Hush, Hush: Chapter 20
ZeldaQueen: Good lord, are we two thirds of the way through already?
Projection Room Voices: Starting Media in 3...2...1...
Chapter 20
ZeldaQueen: I would like to give you guys fair warning - these next few chapters are not going to be much fun. They are horrible and will make you wonder what Fitzpatrick was smoking when she wrote this and are leading up to That One Chapter. So yeah, we’re going to be getting a good bit more hostile. You’ve been warned.
So yeah, after those…frightening revelations in the previous chapter, Nora is tossing and turning in bed while a storm wails outside. Feel free to beat your head with how SYMBOLIK it is. When six o’clock rolls around, she decides to get up and take a shower. Then she goes, finds the dirty clothes strewn about her room, and starts doing laundry. This tells us two things.
First, Fitzpatrick clearly studied at Meyer’s School of Writing and thinks we give a shit about things like that.
Second, Nora’s IQ now rivals plankton. Because for all of these activities, her thought process? Completely empty. This might as well be narrated in third person, that’s how much insight into her thoughts and feelings we get. And thus, instead of coming across as conflicted and frightened, she feels incredibly stupid because she suspects her boyfriend is an evil being who wants to steal her body and she is FREAKING IGNORING IT!
*takes several deep breaths*
That, or Fitzpatrick really sucks at writing. *thoughtful* Or both, I suppose. Take your pick.
Anyway, Nora is finishing up these riveting tasks when there is a knock at the door. After everything that’s happened to her, she just goes straight ahead and opens the door without seeing who it is. You dumbass. You have a number of people after you and who you are avoiding and you just give them clear access to your home?
Yes, she does. And who would it be but Elliot the Slimy Git? We get a description of what he’s wearing, because I suppose Fitzpatrick thought it would be interesting. It isn’t. (Though I must ask, since when has a plaid shirt rolled up to the elbows, sunglasses, and a Red Sox hat come across as “all-American”?)
Nora instantly freaks out, and I don’t blame her. That’s one of the most infuriating things about this book - when the danger is something other than Patch, Nora’s actually pretty good at noticing it. Actually, given that she usually picks up on Patch being dangerous, I’m seriously wondering if he’s just mind raping her into overlooking it.
Anyway, Elliot is here and is all patronizing and drunk. You know, given what we’re going to learn about this guy, you’d think he’d be more careful in how he acts towards Nora. After all, you’d think he’d try harder to uphold his Good Boy façade after she found out his history, instead of regressing to All-Asshole mode.
So yeah, the first thing out of his mouth is “You've been causing me a lot of trouble lately”. Nora doesn’t think anything about that, and I must wonder why. I know what he means because I read ahead, but that would make no sense otherwise. He hasn’t been making any serious attempts to avoid him or do anything that would get him in trouble. Anyway, he says that he wants to talk and tries to get her to let him in the house. Nora refuses, telling him that her mother is still sleeping. I guess when the guy isn’t Patch, she can stand up to him pretty well. Elliot makes a comment about how he’s never met her mother, and Nora continues to be creeped out. Yeah, still not getting Elliot’s actions here, especially when we see what he’s angling for.
Nora basically tells Elliot to say whatever he wants to say and then get the fuck out. Elliot makes a very dramatic show of being hurt that she doesn’t like him, and it’s so badly-done and over-the-top that I’m in physical pain. He insists that he’s an average dude and just wants to prove it to Nora, and what better way to do so than punch her house when she tries to say something. Yeah, really helping your case there.
Now it’s Mood Whiplash Time as he starts rubbing his bleeding hand while laughing quietly and saying “Ten dollars says I'm going to regret that later”. If you’re already in pain and your hand is bleeding, I’d say you’re regretting it now.
Nora continues to be creeped out and once again calls herself an idiot for thinking he was ever a nice guy. I already ranted about that, so let’s pass on. Instead, let’s look at what comes next. Nora finally decides to slip in the house and slam the door on Elliot, when he gets around to the point of this little visit. He says that Jules is under a lot of stress, and we all can figure that out from the many times we have never seen him in this book. Seriously, Nora’s negligent mother gets more screen time than he does, and that’s saying a lot. Anyway, the upshot is that Elliot wants to plan a camping trip over spring break with himself, Jules, Vee, and Nora.
For a pleasant change Nora is actually genre savvy and tells him she has other plans. He tells her to change those plans and I’m scratching my head because that is exactly the answer Patch gives whenever Nora tells him that. Is that the only response Fitzpatrick can think up for a guy to say in that scenario? And what does that say about Patch, if he treats Nora in the same way the Obviously Evil Elliot does?
*shakes head* Right. Onward. Elliot does not take “No” for an answer, like most of the guys in this book. He insists that he can get everything set up real nice and begs Nora for a chance to prove he’s a good guy. Given all of the abusive relationship vibes in this book along with what we’re getting in a second, this is seriously squicky. Nora tells Elliot to leave at once and while I do appreciate her not caving in, I am loathe to give points because dude, this guy is getting creepy, don’t just quietly keep repeating the same thing! Scream! Talk loudly! Wake up your mother! I don’t think she’ll mind if it means saving you!
But no, Nora does none of that, which means we get this
“Elliot leaned his hand on the doorjamb, bending toward me. ‘Wrong Answer.’ For a fleeting moment, the glassy stupor in his eyes disappeared, something twisted and sinister eclipsing it. I involuntarily stepped back. I was almost positive Elliot had it in him to kill. I was almost positive Kjirsten's death was on his hands”
ZeldaQueen: Nora, you really have no excuse now. Scream as loud as you can. Wake your mother. Kick him in the nuts. Something!
