Criticism spot! :)
Crutchie's POV
I spent most of the day sleeping, keeping the blanket around me the entire time. It felt like entire days had gone by the time the ladder finally shook, Jack climbing up. I perked up right away, smiling as he reached the top. He came over to me, getting ready to sit down.
"Hey babe-" I cut him off by hugging him the moment he sat down, catching him off guard. "Something wrong?" He asked, brushing my hair back.
"I missed you," I mumbled, making him chuckle.
"Did you let yourself relax?" I let go so I could see him, nodding. "Good. You feeling any better?"
"Mhm, I only had one episode with my foot," I kept smiling at him, happy I finally had some good news for him.
"Was it bad?"
"A little, but it wasn't super bad." He smiled some more, his face lighting up a little.
"Well, I was wondering if you'd like to come to the theatre with me tonight. You could play the piano while I paint so you don't get bored," he pushed my hair back, waiting for an answer.
"That'd be great," I said, getting off him.
"Then let's go," he stood and put his hand out, helping me do the same.
When we reached the theare I immediately went to the piano, excited to play. Jack grabbed everything he needed and set himself up, walking over to me with a few papers in his hands.
"I found these in the shop, thought you might wanna look at them," he handed me the papers, and I felt my face light up when I noticed it was sheet music. I smiled, looking at him.
"Thank you," I said, putting them on the piano.
"No problem," he walked over to his canvas, the two of us completely focusing on what we were doing.
A few hours went by, Jack making a bunch of progress on the backdrop while I kept plunking away. I was really focusing on one of the pieces, wanting to play it perfectly. Of course, since I was sight reading, I'd mess up now and then. I turned to the next page and went to play a chord, however I hit the wrong keys, making it sound horrible.
"Whoops," I chuckled, looking up at Jack. He turned around to look back at me, smiling. "Did you hear that?" I said, laughing harder.
"Yeah," he laughed too, only making me smile some more.
"You know what would really help?" I asked, keeping Jack's attention.
"What?" He walked over to me, messing with my hair.
"If I actually played the right notes." He laughed harder, not expecting that.
"Yeah, it might," he teased, looking at the music. "I don't know how you can read this."
"It just takes time to learn. Once you get it down, it's easier than it seems." He looked at me again, smiling.
"I'm almost done here, then we can go, alright?" I nodded, turning my attention back to the music.
Twenty minutes went by as I went over the parts I had messed up on, nearly perfecting it already. I was on the last page when pain shot through my entire right leg, making me stop immediately. Jack noticed how abrubtly I had stopped, so he looked to see if I was alright. Of course, he could tell I was in immense pain, so he dropped what he was doing and ran to me.
"How bad?" I went to answer him, but was unable to speak because of how I felt. "Is it worse than Scott?" I nodded, my eyes shut tight. "Five?" I thought for a moment, shaking my head. "Eight?" I nodded again, putting my head in my hands. "Hey, breathe, just hang in there," I followed his breathing, not noticing I had started to panic a little. "Do I need to get Race to help get you home?"
"I'll be ok-" I was cut off from the pain, my heart pounding.
"It's alright, I can go get him and we'll get you home." I decided not to fight him on it, knowing that if I didn't accept the help that we'd be here for hours. "Just stay right here, okay?"
"I feel lightheaded," I got out, everything seeming fuzzy.
"I'll help you to the ground so you can lay down while you wait, how does that sound?" I nodded, everything feeling far away. "Okay, I'm gonna pick you up here and set you down," Jack did as he said, setting me down as gently as he could. "I'll be right back, stay right here and don't get up."
As I laid there I could only hope they'd be back soon, hating the fact that I was all alone. I tried as hard as I could to stay awake, not wanting to pass out and worry Jack further. Time passed slowly, my heart only pounding harder. The moment I heard the doors open, I couldn't fight it off anymore, finally passing out.
I woke up in the penthouse, Jack and Race both there. They hadn't noticed I had woken up, so I closed my eyes again so I didn't interrupt them.
"It's alright," Race said, whispering.
"I know, but you know how I get," Jack's voice was shaky, and it was clear he had been crying.
"Just keep reminding yourself that you're doing great," Race assured him, confusing me.
"I just wish there was more I could do, ya know?" Jack said, and I realized what they were talking about. "I know there isn't a lot that I can do, but I wish I could make him stop hurting right away."
