Outer Masks: Chapter 8: Tension

A Week Later 

Peach Salinger sat in her office, going over the designs for her newest client on her desktop when she received a text message. Peach picked up her phone and smiled as she saw that it was Rory who had texted her. 

-Did u start SoulSilver yet? 

Peach rolled her eyes, but her smile did not leave her lips as she replied, -No I told you that I wasn’t going to play. 

Rory sent her a frowning emoji –but why??? 

-i gave you my 3DS and everything!!! 

-suk a waste. 

-I told you I don’t play video games. I have no interest in it. 

-And you need to improve your spelling, your texting is atrocious. 

-Is npt thar bad. U jukt toooooooo critttiqallll! Rory sent quickly. 

Peach scoffed, knowing that Rory had sent it intentionally, she could see the cheeky grin that she had no doubt was on Rory’s face. 

Just when she was going to respond to the almost unreadable message that Rory had sent her, she realized that she had gotten an email on her computer. The moment she read who the email was from, Peach smiled, opening it gleefully. 

Peach read the sealed documents that her father’s private investigator just sent her, ignoring most of what she read because it was either things she already knew about Joe Goldberg or did not view as important. 

But she froze when she scrolled past a police report, causing her to quickly go back up so she could read what it was about. 

The report described an incident in which Joseph Goldberg, watching his father assaulting his mother and sister, ran to grab his mother's gun and used it to shoot Raphael Goldberg in the chest. 

It was this event that led Sandy Libretalo to give her children up to child protective services. 

The death of Raphael was considered an act of self-defense due to Sandy and Rory's testimonies and die to Joe's age, the record was sealed by the court and the situation was kept concealed. 

Peach leaned back in her seat, shocked by what she had just read. Joe killed his own father? The report says that Raphael was attacking his mother and sister, but he was a kid, did he even feel anything when he did it? 

Peach then scrolled down and saw another police report, but this one for a woman who had been reported as missing; a Candace Stone. 

The report was filed about two years ago by one of the woman’s friends, stating that no one had heard from her in over a week and that when they went to her apartment most of her belongings were still there, but Candace was nowhere to be found. 

Why would an aspiring musician with a promising career, friends, and a brother who is currently in a New York City mental facility, just vanish without a trace? 

What drew her attention next was that it mentioned that a one Joseph Goldberg had been interviewed by a detective as they learned that he and Candace had been dating when she disappeared. It stated that Joe claimed they had broken up over reasons of infidelity and that he had left the city to clear his head and sort himself out, having left over two weeks before Candace was reported missing. 

While the idea of Joe being behind Candace’s disappearance due to being a jolted lover had been their justification for questioning him, ultimately, he was released from their custody and had suspicion removed from him due to having an alibi. 

Despite this, Peach could not help but think that Joe indeed had a hand in Candace’s disappearance, that he was so heartbroken over Candace cheating on and then breaking up with him that he decided that if he could not have her then no one would. 

Peach rubbed her neck, taking a deep breath as she leaned back in her chair. Would he do the same to Beck? 

And it all started to make sense to her; why she had gotten a bad feeling from Joe the moment she met him, why he was so obsessed with Beck and was trying to drive a wedge between them. 

She needed proof, undeniable proof that Joe was a dangerous psychopath that murdered his ex-girlfriend and would try to do the same to Beck if she ever left him. 

~X~

How am I going to keep Peach away from you, Beck? I thought everything had been taken care of after you fought with her, I thought this was the end of your toxic friendship, but like a fungus, Peach came back and infected you again. 

And now she has her hooks in my little sister, trying to corrupt and ruin her. I grew too complacent, too lax, allowing Peach to entrance Rory while I was distracted by how happy we are. 

I don’t know what’s worse, Peach and Rory being friends or Rory so obviously having feelings for Peach? 

As Joe was lost in his narration, he did not notice the couple entering his bookstore, and walking towards him at the cash register with looks of contempt and disgust on their faces. 

“Joe Goldberg.” Joe let go of his thoughts seeing two people he very much would have wanted to never see again; Walter and Amber Hayden. 

Well, this is going to be so much fun... Joe thought sarcastically. “Walter, Amber, it's been a while. I think about four, no, five years since we saw each other last.” 

“Yes, five years does sound correct. But we have not come to your... fine establishment with a desire to reminisce or catch up.” Amber said with false niceness. 

