Flicker (H.S)

14.

14.

“Dana,

I love you and Rosie, I really do. But I love him more. I’m sorry. I’m fine, though, I promise. He loves me a lot, madre, and he would never hurt me. He hurts other people. But it’s just so we can have a life together. So our daughter can have a place to live, a place that’s safe, a place that’s free of people who can harm her. Maybe in a couple years you can meet her. He said we can teach her italian when she gets here. So she knows where she came from, you know? If I brought her to meet you guys, could you love me again?

With much love,

Ev”

[sent September 1st, 2016]

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e v e r l y

He was panicking.

His hand grasped her wrist and shook like a leaf.

Given, the air wrapped around the couple was suffocatingly frigid, but the tall boy with a never-coming-back girlfriend was cocooned in a beanie, thick winter coat with jumper underneath and a pair of jeans with leather boots on his feet.

Meanwhile, Everly was in a simple jumper and pajama shorts with winnie-the-pooh on them.

And her legs were skinny so Harry wondered if she made them that way.

“Harry I’m cold.” She spoke, trying desperately not to whine. But he legs were skinny and turning blue. So she whined anyway. “Where are we going?”

The boy with the pretty-gorgeous-sister and never-coming-back-girlfriend tugged on her arm harder as they crashed through the small forest behind Everly’s back garden, silent. She kinda hoped he would be cute again, like when he fell out of the tree. But that’s stupid. Just because he’s been tattooed on the insides of her eyelids doesn’t mean that he isn’t the boy who has a thing for yellow gummy bears. He’s still broken. And she doesn’t think she can fix that.

The moonlight shone through the treetops and cast plains of illumination across his cheekbones. It was difficult to see because they were constantly moving and going faster but she could easily tell he was beautiful. There were dots of acne on his forehead, and a bit on his chin, but she had some too. It just made him seem real.

But he’s still broken. And she doesn’t think she can fix that.

There’s a black Range Rover that is definitely not his parked on the curb right in front of them as they emerge from the mile-high tree trunks, and Harry immediately let go of her wrist as he unlocks the doors and climbs into the driver’s side, gesturing for her to get into the passenger side.

And she does.

Because he has a never-coming-back-girlfriend and has a thing for yellow gummy bears and is broken.

And she doesn’t think she can fix that.

“Okay, when you get in there, say absolutely nothing.” Harry instructs as they park outside of what seems to be a club. “If you do-”

“Yeah, whatever. No talking. You don’t need to threaten me.” She snaps, crossing her shaking arms across her chest sassily. She really wanted to turn on the heat as soon as they got into the car but Harry had his jaw clenched the entire time and she didn’t want to test him. “What else?”

“If they ask you a question, answer nicely and truthfully. They know when you are lying.” He then mutters something under his breath that Everly doesn’t catch. But she doesn’t care.

“Why am I here?” She asks.

“Because you messed with my fucking job.”

“How? Please, enlighten me.”

Harry turns in his seat so he is facing Everly, leaning in so his nose is centimetres from hers. “Listen Princess, if you have an attitude when we’re in there, it’s your arse on the line, not mine. So either straighten up or have fun six feet under.”

And Everly’s world just… stops.

Because six feet under would mean she is no longer here, with little ten year old boys who are all muttered French curse words too-small batman boxers that are now in the rubbish bin or little four-year-old girls who knows nothing other than that Dana is her mum and her dad is on vacation. And six-feet-under is closer to the people who have left her. The people she has learned to resent.

There will be no green-eyed boy behind her eyelids.

But he’s broken. And she doesn’t think she can fix that.

A tear slips past her eye but she wipes it away. “Take me home.” She demands, keeping her voice steady.

“No.”

She slaps the leather of his seat so it makes a loud slapping sound and makes Harry jump in surprise. “Take me home right now or so help me I will walk home.”

Harry’s eyebrows rise and he tries to ignore the way he pictures Everly crying in the hallway this morning at school. Tries to ignore the pang of anger in his chest at the thought of fucking Joshua touching her. “Have fun walking home in just a jumper and shorts. You’re already shivering, and you’re in my car, you’re not even outside.” His smirk gets Everly’s blood boiling. “So yeah, walk home. Get hypothermia. See if I care.”

Without another word, Everly pushes open the door of Harry’s car and starts walking back the way they’d come, house slippers scraping the ground.

this probs isn't even two pages on the website. oops. 

idk i just kinda wanted to update? so once the last chapter reaches 25 votes and this one reaches 10 i'll update again :)

much love, 

el xx