Ruby

Chapter Twelve: Rocket Pops

Chase's POV

    I watched Ruby walk through the front door. She looked dazed and like a zombie. Like someone else was controlling her movements, like somebody damaged her wiring. I stood and put my phone in my back pocket. She went to walk passed me. I knew something was wrong, I could feel it.
"Ru'....Ru' what happened?" I wrapped her in my arms. She collapsed in tears. Her knees buckled and she fell to the ground. I caught her in my arms and went to sit back down on the steps. Her still in my arms. She sobbed loudly. "It's okay Ru. It's okay. Just cry it out. It's okay it's okay." She kept circling her chest and then bringing it to mine. I've picked up a bit of sign language over the hours since she's gotten home, and since I was little.

      It took me a second to recognise she was signing 'I'm sorry'. I rubbed her back. "There's nothing to he sorry for Ru'. Nothing. At. All." She just cried. Will came down the stairs and stopped. "What happened?" He mouthed. "No idea." I mouthed back. Nico came through the door carrying grocery bags and all but tossed them gently on the ground. He rushed over to us. I rubbed Ruby's lower back and whispered in her ear. 
       "Do you wanna talk about it? At least talk to them?" Her breathing stopped for a second. She shrugged. "Please.... for me?" I asked hopefully. She nodded. She tiredly backed out of my chest.

    For the first time I was able to see her face clearly. There was a large bloody bruised circle underneath her eye. Like she was stomped on with a stiletto. There was dried blood under her nose, and some of it was still running down. My shirt was definitely covered in tears and blood. I'll bleach it later. Her eyes were all red and puffy from crying, and her left eye was bruised and almost black.
         She held her side. Who hurt her so bad?! I swear to fucking god. Imma deck a bitch. I put some of her hair behind her ear. "There you are." I smiled faintly. She looked down. "Dream.... what happened?" She turned her head towards Nico. She closed her eyes. Her lip was quivering and her hands were shaking slightly. I grabbed her hands and held them. She seemed to calm down.

     "Was it Bianca?" Nico asked. She slightly nodded. Tears fell rushed down her cheeks. I wiped them all away. "How about we get you some ice Ru, and we can go to your room and watch a movie? How does that sound?" She made a frantic hand gesture. I looked at Nico. "She said not her room." I nodded. "We can go to my room then? Okay? And we can invite the dogs up, and have a party." I asked jokingly.
I got a small laugh from her. She nodded her head. She wrapped her arms around my neck and put her head on my shoulder. I could already feel her breathing steady out. "You guys go. We'll put the groceries away." Nico was smiling, he had tears in his eyes. I nodded. I rested a hand on her lower back and my forearm under her butt to steady her as I walked up the steps the rest of the way.
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Ruby's POV

He carried me up the stairs. His scent calmed me down. A mix of axe body spray and cigarettes, with a hint of mint. It was absolutely intoxicating.

He set me down on his bed in the attic. I've never actually been in his room. There were a couple band posters all around the room and it was black. The slanted ceilings gave off a haunted "Adam's Family" vibe. He pulled his laptop off his nightstand and pulled it open. He sat next to me. He pulled open Netflix. He went onto my profile and looked over at me. "What do you wanna watch?" He handed it over to me. I scrolled through my "continue watching" section. "Shameless really?" I nodded.
I hit play and curled into him. He placed an arm around my waist and put his head on mine. It couldn't have been comfortable, but it must've looked cute to Pa who happened to just walk in.

"Time for your meds Dream. Whenever lover-boy over there is done eye-fucking you, you can come and get them." I flicked him off. He chuckled and closed the door. I looked up at Chase. He was indeed eye-fucking me. I smiled.

It seemed as if time slowed down. He bent down and pressed his lips to mine. His soft lips brushed over mine, before he pulled away. A blush crept over his cheeks. "I-uh I-I-I'm so-." I crushed my lips back against his. Almost melting when he did the same back. I placed my hands gently in his hair. His tongue ran along my bottom lip. I just kept kissing him not letting his tongue reign dominance. Of course he kept kissing too.
He harshly bit my bottom lip and I gasped and his tongue entered my mouth. Our tongues danced like leaves in the wind as we continued kissing. I pulled back first, a string of saliva connecting our lips. I put my forehead on his, and he put his forehead against mine as well.

"We should go and get you your meds downstairs." I pulled back and nodded. I gently wiped the spot from my bottom lip.  I smiled faintly when I saw his messed up hair and swollen lips. He got up and walked around the bed to the door. He turned back. I reached my hands out pouting. Like I was a needy toddler.
       "Come on you big baby." I wrapped my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck. I ducked my head into his neck. He gently walked down the stairs, with me still in his arms.

   I could hear the upbeat theme song of a random child tv show. Meaning Demi was probably watching tv, or Dad was watching Puppy Dog Pals on the Disney Channel. Either one. "There you two are." Dad said while Chase put me on a stool in the kitchen. I leaned my forehead against my hand. Dad put a glass of water in front of me and handed all my meds to me.
       I took them dry and then swallowed all the water. I placed the glass back on the counter. Chase rubbed my lower back lightly. I swivelled my stool around to face him and jumped back onto him. Legs around his waist, and arms around his neck. He kissed the side of my head lightly.

      "Want any food Ruby?" It was more of a threat than a question. Even though Dad ain't that scary. Unless you like royally piss him off. I shook my head. "Did you want anything in particular?" A popsicle. I hopped out of Chase's grasp and stumbled over to the freezer drawer. I grabbed a rocket pop out- you know the ones with the red, white, and blue- I love them.
     I stumbled back over to Chase. "Do you wanna go back upstairs?" I nodded. I jumped back into his arms and he turned to carry us back upstairs.

"Wrap your bump before you hump kids."