ETERNALLY ⇢ HENRY MILLS [2]

chapter twenty-three

storybrooke ➳ one week later

Last night I was tossing and turning in my sleep, I kept squeezing my eyes tighter and hugging my quilt. My mom told me this morning she heard me mumbling stuff from next door. Truth is, I probably was. I was trying to get the silhouette and the voice out of my dream. The thing that's been annoying me the most ever since then is that the person remains anonymous because I couldn't actually see who it was.
But it kept saying in its strong British accent that I'm lost and I can't deny the fact that one day I'll join them. The voice kept telling me that I'm heartbroken and that I'm lost without Henry... which is true, but how could this random person turn up in my dream and tell me of this crap I already know and don't want to be reminded of? Storybrooke, man.

For the past week, I've done everything I possibly could to avoid Henry. I've ran into Belle and Regina a couple of times, but luckily, Henry wasn't with Regina whenever I saw her.
When I ran into Belle she warned me to stay safe because Hook's now The Dark One as well as Emma. She explained everything to me and warned my mom to stay safe too - she's the one person I'm happy to be around.

The day I woke up in hospital I saw my mom, smiling with tears in her eyes, down at me. But her tears definitely weren't happy tears. Nevertheless, she was smiling. Doctor Whale then came in and was happy to see I was awake. He told my mom I'd have to stay one more night just in case, then I can go home.
I was happy I was alive because I didn't intend on killing myself... I just wanted to hurt myself... to feel something.
I also found out that Henry heard about what happened to me and that he was in fact waiting in reception with Regina to see me. But I denied both of them, I couldn't bare to see the boy that made me end up in hospital.

When I ran into Regina on the streets for the first time, I was alone. I was walking down the streets of Storybrooke with my headphones in. Someone then tapped me on shoulder. I turned around and saw Regina. I took out my headphones and before I could say anything, she hugged me. This was the last thing I expected from her. I hugged Regina back but pulled away quickly. "H-hey," I said. "Long time no see." I joked.
"Why would you do that?!" She almost yelled. "You could've died!"
I chuckled. "I didn't know you cared-"
"Of course I cared! You were the best girl for my son and I understand how you must've felt once you found out about Henry and that Violet girl but you shouldn't have done that to yourself. You have no idea how happy I am to see you!"
I smiled softly. "Thanks, I guess."
"I know you don't want to talk to Henry, but I need to tell you this."
"I don't really want to know-" I answered.
"No," Regina said, cutting me off. "Please."
I sighed. "Okay."
"For the past week, Henry's been in pieces. He hardly ever leaves the house at risk of seeing you and having to see the horrid look on your face that you'd give him. When you denied his request to see you in the hospital, his expression dropped and I've never seen him so sad in my life. It breaks my heart to see my son like this. I know a lot of things are happening right now and all of us have a lot on our plates, including Henry, but if you see each-other, talk to him. I'm not forcing you too - it's your decision and yours only."
I paused for a moment before nodding, flashing her a small smile. "Okay." I lied.
Regina hugged me once more before saying goodbye and carried on walking.

I haven't seen Henry, though. Probably because I've been trying to avoid him so much. I sighed and put my hands in my pockets, walking towards Granny's. I quickly looked through the glass to see if Henry was there.
Shit. There he was. Regina said he hardly left the house! I looked at Henry. He was sat on one of the high chairs with his hands cupping his drink. He looked like he was in deep despair. I've never seen him so look so sad before. You almost died because of him. My thoughts spoke. You can't possibly be pitying him! I shook my head. No, I can't pity him! Henry then looked in my direction and he stared at me in shock. He immediately hopped off his chair and began to walk towards the door. No! Walk away, Brooke, quick!
Shit, he's gonna catch me up. I looked behind me and saw that he was no longer in Granny's and was jogging behind me. I rolled my eyes. I never thought I'd see myself running away from Henry. I then picked up my pace until I was in a full sprint. I took in deeps breaths as I ran so I wouldn't get tired out so quickly.
"Brooke, wait up for fuck's sake!" I heard him shout. That's the first time I've ever heard Henry swear. I ignored him and carried on running.