A Girl in Red

29 | HORRIBLE TIMING

"Do I just show up at there doorstep and say hey." Delphi murmurs.

"Yes, that's exactly what you'll do." I agree.

Delphi nods before standing. "I'll be back."

"Do you need one of us to go with you?" I ask softly and she shakes her head. "Just...try to keep me out of the conversation. Maybe it's best if he doesn't know you have any affiliation with either of us."

Brooklyn agrees, "Not until we can figure out the Scotty shit."

"Got it, I will." Delphi nods before giving us a hug and leaving the room.

"This is horrible timing." I mumble.

Brooklyn sighs before burying her face in her hands. "I'm exhausted."

She does look exhausted. I can tell by the dark circles under her eyes and the way it looks like she's doing everything in her power to keep her body upright. I know it's more than just Delphi getting pregnant. Rory was also a tormentor to Brooklyn and it's hard to have to keep thinking that I'm not the only one to be hurt by his hands.

"Brook, if you want to get away from all this for a few days, you can."

"No, I know that." She replies. "But I'll never forgive myself if something were to happen while I'm gone."

"I miss when we were kids." I say softly. "When all we had to worry about was how much we wanted to prove our parents wrong."

"After Addison died, things were just never the same." Brooklyn reminisced.

"What left of our innocence we had was ripped from us," I decide. "I broke us."

"No, you didn't know that you would be putting her in danger."

"Rory knew." I say his name out loud for the first time to Brooklyn. She flinched like I had slapped her hard in the face. "I ignored him, I thought I was right."

"You were sixteen."

"It doesn't matter." I grumble. "I was stupid and now my friend is dead and my brother hates me. And now he has killed my other friend."

I think of Diana — kind, joyful, manipulative, and cunning all in one. Now, she's dead and I am in love with her little sister. The way life will change in an instant in the weirdest of ways still fascinates me.

"It's still not your fault." Brooklyn states. "Just like it wasn't your fault when you gave me this scar."

I turn away from her sharply as she pulls her shirt down to expose it fully. "Don't- please, I can't look at it."

"Francesca you're going to have to forgive yourself." Brooklyn says softly and I can't muster up words in that moment. "I forgave you."

"I can't." My throat is full of emotion. "No."

My friend places their hand on mine and I withhold from pulling away from her. "Forgive yourself for me, I can't go through this life knowing that you hate yourself because of something that is not your fault."

I look to my friend with pain in my eyes. "I'm sorry but I can't do that, not even for you. Every time I see your scar, I can only feel your body ripping open because of the knife in my hands."