"You're doing great. Trust me." The two went quiet for a moment, likely looking at me. "I think you should let him sell if he wants to. Staying up here will just make things worse."
"I thought so, too," Jack whispered, sighing. "You can go get ready, the bell will ring soon." Race went down the ladder without another word, leaving Jack and I. Jack nudged me a little, trying to wake me. "Hey, Crutch," he kept whispering, not wanting to scare me. "The bell's gonna ring soon." I slowly opened my eyes and looked at him, rubbing my eyes. "Do you remember what happened?"
"Mhm," I said, nodding. "Sorry for makin' you stop painting," I mumbled, sitting up.
"Don't be, it's not your fault whatsoever. Plus, I was done anyways." He smiled at me, kissing me on the top of the head. "You want to sell?" I nodded, fixing my hair a bit. "I'll get you some clothes. Just rest." He got up and did as he said, handing me one of his shirts, just like he had been for the past couple days.
The morning went on as usual, besides Romeo joining us. He had been staying away from us since he had hit me, which I definitely didn't mind. As we grew closer to the front of the line for our papes, my heart began to pound, nervous about Oscar saying something.
"Morning, Weisel," I said with a smile, handing him my money.
"Morning Crutchie," he smiled back, counting my coins. I moved down to take my papes from Oscar, getting even more nervous. To my surprise, he said nothing, and I thought I was in the clear as I walked over to Jack.
"Still can't hide that disgusting leg, huh?" He spat, my heart dropping. I ignored him, heading over to Jack. He had heard Oscar, though, and it was clear he was furious.
"You're the scum of the earth, ya know that?" Jack said, making me tense up further.
"Jack, stop," I whispered, wanting to forget everything.
"The hell did you just say to me, Kelly?" Oscar walked away from his spot, heading over to us. Morris took over for him, not saying a word.
"You heard me," Jack grew angrier yet, ignoring what I had said.
"Tellin' me I'm scum when you hang around that thing," Oscar motioned to me, my eyes burning with tears. "I mean, didn't he sort of ruin your life?" Jack then stood fully in front of me, not letting me see Oscar anymore.
"You don't know shit about my life," Jack rose his voice, getting in Oscar's face. Race rushed over to me, grabbing my arm.
"Let's get outta here," he mumbled, and I nodded, knowing I had to leave.
"Well you were still normal before you met him," I heard Oscar say, his words feeling like a knife to my chest.
"Oscar you never fail to surprise me with how fucking stupid you are." Jack got louder yet, sounding angrier than he ever had.
"You always act like such a touch guy, never thought you'd end up with that excuse for a person." A few tears finally fell, my chest tightening as Oscar said something my Dad always did.
Finally, Race and I got out of earshot, heading to the nearest alley. I immediately broke down, sobbing as I put my head in my hands, feeling Race hug me. All I wanted at this point was Jack, just wishing he would hold me.
"Focus on breathing," Race said, noticing how I had begun to breathe quickly. Finally, as though on cue, I heard footsteps nearing us, meaning Jack was finally here. Race let go, allowing Jack to keep me against him.
"I'm sorry baby, I'm so sorry," he said quietly, holding me tight.
"It's not your fault," I mumbled, clinging to him.
"Nothing he said was true, you know that, right?"
"I'm trying to tell myself that," he started running his fingers through my hair, calming me further. "God dammit," I whispered, catching Jack off guard.
"What?"
"Every fucking time I start to believe myself I just hear him again," I explained, hoping he'd know I meant my Dad and not Oscar. "I just- I want him out," I started to sob once again, clinging to Jack harder.
"I know, and we'll get his words out." He assured me, continuing to speak softly.
"I want to get out of here, I want to get far away from him so he'll never find me again," I began rambling, burning my face in Jack's shirt.
"We will, I promise. We're so close, we just need a little more money, and we'll be out." I looked up at him, and he dried my face with his left thumb, smiling. "It'll be okay."
"I love you so much," I whispered, making him smile more.
"I love you too." He kissed me on the top of the head, moving my hair from my face. "How about you just come with me today, hm?" I nodded, knowing it was best. "Let's go get Race." I hadn't realized he had left us so we could have privacy, appreciating his kindness.
As usual, I waited around all day for Jack to finish, taking the time to rest my foot. Jack finished around his usual time, coming to the alley to get me. He helped me up and we went home in silence, as I was still focusing on suppressing the pain in my foot.
"Wanna play cards with Race tonight?" He asked, smiling at me.
