Random Ideas

Ann started up the truck and buckled her seat belt. She threw a glance over at Dimitri, and a hint of a smirk crossed her face. "Since when do I get into trouble, Dimitri?" she asked with an innocent smile. She then pulled out of the driveway and headed home. She needed to get there soon. She leaned back as she drove and rose a brow at Dimitri's question. She knew about Dimitri's crush, who didn't. That's right, Lindi didn't. "I swear, that girl is smart but doesn't have an ounce of common sense," she muttered under her breath. She then shook her head and answered Dimitri, "Maybe once or twice. But she didn't seem to think you were interested, and then she started dating...."

Dimitri listened to her, and he bit his lip. He was a little bit worried about the answer. She probably didn't think about him at all. She probably thought he was annoying. "I don't think she likes me. She found that stupid note I wrote. I dropped it and she read it and, ugh! She said it was sweet I cared so much about my family. She didn't even mention how I talked about her eyes or her hair. It's like she totally dismissed it," he said with a small sigh, and he ran a hand through his hair, but he winced in pain.

Ann sighed and shook her head, frowning at him. "Dimitri, you are reading too much into it. She was paying you a compliment," she stated, pulling up to their house. After she cut off the engine, she turned in her seat to look at him. "Don't take it so hard, D," she murmured, reaching out to rest a hand on his shoulder. "I mean, she does have a boyfriend. Well, it will be had when she hears about what happened," she muttered before she got out and went to help him out. "Right now, stop worrying about her. We need to fix you up."

Dimitri listened to her, and he sighed. She was probably right. He always looked to much into things. He looked in the driveway, and of course his mother was home. "Let's get inside," he said, and he walked inside with Ann. Angel was trying her best to be a better mother. It had almost been ten years, and she needed to get over it. If Drake really cared, he wouldn't want her to live like that. She knew she would never truly move on, but she would try. She was in the middle of cooking dinner when Ann and Dimitri came in, and her eyes widened when she saw them. "What happened?" she asked quickly as she ran of to them and helped Ann set Dimitri on the couch. "Is he okay?" she asked.

Ann cursed when she noticed her mother's car. It had been a long enough day, and she just didn't want to come home to her mother. She knew she shouldn't be bitter, but a part of her blamed her mother for her father's death. And then another part of her just felt hurt. When she needed her mother most, her mother had abandoned her and Dimitri. Once Dimitri was seated, she scowled at her mother. "Why do you care? Have you never cared to ask him how school goes?" she muttered. All anger over the years, and she was finally blowing her top. "And he has a name mom! Why don't you ask him?" she snapped. She then stormed out of the room.

Angel was trying to seem like she was no effected by Ann's words, but she knew that she was. She narrowed her eyes before following her up the stairs. "Annalise Sherwood! Get back here!" she yelled, and she soon caught up to her. She grabbe her arm, but it seemed all too familiar. She was reminded of the day Drake died. She had tried to stop him, but she hadn't tried hard enough. "I know I have been the worst mother to you and Dimitri, but I'm trying. All I ask is that you don't hate me!" she said, and she could feel the tears streaming down her face. "I love you Ann, and I just want to do something that would make your dad happy. If I can't do anything else then I am doing this," she said

Ann had put up her walls for so long. She had tried to act tough, and she usually did seem pretty intimidating sometimes. But most days she would cry herself to sleep. She wasn't happy. She hadn't been ever since her father died. "Sometimes, mom, I find that hard to believe. Did you not know Dimitri gets bullied everyday? Or did you ever notice that I...sneak out of the house, drink all the time, skip school? It's like...ever since he died...you did too," she whispered. Her voice felt hollow. She didn't know what to say or do anymore. "I have to help, Dimitri, because it seems like you aren't going to," she muttered as she moved past her and went into the bathroom to get the first aid kit.

Angel was trying to keep her cool, but she felt as if she had already ruined everything. "I'm sorry Ann," she said quietly. She looked down at the ground for a few moments before going in to their room. It was Angel and Drake's room. She looked down at her bedside table, and she grabbed Drake's ring. It always seem to give her some pet of comfort when she needed it the most. "Why did you have to go? She always looked up to you, not me. The moment I try, she shoots down all my efforts. I just don't know what to do anymore. Why can't you come in like those stupid movies or TV shows! Why can't you visit me in some dream," she said, crying in to her pillow.

