The Silent Girl

19.

'Jim Brood'

My phone had been vibrating in my pocket for absolutely ages...but I was in such an important meeting that I had too completely ignore it.

When the meeting was over, I left quickly and grabbed my phone seeing the notification screen.

Micky

10 missed calls

Luke

14 missed calls

Noah

22 missed calls

Oh no.

I immediately call Noah back.

"What's wrong?" I stress, worrying about my only daughter.

'Noah'

"Something happened last night with Ells and it followed into school, all four of us are home, Ella didn't sleep at all last night, are you free to come home?" I tell Jim in short of what has happened.

"Yeah, yeah, is she ok?" He asks, concern taking over his voice and I hear movement in the background.

"I think so, just tired and upset" I tell him, not wanting to face facts about Ella's state.

"Ok, I'm on my way back" He tells me before hanging up.

"Was that Jim?" Micky asks, walking back into the living room from checking Ella was ok.

"Yeah, he's on his way. Is she ok?" I immediately asked, wanting to know if Ella was ok. "She still asleep?"

"I think she is beginning to wake up again, Luke is with her" Micky tells me slowly, sitting down on the sofa that I was sat on too.

A few minutes later, Ella and Luke come down the stairs, Ella with a blanket around her shoulders.

"Hey" I whisper slowly, as she comes in-between myself and Micky and sits down. Leaning into my hold as I wrap my arms around her, her head on my chest. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm still tired but I can't sleep anymore" She whispers to me, a tear falling out of her check.

"It's ok" I wipe the one fallen tear and rub her cheek slowly. "Just relax, your dad is on his way"

"Thank you for being here" She whispers to all of us.

"We love you so much" Luke says from where he was crouched in front of her, adjusting the blanket so it was fully over her body.

"I love you guys too" She mumbles into me, as I kiss the top of her head softly, to calm her. Our heads suddenly shoot up when we hear fumbling at the door, it unlocks and opens. Then a few seconds later it shuts and Jim comes walking in fast.

Ella bolts up and runs to him, wrapping her arms around her father, as he exchanges it back.

'Ella'

As soon as I see my dad, I bolt to him, wrapping my arms around him really tight, as he returns it.

"I'm sorry that you had to leave work" I mumble into his chest as he holds my head close to him.

"Angel, it's not your fault, come on, lets sit down and talk ok?" He whispers to me, leading me over to the spare sofa, sitting me down and kissing my head. Luke then walks over with the blanket and puts it over me, tucking it into my sides gently,

"Can he see the messages?" Luke whispers to me, tucking a piece of my brown hair behind my ear.

"Yeah" I mumble back, seeing Luke hand my dad, my phone.

Ten minutes later, my dad throws the phone on the sofa and stands up, storming out of the room.

I hide in the sofa, covering my face and letting sobs leave my lips. I feel a body pull me into their lap, I recognize it as either Micky, Noah or Luke, it was definitely not my dad.

"Shh" I finally hear Luke's smoothing voice in my ear, making me realize that it was him, holding me in his lap tightly.

"My chest hurts" I mumble into Luke gently, trying to steady my breathing.

"I know, just breath" He replies, stroking the back of my head.

'Two hours later'

Dad had gone, I had no idea where he was.

Luke, Micky, Noah and I were all sat on one sofa, watching the film on the tv in front of us. I was sandwiched between Luke and Noah. Wrapped up in a blanket as I fight my sleep, I tried to focus on the film but all I could think of is my dad. I wondered where he was, I wondered if it was my fault.

But soon enough, my dad came home.

"Ella" He whispers, from the doorway of the living room. "Can we talk upstairs?"

I nod, and climb off the sofa, leaving the blanket next to the boys before giving them a small smile and following my dad up the stairs.

"Are you mad at me, dad?" I ask slowly when we enter his own bedroom. He sits down on the bed, patting the spot in front of me for me to sit in.

"I'm not mad at you, sweetheart." He starts, putting his hand on my knee, rubbing his thumb across it. "I was mad when I read those messages on your phone so instead of taking my anger out on you or the others, I took a walk. But hon, I'm not mad at you I promise"

"Thank god, I was so nervous that you were mad at me" He wraps his arms tightly around me, basically pulling me into his lap and holding me tightly.

"Ella, I need you to block all three of them ok?" He says sternly, looking down at me. "And do not talk to them at school, I'm gonna call Miss Bright and Mr Stone, get you out of their classes and such ok?"

"Ok"

"Promise me, Ella"

"I promise, dad and plus I don't need anyone else but you, Micky, Luke and Noah" I smile up at him.

'end of 19.'

nearly my birthday! x

Posted: 11.4.22