Heartbreak Hotel (Editing)

Chapter 58: Black Eyes

Nikki's POV

"Oh, my God...is she..." She was so shaken that she couldn't even finish her sentence.

I shook my head and walked up to De. "No, she's not...she's just passed out." I picked up her head with my hand and rested my hand over her face.

"How do you know?" She whispered as she stepped in, her heals made a loud sound against the car floor.

"This isn't the first time she's been like that this, Liyah." I told her.

"Has she been drinking?"

"Yes," I lied. Well, partially it was a lie. I knew from the moment I saw her that she had probably passed out while snorting. When she got pissed or frustrated she got high and she seemed to have been pissed off many times during that day. She had disappeared in between all seven of the takes. I couldn't tell Liyah that because she was not supposed to know. Honestly, I wasn't supposed to know. But because I did know I had to keep the secret from everyone else. Everyone knew she had alcohol problem and they just assumed that all her strange ways was because of that.

The bruises and the bloody nose was a result of Wayne beating her. He had left not long ago. Just sped off in his Cadillac  without a word. I thought nothing of it. She was slightly breathing, her heartbeat was slow. I stared down at my friend with a heavy heart. Why are you doing this to yourself?

"Hand me a water bottle." I told her.

Liyah's eyebrow immediately rose as she slowly turned on her heel to step out the van. Moments later she came back handing me a water bottle and a towel. "What do you need this for?"

I took the bottle from her without answering. I took unscrewed the top and began pouring it out her face, washing away some of the blood. She began coughing immediately. "Are you trying to drown her?!" Liyah looked absolutely terrified.

"No," I said. I took the towel from her. I didn't know what I was trying to do. Pouring water in his face was just the first thing that came to my mind.

"What the..?" De's sentence was taken over by her coughing. She began to sit up in the seat, glancing at us if we were ghosts. " What are y'all doing?"

"You passed out," I told her.

She stared at Liyah then back at me. She took the towel and began wiping her nose off in silence. "What happened this time, De?" I asked.

She shook her head, still trying to find herself back in reality. "H-he just....he just got...mad. "

"He's always getting mad, De." Liyah said. "That doesn't give him no right to beat on you!'

"Who said he was beating on me!" She snapped.

Liyah sat in the seat in front of her and crossed her legs, leaning forward in her face." We're not stupid, De." she said. " You can't keep trying to hide black eyes from, pretending like nothing's happening, De we know. That man's a low down son of a bitch!"

Liyah, shut up! I wanted to scream but the words wouldn't escape my lips.

"Uh-uh...Liyah..." De sounded as though she was weak. Too weak to go off on her like I was sure she was in her mind. "Don't say that, you don't understand."

" Understand?" She scoffed. " What don't I understand?"

" You don't understand the pressure....the..." She swallowed hard. " the pressure that he's been going through. "

"Pressure?" She retorted, laughing at what she had said as if it was so ridiculous. Liyah looked up at me mouthing the words: "Are you serious?"

I shook my head. " Just shut up." I mouthed back.