A part of her felt bad, but Ann was just too upset to go and apologize. She rifled through the supplies before she headed downstairs and plopped down by Dimitri. It was how most things went. She always blew up on her mom. She never really meant to but all of her pent up anger was getting the best of her. She handed Dimitri a bottle of Tylenol and murmured, "You might want to take some of that. You aren't bleeding anywhere are you?" she asked, holding up band-aids and peroxide if he was bleeding.

Dimitri looked up when he saw Ann come back down. He wanted to talk to we about blowing up on their mom, but it just wasn't a good time. He smiled up at her softly, and he bit his lip. "My nose and lip were bleeding earlier, but I think they are okay now. It's all just a bunch of bumps and bruises," he told her, and he looked up at her once more. "Do I really look that bad?" he asked her. He probably looked really bad, but he didn't want to think too much about it.

Ann gingerly dabbed a napkin under his nose and on his lip to wipe the blood off before she leaned back and sighed, closing her eyes. "No, no. Not...horrible. But who knows, maybe Lindi will think this look is pretty hot," she said, trying to ease some of the tensions. She handed him an ice pack over before she leaned back once more on the couch. "I'm sorry, Dimitri," she whispered after a moment, stealing a glance over at him. "I know I am a bunch of trouble. It may as well be my middle name."

Dimitri smiled, and he couldn't help but blush at her words. "You really think so?" he asked, and he smiled lightly. He would do anything to get Lindi to fall for him, but it was his senior year. It was hasn't going to happen. He looked up at Ann when she spoke again, and he shook his head. "It's fine, Annie. At the end of the day, we still have each other's backs, and that's all that matters. I'm here for you and you are here for me," he said, and he hugged his sister tightly.

"Yeah, pretty sure," Ann said with a small smirk. If she couldn't be happy, she wanted at least Dimitri to be happy. Besides, she would be pretty happy when she had her revenge, and when she saw his face when it happened. She cracked a half smile over at Dimitri and returned his hug. "Well....thanks, I guess," she said sheepishly, shrugging her shoulders. She bit her lip and dropped her gaze to the ground. Here she was screaming at her mother about how she was absent from Dimitri's life when Ann didn't do much better.

Dimitri smiled, and he slowly stood. "How about we dm finished that dinner. Just you and me for once," he said, and he pulled his sister into a small hug, and he went over to see what his mother was cooking. "Looks like she was trying to make spaghetti," he said, and he smiled. "I have done this before. I'm sure I can make it," he said. He grabbed some sause, and he started to cook some of it. "The noodles look okay. Let's make some bread," he said.

Ann stood and pulled her hair back from her face before she joined Dimitri. "Aunt Hannah's cooking classes, don't fail me now," she muttered before she pulled out the garlic bread from the freezer and grabbed a pan. "I hope I am doing this right," she said with a laugh before she sprayed the pan and starting lining the bread up. Who could mess up premade bread? Well, she hoped that she could do it right, at least.

Dimitri chuckled at her words, and he ruffled her hair. "You can cake remade bread, honey. I believe in you," he said, and he started to cool the sause. He took the noddles out and heated them up so they would be warm when they ate them. "It's looking pretty good so far if you ask me," he said, and he soon finished the sause. "It should all be done by now. It smells amazing," he said with a smile, and he closed his eyes.

Ann laughed and rolled her eyes at Dimitri's comment. "Well, it is just because I am just that good," she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. She grabbed an oven mitt when the bread was ready and pulled it out of the oven and setting it on top of the stove. "It does smell pretty good," she agreed as she leaned against the counter once more. They hadn't done such a bad job. She grabbed a few plates and began to set the table.

Dimitri smiled, and he made himself a plate before setting it at his usual seat. He grabbed two cups, and he turned to Ann. "What do you want to drink?" he asked as he fixed himself a drink, and he looked over to the stairs. He had a feeling that his mother wouldn't come down. She either wasn't hungry, like always, or she didn't want to see Ann. He knew that his mother even grew distant to him because he looked so much like his father.