“Then why are you here?” Joe asked, already having an idea as to why. 

Amber opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by her husband, “To tell you once again to stay away from our daughter.” 

“Rory was my sister before she was your daughter, you can’t just tell me to stay away from her just because you don’t like me.” Joe argued, trying to contain his anger. 

This was not the first time that Rory’s adoptive parents had tried to destroy their relationship. From the moment he met them as a teenager, Joe had to deal with Walter and Amber’s judgement and distaste for him. 

Walter sneered at Joe, “We tried to let you have a relationship with her and you only proved you are not a good influence on Rory.” 

“You mean that I’m not good enough for your impossible standards, that I allow Rory to think for herself instead of letting her be made into your puppet.” Joe said angrily. 

Walter shook his head, “You think we don’t know the kind of man you are, that there’s something horribly wrong with you. You killing your own father proved that well enough.” 

Joe stilled, forcing himself not to attack the man, “My father was an abusive drunk, you would not even have Rory if I hadn’t killed him. I did the world a favor by getting rid of him.” 

“And what about Candace Stone? Did she deserve to die?” Walter asked, showing that he had been keeping an eye on Joe. 

“I had nothing to do with Candace’s disappearance. I know that people can assume that I was upset about her breaking up with me, but I would never do anything as terrible as what you are accusing me of.” 

How do they even.... How long have they been keeping an eye on me? It's fine, no need to freak out, if they- if they had any proof then I wouldn’t be standing here right now, I would be in prison. 

Amber grabbed her husband’s forearm, pulling him back from the counter. “All we want is for you to keep your distance. Rory is not a child anymore, any... actions you take in the future will have larger effects on her.” 

“Your right, Rory isn’t a child anymore.” Joe said as a vindictive smile grew on his lips, “That means that if she wants to see me, to talk to me, then that is her propagative. Until she tells me herself that she wants nothing to do with me, we’re at an impasse.” 

Joe had to fight from laughing as Walter’s face began to turn red with rage. He felt no fear when interacting with the pair, they all knew that if they tried to do anything to him then Rory would know and would hate them for it. 

Without viable evidence, there was nothing that Walter and Amber could say about him that would turn Rory against her brother. But Joe found himself in a comparable situation; not being able to say or do anything against her parents. 

“If we have nothing else to discuss.” Joe said waving his hand to the door. 

“This is not over.” Walter growled. 

“Of course not.” Joe said sarcastically. 

As he watched the Haydens leave, Joe was not able to relax knowing that Walter would hold true to his threat. He did not know in what fashion, but it was clear that the pair would find some way to retaliate against him. 

This is fucking great. What am I going to do now? 

~X~

Rory pouted as she read Peach's latest text. She had asked the other woman if they could spend time together but was told that she was going out with the girls, but knew it was not just Annika and Lynn, but also Beck. 

I guess I got too used to having most of Peach’s time to myself. Rory thought, realizing that now that Peach and Beck had made up, she would have to share Peach again. 

As she was distracted, Max took that moment to jump over the couch and onto Rory's back. 

“Hey. So, what are we doing today?” Max asked, grinning as he ruffled Rory’s hair. 

“I regret giving you the passcode for my door.” Rory muttered as Max's weight caused her face and torso to be pressed against her legs. 

Max laughed, “No, you don't. You love me. But seriously, what are we doing?” 

Rory leaned back, now pushing Max against the back of the chair. “I'm still not letting you bungee jump off of Hayden International.” 

Max pouted as he moved from behind Rory and sat down next to her. “Buzzkill.”  

“I was going to the movies with Joe.” 

“Great.” Max smiled, “I’ll join you guys.” 

Rory gave her friend an amused look, “It’s a black and white silent film.” 

“Of course it is.” Max said as his smile fell, not surprised that Joe Goldberg would want to waste a Saturday by trying to prove how artsy and introspective he was. 

“You know you don’t have to come.” Rory said. 

“No, I do.” If nothing else than to annoy the woman’s brother. 

“Well, Joe just got here.” Rory said as she received a text from her brother telling her that he was parked outside the building. “You know it's not too late to-” 

“Rory, I have nothing else to do. Please.” Max pleaded, giving Rory an exaggerated pout. 

Rory rolled her eyes, “Fine, but behave yourself.” 

“Will do.” Max said while giving Rory a playful salute. 