Oh, well, she continues to bleat for him to leave. Yes, that will work well. DAMN IT NORA, HE’S NOT LISTENING TO YOU! *flaps hands*
And he still isn’t! You want to see how he takes her continued refusal? Of course you do!
“Elliot flung the screen door open so hard it smacked back against the house. He grabbed the front of my bathrobe and yanked me outside. Then he shoved me back against the siding and pinned me there with his body. ‘You're coming camping whether you want to or not.’
‘Get off me!’ I said, twisting away from him.
‘Or what? What are you going to do?’ He had me by the shoulders now, and he knocked me back against the house again, rattling my teeth.
‘I'll call the police.’ I had no idea how I said it so bravely. My breathing was rapid and shallow, my hands clammy.
‘Are you going to shout for them? They can't hear you. The only way I'm letting you go is if you swear to go camping.’”
ZeldaQueen: I…okay, let’s talk about a few things here.
First of all, Nora’s fears about the camping trip are not unfounded. I won’t spoil it all now, but just know for now that yes, there almost certainly would have been something nasty planned for her on that trip. In other words, it’s a trap for her. Elliot is trying to lure her into a trap.
How does he manage that? He openly tries to scare and threaten her into doing it. Oh yeah, that will work great you idiot! You show up drunk, are as creepy as possible, and then make the most half-assed attempt to get her there that I’ve ever seen. What’s to stop her from telling the police about that after you let go? Even if she did promise, what proof would you have that she wasn’t lying to get rid of you? Or are you working under the assumption that if a girl promises something, she’ll go along with it because deep down, she really wants it?
… Dear lord, I need to keep my mind in check.
Of course, there’s Nora’s idiocy. Apparently she was inside her house the entire time, with the screen door closed. What? Well if that’s the case, why not slam the door shut and lock it, dumbass??? Again, make noise! Claw him! Flail! Something! Jesus, what is up with this book? I’m appalled at how victimized and helpless Fitzpatrick has made her protagonist!
Thank the lord this ends quickly, when Nora’s mother does something remotely useful and wakes up and calls for her. Seeing as he might get caught, Elliot lets her go and leaves, telling her that it isn’t over. Of course not. There are ten chapters left, after all. *despairs*
Nora finally closes and locks the door and starts to break down, which is pretty understandable with everything that happened to her thus far. Her mother comes in and, upon seeing her daughter collapsed on the floor and having almost certainly heard her screaming and slamming the door, asks if something is wrong.
ZeldaQueen: Mrs. Weasley this lady is not.
Oh, and it gets even better. Because after all of that, after Nora has plenty of reason to say she is not safe because this guy is clearly stalking her and attacking her and generally scaring her, she decides to lie and not tell her mother what he did.
I slapped my forehead. At this rate, my head will not survive.
The entire thing is horribly contrived, of course. Fitzpatrick knows that if Mrs. Grey catches wind of what’s going on, she’ll actually take steps to do something, like change the locks or call the police or move. But that would put an end to the plot if that happened or at least force Fitzpatrick to put more effort into this, so we can’t have Mrs. Grey find out anything.
So yeah. Nora, who is kneeling on the floor and making a visible effort to not cry, says that she was just fighting with a guy from class who was trying to get her to let him cheat off of her Hamlet notes. Now if I walked in on that situation and saw my daughter so upset and heard her screaming “Let me go!”, I’d be poking for a few more details on what this guy tried to do to get the notes. Just because the motive changed doesn’t mean the actions are any more appropriate, Fitzpatrick.
Of course Mrs. Grey just gives a vague, motherly reply, hugging Nora and offering to call Elliot’s parents. Nora tells her not to. You know, I must ask what is up with Elliot’s parents? I don’t think we’re ever told that they’re dead or not around, so why doesn’t Nora have a chat with them or something?
Anyway, the reason Nora is putting herself in danger and risking her life by lying to her mother about this? Her mother is off to the wedding reception of a friend’s daughter and Nora knows she won’t go if she thinks her daughter is in danger. The contrivances are making my head spin, not to mention make Mrs. Grey look like a terrible mother for continually leaving Nora alone. Oh, but it gets better. You might be wondering why it would be a bad thing for Nora’s mother to stay home and give some form of protection to her only child. Well, apparently Nora wants to sneak off to Portland this evening to find out more information on Elliot, so she wants her mother out of the house for that.
I shall repeat that. Nora wishes to spy on and get more information on the guy that openly threatened her and who may or may not want to kill her, so her grand plan is to sneak off to a city some distance away at night, and without telling her mother or even having anyone home to bail her out if things go badly.
I would have face palmed here, but both of my hands were busy ripping at my hair. So instead, I just sort of thrashed my head around. It was almost as good.
And this, ladies and gentlemen, is where the chapter shifts from Do Not Want to Destroy With Fire. Because Mrs. Grey goes off to fix breakfast and Nora’s cell phone rings. It’s Vee, and guess what their conversation goes like! Go on, guess! Okay, you never will so I’ll just show you
“‘Did you hear? The four of us are going c-a-m-p-i-n-g for spring break!’ said Vee, sounding bizarrely cheerful.
‘Vee,’ I said, my voice trembling, ‘Elliot's planning something. Something scary. The only reason he wants to go camping is so he can get us alone. We're not going.’