"Sure, that'd be nice," I smiled back, wanting to get my mind off things.
"Then let's get home, relax for a bit, and then we'll play." I nodded, unable to stop smiling.
Jack sketched in the penthouse while I laid beside him, resting my head on his chest. Eventually, it was time to play, so we went to the lodging house and met up with Race. We were two rounds in when Jack set his cards down, looking at the clock.
"Shit, I forgot Medda wanted me to stop by the theatre," he got up from his chair, looking between the two of us. "I'm gonna run there and come right back, just give me a few minutes," he smiled at me, heading right out the door.
"Wonder what Medda wants him for," Race said, looking at me.
"Maybe she's gonna pay him for one of his backdrops," Race nodded, unsure what else it would be.
"How're you doing?" Race asked, setting his cards down.
"Better, its just taking me more time to get better than I'd like." I rested my head in my right hand, sighing.
"Yeah, it can get really frustrating." He agreed, helping me to feel better.
Race and I kept talking for quite a while, mostly focusing on how to get past panic attacks and stuff. I began to get worried about Jack not being back yet, and I couldn't help but wonder if he could be in trouble. As though on cue, however, he walked in, smiling.
"Hey, Crutch, I've gotta show you something," I glanced at Race, seeing that he was smiling too. It became clear he was in on whatever was going on, and he began picking up the cards without a word. I stood up and walked over to Jack, following him outside.
I kept following him all the way to the penthouse, and he had a smile on his face the whole way. When we reached the top, I was greeted with a few candles lit on the railing, a piece of paper folded up on the ground not far below them. Jack handed me the paper, a smile still stuck on his face.
I unfolded it to see that it was a pencil-drawing of us in the penthouse, both of us asleep. I was real close to Jack, my forehead touching his chest. He had his arms around me, and we each had a small smile on our faces. After I looked at it for a while, I looked up at Jack, my eyes burning with tears.
"C'mere, I got us some food," we sat down and he gave me half of it, starting to eat right away. I did the same, not realizing how hungry I was.
Once we finished eating I laid on him, the two of us watching the stars in silence. As we sat there, I began thinking about just how much my life had improved since meeting Jack, despite the major events that had happened. I looked up at Jack with a smile, making him chuckle.
"What?" He said, smiling back.
"You're just so incredible," I mumbled, making him blush.
"I could say the same to you," he smiled some more, starting to play with my hair.
"It's so... Crazy to think how much my life has changed all because I met you." I kept speaking quietly, unable to stop smiling. "I went from barely surviving each day, never eating since those kids took my money every day, ready to give up. But now I'm here."
"Can I ask you something?" I nodded, adoring the stars in his eyes. "What did you do about nightmares n' stuff before you came here?"
"I just kinda had to sit there until I was okay," I began, looking up at the sky. "I'd usually be there for hours upon hours because of how scared I was. My heart would be pounding and I'd be sobbing, never really knowing what to do. It was... It was bad." I looked back at Jack, making sure I was still smiling a little.
"I'm glad you don't have to go through it alone anymore," he said, my face burning.
"Me too," he moved my hair from his face, kissing me on the forehead. "Do you ever wonder what you'd be doing right now if we hadn't met?"
"Sometimes," he said, smiling. "I'd probably be up here, alone of course, depressed as hell and still having no clue how to be open with anyone but Race. Not to mention, I wasn't even that open with him." He studied me for a moment, chuckling a little.
"What?" I chuckled back, confused.
"It's just so cute how much you like watching the stars." I blushed a little, only making him chuckle more.
"When I was little I'd climb onto the roof and look at them," I said, glancing at the sky before turning back to Jack.
"Really?" I nodded, sighing.
"Even after he messed up my leg, I'd still get out there to look. It was really the only time I felt... Free, if that makes sense. That, and when I played piano." He started to mess with my hair again, causing me to smile a bit more.
"You know, I did that with my sister sometimes." I waited, wanting him to continue. "You know how little kids get random nightmares?" I chuckled, making him realize what he had said. "Okay okay shut up, you know what I mean," he laughed, smiling.
"I know, I'm just bein'mean," I teased, calming down.