“I'm regretting this already.” Rory muttered under her breath as the two left her penthouse, taking the elevator down to the lobby. 

Rory saw her brother leaning against the side of his car, looking down at his phone, when he looked up saw him beginning to smile only for it to disappear when he looked past her and at the person walking behind her. 

“Rory, I thought it was just going to be us tonight.” Joe said pointedly. 

“Yeah, well Roro wanted more company to make the night more enjoyable.” Max said quickly before Rory could explain why he was there. 

“Max, stop it.” Rory groaned before looking back at her brother, “Max had nothing else to do, so can he come with us?” 

“Sure.” Joe said, his displeasure evident. 

As Joe walked to the driver’s side, Max ran up to the car, “I call shotgun!” 

Joe paused, giving the other man a sardonic grin, “Do you really want to sit next to me for an entire car ride, Maxwell?” 

Max immediately changed directions, moving to open the backdoor, “Never mind.” 

This is going to be a long night. Rory thought as she climbed into the passenger seat. 

“Just know that you’re paying for your own ticket, Rockefeller.” Joe said, starting the car and driving away from the building. 

Max rolled his eyes, “Still cheap as hell, I see.” 

Joe met Max’s eye through the rearview mirror, “It's called getting tickets in advanced for the people who were originally going to the theater.” 

Max snorted, “You really bought tickets to an old movie with Rory of all people in mind.” 

Joe bristled, “No, it was for Beck, but she’s with the girls tonight.” 

Max was about to respond when Rory turned in her seat and glared at him, stopping the insult he wanted to say from leaving his mouth. He then slouched in his seat, turning his head to stare at the moving scenery through the window. 

Rory then turned to face Joe, “I don’t care, I’m glad for any time we get to hang out. Even if you didn’t originally have me in mind.” 

Joe smiled softly, “Thank you.” 

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, each passenger content with the quiet and relaxing atmosphere. Although this was almost ruined when Max tried to turn on the radio, only to get his hand slapped away by Joe. 

Eventually they reached their destination, only some were less excited than others. 

“Yesh, places like this still exist?” Max said as he stepped out of the car, staring at the sign for the IDC center with an unimpressed expression. 

“You can leave at any time.” Joe said as he walked past Max and into the theater. 

Rory smiled as she walked next to her brother, “Isn’t this the theater you took me to see A Clockwork Orange for the first time on my eighteenth birthday?” 

“It is, I had to rectify the fact that you had never seen the movie and this theater was the only one in the city showing it. It was the best way of ringing in your first year of adulthood.” Joe said, his smile growing at the memory. 

Max made a face as he listened to the siblings’ conversation. Wait, this is where Rory disappeared to on her birthday? Why is Goldberg even proud of doing something so plain and boring? 

The blond then pushed past the two as he made his way towards the confession counter, “I’m going to get me some food while you guys get the tickets.” 

A frown appeared on Joe’s face as he called out to the other man, “Did you forget that you are paying for your own ticket, Maxwell?” 

Max purposely ignored Joe, continuing to walk towards the counter, figuring that Joe would either pay for his ticket and demand to be reimbursed as soon as he returned or would refuse to, and Max would have to do so himself. 

“Sorry about that. I’ll pay for Max’s ticket; he’ll pay me back later.” Rory said as they went to purchase their tickets. 

Oh, I’m sure he won’t. Joe thought to himself, before turning to his sister, “Hey, did your parents talk to you today?” 

Rory raised an eyebrow, “Uh, no. Why do you ask?” 

“It’s just that they came into the store toady, looking to talk to me, well, not talk, more like make demands of me.” Joe said, pretending to be worried and scared. 

“What demands?” Rory asked, her voice hardening as she already had an idea as to what her parents had gone to Joe about. 

Joe sighed, “They told me to stay away from you... again.” 

Rory rolled her eyes; this was not the first time her parents had tried to go behind her back and separate her from Joe, it had been like this ever since she first reconnected with her brother when she was ten after they had been separated due to being put into different group homes after Sandy gave them up for adoption. 

She remembered when she was thirteen and Walter had tried to pay Joe five hundred thousand dollars to stay far away from her and to never contact her again. Joe had refused and told Rory, leading to a screaming match between her and her father, leading to a two-week period in which Rory refused to say a word to Walter. 

She understood that her parents wanted to protect her, but Joe was her older brother, he was not someone that she needed protecting against. 