‘What do you mean we're not going? This is a joke, right? I mean, we finally get to do something exciting over spring break, and you're saying no? You know my mom will never let me go alone. I'll do anything. Seriously. I'll do your homework for a week. Come on, Nora. One little word. Say it. It starts with the letter Y... .’
The hand holding my cell quivered, and I brought up my other hand to steady it. ‘Elliot showed up at my house fifteen minutes ago, drunk. He-he physically threatened me.’
She was quiet a moment. ‘What do you mean by 'physically threatened'?’
‘He dragged me out the front door and shoved me against the house.’
"But he was drunk, right?"
‘Does it matter?’ I snapped.
‘Well, he has a lot going on. I mean, he was wrongly accused of being messed up in some girl's suicide, and he was forced to switch schools. If he hurt you-and I'm not justifying what he did, by the way-maybe he just needs ... counseling, you know?’
‘If he hurt me?’
‘He was wasted. Maybe-maybe he didn't know what he was doing. Tomorrow he's going to feel horrible.’”
ZeldaQueen: Thing of beauty, isn’t it? For those of you who followed the Sparkle Project, you’ll remember this as the part where ceilidh_ann threw her copy of the book against the wall in rage. I wholeheartedly support that.
Now. Let me go through my thoughts. I shall do so as calmly as possible.
I must ask how dull Vee’s spring breaks are that camping gets that level of squee from her. She certainly doesn’t strike me as the sort who would find camping appealing.
Nora just tells Vee that they are not going because she honestly believes they’ll be in danger and all Vee processes is “Bzuh? You’re being a killjoy?” *slaps Vee* YOU DAMNED IDIOT!
Continuing on that thought, Vee has got to be the worst friend I’ve ever seen and that includes Alice Cullen and Haven. Nora is obviously upset. Her hand is shaking. Her voice is probably also shaking. She honestly and truly believes that something bad is going to happen. And does Vee make any effort to find out why Nora thinks this, or come to any compromise to help Nora feel more secure? No. She just starts pleading because isn’t Nora such a big meanie to deny her a camping trip? I hate Vee and wish she would die. And Fitzpatrick, you’re an idiot if you thought Vee was at all relatable or a good friend.
Now, let’s get to the end of that vile quote. Yeah, that’s the part I’m sure we all are thinking about. What does it boil down to? Nora tells Vee what happened. She does not waffle, nor does she skirt around what happened and give Vee reason to doubt. She tells her what happened and makes it clear that Elliot’s actions were inappropriate, unacceptable, and downright threatening. Vee’s response? To immediately start defending him.
*steeples fingers* Tell me, Vee, how does saying “he was drunk” make his actions any more acceptable? If anything, it makes it worse because not only is he a violent bastard, he’s a violent bastard who partakes in a drink that impairs his judgment. Intoxication is not a valid excuse for his behavior. Nothing, possibly short of mind control or possession, does (and before you ask, no neither of those options are going on here).
For that matter, how does saying “He just needs counseling” help matters? Vee dear, you just openly admitted that you want to go camping with a guy who is in need of therapy and attacks people while drunk! Not to mention that your weak “I’m not justifying it” is pretty much scuppered seeing as you ARE justifying it, you TWAT!!!
Finally, Vee is attempted to justify Elliot’s violent behavior by saying he was just drunk, will feel bad when he’s sober, just needs counseling, and has a lot on his mind. Did Fitzpatrick have a list of standard excuses from the Abused Person Textbook by her computer when she wrote this?
And no, ladies and gentlemen, it does not get any better. Nora is, quite understandably, pissed at Vee for acting like this. She still does not call Vee out on this shit, because that would run the risk of convincing Vee of the danger and that would consequentially deny Fitzpatrick the cheater’s way out for cheap drama later. Instead, she goes all prissily quiet and goes to hang up.
Before she can do so, Vee gives us this
“Can I be completely honest, babe? I know you're worried about this guy in the ski mask. Don't hate me, but I think the only reason you're trying so hard to pin it on Elliot is because you don't want it to be Patch. You're rationalizing everything, and it's freaking me out”
ZeldaQueen: *opens mouth*
*closes mouth*
*gives another try*
WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Nora is the one “rationalizing” things?!? SHE WAS ATTACKED BY THIS ASSHOLE! THE SKI MASK INCIDENT ISN’T FACTORING INTO THIS AT ALL! IT IS COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT! WHETHER OR NOT IT OCCURRED, IT DOES NOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT ELLIOT JUST GRABBED AND THROTTLED NORA! JESUS H. CHRIST, HOW DENSE IS THIS CHIT?
*stabs her arm with Zeus 1957, her letter opener, several times to calm down*
Right. *furious snort* While we’re on the subject, maybe Vee can explain why she is going to such ridiculous lengths to defend Elliot. We’re going to find out later exactly why she’s so suspicious of Patch (no, it’s not because common sense proves that he’s Bad News), but that same reason won’t work because there’s no reason for her to be so certain that Elliot is safe. She’s being told point-blank that he attacked Nora and she is still making excuses! I repeat, WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Nora actually summons up my points above, not like I worded it but she still reminds Vee that “Patch didn't show up at my door this morning and slam me against my house”. No, he only assaulted you in the library parking garage. If I were Nora, I’d just throw up my hands, escape to any fandom written by Joss Whedon, and take the opportunity to learn to kill the supernatural assholes after me. Saying that one dude attacking her is mutually exclusive to another attacking is ridiculous.
