Every Little Thing

39

|| Reed ||

After discovering her ability to move again, Evelyn becomes pretty much a recluse. She walks back into Hallie's room and collects some towels, walking past me to make her way into the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" I ask, and she turns to look at me over her shoulder. She nods, but her face looks worn and exhausted, which causes something inside me to twist. I knew it wouldn't be this easy, but it's hard to see her look so sad.

Before I can say anything else, she shuts herself in the bathroom. A few seconds later, I hear the water running, a soft whoosh that echoes throughout the otherwise empty house. I wait, thrumming my fingers along the edge of the couch, closing my eyes and trying my hardest not to freak out.

What would Mom do? I wonder, trying to imagine her in this situation, tending to Evelyn and keeping her calm. Mom would be so much better at this than me—she'd probably cook all kinds of meals, play music, make sure there's always water on hand. She'd treat Evelyn like royalty, and as hard as I'm trying, I know that there's not much else I can do.

I groan, putting my head in my hands. What am I going to do? My girlfriend was nearly throttled to death, and now I don't even know how to handle taking care of her.

Girlfriend. The word had entered my mind so suddenly, so effortlessly, that I didn't even give it a second thought. Now, I sit up, staring at the wall across from me, contemplating it. Is Evelyn my girlfriend?

Stop, Reed. That's not important right now.

I'm about to get up and start cleaning something, but that's when my phone starts ringing. I look at the screen and my heart lifts as I notice that it's Hallie.

I pick up immediately, my voice slightly ragged as I say,

"Hallie."

"Hey, Reed!" She exclaims, tone upbeat as ever, "What's up? Haven't heard from you in a while."

"Yeah," I say, running a hand across my face, feeling more tired than ever. "Well, um, it's kind of a long story, but I'm at home with my—my girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" She croons, but my heart sinks.

You have no idea.

Before I can get a word in edgewise, Hallie laughs. "Oh, my God, Reed—did I interrupt something?"

"What? No!" I object, pushing the words through a half-hearted laugh. "No, Hallie, she—she's actually really hurt."

There's a pause, before my sister asks,

"Hurt in what way?"

I release a breath, working past the lump in my throat as I tell her what happened, about the guy at the party and the strangling and the bruises. She's almost completely silence throughout the entire thing, save for a few sympathetic murmurs and sharp inhales. The longer I talk, the better I feel. It's hard to shoulder someone's burden all on your own.

"But now she's at the house with me," I finish, with a slight sigh, "And she doesn't want to talk or anything, she just—she's in the shower right now, but once she gets out, what am I supposed to do? Convince her to turn him in?"