Rory let out an annoyed breath, “I will talk to them, Joey. I’m sorry, they can’t keep doing this.” 

Rory missed the smirk that appeared on Joe’s face before it quickly vanished, “Thanks, Rory.” 

“Yo! Are we going to see this or not?” Max called out as he returned holding a large bucket of popcorn, a large soda, and a pack of gummy bears. 

Joe inwardly groaned, resolving himself on having to spend his Saturday night alongside Maxwell Rockefeller. 

~X~

Peach sat in a large booth in the VIP section of the club they were in, watching as her three friends danced while she nursed her drink. 

Normally, Peach would be dancing alongside them, allowing the alcohol and the beat of the music to guide her movements and lower her inhibitions. But all she could do was question if Joe Goldberg was a psychotic stalker that would murder Beck at the first sign that she was losing interest in him or if he was just an average guy who Peach was trying to make into something he was not because of her jealousy of him and fear that he would take Beck away from her. 

I’m not making this up, Joe is crazy and is obsessed with Beck... right? Peach thought as she downed the rest of her drink. 

“Hey!” Peach looked to her left, watching as Beck flung herself next to her, grinning as she leaned impossibly close to Peach, allowing the woman to catch the scent of her citrusy perfume. “Why are you sitting here all sad and shit and not happy and dancing with us?!” 

“I’ll join you in a bit, Beckalicious. I’m just thinking about somethings!” Peach yelled over the loudspeakers blasting all around them. 

Beck gave her a pout, “C’mon! That’s boring! Dance with us, dance with us!” 

Peach sighed but allowed Beck to pull her to her feet and drag her towards the center of the crowded dance floor. 

Eventually, Peach was able to forget her darkened thoughts for a while, dancing with her friends and finally allowing herself to enjoy the night. 

She did not know how much time had passed before the group of four stumbled out of the club, each one ranging from strongly tipsy to completely wasted. 

Peach pulled out her phone, allowing Lynn to lean on her, “Let me get us an Uber.” 

“Oh, you don’t, you don’t have to, I texted Joe to get us.” Beck said, missing the annoyed look on the other woman’s face. 

“You did?” Peach asked, trying to keep the disdain she held for Beck’s boyfriend from bleeding through. 

Beck nodded her head, “Yeah! He should be- Oh! There he is!” 

As she said this, Joe’s car pulled up in front of the club. Once he parked, Joe came out, smiling at his girlfriend. “Hey there.” 

Beck smiled back, “I missed you!” 

She then took this opportunity to run up and hug Joe, causing him to laugh, “I missed you too.” 

Peach rolled her eyes at the display. Acting like it's been a month instead of a couple of hours since they saw each other. 

Peach’s attention was soon pulled away from the couple when the passenger window rolled down, revealing Rory, “Hate to break up the moment, but how are we all going to fit in here?” 

Joe looked at Rory, realizing what she meant, with himself, his sister, Max, and the four women before him, there were not enough seats for all of them in his Buick Skylark. 

Max then rolled down his own window, smiling as he looked at the group, “Oh, c’mon were all adults here, right? Some of us will just have to sit on other’s laps.” 

“Would that work?” It would take a while for Joe to drop us off.” Annika asked. 

Max’s grin became a smirk, “Don't tell me you forgot how easily I can lift you?” 

Annika playfully rolled her eyes, “You know what I mean, Max.” 

“Well, to make it easier, you can sit with me, and Rory can move to the back and sit with Peach. Then Beck can sit upfront with Joe and Lynn will get a seat to herself.” 

Rory immediately moved away from the window and turned in her seat, slapping Max’s leg as she harshly whispered to him. “What do you think you’re doing?!” 

“Trying to make sure we can all fit in this car.” Max said without missing a beat, smiling impishly. 

With the others now watching, Rory had no choice but to climb out of the passenger seat, and stand on the sidewalk as Beck, Annika, and Lynn entered the car. She silently cursed Max, knowing he suggested this intentionally. 

“Are you going to go?” Peach asked Rory as the other woman. 

“What?” Rory asked. 

Peach then pointed to the car, “I’m sitting on your lap, remember. Can't really do that if you’re standing here.” 

“Right!” Rory said, quickly sitting down next to Lynn. 

Peach had an amused expression on her face as she gracefully sat on Rory’s lap, closing the car door behind her. 

