𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐑𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫 [𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐈𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐒]

HURT

Everything is better with you
everything is better since you

River's pov♡

I walked into school alone that morning, Noah had to leave in the middle of the night because of some emergency.

I saw the girls standing by my locker and happily walked over to them.

They turned towards me with a frown on their faces, "River" Jude said while hugging me.

I looked over to Sarah who was staring at me with pursed lips.

"Let's get to class!" Jude said over-excitedly.

I looked at Sarah who just smiled at me hesitantly.

"But Noah and the guys aren't here yet, we always wait for them-"

"River let's just go, you'll see lover boy soon enough." Jude snapped.

Sarah sent her a warning look.

"Guys, what's wrong? You're acting all weird..." I said softly with a confused face, not quite understanding what was going on and why Jude wasn't her usual self.

They were about to say something when my breath hitched at my throat.

There standing behind them was Noah pale-faced and bruised.

I ran up to him till I was standing right in front of him.

Going on my tiptoes I put my hands on his face.

"Noah," I whispered.

He leaned into my touch, closing his eyes and leaning down to put his forehead on mine.

I closed my eyes and felt my cheeks become wet.

"W-who did this to you?"  I looked up at him, his perfect tan skin now pale and turning purple and black. How could anyone do this to him, to anyone?

He was about to answer when all of a sudden he moved away from me and collapsed.

I screamed in panic and fell to the ground to cradle his head on my lap shouting for help.

Sarah and Jude came running towards us with worry stricken faces. The students in the hallways stopping to see what was happening.

"Help! help him please, someone, ANYONE!" I all but screamed.

Looking down at Noah who was sweating, I kept pecking his forehead and wiping away at his perspiration with the sleeves of my sweater. I wept and cried, repeating my actions.

"Baby,"

I wept and wept, rocking us both-

"Baby wake up."

I looked around and saw that the halls were now empty.

River!" I heard a voice shout.

I opened my eyes and looked around until I looked at the source of the sound.

Noah. Perfectly fine.

I whimpered and felt another set of tears roll down my face.

He pulled me closer to his chest since I was already straddling him and rubbed my back with one hand and the other wrapped around the back of my head.

"Shh, shh, It's okay now. You're okay baby." He said, thinking I was having a nightmare about me getting hurt.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

"You're o-okay, you're okay," I whispered to myself and inhaled his scent which calmed me down.

He stilled, "I'm okay?"

I nodded not saying anything else.

He kissed the crown of my head, "Let's get you something warm to drink, okay?"

"Okay," I whispered.

He pushed the white duvet and got up with me clinging onto him, he put his hands under my thighs and held me closer to him.

We silently, more like he, silently descended the stairs, careful to not wake my parents up.

Once we reached the kitchen, he set me on the counter and went to warm some milk for me.

I stared at him moving around the kitchen. Thinking to myself how I never wanted to ever see his face bruised and hurt again. Even though it was just a dream.

"Noah," I whined making grabby hands at him, wanting to hold him close to me. As if to make sure he really was here, and safe.

He smiled shaking his head, walking over to me.

When he was standing in front of me, I pulled him closer to me and kissed his cheeks.

Pulling always as I looked into his eyes.

"You're okay," I repeated my words from earlier.

"Wanna tell me what the dream was about now, hm?" He asked, tucking a blonde strand behind my ear.

Sitting on the counter with him standing made us the same height.

"I had a dream of you. Y-you were hurt a-and all of a sudden you collapsed and no one was helping," I said, as tears began pricking my eyes.

"Shh, baby, I'm perfectly fine. It was just a dream." He said softly, then pecked my nose, and brushed his against mine.

"It hurt me so much...to see you like that." I closed my eyes and leaned into him, praying that there never comes a day where I'd ever have to see him like that.

In both dreams and reality.

He pulled away and stared at me, his forest green eyes showing me warmth and love.

"You are something else, River." He commented, interrupting the comfortable silence.

I blushed, looking away.

He chuckled and said, "Let's get your milk and go back to bed, hm?"

After getting the milk, we went back upstairs and I fell asleep holding him tightly.