ℑ𝔱'𝔰 𝔊𝔬𝔬𝔡 𝔱𝔬 𝔟𝔢 𝔅𝔞𝔡

ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝔰𝔢𝔳𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔢𝔫 ☽

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ────── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Sleep wasn't natural that night for Andy, the fear of Addison being hurt overtook any other thought. So he stayed up that night, whispering soothing words every time a pained whimper left the girls sleeping lips, running his hand down the curvature of her spine while she shuffled closer in her sleep, his sweatshirt swallowing her body, the grey comforter holding her warmth in against her while he provided his body as a pillow. The subtle 'thump, thump, thump,' hitting his ribcages being her focus even in her sleep. Andy finally succumbed to his exhaustion at 3 am, her breathing being his focus as heavy eyelids covered ocean blue eyes, his arms tightly around the girl who he just expressed so much love for in movements, gentle touches speaking volumes over any word that could ever be expressed. His drowsiness only brought him more thoughts of how to get back at every person who had ever hurt his precious girl.

The sky was gray when Andy woke up, rain beating against the glass windows that covered the walls of the second story bedroom, wind rustling the tree breaches causing a loud cracking noise every so often. The sound of a car alarm beeping causing the girl on his chest to stir, groggily looking over at the clock to see the time. "Morning kitten." Andy whispered, seeing her head roll back to face him, a sleepy smile resting on her lips as she brought her hand up to his cheek, scratching the beard gently. "You stayed?" She whispered, her eyes fluttering shut as he leaned forward, his lips pressing against her forehead. "I'm not leaving you, I promise." Andy whispered, taking her hand in his with a small smile, watching her eyelids fall shut, still overpowered by sleep when a knock sounded at the door, causing her eyes to open again. "Go back to sleep, I'll get it." Andy smiled, slipping out of the bed, tucking blankets around her tightly as she drifted back to a sleep induced state.

Andy smiled when he saw himself in the mirror, a newly formed purple bruise resting on his neck, she claimed him as hers. His hand ran across the love bite before he reached into one of his drawers, pulling out a heavy sweater and some sweatpants, slipping them on before bounding down the stairs when another heavy knock sounded. Andy made a mental note to bring up the pain killers and antibiotics for Addison as he passed the kitchen, knowing she was going to be in excruciating pain when she woke. He approached the front door, not looking out the peep hole to see who was there before he opened the wooden door, freezing when Laurie was in front of him, a sad smile on her lips. "Can we talk?" She whispered, shaking from the cold air swirling around her. "You're here so I guess I don't have a choice." Andy murmured when Laurie walked in, without waiting for a response. "You took down all the photos?" Laurie asked, a sad smile laced across her features when Andy shut the door, heading into the living room to start a fire. "I have no need to see a happy family anymore." He replied.

Awkward silence filled the room, Laurie sitting on a sofa while Andy worked on starting a fire, throwing some kindling into the brick fireplace before lighting it, watching the flame dance in front of him. "Can I get you anything?" Andy asked, his back still facing her while she let out a small, "Coffee please." With her response he disappeared into the kitchen, working on the two mugs. Laurie felt like a stranger in the home they had created for themselves, a silent kick to her gut that she really did ruin the relationship between him and her, especially knowing that for years Addison had been madly in love with her sisters husband, only loving Tommy slightly more. Laurie felt no guilt for hurting her sister, just envy she couldn't get both of what she wanted. Tommy was fun, he was doting, never argued with her until they started living together, whereas her and Andy had a routine, sure they loved each other, but it was comfort for Laurie, she always knew he was going to be there, but now she wasn't so sure.

Being brought from her thoughts when a white mug was resting in front of her face, her palms wrapping around the ceramic when she looked up at Andy, noticing the purple mark on his neck, a small crack in her already fragile heart. "Thank you, who gave you that?" Laurie asked, seeing Andy shake his head, a chuckle from his lips. "Your sister." He replied coldly, sitting down on the opposite sofa, his feet being kicked up in front of him while he sipped on his coffee leisurely. She searched his face, hoping that he was joking, that Matthew wasn't right when he stated what he did before he drove that knife into her sisters stomach. "Why? Why would you go after her?" Laurie asked, feeling the tears well in her eyes when Andy looked on, his eyebrow cocked when he set his coffee in front of him. "Why? Because your sister was who I wanted far longer than you, but she stepped aside and let you have me, because she always put you first. You never did the same for her."