Anyway, Vee ignores Nora’s point and decides to drop the conversation. DO YOU REALLY THINK I’M KIDDING HERE? Instead, she asks what Nora’s plans are for the evening. Nora is still pissed, but says she’s going to poke around Portland and could she borrow Vee’s Neon for the trip? Vee guesses that it’s for spying on Elliot and offers to go along for the trip…as long as Nora agrees to going camping.
*SCREAMS*
Nora hangs up as Vee makes it clear she will continue to pester her to give in.
We jump to Nora getting off the bus to Portland, and yes that was as jarring as it sounds. She openly admits that she has little knowledge of Portland and has only been there a few times. So. She’s going poking around in a city she is unfamiliar with, while her mother has no idea where she is and can’t get her if she’s in trouble. To quote the infinitely more practical and intelligent Sophie Hatter, “Why do I get the feeling this is not going to work?”
So she heads into Portland and heads straight for a place called Blind Joe’s Dinner, which is where Kjirsten worked. She has a list of questions aout Kjirsten and hopes that she can go off of them from memory because she doesn’t want the employees to think she’s interviewing them. Basically, this is just a repeat of her trying to get information on Patch. The only difference is that she isn’t wearing the wig and mini skirt this time. Although really, considering that she writes for the school paper, you’d think she’d be a little more skilled at getting information.
Nora is greeted by someone who I can only assume the bitchiest waitress in the place. It’s hammered in how sour her voice is and how grumpy she is towards Nora, and it is just utterly ridiculous. I’ve worked in food services, I know it can be sucky and taxing on one’s disposition, I know that people just have bad days, but the point of being a waitress is that you put on a smile anyway and complain in the kitchen.
Anyway, Nora launches into questioning right off the bat by loudly wondering why the diner’s name sounds so familiar. Now if I was doing this, I’d ease into the subject after I was seated and perhaps ordered something. Of course, I wouldn’t be doing this plan so half-assed in general, so I suppose the point is moot.
The waitress is all snappish and says that they were in the paper for a full week because of the murder last month. The diner was in the paper? I could see if the murder itself made for a week’s worth of articles, but why would the diner be brought up more than a handful of times? The only thing about it was that Elliot picked her up from there.
In any case, the waitress has no patience for the questions and seats Nora and asks what she wants to eat. Nora isn’t hungry, so she continues pushing for questions. Yes, be extremely obvious that you’re fishing for information while pissing off the waitress more. That will help. Seriously, just buy a bowl of chowder and don’t eat it if you don’t want it!
Nora randomly takes notice of a waiter across the room. “He was short, bald back to his ears, and his body type mimicked the toothpicks in the dispenser at the end of the table. His eyes never reached higher than three feet off the ground. As pathetic as I would have felt after the fact, one friendly smile from me might have been enough to have him spilling Kjirsten's entire life story”. Because dur-hur, guys who aren’t abusive jerks are sad-sacks who are starved for affection from pretty girls.
The waitress continues to be pissy and reminds Nora that she doesn’t paid if Nora doesn’t order. Nora, for her part, continues to be as obvious as possible that she’s fishing for answers, until the waitress demands to know what’s going on. After enough of this embarrassing dialogue, the waitress tells Nora that if she orders a milk shake, burger, fries, bowl of chowder, and leaves a twenty-five percent tip, she’ll spill the beans.
Nora goes along with it. I do so hope the waitress enjoys what she makes, because all it takes is one call to her manager from Nora and that lady gets canned. Those sorts of deals only work in movies, Fitzpatrick.
The waitress tells Nora that Kjirsten and Elliot indeed dated and he walked her home to her apartment after her shifts. And…that’s it. The waitress extorted money from Nora for that. Pardon moi, but didn’t we already know that???
Nora continues to ask for information and the waitress is generally pissy about it. She (the waitress) finally admits that she does think Elliot planted the suicide note because he’s a rich kid and rich folk can get away with anything. Okay then. Nora is confuzzled by this, because Elliot was on scholarship and Jules was the rich one. The waitress patronizes her - very smart there, insult the customer who you’re already taking advantage of - and says that Elliot was rich enough to buy an apartment for Kjirsten.
Next, Nora asks if anyone blond and tall (Jules) ever met Elliot at the diner. The waitress pauses to chew off the edge of her fingernail (apparently Fitzpatrick is holding nothing back while writing the worst waitress ever) and says as a matter of fact he did. She recalls the last time they met, when Kjirsten wasn’t working. The two talked about a test the tall guy failed, which Elliot wasn’t happy about. There’s also the implication that the tall guy didn’t like Kjirsten hanging around. I honestly don’t care, it’s all so dull.
Nora asks if there’s any more, and the waitress goes ahead and writes her down for a lemonade, slice of pie, cup of coffee, and additional twenty-five percent tip in exchange for more information. By this point, I sincerely hope that Nora just slips out and skips on the meal and bill after the waitress sashays back into the kitchen. And I refuse to believe that no one overheard her extortion there, because it’s specifically mentioned that there is only one other person in the diner besides Nora. Fitzpatrick, you do realize that there’s always a manager in the back room to keep an eye on things, don’t you? That little ploy the waitress pulled would get her ass fired in seconds flat. It’s unacceptable behavior, and it’s hardly like there’s a shortage of people trying for jobs who’d sign on to be a waitress.
*spits* Bah. Get ready, ladies and gentlemen. We’re just starting on our journey of batshittery. Onward!
ZeldaQueen: On a nicer (I hope) note, for anyone interested, I have finally gotten my Femgenfication piece in! Huzzah! You can read it here, if want. (And if you don't, that's fine as well ^^;)
Onward to: Chapter 21
Back to: Chapter 19
Return to to: Table of Contents
Projection Room Voices: Starting Media in 3...2...1...
