.

"Because," a new voice entered, and I looked up to see my dad walk through the door, "You have the best example in the world to look up to." He leaned down and kissed his wife. "Your mother."

I nodded silently, my heart rate slowing down. I took a deep breath and looked at my parents, both of them smiling softly at me.

They were together. They were fine.

I was going to be fine as well.

A/N: Fun fact: I was actually going to end the chapter with Olivia and Lincoln legit filing for divorce, but then decided that was too mean and I loved them too much for that to happen.

-Katherine