Here to Help

Chapter 2

"We should be studying," Amity thought with a smile as she listened to Luz ramble on about a science experiment gone wrong back in the human world. It had been an otherwise uneventful Friday evening, and though she was anxious about upcoming exams, she couldn't help but find herself lost in Luz's words. A smile crossed her face at the human girl's enthusiasm not only in her story, but in everything she did. Be it homework, sports, drawing, or story telling, it struck her how Luz always seemed to pour her heart and soul into whatever it is she was doing. Even when things went wrong, she had a smile on her face. Having been stuck in bed for a little over two weeks now, Amity was amazed to see that the human was still in good spirits in spite of her precarious situation, a long road to recovery still ahead.

Since the day Amity had first gone to the owl house to deliver Luz her coursework, Amity had been interested in learning more about the human the school had been raving about. Sure people said she was a gifted athlete but what did that matter? The whole point of attending Hexside was to learn magic and based on the botched-magical debacles Luz had unwillingly dragged her into in the past, Amity questioned whether the human was cut out to become a witch at all. As such, Amity found herself having judged Luz before getting to know her. Having spent more than a week with the human girl after school, Amity found her attitude toward her slowly changing. Luz was funny, somehow always managing to make her smile regardless of how the day went. Luz was kind and considerate, she was sincere, and never seemed to mind or judge Amity's tendency to disassociate.

Though initially reluctant to help the human when approached by Principal Bump, Amity slowly found herself counting down the minutes to the school day's end when she could finally head over to Luz's house. Unlike her own home, the owl house had a jovial yet loving air about it that her's lacked - at least for her anyway. The youngest of the Blight family, life had not been easy for the witch. Living in the shadow of her high-achieving brother and sister often saw her lose favor in her parent's eyes. Despite being the top student in her class, to them, Amity was a failure as even her highest achievements did not measure up to that of her siblings. As a result, Amity often found herself being punished for her inability to meet her parent's standards. While punishment usually came in the form of unkind words and rigorous mandatory studying, it wasn't unheard of for her dad to get physically violent when upset. Having been deeply hurt at home, Amity built up walls and though popular with a lot of friends, she often kept them at the periphery of her heart so as not to find herself hurt even more - that is, until she met Luz.

"And then there were spiders everywhere! It was crazy," Luz said with a chuckle, bringing Amity back from her thoughts. "Is everything okay?" Luz asked, smile fading as she noticed a hint of sadness in her new friend's eyes.

"Yeah, everything is fine," Amity said, faking a smile.

"Okay, because, well, I know we just became friends... that is if you consider me a friend... I mean, I consider you a friend... Agh, why is this so hard?" Luz choked out before finally gathering what she hoped would be the right next words. "What I mean is, if you ever need to talk, about anything really, I'm here to listen," she spoke, sincerity gracing her lips as she offered the green haired girl a smile.

Eyes wide in shock, Amity processed every word that left her new friend's mouth. Luz would listen? To her? Willingly? Though she had plenty of people in her life outside of her home, she had never really felt seen, let alone felt like she had the opportunity to be heard. As such, hearing Luz so willingly, so openly, offer to be there for her - to listen to her - struck Amity to her core. "Luz I..." she stammered, tears forming in the corners of her eyes at the genuine kindness she felt in Luz's words.

"Hey, Amity... its okay," Luz said, as she gently reached for hand, offering her a show of comfort that to the green haired girl was hard to come by.

Tears slowly slipping down her cheeks, Amity could feel a piece of the wall she had so carefully constructed begin to crack. Finding her words, Amity stuttered, "It... its ju...just my home life; it... its not easy." Feeling Luz's grip on her hand tighten, Amity met her eyes as Luz nodded for her to continue. "My parents... th...they don't like me. I dis...disappoint them and being home... the weekends... the weekends are the hardest. I've just... I've just never had someone show me kindness like you and... and it hurts," she choked, tears falling harder and faster.

"Argh..." Amity heard Luz wince as she looked to see the human repositioning herself on the bed, shifting her body and her broken leg to one side of the mattress.

"Luz... what.. what are you doing? You're hurting yourself" Amity, said as she attempted to fight her tears.

"Hey, don't worry," Luz smiled, patting the mattress beside her. "Come sit next to me and lets talk."

Pausing to think, Amity felt a sense of calm creep across her, feeling safe in her friend's presence. Studying her face for any hint of insincerity and finding none, Amity finally stood from the desk chair in which she usually sat and slowly made her way on to the bed.

Arms open to embrace the green-haired girl, Luz felt a lump form in her throat as she took in the sight of the person in front of her; what kind of life must she have lived to hurt so much even at the slightest show of kindness. Seeing Amity hesitate, Luz's arms stayed open, unwavering as she waited for Amity to decide her course of action. Moments later she let her arms close, wrapping her new friend in a tight hug, hoping against hope that it would somehow mend the broken pieces that were Amity's heart.

With Amity in her arms, silence crept over the room as Luz gave the witch the time she needed, gently stroking her hair. Hearing her breathing even out some time later, Luz softly spoke, "You know, you don't have to go home tonight if you don't want to."

"But I have nowhere else to go..." Amity said through a heavy sigh.

"Stay," Luz said with a sense of conviction Amity found both admirable and startling. "Stay here... with me. I even have some clothes you can borrow..." Luz stated, not wanting to pressure the girl but subtly begging her not to leave; begging her not to get hurt.

"But... but what about Eda? Won't she mind?" Amity asked, still in shock.

"Nah, not at all... In fact, she told me the other day she's glad you've been here keeping me company and helping me out..."

Feeling a slight blush creep over her face, Amity sat with the decision. What would she tell her parents? She could make something up about staying the weekend at a friend's house to prepare for exams but surely they will be upset that she told them so last minute. Still, the day's worth of punishment she would face upon returning Monday after school seemed little in comparison to what she might face over the course of the weekend if she were to return home. Apprehensive but feeling secure in Luz's arms, Amity finally spoke in a whisper, "Okay."