Chapter 20
ZeldaQueen: I would like to give you guys fair warning - these next few chapters are not going to be much fun. They are horrible and will make you wonder what Fitzpatrick was smoking when she wrote this and are leading up to That One Chapter. So yeah, we’re going to be getting a good bit more hostile. You’ve been warned.
So yeah, after those…frightening revelations in the previous chapter, Nora is tossing and turning in bed while a storm wails outside. Feel free to beat your head with how SYMBOLIK it is. When six o’clock rolls around, she decides to get up and take a shower. Then she goes, finds the dirty clothes strewn about her room, and starts doing laundry. This tells us two things.
First, Fitzpatrick clearly studied at Meyer’s School of Writing and thinks we give a shit about things like that.
Second, Nora’s IQ now rivals plankton. Because for all of these activities, her thought process? Completely empty. This might as well be narrated in third person, that’s how much insight into her thoughts and feelings we get. And thus, instead of coming across as conflicted and frightened, she feels incredibly stupid because she suspects her boyfriend is an evil being who wants to steal her body and she is FREAKING IGNORING IT!
*takes several deep breaths*
That, or Fitzpatrick really sucks at writing. *thoughtful* Or both, I suppose. Take your pick.
Anyway, Nora is finishing up these riveting tasks when there is a knock at the door. After everything that’s happened to her, she just goes straight ahead and opens the door without seeing who it is. You dumbass. You have a number of people after you and who you are avoiding and you just give them clear access to your home?
Yes, she does. And who would it be but Elliot the Slimy Git? We get a description of what he’s wearing, because I suppose Fitzpatrick thought it would be interesting. It isn’t. (Though I must ask, since when has a plaid shirt rolled up to the elbows, sunglasses, and a Red Sox hat come across as “all-American”?)
Nora instantly freaks out, and I don’t blame her. That’s one of the most infuriating things about this book - when the danger is something other than Patch, Nora’s actually pretty good at noticing it. Actually, given that she usually picks up on Patch being dangerous, I’m seriously wondering if he’s just mind raping her into overlooking it.
Anyway, Elliot is here and is all patronizing and drunk. You know, given what we’re going to learn about this guy, you’d think he’d be more careful in how he acts towards Nora. After all, you’d think he’d try harder to uphold his Good Boy façade after she found out his history, instead of regressing to All-Asshole mode.
So yeah, the first thing out of his mouth is “You've been causing me a lot of trouble lately”. Nora doesn’t think anything about that, and I must wonder why. I know what he means because I read ahead, but that would make no sense otherwise. He hasn’t been making any serious attempts to avoid him or do anything that would get him in trouble. Anyway, he says that he wants to talk and tries to get her to let him in the house. Nora refuses, telling him that her mother is still sleeping. I guess when the guy isn’t Patch, she can stand up to him pretty well. Elliot makes a comment about how he’s never met her mother, and Nora continues to be creeped out. Yeah, still not getting Elliot’s actions here, especially when we see what he’s angling for.
Nora basically tells Elliot to say whatever he wants to say and then get the fuck out. Elliot makes a very dramatic show of being hurt that she doesn’t like him, and it’s so badly-done and over-the-top that I’m in physical pain. He insists that he’s an average dude and just wants to prove it to Nora, and what better way to do so than punch her house when she tries to say something. Yeah, really helping your case there.
Now it’s Mood Whiplash Time as he starts rubbing his bleeding hand while laughing quietly and saying “Ten dollars says I'm going to regret that later”. If you’re already in pain and your hand is bleeding, I’d say you’re regretting it now.
Nora continues to be creeped out and once again calls herself an idiot for thinking he was ever a nice guy. I already ranted about that, so let’s pass on. Instead, let’s look at what comes next. Nora finally decides to slip in the house and slam the door on Elliot, when he gets around to the point of this little visit. He says that Jules is under a lot of stress, and we all can figure that out from the many times we have never seen him in this book. Seriously, Nora’s negligent mother gets more screen time than he does, and that’s saying a lot. Anyway, the upshot is that Elliot wants to plan a camping trip over spring break with himself, Jules, Vee, and Nora.
For a pleasant change Nora is actually genre savvy and tells him she has other plans. He tells her to change those plans and I’m scratching my head because that is exactly the answer Patch gives whenever Nora tells him that. Is that the only response Fitzpatrick can think up for a guy to say in that scenario? And what does that say about Patch, if he treats Nora in the same way the Obviously Evil Elliot does?
*shakes head* Right. Onward. Elliot does not take “No” for an answer, like most of the guys in this book. He insists that he can get everything set up real nice and begs Nora for a chance to prove he’s a good guy. Given all of the abusive relationship vibes in this book along with what we’re getting in a second, this is seriously squicky. Nora tells Elliot to leave at once and while I do appreciate her not caving in, I am loathe to give points because dude, this guy is getting creepy, don’t just quietly keep repeating the same thing! Scream! Talk loudly! Wake up your mother! I don’t think she’ll mind if it means saving you!
But no, Nora does none of that, which means we get this
“Elliot leaned his hand on the doorjamb, bending toward me. ‘Wrong Answer.’ For a fleeting moment, the glassy stupor in his eyes disappeared, something twisted and sinister eclipsing it. I involuntarily stepped back. I was almost positive Elliot had it in him to kill. I was almost positive Kjirsten's death was on his hands”
ZeldaQueen: Nora, you really have no excuse now. Scream as loud as you can. Wake your mother. Kick him in the nuts. Something!
