Not Safe Anymore, 1/1, Heroes, Claire

[authoressnebula.livejournal.com]

Title: Not Safe Anymore
Rating: PG
Chapter: 1 of 1
Fandom: Heroes (Claire)
Spoilers: Story's based on events from "Five Years Gone".
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Summary: She thought she was safe.
Prompt: #41 - Asylum

Wordcount: 507

Okay, if this is really messy, it's all on me. I just needed something to stay in the running, basically. My sciatic nerve got REALLY messed up last night, and right now, sitting is causing me SO much pain. Sorry guys.

She thought she was safe. Safe from everything that had happened after the worst had happened. New York was gone, and yet five years later, they were still hiding from the world. Nathan, her own birth father, had seen to that; he'd made them all monsters in the world's eyes, had them subjected to scrutiny and prejudice.

Wouldn't it be funny if the world found out that their president could fly?

Out here, at least, it wasn't as bad. She knew people who had known her for years, and she'd hidden her abilities as best she could. No one knew about her and her ability to heal. There'd been a few close cases; working in a diner meant that sometimes you caught yourself on the counter or cut yourself with a knife. She made sure not to grimace, though, to always smile, and no one noticed. No one noticed her at all, way out here.

Except her dad. He stopped in every now and then, sometimes for nothing more than a coffee. Most of the time they didn't even exchange words; he didn't always sit in her section. But he came to see her, to tell himself that she was alive, and she was safe.

Until today.

His words yesterday had scared her, shaken her from the steady pace of day to day life. He'd told her to run. Her asylum wasn't her asylum anymore; she had to move out.

She didn't want to leave. She had a beautiful life now, with a guy who adored her and customers who sat in her section just to see her sunny Texas smile. Life was good, for once. She didn't have to worry about anything. At least, she wasn't supposed to have to worry.

But if someone was after her, knew she was still alive, then she had to move out. Fast.

The next morning, she dialed him. She knew she wasn't supposed to, because then anyone could find her, but she had to hear her dad's voice. He didn't answer after the seventh ring, so she hung up, telling herself he was just busy. That was the only reason he couldn't come to the phone.

She didn't know where to go until the one person who had kept her safe years ago had popped into her head. Family. Las Vegas. Peter. She packed her bags and tucked inside the little brown paper bag her dad had given her the day before. Inside was another ID card with a different name again, cash, several of the blood dye tubes he'd figured out how to make, and a gun.

Her fiancé had agreed with her: they'd elope, and the best place to elope still was Vegas. Everyone knew that. Pieces were falling into place, and she served her last customer with a smile.

Until Claire saw who it was, and all of her careful planning fell around her like shards of a mirror. Her life fell around her, and there was nothing she could do now.

She wasn't safe anymore.

~Nebula

Comments

[umbralillium.livejournal.com]

This? Was perfect! I loved seeing things from Claire's point of view. *pets her* Poor girlie.

[comiskey.livejournal.com]

Nice short little fic. You did a really good job writing Claire's POV on all of this.

[ronniekins77.livejournal.com]

So good! Not messy at all. :) I did a fic to this same kind of thing, and mine was messy. This was just perfect. Awesome job on getting inside of Claire's head. :)

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

That was such a sad part of this week's episode. You've caught the trapped mood nicely here.