"But every now and then she'd get nightmares just like any kid, and she'd either come to my room, or when she couldn't walk she'd cry til' I came to hers. Whenever she did, we'd go into the tiny backyard we had and sit out there, looking at the stars until she calmed down." I watched him for a moment, loving how his face lit up whenever he spoke about Sofie. "I remember how god damn relieved I'd feel whenever my aunt would visit us." He began, grabbing my attention some more since he had never talked about her before. "She lived pretty close, but was really busy, so she'd come help whenever she could since she knew my Dad didn't do anything." I then suddenly tensed up, remembering something from my childhood that I hadn't thought about in years. Jack noticed, his smile dropping. "You okay?"
"Yeah, sorry, just... Remembered something. That's all."
"What was it?" He asked, starting to worry.
"It's nothing, don't worry. Besides, I don't want to talk about me. We do that a lot. I like hearing about you." He studied me for a moment, deciding if he'd push further. He sighed, smiling again.
"Well tell me if it starts bothering you, okay?" I nodded, smiling back.
"I will. I wanna hear more about your aunt and Sofie."
"She was so nice. She was my Dad's sister, and she never visited a whole lot until my Mom died." He began, starting to play with my hair for the millionth time. "Since Sofie couldn't really play stuff like baseball with me, she'd play, even if she had come over that day in heels." He chuckled a little, and I did the same. His smile then dropped, his expression changing to one of sadness.
"What's wrong?" I asked, worried.
"It just... It wasn't always great, you know?" I nodded, ready to listen. "During the day, it'd be fun, but when we'd go to bed at night I'd hear her and my Dad fighting about how he didn't do anything. She would be begging him to take care of us like a parent should, and he'd say something about how he didn't care." I began thinking, confused.
"Could I ask you something?"
"Of course," he said, smiling a little.
"You don't have to answer, of course, but I'm just wondering... Where was she when Sofie got sick?" Jack sighed, still messing with my hair.
"She had come over the day before Sofie passed. Of course, we didn't know she was gonna pass, but you know what I mean." I nodded, waiting. "She didn't know Sofie was sick, since she hadn't visited for a long, long time. Dunno what she was busy with, but she couldn't visit. Anyways, when she finally was able to stop by, I remember she immediately said something about how exhausted I looked." Jack took a deep breath, likely not wanting to tear up. "I started crying and telling her about how sick Sofie was, and she went straight to her room. I stayed downstairs, really not wanting to see her reaction when she actually saw Sofie. She came back down after a few minutes and smiled, telling me she knew someone who could help, but it'd take her a day or two to get them." He sighed again, looking away for a moment. "She left that night, and Sofie passed the next morning."
"I'm so sorry, baby," I said, seeing him smile a bit.
"It ain't your fault, don't apologize. It's my dumbass Dad's fault," he chuckled a little at himself, and I did the same. "See, just like I said before, I've never been this open with Race. You just have this special talent, I guess." He smiled even more, pushing my hair back.
"I know, I'm pretty good." We laughed for a moment before I yawned, my eyelids heavy.
"Wanna go to bed?" I nodded, sitting up. "Let me just take care of the candles and I'll be right back." He stood, walking to the four candles that were still lit.
"I can help if you want," I offered, and he shook his head.
"Nope, this is a date for you, so you're not allowed to do anything besides relax." I blushed a bit, my heart skipping a beat. "I'll be just a minute."
He went down the ladder with the candles, and I took the time to change out of my street-clothes. I put one of Jack's shirts on again, hoping he wouldn't mind. Just as he had said, he was back within a few minutes, changing and laying down beside me. He pulled me in against him as usual, kissing me on the forehead.
"Thank you for tonight," I mumbled, looking up at him.
"No need to thank me. It's what boyfriends do." I blushed even more, unable to stop smiling.
"I'm pretty lucky, huh?" He laughed a little, his face going red. "I love you."
"I love you, too. Get some sleep, you can try selling tomorrow." I nodded and settled down, falling asleep soon after.
I woke up in my bedroom, heading right to the window. Of course, I was limping, so it took me a bit to reach it. Once I had, I opened it and climbed onto the roof, settling down to watch the stars. I then heard footsteps from below, immediately grabbing my attention.
"Charlie?" Someone whispered, clearly a woman. I crawled to the edge of the roof, confused.
"Hello?" I whispered back, hearing the footsteps grow closer. To my surprise, my aunt was the one walking to me, clearly worried.
"Are you okay?!" She asked, looking around her to make sure my Dad wasn't anywhere near.
"Not really," I answered honestly, having gotten beaten real bad a few hours before.
"I'm so, so sorry Mary left you here." She began, and I felt sick to my stomach. "I'm here to get you out, okay?"
