Step-Brothers

~Chapter Nineteen~

When they walk in, Jared is just barely awake. His arms bare for everyone to see what he's done.

"Jared, dear God, man..." he can't flip them over. The cuts are all around his arms.

"Let me talk to him."

"Evan, I don't know if -"

"Put the fucking phone on speaker and let me talk to him." he does so.

"Jared?"

"..........hm?"

"Jared, baby, why?"

".........." it's just Jared, Connor and Zoe in the room. The parents wait outside.

"I just..... I can't do it Ev."

"Can't... Can't what?"

"My life is fucked up majorly. The only singly goddamn thing good to come out of it was you." You can almost hear tube second Evan's heart breaks.

"was?"

"And I just can't- I cant LIVE anymore Evan. You deserve so much more than me. You deserve Connor. He could actually protect you unlike me. I love you so much but I know you're unhappy with me and that you deserve better and-"

"Jared I'm most happy when I am with you. Neither of you could've prevented this, you're in a different state. I'm so happy with you, I'm getting this job in order to move into an apartment with you, how could you think I was unhappy?"

"Because I'm fucked up Evan. I'm fucked up in the head and everywhere else and I make assumptions that couldn't possibly be true and I tell myself that they are and then I hurt myself to have some other pain that isn't the one I just made up in
My head."

"You think you're the only one that's fucked up? Jared, I couldn't live with what happened today if you were gone. I'm scared and I'm hurt and now I'm hearing you almost died? Do you know what that would've done to me? Especially if - if he got me -" he can't say it.

"I'm sorry.... I'm so sorry... I just..." he's gonna cry again.

"It's okay. Jared, listen to my voice, it is okay. Just don't do it to me again, all right? I'm gonna ask my mom to drive me down to see you, okay?"

"Mhm...."

"Okay. Connor, take me off speaker a moment."

"Gotcha." he takes him off speaker.

"Please, for the love of God, be ready to hold me when I get there if he isn't awake."

"No problem, Ev." The next couple days pass by and Jared is definitely awake when Evan gets there. But he has dark circles under his eyes and looks so tired. Evan doesn't look good himself. He definitely put up a fight against Kevin. He's battered and bruised. He's got a black eye and the swelling in his lower lip is finally beginning to go down. He's got more bruises elsewhere.

"Jared."

"Evan..... what happened?"

"I... Thursday. When..." He rubs his neck and looks away.