you sat on your bed in the darkness of your room, crying. you thought that you could be strong, but you couldn't hold it in any longer.
a few weeks ago your dad was in an accident and was put into a coma. he was more likely to live than die, but you were still scared and worried and stressed.
your mom was crying nonstop. she took time off of work and just stayed at home, barely leaving her room. it was left to you to take care of your younger siblings.
you tried to stay strong for them, but it just got to be too much. when everyone was asleep, you just broke down and sobbed.
you covered your mouth so no one could hear you and cried. you reached over and grabbed your phone, calling your boyfriend zach.
"hello?" he asked. you could tell he had been asleep from how raspy his voice was.
"z-zach," you let out a sob and covered your mouth.
"baby, what's wrong?" he asked.
"i-i n-need y-y-you," you choked out.
"i'm on my way baby, just take deep breathes you'll be okay i'll be there soon."
"o-okay." you covered your mouth again and let your shoulders shake as you sobbed. zach continued talking to you and you could hear his car starting.
"is your mom asleep? should i go through the window?" he asked.
"y-yeah."
"okay, i'm coming love." you got up and went to your window, opening the curtains and the blinds.
you saw zach coming up and you lifted the window up. you shuffled back to your bed and fell on it, still covering your mouth to stay quiet.
zach closed the window then kicked off his slides, getting into bed with you. you got under the blankets and zach pulled you into his chest.
"it's okay baby, i'm here. i'm here." you silently cried into his chest and he held you, rubbing up and down your back.
he kissed your forehead repeatedly and held you close, hoping to calm you down. you lay here for about half an hour just crying while he held you.
eventually, your shoulders stopped shaking as much and your breathing evened out some. you sat up and zach sat up with you. he grabbed your hands and rubbed them.
"deep breathes, okay?" he said. you both took deep breathes and soon you stopped crying.
zach reached his hands up to your face and wiped your tears with his thumbs.
"is this about your dad?" he asked softly. you nodded and looked down.
"my mom and siblings are crying all the time. someone has to stay strong and be there for them. and i have to take care of the kids all the time. but it's just too much for me to be strong all the time, i have to let it out. and you're the only one that's there for me."
"baby, you don't have to be strong. this is a hard time for all of you. you have the right to be upset."
"i know, i just feel like if i'm as upset as they are, we'll all just fall apart."
"but it's not your responsibility to take care of everyone."
"my dad's not here and i'm not gonna be mad at my mom for going through this."
"i know it's hard. but it's unhealthy to hold it in all day for several days until you explode. i mean, you know i will always be here for you, but it's not healthy."
"i know, but i don't know what else i'm supposed to do." you shrugged your shoulders.
"talk to your mom, tell her how you feel. that you understand why she's so upset but it's not your job to take care of your siblings when you're upset too."
"i don't want to make her feel worse though, she already has so much on her plate."
"but so do you. you don't need the pressure and stress of your siblings."
"i'm fine though, it hasn't gotten this bad until tonight."
"y/n, you can't keep going like this. you need to talk to her." he grabbed your chin with his fingers so you'd look at him.
"okay, i'll talk to her." you nodded and sighed.
"good, because i can't stand seeing you as upset as you were."
"i'm sorry."
"no, don't be. i'm sorry for what you're going through."
"he should wake up soon, but i don't want to get my hopes up." you both lay down.
you turned on your side and zach spooned you. he wrapped his arm around you and held you tight up against him. he kissed your head and your earlobes, knowing how much you loved it.
"thank you zach, for being here," you said softly.
"i'll always be here for you." you grabbed his hand and kissed the back of it, then turned to your other side.
zach looked into your eyes and nudged his nose against yours. you softly chuckled before leaning and pressing your lips onto his soft ones.
he held your waist and you held his cheek. you moved your lips on his, deepening the kiss.
after a while of making out, you pulled away and dropped your head onto the pillow. zach wrapped his arms around you and gently kissed your head. soon you both fell asleep.
*****