As the car began to move, Rory instinctively wrapped her arms around Peach’s waist, not wanting the woman to be jostled around. Rory tensed before relaxing when Peach leaned into her hold, not saying a word against it. 

Rory glared at Max over Lynn’s head when she had turned her own head and saw Max smirking at her and Peach. 

“What were you guys doing before you pick us up?” Lynn asked, breaking the silence as she looked between Joe, Rory, and Max. 

“We went to the movies.” Joe answered, before looking at Max pointedly through the rearview mirror, “Well, we were before someone got us kicked out.” 

Max shrugged, “It's not my fault, those guys were uptight!” 

“It is if you decide to cause a scene by yelling at the screen every two minutes.” Rory said, “I’m honestly surprised it took us as long as it did to get kicked out.” 

“Wait,” Beck said, “Is that where you were going to take me?” 

Joe smiled wistfully, “It was, and we can still go, but we may have to wait a few days, or weeks. Give the employees time to forget my face and my unfortunate association with Max.” 

Beck smiled, ignoring Max’s sound of indignation, “I would love that.” 

Peach leaned closer to Rory, brushing her lips against the shell of Rory’s ear, “Was the movie even good if Max was unable to be quiet during it?” 

Rory was proud of herself as she was able to withhold the shiver that wanted to rip though her in that moment, “Don’t tell my brother, but the movie was terrible. If it wasn’t for Max’s interruptions, I would have fell asleep and stayed asleep.” 

Peach quietly giggled, “I promise I won’t, but I do feel bad for Beck.” 

“I think Beck knew what she was getting into with Joey.” Rory said jokingly. 

At least she thought it came across this way until she watched Peach’s smile fall, “Yeah, she did.” 

What was that about? Rory thought, Is she really that upset about Joe and Beck? 

Soon, Rory's happy mood dissipated, having to witness Peach's hidden feelings once again for Beck, knowing that Peach would never look at her that way. 

~X~

Eventually, they arrived outside Peach's townhouse. 

Just as Peach was going to speak, Beck cut her off, “Hey, I think I’m going to go with Joe.” 

Peach frowned, “I thought you were all going to stay over?” 

Beck let out an awkward chuckle, “C'mon, Peach. I want to spend the night with my boyfriend…. don't be clingy.” 

A tense silence stretched for a few moments, the other occupants of the car waiting to see how Peach would react. 

“Fine, stay with Joseph. You’re right, you should be with your boyfriend.” Peach spat. 

Beck, who was too drunk to notice the change in her friend’s tone, smiled. “Thanks.” 

“Damn, what is Joe doing that's got you so wrapped around him?” Max asked playfully, ignoring the glare that Joe sent his way. 

Rory cleared her throat, breaking through the tension as she looked at Peach. “Do you need help with Lynn?” 

Rory pointed to the Asian woman next to her, showing that Lynn had fallen asleep during the ride. 

“I would. Thank you, Rory.” Peach said. 

Rory grinned, “No problem.” 

Peach opened the door, allowing Rory to climb out, carrying Lynn in her arms. 

The raven-haired woman could not deny enjoying seeing how easily Rory was able to lift Lynn, not showing any strain as she held her. 

“Do you need me to carry you too?” Max asked Annika, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 

“No, I don't.” Annika said as she opened the door on their side and stepped out of the car. 

Max pouted as he followed Annika, partially disappointed. 

Rory bent down next to Beck's door as she looked at her brother. “You can go on without us, Joe.” 

“You sure? I can still drop you off. It’s no problem.” Joe said. 

“I’m sure, besides, I don't think you’ll be able to last another minute with Max in the car.” Rory grinned.  

Joe could not deny that he was feeling remarkably close to ripping the other man's head off if he spoke another word. “Alright but call me when you get home.” 

“Of course!” 

Beck looked at Rory with a blank expression, “You're spending the night with Peach?” 

Rory’s eyes widened, “What? No, I mean, I’m going to my apartment after I take Lynn inside. I don't think…” 

Beck did not know why but she hated why shy Rory became when she mentioned Peach. Now she was feeling herself sobering up as she thought about how close Peach and Rory had become. 

“Well, have a good night or morning, you guys.” Rory said, ignoring the strange way that Beck was staring at her. 

Did I do something to piss her off, why was Beck looking at me like that? Rory thought as Peach opened the door allowing the others to enter before closing it behind her. 