"Really?" I said, a small smile on my face.
"Yes, you're going to live with me." She glanced around again, still worried. "I can't really get to you, I'm not as young as you are," she joked a little, loosening the tension. "So what I'm gonna do is tomorrow morning I'm going to wait until your Father leaves for work, and then I'll come to the front door and get you. Just wait in your room until you know it's me on the other side of your door, okay?" I nodded, my heart beating quickly. "Go get some sleep, I'll see you very soon. You'll be safe."
I went right back into my room and closed the window as quietly as I could, unable to stop smiling as I thought about escaping. Thankfully, after what felt like days, I managed to fall asleep.
"Get the fuck up!" My Dad screamed, storming into my room. I sat up quickly and backed up, running into the wall. "Here's your chores. Don't fuck them up." He left my room without another word, surprisingly not hitting me. After he was gone I sat against my bedroom door, my ear pressed to it. The front door slammed, and all I had to do was wait.
Before I knew it I heard the unmistakable sound of the front door opening again, hearing footsteps nearing my room. A few seconds went by before there was a knock at my door, causing me to jump.
"Charlie, it's me, come out," I slowly opened the door, my aunt's worried face on the other side. She immediately pulled me into a hug, keeping me against her for a moment before backing away. "Let's go-" there was suddenly a second set of footsteps, causing the two of us to freeze completely.
"I fucking saw you, Susan!" My Dad screamed from downstairs, quickly nearing us.
"We'll go out the window, we need to hurry!" She said, sprinting to the window. I wasn't nearly as fast because of my leg, and my Dad caught up to me with ease, throwing me to the floor.
"The hell do you think you're doing?!" He screamed, but she ignored him, continuing to try opening the window. He looked at me and grabbed my shirt collar, picking me up and pinning me to the wall. He then put his hands around my neck, squeezing.
"Leave him alone!" She yelled, bawling.
"I'll let him go if you leave and never come back." She froze for a moment, having no idea what to do. "If I see you anywhere near here again, he's dead. Got that?"
"I'm so sorry, Charlie," she mumbled, causing my heart to plummet, knowing she was going to leave me behind.
"Get the fuck out!" My Dad screamed, and Susan did just that. Once she was gone he threw me down again, pissed beyond belief. "You're so god damn lucky I'm already late for work. You're in for the beating of your life tonight." He walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
I sat up quickly and put my arms around myself, sobbing uncontrollably. Jack sat up as well, not hiding his worry. I refused to look at him, my heart pounding. He went to put his arms around me but I quickly flinched away, panicking further.
"Hey, it's me," he said quietly, trying to get me to look at him.
"I know, I..." I trailed off, needing a moment to breathe. "I had a nightmare about something."
"Was it about that thing you remembered?" He guessed, still speaking softly.
"Mhm," I answered, restingmy head in my hands.
"Do you want to talk about it?" I sighed, knowing it'd help me if I did.
I explained every detail of the dream, needing to take breaks now and then to breathe. He listened carefully, being sure not to miss a single word. Once I had finished he pulled me close, playing with my hair.
"How many times did you almost get out?" He asked, keeping me close.
"Uh... I don't know the exact number," I answered, listening to his breathing.
"Maybe it'd help to talk about them," he suggested, smiling kindly.
"If you really want to know," I looked up at him, seeing that he was ready to listen to me ramble again. "Well, there was that time, and once I was trying to sneak out from the roof but he caught me," I took a deep breath, not looking at Jack anymore. "I did that a couple times, actually, and I always got caught, obviously. I eventually got out that one night, and I guess another time he caught me would be when you, Race and the other guys tried getting me out the first time."
"You've never told me you tried more than once," he said, his voice quiet.
"I just never really thought about it, I guess," he moved my hair from my face again, smiling.
"You know what'll be the final escape we ever have to make?" He asked, smiling more. "Getting to Santa Fe."
"Let's just hope it doesn't end with my Dad catching us," I joked, making the two of us laugh.
"Not to change the subject, but how's your hand?" I looked to my left hand, studying it.
"It hurts sometimes, but it's getting better." The bell rang before Jack could say anything further, startling the both of us.
"I'll get you some clothes, just keep relaxing for as long as you can so that your foot doesn't hurt, okay?" I nodded, staying put and smiling as he got an outfit together for me. We got ready quickly, heading out with smiles on both of our faces.
(word count - 4620)