Ann bit her lip and glanced at Dimitri. "Pour me some tea. I will be right back," she murmured before she headed back upstairs. The guilt was weighing her down, and she knew her mother was at least trying. She had to give her the benefit of the doubt. Ann wasn't the only one effected by Drake's death. She knocked on her mother's door before she slowly opened it. "Mom?" she asked, slowly stepping inside. "I'm, uh...I'm sorry."

Dimitri smiled as he watched her walk up the stairs. No matter how bad she acted, she was really soft at heart. He poured he tea and set it by her plate. Angel had been holding on tightly to the ring, but she herd the door open, and she quickly hid it. Her children didn't need to see her like that. She was a bit surprise to see Ann, but she smiles lightly and set the ring aside. "It's fine. I can understand why you hate me. I haven't been a mother. I haven't been anyone really," she said, and she hugged Ann. "I missed you guys going up, and I can't realize how much I regret it."

Ann sighed as she returned the hug. Despite it all, she did love her mother. But all that love was buried under a bunch of hurt. She rested her head on her shoulder and whispered, "You are not a horrible mom. But I'm not going to lie, you aren't really a good dad." She nudged her, trying to make light of the situation with a joke. She then dropped her gaze to the ground and grew serious. "When dad died, it was as if I lost both of you, and Dimitri...he had to grow up so fast, mom. I guess we both did," she whispered before she gave her another quick hug. "Come down for supper? We finished it up."

Angel listened to her daughter closely, and she nodded. "I know. I should have been the one to grow up and let you guys have the best childhood you could, but I couldn't do that. When your father and I met, I was lost. I was the new girl who had left her old town of Chicago. I didn't have the best boyfriend before, but Drake changed everything. We went through so much. Before he died, we were fighting too much. H-He would either come home drunk or cranky, and he was totally dismissing Dimitri. I tried to talk to him, but it always ended in screaming. Dimitri had always been curious, so he would always see it. I just felt like your father died hating me. He died never wanting to see my face again. I didn't know what to do when he died," she said quietly, and she took Ann's hand. She was just happy to have her daughter back. "I told myself I would try to be better. Maybe if Drake still loves me he wants me to give you guys a bright future. That mean no more partying Ann. I mean, you can, just nothing wild and no alcohol," she said, and she sighed. She didn't want to go and be stern with her, but she was going to have to. When she offered to go eat with them, she smiled brightly and followed her downstairs. "Thank you two too much," she said, and she hugged them.

Ann didn't know what to say or how to react. All of this was definitely news to her. She bit down on her lower lip and dropped her gaze to the ground. "I don't understand," she whispered. It was all she could say. She shook her head and forced back the tears. She had cried too much already over her father. She had put up the walls for a reason, and they were beginning to come crumbling down. When her mother brought up the partying, she just nodded and sighed. "Yeah...I know," she whispered, glancing away. Frankly, she hadn't even though her mother had noticed. She managed a smile as she followed her mother down the stairs and hugged both her and Dimitri. "No problem, mom..."

Angel looked down at Ann, and she gave her a small smile. She kisses their heads like she would when they were little, and she started to eat the food. "You guys cook better than I do," she said with a small laugh, and she glanced over at Dimitri and then to Ann. "Annalise, I know this may not be the best time to go and talk, but I want to get this out. Your grades news to come up. In not sure if you will be able to graduate, and I want you to be able to do something with you life. You don't have to be a doctor or anything. Just something that will pay the bills and bring in a little extra."

Ann cracked a small smile at her mother. "Truthfully, D, did most of the cooking," she said with a smirk over at Dimitri. "I just supervised and put the bread in the oven," she stated, shrugging her shoulders. She was about to take a bite of food when her mom spoke once more. She dropped her gaze to the table and sighed, twiddling her thumbs. "Yeah, I know," she whispered. Ann wasn't dimwitted. Actually, she had been trying to fail her classes, not that it would matter with how many times she skipped school.