Separately Together

Chapter Two: 2/2

Just like that and he had mixed up my perspective of life.

~.~.~.~.~

I knew as soon as the door pushed open so easily that something was wrong my suspicion was confirmed when the couch was sliced into, stuffing spread all over the room. My nature pictures busted laying scattered along with the other debris. My once homey apartment was nothing more than a trap for bad memories now. I cover my mouth as sobs escape through the gaps between each finger.

To top off everything red spray paint with the words, 'See you soon, bitch' were written on my rug.

I've worked so hard for this, all for nothing. I should have known better than to get my heart attached to anything he will never let me have something good in my life.

My shaky hands draw out the only person I can call about this.

"Finnic?" I ask through the line; he can hear there is something wrong in my voice.

"Maddie? You, okay?" He asked, worried.

"He's done it again."

~.~.~.~.~

Finnic paces my hallway. The rug is rolled up and propped against the wall. The words that had been painted on it made me nauseated.

"This son of a bitch is going to pay this time!" I wince at the curse word even though this was the perfect time for them. If I wasn't so against them then I might have even used a couple, myself.

"I'm sorry I bothered you during your engagement announcement."

The words come out horse and meek. The emotional drain that he has on me is ridiculous. Years of this tormenting. It was more than any normal person could manage.

"Don't you apologize." He crouched down in front of me and stroked my hair soothingly. "You are my family. We're in this together, Maddie." He kisses my forehead and then roughs up my hair like always.

"Why won't he leave me alone?" I say finally letting the tears run down my cheeks. I was so exhausted from feeling like this and always looking over my shoulder, never knowing what I'm going to find. This wasn't any way to live.

"Because we didn't let him get away with what he had done, we stopped him from doing it to someone else. Don't second guess getting the bastard locked up, Maddie." He pulled me to his chest and squeezed me so hard the air left my lungs. "Come on, pack a bag for a couple of days. I'm going to have your locks changed and your stuff replaced."

"You don't have to do that." I let the blanket that I had wrapped over my shoulders fall to the ground. "Are you sure? I mean I'm not trying to invade you and Liz. You two have already done so much for me. Plus, you two just got engaged."

"I am positive, Maddie. Liz would kill me if I left you here all alone." He pushes me in the direction of my dresser, clearly telling me to get my stuff together and quit fussing.

I go to work packing three days' worth of clothes, toothbrush and paste, brush, and my computer. I will make sure to put on some work clothes because I have work not tomorrow but the next day.

I glanced around at the rubble of my once decently furnished bedroom, and I winced. This would at least cost an easy grand to replace. There is no way I was going to let him pay for all of this.

"Ready?" He asked me as I walked into the kitchen from the bedroom. I nod meekly. I was overwhelmed, I just wanted to curl up somewhere and rest. It wasn't helping that my throat was getting worse, clearly getting a cold of some sort.

"Yeah." Finnic grabs my bags from me, and we head to his silver truck. He tossed the bags in the back and we both started the trip back to his new house. It was quiet, I think Finnic knew I needed some space right now.

A cough crawls out of my throat and I cover my mouth. "That didn't sound good. Getting sick?"

"I think so." My voice even sounded a little scratchier. This was perfect, I wasn't having a good day.

When we pulled into his driveway a few moments later there were only three vehicles there. "I'm going to go through the back." Despite there being fewer people here I still didn't want to talk to anyone right now, just wanted to go to sleep for the rest of my life.

I could feel my bones aching from the emotional drainage today has been.

"Okay. I will check in on you as soon as everyone goes home. The guest bedroom is the second door on the left." We go our separate ways. I'm glad Finnic didn't hover, that he knew when I needed space. He has always been the rock in my life.

Sticking up for me because I never stick up for myself.

I remember when I was only eleven years old there was this boy a grade ahead of me that would always sit by me on the bus and pick on me relentlessly. Finnic sat at the back, so he never really heard anything that the boy was saying. Finally, the boy, James Green, said something that struck a nerve. I was sensitive but not so sensitive that I would cry over the slightest jab. So, all his previous comments about my mom and dad had never hurt my feelings. We were getting close to the end of the year when his jabs started to get more personal.

Your ugly

Your freckles look like someone pooped on your face

Your hair stinks

Just petty stuff like that. It wasn't until one morning when he grabbed my chin and made me turn my face to him and said, "You're never going to amount to be anybody, you'll be working a corner before you even get out of high school," Back when I was that young, I had this problem with people touching me, it just set off a nerve that made me go into a panic attack. I rushed off the bus trying not to let Finnic see.

My luck, I had run into Harley on the way to the bathroom and he just knew from the expression on my face that something was wrong. He pretty much all but dragged me back to Finnic.

That poor boy had left a bruise on my chin. After some prodding they got me to tell them what happened, and Finnic beat the crap out of that boy. So bad that Harley took the blame for it so my brother wouldn't get suspended.

Harley didn't have a good household, so he said he wouldn't get in trouble for it, but my mother would have had Finnic's tale.

I don't know where I would be if it wasn't for them.

I ease the back door open trying to create as little noise as possible.

When I spun around my face planted into Harley's chest.

"Ouch." I rub my nose. Was this becoming a habit?

"I thought you left?" He asks grumpily. His cheery mood from earlier seemed to have dispersed. I wonder what has him in a bad mood now.

"I did." I tried to walk past him, but he grabs my elbow and spins me around to face him.

"You've been crying." He points it out. "What happened?"

"Nothing," I say and shrug my shoulders. He starts to walk to the living room me in tow beside him, but I plant my heels into the flooring. "What are you doing?"

"Taking you to Finnic." He tries to walk again but I don't let him.

"He already knows. He's the one that came and got me. Please drop it." I say as voices began to grow louder. His eyebrows furrow before he lets me go and nods.

There it was again, that look in his eyes that held something I wasn't used to seeing there.

I follow the directions that Finnic told me and end up in their guest room. I don't pay too much attention to the decor of it or anything more than the bed as I dive into it.

The smell of the comforter was mesmerizing, and it was so much softer than my own.

It didn't take long, and I was dozing into a well-needed sleep.

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