“Are you okay?” Peach asked, noticing how quiet Rory had become. 

“Yeah, I’m good.” Rory said, before looking back, “Where did Max and Annika go?” 

Peach scowled, “They ran off to one of the guest rooms as soon as I opened the door.” 

Rory laughed, realizing what the two had run off to do. 

“This is not funny, Hayden.” Peach said, turning her scowl to the other woman. 

“I mean at least it’s not your bed their doing it in.” Rory said while still laughing. 

Peach wanted to hit Rory but was afraid that if she did then Rory might drop Lynn, so she held herself back. 

Rory smiled as Peach turned on her heel, leading her towards the room that Lynn would be sleeping in. 

“You can put her on the bed.” Peach said as she opened the door. 

As Rory went to enter, she stopped when she heard Lynn’s voice, “You can put me down, Rory.” 

Rory put the woman down on her feet, looking at her suspiciously. “How long have you've been awake?” 

“Since you carried me out of Joe's car.” Lynn responded. 

“And you just let me carry all the way up here?” 

Lynn shrugged, “I didn’t feel like walking.” 

Rory rolled her eyes, “Happy to be your pack mule.” 

Lynn playfully pouted, reaching up to pinch Rory's cheek. “Aw, you’re not a pack mule, you’re more like really cute work horse.” 

“I don’t think that’s much better.” 

“Trust me, it is.” 

Peach grew annoyed as she watched the women in front of her. Her eyes refused to move from where Lynn’s hand was resting against Rory’s face. 

“You two are just… adorable, aren’t you?” She asked. 

“I guess?” Rory said, confused about Peach’s sudden change. 

Lynn raised an eyebrow as she looked at Peach, “Rory and I can't joke around?” 

“Of course you can.” Peach said but her tone was still sharp and guarded. 

“Is something wrong?” Rory asked. 

“Nothing is wrong.” Peach told her before looking at Lynn, “Have a good night, Lynn.” 

The woman then left the other two behind, quickly disappearing down the hallway. 

“What was that about?” Rory asked aloud. 

Lynn started smiling to herself as she watched Peach leave, connecting the dots between Peach’s reaction to her and Rory’s interaction. “You should talk to her. Now.” 

Rory blinked, taken aback, “Oh, yeah, okay.” 

Rory kept looking back, seeing Lynn standing in the doorway, smiling at her as she walked away, leaving to find Peach. 

It took her a bit, but Rory found Peach's bedroom, seeing the other woman sitting on her bed. 

Rory knocked on the opened door, drawing Peach’s attention. “Hey, what’s wrong? You kind of let out your inner bitch back there and I don’t know why.” 

“It’s nothing, I’m just drunk.” Peach muttered. 

“Yeah, you look absolutely hammered.” Rory drawled as she walked into the room, sitting on the edge of Peach’s bed. 

“Fuck off, Hayden. I told you it’s nothing.” Peach hissed, glaring at the woman. 

“Should I leave?” Rory asked. 

Peach groaned, bringing her knees up to her chest, “No, you were right, I was being a bitch.” 

Rory said nothing, only staring at Peach, waiting to see if Peach would open up to her. 

Peach looked away from Rory, “I just… I just learned something troubling today and I guess I've been taking it out on everyone.” 

“Is it personal?” 

“Yes.” Peach lied, taking the out that Rory unknowingly gave her, “Sorry.” 

“If it’s personal then don’t feel sorry for not being able to tell me about it. If you ever feel comfortable telling me then that’s great but don’t feel forced to.” Rory said with a gentle and reassuring smile. 

Peach felt her heartbeat faster, her breath catching at Rory's words. “T-thanks.” 

Why did I stutter?! Peach thought. 

Peach leaned against her headboard, watching Rory, drinking in the woman as she moved to lay back across the bottom of her bed. 

“What?” Rory asked with a grin, wondering why Peach was staring at her. 

“What was your childhood like?” Peach asked, unable to stop the question from leaving her lips. 

Rory raised an eyebrow, “Why do you want to know?” 

Peach shrugged her shoulders, “We’re friends now and I realized I don't know that much about you besides basic shit. I want to know if you were just as hopeless as a kid as you are now.” 

“I think you mean if I was just as cool as I am now.” Rory corrected. 

“Anyone who thinks you’re cool needs to get their eyes checked.” 

“Asshole.” Rory muttered, “But for real; my childhood was rather good. My parents did everything to make sure I was loved and wanted for little.” 