Oh, well, she continues to bleat for him to leave. Yes, that will work well. DAMN IT NORA, HE’S NOT LISTENING TO YOU! *flaps hands*
And he still isn’t! You want to see how he takes her continued refusal? Of course you do!
“Elliot flung the screen door open so hard it smacked back against the house. He grabbed the front of my bathrobe and yanked me outside. Then he shoved me back against the siding and pinned me there with his body. ‘You're coming camping whether you want to or not.’
‘Get off me!’ I said, twisting away from him.
‘Or what? What are you going to do?’ He had me by the shoulders now, and he knocked me back against the house again, rattling my teeth.
‘I'll call the police.’ I had no idea how I said it so bravely. My breathing was rapid and shallow, my hands clammy.
‘Are you going to shout for them? They can't hear you. The only way I'm letting you go is if you swear to go camping.’”
ZeldaQueen: I…okay, let’s talk about a few things here.
First of all, Nora’s fears about the camping trip are not unfounded. I won’t spoil it all now, but just know for now that yes, there almost certainly would have been something nasty planned for her on that trip. In other words, it’s a trap for her. Elliot is trying to lure her into a trap.
How does he manage that? He openly tries to scare and threaten her into doing it. Oh yeah, that will work great you idiot! You show up drunk, are as creepy as possible, and then make the most half-assed attempt to get her there that I’ve ever seen. What’s to stop her from telling the police about that after you let go? Even if she did promise, what proof would you have that she wasn’t lying to get rid of you? Or are you working under the assumption that if a girl promises something, she’ll go along with it because deep down, she really wants it?
… Dear lord, I need to keep my mind in check.
Of course, there’s Nora’s idiocy. Apparently she was inside her house the entire time, with the screen door closed. What? Well if that’s the case, why not slam the door shut and lock it, dumbass??? Again, make noise! Claw him! Flail! Something! Jesus, what is up with this book? I’m appalled at how victimized and helpless Fitzpatrick has made her protagonist!
Thank the lord this ends quickly, when Nora’s mother does something remotely useful and wakes up and calls for her. Seeing as he might get caught, Elliot lets her go and leaves, telling her that it isn’t over. Of course not. There are ten chapters left, after all. *despairs*
Nora finally closes and locks the door and starts to break down, which is pretty understandable with everything that happened to her thus far. Her mother comes in and, upon seeing her daughter collapsed on the floor and having almost certainly heard her screaming and slamming the door, asks if something is wrong.
ZeldaQueen: Mrs. Weasley this lady is not.
Oh, and it gets even better. Because after all of that, after Nora has plenty of reason to say she is not safe because this guy is clearly stalking her and attacking her and generally scaring her, she decides to lie and not tell her mother what he did.
I slapped my forehead. At this rate, my head will not survive.
The entire thing is horribly contrived, of course. Fitzpatrick knows that if Mrs. Grey catches wind of what’s going on, she’ll actually take steps to do something, like change the locks or call the police or move. But that would put an end to the plot if that happened or at least force Fitzpatrick to put more effort into this, so we can’t have Mrs. Grey find out anything.
So yeah. Nora, who is kneeling on the floor and making a visible effort to not cry, says that she was just fighting with a guy from class who was trying to get her to let him cheat off of her Hamlet notes. Now if I walked in on that situation and saw my daughter so upset and heard her screaming “Let me go!”, I’d be poking for a few more details on what this guy tried to do to get the notes. Just because the motive changed doesn’t mean the actions are any more appropriate, Fitzpatrick.
Of course Mrs. Grey just gives a vague, motherly reply, hugging Nora and offering to call Elliot’s parents. Nora tells her not to. You know, I must ask what is up with Elliot’s parents? I don’t think we’re ever told that they’re dead or not around, so why doesn’t Nora have a chat with them or something?
Anyway, the reason Nora is putting herself in danger and risking her life by lying to her mother about this? Her mother is off to the wedding reception of a friend’s daughter and Nora knows she won’t go if she thinks her daughter is in danger. The contrivances are making my head spin, not to mention make Mrs. Grey look like a terrible mother for continually leaving Nora alone. Oh, but it gets better. You might be wondering why it would be a bad thing for Nora’s mother to stay home and give some form of protection to her only child. Well, apparently Nora wants to sneak off to Portland this evening to find out more information on Elliot, so she wants her mother out of the house for that.
I shall repeat that. Nora wishes to spy on and get more information on the guy that openly threatened her and who may or may not want to kill her, so her grand plan is to sneak off to a city some distance away at night, and without telling her mother or even having anyone home to bail her out if things go badly.
I would have face palmed here, but both of my hands were busy ripping at my hair. So instead, I just sort of thrashed my head around. It was almost as good.
And this, ladies and gentlemen, is where the chapter shifts from Do Not Want to Destroy With Fire. Because Mrs. Grey goes off to fix breakfast and Nora’s cell phone rings. It’s Vee, and guess what their conversation goes like! Go on, guess! Okay, you never will so I’ll just show you
“‘Did you hear? The four of us are going c-a-m-p-i-n-g for spring break!’ said Vee, sounding bizarrely cheerful.
‘Vee,’ I said, my voice trembling, ‘Elliot's planning something. Something scary. The only reason he wants to go camping is so he can get us alone. We're not going.’
‘What do you mean we're not going? This is a joke, right? I mean, we finally get to do something exciting over spring break, and you're saying no? You know my mom will never let me go alone. I'll do anything. Seriously. I'll do your homework for a week. Come on, Nora. One little word. Say it. It starts with the letter Y... .’
