A Poignant Fallacy

Scene 51- Aftermath

Juliette's POV

Oh great. It could have been anyone but Beau. He'll never hold me and keep me safe.

I started to run to him and to my surprise, he had a sorrowful look on his face. He started to hold his arms out for me and I knew that I was going to be okay. I crashed into his body and he absorbed all of it. He wrapped his arms around me and let me cry. Beau never usually did any of this.

He was sitting on the couch with Gavin next to him and Gavin rubbed my arm. I looked up briefly in between my sobs and saw all of my brother's faces. They all looked pretty sorry for a change. 

Suddenly, everyone's phones buzzed except for the phone I didn't have.

My Mommy said, "Tornado has passed."

I buried my face into Beau's chest silently begging that he stays with me and he did. I heard multiple footsteps file out of the room and wondered who was left.

I didn't dare look. I just kept my eyes closed against Beau's chest.

"What the fuck just happened?"

It sounded like Jackon. But I didn't know for sure. I couldn't look up. I was too mortified.

Had my Daddy really just spanked me?
He's never done that before. He made me so frightened.

"I thought he didn't spank for discipline anymore." Jackson spoke again trying to fill the silence.

"He promised he wouldn't ever hit us again," Beau said, sounding almost heartbroken.

He sounded betrayed and sad. I could feel the pain in his voice. He wasn't crying was he? That was the closest thing that got me out of his chest, was seeing if Beau actually had tear ducts after all.

But I didn't. How could I face anyone with such shame? He did it in front of our entire family. All of my brothers. In my swimsuit!

How could he? My Daddy would never hurt me. He said he would always protect me.

"Juliette, can you look at me?"

Jackson said that for sure. He was the only brother who made me look at him while he was talking.

I didn't move a muscle. Partly because I didn't want to and partly because I was scared to hear what Jackson was going to say.

"Please?"

Jackson said nicely and desperately as he started to put a hand under my chin to force my face towards his. As soon as I knew what he was doing I pushed his hand away from me and started to break down again.

My sobs were quiet. Painful. I had a lump in my throat that I wouldn't swallow.

Beau pitied me, "Aw, babygirl, c'mon. It's okay. Don't cry."

It felt nice to hear that he cared for me. And told me it would be okay. He rubbed my back and shushed me for a while.

Then he did something that I hated. He grabbed my chin and pulled my head up to look at him.

I look at him defenseless. Crying. Tears covered and stained my face and my nose had been running for several minutes.

He looked at me softly and kissed my forehead. When was the last time he did that? It felt odd and unnatural for Beau to kiss me.

He didn't seem to care that I had a weird reaction. He probably surprised himself. He grabbed a towel from beside him and started to wipe my face while he held it looking up at him with his other hand.

"Stop your crying JuJu. It's over now. There's no reason to be ashamed."

I did stop crying. Beau usually shamed me out of crying, but today he comforted me. I must be in some crazy alternate universe where my meanest brother is wiping my tears while I sit in his lap and where my Daddy hits me. I wondered what Jackson was doing. He was awfully quiet. I wondered who was in the room still and since I had already come out of hiding I quickly glanced around the room. Just me, Beau, and Jackson.

I slouched back relaxed on Beau's lap.  Beau and Jackson always made me feel safe.

Beau began to talk, "I can't believe he did that for no reason."

I looked up at Beau not wanting to say what actually happened.

Jackson answered instead, "Oh, it wasn't for no reason. After you guys went in the house she wouldn't get out of the pool and Dad was yelling at her a lot and when he eventually got her out of there he wouldn't let her walk."

Beau looked down at me knowingly. I wasn't in the mood to tell my side of the story, but you don't exactly just disobey Beau Warren.

"How come you wouldn't get out of the pool, JuJu?"

I looked down trying to find an answer in Beau's lap, but obviously it wasn't there. I don't know why I wouldn't get out.

I just shrugged.

Jackson sighed, "I think she was scared. We know that tornados scare her. And storms do too, so I was surprised she stayed out there that long. And Dad's yelling was really intense. I wouldn't have wanted to go to him either."

Beau half laughed and half scoffed, "Yeah...I remember when we were in big trouble Dad would just haul us across the room himself. Even if we were willingly walking our sorry asses. He yelled on the way and when we got over his knee."

Jackson scoffed too, but didn't say anything.

Beau broke the silence, "He was just so angry. I've never seen him so angry at his precious baby before."

I frowned and made sure he could see it. I hate when my family calls me a baby. And not like, as a nickname. Just when they call me an actual baby. It makes me think that they don't think I have a thought in my head, but I do.

Jackson replied, "Yeah I don't know why."

I was shocked. Jackson was lying. He knows exactly why Daddy was so angry. It was that fight on the balcony!

I looked up to Beau again and started to say, "But earl-"

And then I was cut off. Beau put his finger over my mouth to quiet me. Then he shushed me and laid my head down on his chest to start rocking me.

He said so patronizingly, "The adults are talking Juliette."

Ugh screw them. They're having a conversation about me while I'm in the room and they expect me to just sit still and suck my thumb?

The thing is with Beau, is that I always obeyed him. I thought maybe it would make him want to stop teasing me and embarrassing me, but it hasn't worked yet. So I laid on his chest and closed my eyes. I was so tired from the past few days that I went to sleep almost instantly.

Where, and how I woke up was fresh hell.