Bad Dreams //mgc

66.

*Cara's POV*

I love waking up in Michael's arms! I think I could say this every day. I think I do! I slowly remove myself from Michael's grasp and climb on top of him, straddling him. I lean over and start kissing his forehead, cheeks, chin, nose, everywhere but his mouth over and over to wake him up until I hear his sensual morning voice.

"You missed a spot."
"Really? Where?" He flipped us over, causing me to squeal. Then in an extremely sexy deep growl said, "Right here" and pressed his lips to mine. It turned passionate very quickly until we heard a giggle.

"Damn I didn't want to see your ass again Michael!" We both groaned as he climbed off me, plopping onto his back next to me.

"This is why we got our own place asshat!" he yelled after Ashton as I got out of bed and got dressed.

"This calls for revenge, you know?!" I said. His eyes lit up with excitement and curiosity.

"Any ideas?"

"Not for Ashton specifically, he'll get double the hell, but I do for the party crashers out there!"

"I love you woman!" he says with an evil gin on his face!

I tell him my plan and he goes to help set it up while I go out to the kitchen to start breakfast. There goes the little bit of food I do have in my house! After a bowl of cereal, I head to the living room. Alex, Jason and Regan are on the couch talking quietly because the three party crashers are on the floor looking like zombies. "Good morning everyone!" I say louder than I need to. The sound of groans runs through the room. Perfect! I head to the kitchen where I intentionally left my phone. I connect to the Bluetooth and pull up the song I'm looking for. I press play and RAWWWRR by Bring Me The Horizon comes blaring through the speakers, echoing through the entire house. Every profanity known to man, is flying out of the mouths of my three massively hungover friends. Alex, Regan and Jason are in tears laughing and Michael is literally rolling around on the floor cracking up. I turn off the music with an evil grin on my face. "Maybe next time you guys will think twice about crashing my party!" I have been trying hard to hold in the laughter, but the shocked look on their faces puts me over the edge.

After we recover from laughing, Alex joins me in the kitchen. "Can I talk to you a minute" she asks, and we go into the guest room, sitting on the bed. "What's up?" I ask her.

"Its just that last night I wasn't sure what to make of this situation. I had all these ideas that you've changed for the worse. I was scared to come out here and see how messed up you've become. Then when I got here, you seemed like the normal Cara I knew. Then the guys showed up and I didn't know what to think. I mean, you're still Cara, but better. You kept all the good things about yourself and improved on the not-so-good. The way you took control of the guys last night was like looking at a stranger. It freaked me out a little. But I'm proud of you. Michael has had a great impact on you. I may not see why you fell so hard for him, but I'm glad you did. You're a better, stronger person."

"Thank you Alex!" I gave her a big smile. "Now I just need to figure out payback for Ashton walking in on us this morning!" She cracked up as we joined our friends in the living room.

****

It's Saturday evening, we just got dinner, you guessed it, pizza, and all 8 of us are sitting around the living room.

"I really hate to bring this up," Alex starts. In know where this is going. "But since we're all here, I wanted to ask about this whole Trevor thing. We don't gave to, Cara, but I just thought...*

"Its fine Alex. The guys should probably know some of the California stuff from it anyways," I told her. I scooted up closer to Michael on the couch and he put his arm around me. Ashton scooted across the floor and sat at our feet. My support system.

I sat there for an hour and a half retelling the two months from when it happened until the point where I remembered it all. It was difficult at times, revisiting the memories, but it was easier than the first time, and I was surrounded by people who care about me. And as weird as it feels, people who love me. I know it's true, too. I can feel it. We have become a family. What would I do without these guys? I look around at my friends with tears in my eyes.

"I need to tell you guys about something. When I moved to California for school, I only trusted two people. Regan and TJ. Alex was my roommate in the dorms and we became friends, but it was surface. It took me nearly a year to trust her with anything else. I had friends, but no one close. I don't trust people easily. I used to, but that was before." I take a deep breath. I really do trust these guys and maybe the more I say it, the easier it'll get. Michael squeezes me tight. The encouragement I need. "Before I was molested by my grandfather." Everyone's eyes widened in shock. Michael tensed up. I know this upsets him too. Ashton looks like he's about to snap. I look at him, silently pleading with him to stay calm. He relaxes slightly and squeezes my leg to let me know he's okay. I continue. "I became a quiet person in general. I loved people, but never could start conversation. I was too self conscious. I blamed myself for everything bad in my life. I hated myself. Once I was talking to people, I was normal chatty me, but I never spoke up, let them lead the conversations. Avoided confrontation at all costs. After the incident with Trevor, I shut myself off from the world. I became detached. I never spoke to anyone except Regan. Things were wrong with TJ and I felt it but clung on to the hope that I was overreacting. I avoided all social interactions. When I came out here, my suspicions were proven right and I felt like I lost every part of myself. I was an empty shell.

When I was on the roof that first night, I didn't want to have anything to do with you guys. And then I heard Mikey laugh." I turned and smiled at him, saying to him, "your voice alone sparked something in me." I turned back to my friends who were all inching in closer to me. "From the moment I met Michael, I trusted him. I didn't want to, but my heart did. And because he trusted you, I did as well. I have never trusted anyone this quickly, and it scared me at first, but you guys changed me. You gave me the confidence to live again, to love again, to be myself, stand up for myself. You guys are my family. You made me whole again." I'm crying now. Luke, the one I'm the least closest to, was the first one to jump up and squish me with a giant hug. Everyone followed his lead and soon I was smushed into a giant group bear hug. "I love you guys!"

a/n: you have to listen to the first 30 seconds of RAWWWRR by bmth. I cracked up!!