The hand holding my cell quivered, and I brought up my other hand to steady it. ‘Elliot showed up at my house fifteen minutes ago, drunk. He-he physically threatened me.’
She was quiet a moment. ‘What do you mean by 'physically threatened'?’
‘He dragged me out the front door and shoved me against the house.’
"But he was drunk, right?"
‘Does it matter?’ I snapped.
‘Well, he has a lot going on. I mean, he was wrongly accused of being messed up in some girl's suicide, and he was forced to switch schools. If he hurt you-and I'm not justifying what he did, by the way-maybe he just needs ... counseling, you know?’
‘If he hurt me?’
‘He was wasted. Maybe-maybe he didn't know what he was doing. Tomorrow he's going to feel horrible.’”
ZeldaQueen: Thing of beauty, isn’t it? For those of you who followed the Sparkle Project, you’ll remember this as the part where ceilidh_ann threw her copy of the book against the wall in rage. I wholeheartedly support that.
Now. Let me go through my thoughts. I shall do so as calmly as possible.
I must ask how dull Vee’s spring breaks are that camping gets that level of squee from her. She certainly doesn’t strike me as the sort who would find camping appealing.
Nora just tells Vee that they are not going because she honestly believes they’ll be in danger and all Vee processes is “Bzuh? You’re being a killjoy?” *slaps Vee* YOU DAMNED IDIOT!
Continuing on that thought, Vee has got to be the worst friend I’ve ever seen and that includes Alice Cullen and Haven. Nora is obviously upset. Her hand is shaking. Her voice is probably also shaking. She honestly and truly believes that something bad is going to happen. And does Vee make any effort to find out why Nora thinks this, or come to any compromise to help Nora feel more secure? No. She just starts pleading because isn’t Nora such a big meanie to deny her a camping trip? I hate Vee and wish she would die. And Fitzpatrick, you’re an idiot if you thought Vee was at all relatable or a good friend.
Now, let’s get to the end of that vile quote. Yeah, that’s the part I’m sure we all are thinking about. What does it boil down to? Nora tells Vee what happened. She does not waffle, nor does she skirt around what happened and give Vee reason to doubt. She tells her what happened and makes it clear that Elliot’s actions were inappropriate, unacceptable, and downright threatening. Vee’s response? To immediately start defending him.
*steeples fingers* Tell me, Vee, how does saying “he was drunk” make his actions any more acceptable? If anything, it makes it worse because not only is he a violent bastard, he’s a violent bastard who partakes in a drink that impairs his judgment. Intoxication is not a valid excuse for his behavior. Nothing, possibly short of mind control or possession, does (and before you ask, no neither of those options are going on here).
For that matter, how does saying “He just needs counseling” help matters? Vee dear, you just openly admitted that you want to go camping with a guy who is in need of therapy and attacks people while drunk! Not to mention that your weak “I’m not justifying it” is pretty much scuppered seeing as you ARE justifying it, you TWAT!!!
Finally, Vee is attempted to justify Elliot’s violent behavior by saying he was just drunk, will feel bad when he’s sober, just needs counseling, and has a lot on his mind. Did Fitzpatrick have a list of standard excuses from the Abused Person Textbook by her computer when she wrote this?
And no, ladies and gentlemen, it does not get any better. Nora is, quite understandably, pissed at Vee for acting like this. She still does not call Vee out on this shit, because that would run the risk of convincing Vee of the danger and that would consequentially deny Fitzpatrick the cheater’s way out for cheap drama later. Instead, she goes all prissily quiet and goes to hang up.
Before she can do so, Vee gives us this
“Can I be completely honest, babe? I know you're worried about this guy in the ski mask. Don't hate me, but I think the only reason you're trying so hard to pin it on Elliot is because you don't want it to be Patch. You're rationalizing everything, and it's freaking me out”
ZeldaQueen: *opens mouth*
*closes mouth*
*gives another try*
WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Nora is the one “rationalizing” things?!? SHE WAS ATTACKED BY THIS ASSHOLE! THE SKI MASK INCIDENT ISN’T FACTORING INTO THIS AT ALL! IT IS COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT! WHETHER OR NOT IT OCCURRED, IT DOES NOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT ELLIOT JUST GRABBED AND THROTTLED NORA! JESUS H. CHRIST, HOW DENSE IS THIS CHIT?
*stabs her arm with Zeus 1957, her letter opener, several times to calm down*
Right. *furious snort* While we’re on the subject, maybe Vee can explain why she is going to such ridiculous lengths to defend Elliot. We’re going to find out later exactly why she’s so suspicious of Patch (no, it’s not because common sense proves that he’s Bad News), but that same reason won’t work because there’s no reason for her to be so certain that Elliot is safe. She’s being told point-blank that he attacked Nora and she is still making excuses! I repeat, WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Nora actually summons up my points above, not like I worded it but she still reminds Vee that “Patch didn't show up at my door this morning and slam me against my house”. No, he only assaulted you in the library parking garage. If I were Nora, I’d just throw up my hands, escape to any fandom written by Joss Whedon, and take the opportunity to learn to kill the supernatural assholes after me. Saying that one dude attacking her is mutually exclusive to another attacking is ridiculous.
Anyway, Vee ignores Nora’s point and decides to drop the conversation. DO YOU REALLY THINK I’M KIDDING HERE? Instead, she asks what Nora’s plans are for the evening. Nora is still pissed, but says she’s going to poke around Portland and could she borrow Vee’s Neon for the trip? Vee guesses that it’s for spying on Elliot and offers to go along for the trip…as long as Nora agrees to going camping.