“And your childhood before Walter and Amber adopted you?” Peach asked hesitantly. 

Rory did not say anything for a few moments, “We were not rich, and we basically had to shove ourselves into this small, hole in the wall apartment. But I had my brother and my m-Sandy with me to make it better, I wouldn’t have been able to survive it all if not for them.” 

Peach noticed how Rory corrected herself, stopping herself from calling her biological mother ‘mom’ and instead by her first name. She also noticed that Rory failed to mention Raphael but knew better from the reports that she read to ask her about him. 

“Did you hate not growing up with Joe after your adaptation?” 

Rory thought about this before responding, “At first, I hated being separated from Joe when we entered Child Protective Services. They only allowed siblings to see each other once a month, and I had grown to accept this until Joe was adopted and I didn’t hear from him for years.” 

“How long?” 

“Joe was adopted by Ivan when I was seven and I didn't see him again until I was ten. He tracked me down and found out I was living in the Hamptons.” 

How did Joseph find out where you were? Peach thought, thinking about just what Joe did to find his sister’s location after four years apart. 

Rory cleared her throat, wanting to push away the feelings that had started to emerge as she remembered her past, “What was your childhood like?” 

“It was normal.” Peach said flippantly. 

Rory gave her a telling look, “C’mon...” 

Peach huffed, “It was the normal life for a girl of divorced parents, coming from a family of money and prestige, who grow up in the city.” 

“If you don’t mind me asking, when did your parents get divorced?” She was curious about how the separation of her parents affected Peach. 

“I was fourteen.” Peach said, her voice becoming somber, “All my life up to that point, my parents were happy and in love, we were the perfect family. My father would look my mother in the eye, and you could feel the love he had for her. And the... and then it was like the love between them just died and became hate.” 

Barry Salinger and Ansley Villarosa started to despise one another, no longer being able to be in the same room as each other without a screaming match ensuing. 

Now that she thought about it, the last time her parents had been in the same place was during her graduation ceremony from Brown, and even then, Barry left immediately afterwards, wanting to get away from Ansley. 

“Back then it seemed like a switch had been flipped, but looking back, I realized how obvious it was that their marriage was falling apart. And then it got so much worse after they told me they were getting a divorce.” Peach started to remember the arguments Barry and Ansley had over anything and everything; who got what house and what cars, alimony, if they were in each other’s wills. 

She grimaced when she remembered how the fighting became even worse when the topic of child custody eventually reared its ugly head. 

“I’m sorry, I can’t even imagine what it would be like going through something like that.” Rory said sympathetically, she could not imagine being in a situation like that, even with the two sets of parents she had in her life.  

Sandy claimed to love Raphael but was constantly unfaithful to him, and when Raphael said he loved Sandy it was undercut by him beating her and her children so badly that it would cause her to run away with said children, until Raphael usually came crawling back, begging for her forgiveness and to come back home with him. 

There were no pretenses of the two of them having a loving relationship, everyone knew that they were just two broken people trying to force it to work, ignoring that they were just not compatible with each other. 

With Walter and Amber, it was the opposite situation, for Rory, she could not imagine the two ever leaving each other. 

“What? You think Walter and Amber could never get divorced?” Peach asked sardonically. 

“Yeah, because they’re obsessed with each other. Honestly, you would think they’re conjoined twins with how much they refused to leave each other’s side.” 

“They do act all lovey dovey whenever I see them.” Peach agreed, finding the couple both revolting and sweet. 

Rory laughed, “I know, it's like they completely ignore that they’re not the only two people in the world.” 

Peach’s smile became somber, “I’m a bit jealous of your parents." 

It’s worse when I know the one person, I love more than anything, doesn’t see me that way. Watching her be with Joe, with anyone is heartbreaking. 

What am I going to do if she actually loves Joe? If she wants to be with him forever? 

Rory sat up, reaching over, and placing her hand over Peach’s, smiling at her reassuringly. “I know you will have that someday.” 

“Really?” Peach said quietly, staring at the other woman hopefully. 

“Yeah, anyone would be lucky to have you. In any way that you would have them.” Rory said, her eyes darkening in a way that sent a shiver down Peach’s spine. 

“I question your tastes if you believe that.” Peach joked. 

Rory chuckled, “Then I guess I have bad taste.” 

“I guess you do.”