Remaining Sane

Chapter 5

Nicks P.O.V #1

I was trying very hard not to look at the bruises on her arms or on her face, but it was hard not to. It was obvious that they had a chance to heal, and it was really just a slight discolouring, so she hadn't gotten them after we last met. So many questions I wanted to ask her, just to find out who exactly she was but I had to slowly ease into the questions, she still looked startled and scared and confused. It was just all very frustrating.

I watched her from the kitchen, she was sitting on the couch, watching some music show, I wasn't really interested. The lounge light was dim, so the light from the TV illuminated across her face. My mind was filled with all sorts of questions, when she turned her head, her hair fell from behind her ear and blocked my view of the bruise.

I cleared my throat, "You hungry?"

She looked at me, "Mmm?"

"You haven't had anything to eat, are you hungry?"

"No." she answered flatly.

"You sure? I got plenty here." I looked down at the food in front of me on the counter. Hesitantly, she got up and walked to me, she looked thing, compared to the last time I saw her two weeks ago. She picked up a piece of corn bread and just as it was about to go in her mouth, she paused.

"What?" I asked.

"I'm not hungry." She tossed the bread down.

"Well you were a second ago."

"And I'm not now."

I snorted, "What do you think I poisoned it?" I joked.

She gave me a hard look.

"Ahh," I gasped, "You do think I poisoned it, don't you?"

She just scowled and looked away.

Smart girl I thought. I didn't poison it, of course.

"Well, I didn't," I said and began eating just to prove it. She didn't take notice; she just carried on watching TV.

Her hoodie sleeve fell halfway down her arm, revealing an even darker bruise. Four long fingers stretched around her arm, a dark shade of purple. It was the worst. Whoever did it had an extremely tight painful hold on her. Her other hand moved to pull down her sleeve. In a split second, I grabbed her hand before it could go any further. She looked at me, beyond annoyed.

"What the fuck?" She yanked her arm back.

"What's that?" I asked pointing at her bruise.

Her face paled when she saw what I had seen.

"I walked into a ... statue."

That's creative. "That's pathetic, I know you're lying."

"Shut up!"

"Megan, why did you run away?"

"Why do you even care?" She pulled her sleeve down.

I ignored the question and looked down at the food, "You really should eat."

"You are just someone I know, not my friend." She said quietly before walking to her room, seconds later I heard the door slam shut. I patted my pockets and stopped when I spotted my lighter and cigarettes. Once again I told myself that I needed them.

Ivys P.O.V

I had forgotten about the bruises. It always took a long time for the marks to leave my skin, even as a child. Now I was cursing that little quirk. Sitting on my bed now, the awful memory of that night flooded into my head.