*SCREAMS*
Nora hangs up as Vee makes it clear she will continue to pester her to give in.
We jump to Nora getting off the bus to Portland, and yes that was as jarring as it sounds. She openly admits that she has little knowledge of Portland and has only been there a few times. So. She’s going poking around in a city she is unfamiliar with, while her mother has no idea where she is and can’t get her if she’s in trouble. To quote the infinitely more practical and intelligent Sophie Hatter, “Why do I get the feeling this is not going to work?”
So she heads into Portland and heads straight for a place called Blind Joe’s Dinner, which is where Kjirsten worked. She has a list of questions aout Kjirsten and hopes that she can go off of them from memory because she doesn’t want the employees to think she’s interviewing them. Basically, this is just a repeat of her trying to get information on Patch. The only difference is that she isn’t wearing the wig and mini skirt this time. Although really, considering that she writes for the school paper, you’d think she’d be a little more skilled at getting information.
Nora is greeted by someone who I can only assume the bitchiest waitress in the place. It’s hammered in how sour her voice is and how grumpy she is towards Nora, and it is just utterly ridiculous. I’ve worked in food services, I know it can be sucky and taxing on one’s disposition, I know that people just have bad days, but the point of being a waitress is that you put on a smile anyway and complain in the kitchen.
Anyway, Nora launches into questioning right off the bat by loudly wondering why the diner’s name sounds so familiar. Now if I was doing this, I’d ease into the subject after I was seated and perhaps ordered something. Of course, I wouldn’t be doing this plan so half-assed in general, so I suppose the point is moot.
The waitress is all snappish and says that they were in the paper for a full week because of the murder last month. The diner was in the paper? I could see if the murder itself made for a week’s worth of articles, but why would the diner be brought up more than a handful of times? The only thing about it was that Elliot picked her up from there.
In any case, the waitress has no patience for the questions and seats Nora and asks what she wants to eat. Nora isn’t hungry, so she continues pushing for questions. Yes, be extremely obvious that you’re fishing for information while pissing off the waitress more. That will help. Seriously, just buy a bowl of chowder and don’t eat it if you don’t want it!
Nora randomly takes notice of a waiter across the room. “He was short, bald back to his ears, and his body type mimicked the toothpicks in the dispenser at the end of the table. His eyes never reached higher than three feet off the ground. As pathetic as I would have felt after the fact, one friendly smile from me might have been enough to have him spilling Kjirsten's entire life story”. Because dur-hur, guys who aren’t abusive jerks are sad-sacks who are starved for affection from pretty girls.
The waitress continues to be pissy and reminds Nora that she doesn’t paid if Nora doesn’t order. Nora, for her part, continues to be as obvious as possible that she’s fishing for answers, until the waitress demands to know what’s going on. After enough of this embarrassing dialogue, the waitress tells Nora that if she orders a milk shake, burger, fries, bowl of chowder, and leaves a twenty-five percent tip, she’ll spill the beans.
Nora goes along with it. I do so hope the waitress enjoys what she makes, because all it takes is one call to her manager from Nora and that lady gets canned. Those sorts of deals only work in movies, Fitzpatrick.
The waitress tells Nora that Kjirsten and Elliot indeed dated and he walked her home to her apartment after her shifts. And…that’s it. The waitress extorted money from Nora for that. Pardon moi, but didn’t we already know that???
Nora continues to ask for information and the waitress is generally pissy about it. She (the waitress) finally admits that she does think Elliot planted the suicide note because he’s a rich kid and rich folk can get away with anything. Okay then. Nora is confuzzled by this, because Elliot was on scholarship and Jules was the rich one. The waitress patronizes her - very smart there, insult the customer who you’re already taking advantage of - and says that Elliot was rich enough to buy an apartment for Kjirsten.
Next, Nora asks if anyone blond and tall (Jules) ever met Elliot at the diner. The waitress pauses to chew off the edge of her fingernail (apparently Fitzpatrick is holding nothing back while writing the worst waitress ever) and says as a matter of fact he did. She recalls the last time they met, when Kjirsten wasn’t working. The two talked about a test the tall guy failed, which Elliot wasn’t happy about. There’s also the implication that the tall guy didn’t like Kjirsten hanging around. I honestly don’t care, it’s all so dull.
Nora asks if there’s any more, and the waitress goes ahead and writes her down for a lemonade, slice of pie, cup of coffee, and additional twenty-five percent tip in exchange for more information. By this point, I sincerely hope that Nora just slips out and skips on the meal and bill after the waitress sashays back into the kitchen. And I refuse to believe that no one overheard her extortion there, because it’s specifically mentioned that there is only one other person in the diner besides Nora. Fitzpatrick, you do realize that there’s always a manager in the back room to keep an eye on things, don’t you? That little ploy the waitress pulled would get her ass fired in seconds flat. It’s unacceptable behavior, and it’s hardly like there’s a shortage of people trying for jobs who’d sign on to be a waitress.
*spits* Bah. Get ready, ladies and gentlemen. We’re just starting on our journey of batshittery. Onward!
ZeldaQueen: On a nicer (I hope) note, for anyone interested, I have finally gotten my Femgenfication piece in! Huzzah! You can read it here, if want. (And if you don't, that's fine as well ^^;)
Onward to: Chapter 21
Back to: Chapter 19
Return to to: Table of Contents