Marci
I was sat on the cold tiles of the kitchen, my knees tucked to my chest as I felt a stream of blood dribble from my nose to my lip. I gently wiped it with my arm, withholding a sob as the stream resumed and the crimson blood streaked across my hand.
aw fuzznuts
The floor creaked as my brother sped back into the kitchen, his movements urgent as he hooked his hands underneath my armpits and lifted me onto the kitchen table, murmuring apologies at my groans of pain.
"Where does it hurt Marci?" my brother asked, wetting a dish rat in the sink.
"Nowhere, I'm fine" I lied, trying to scramble from the table but failing when Joey pushed me back up and began dabbing my bleeding nose with the dish rag.
"Marcella." he said sternly, lifting my chin and forcing me to look in his eyes. "Where does it hurt?"
"My tummy" I mumbled in defeat, and Joey lifted the bottom of my shirt, revealing my rapidly bruising skin.
I knew it was bad when he grimaced at the sight.
"Shit Marc' I'm so sorry, I should have been here" he apologized as he gently laid me down on the table.
"Y-you had w-work" I stammered, still holding back my tears. "You c-couldn't have known he'd c-come b-back"
I hissed in pain as Joey laid a bag of frozen peas over my bare stomach, the gentle impact causing unimaginable pain to fill my belly.
"S-Shan is okay" I assured him, mainly to distract me from my pain. "S-she's in our r-room".
"Good job, but listen to me now Marc'. The next time that our dad- or anyone- tries to hurt you, run. Run in the other direction. Don't be like me Marci- don't be a fighter. Be a survivor like Shannon, don't try to protect others, just protect yourself. This empathy of yours is gonna bite you in the ass someday, and I wanna stop it while I still can." My brother told me, moving the frozen bag off of me and pressing around my stomach to check for broken ribs, a routine that had become all too familiar in the past months since Darren left and everything went downhill.
"No more fighting like me, be like Shannon, run. I'll be the fight so you can be the flight." he whispered as he kissed me on the cheek and pressed a little bit harder on a rib that was definitely broken.
No matter how many times Joey gave me this talk, I just couldn't listen. No matter how much he preached to me about self preservation, everybody else would always matter more.
My brother and I shared the same fatal flaw.
We were protectors.
We took the hits
and we always would
Because I would rather suffer infinitely than be responsible for someone else's suffering.
I would take hundreds of blows, just to keep them from my family's backs.
And I think Joey knew that.
★・・・・・・★
I woke up to the sound of screaming, which wasn't particularly unusual for me.
What was unusual was the fact that I wasn't in my bed, and it wasn't my screams waking me.
My sister shot straight up from her spot on the couch, whipping around to look at the scene of the screaming in a panic.
She shot up off of the couch, ready to diffuse the conflict, but I pulled her back down, signaling for her to stay, as I climbed to my feet tiredly and hobbled towards the voices.
I followed the sounds of angry shouts, their volume increasing with every step I took towards them.
The front door finally came into my sight, and I had to withhold myself from running towards the arguing figures, trying to follow my brother's advice.
Preserve don't protect
Flight not fight
Preserve don't protect
Flight not fight
Preserve don't protect
Flight not fight.
but what about Joey?
Johnny and Ethan were yelling at my brother, who was staring back at them with an eerily calm expression etched on his face.
I knew what that meant.
He was analyzing.
Trying to figure out the best way to get out of his situation.
And I knew the conclusion he would come to.
And the consequences of it
I then focused my attention on the more important things right now.
My brother's fists.
They were at his sides, and as he clenched and unclenched them repeatedly I felt my heart sink to the pit of my stomach.
he was gonna swing.
He was being confronted, so he was going to do the only thing he knew how to.
Fight.
preserve and protect
I knew I was right when he clenched his fist a final time and lifted his hand to swing at Ethan.
Fight
I caught my brother's humongous fist in the palms of both of my hands before it could strike Ethan, the pure force of it definitely bruising my hands.
Pain shot through my arm at my protective action, but I used everything in me not to show it as I stood there staring at Joey unwaveringly.
Don't. you. dare. i told him mentally, glaring at him
His gaze softened, and he shared another look with me, this one apologetic.
I nodded calmly.
that's what i thought.
My brother took a deep breath and his chest fell at the action, his walls collapsing at my presence.
"We better get going" I said, tone tight, pulling my hand from Joey's fist and shaking it slightly, hoping it would numb some of the pain left behind after Joey's strike.
don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry
"You're not going anywhere" Ethan said protectively from behind me, wrapping a hand around my waist gently (thank god because my pain meds had worn off and my back was on fire) and tucked me into his side. "Not with him." he elaborated, shooting a glare at my brother.
"Ethan..." I hesitated, "It's okay. It's just Joe."
"Is he the one who's been hurting you baby? Is it him? You can tell me baby I promise, I'd never let him hurt you." Ethan choked out, not taking his eyes off of my brother as he hugged me tighter.
ouch.
wait what?
"What are you talking about E?" I questioned him, pulling from his grip to try to ease the pain in my back. "You think Joe is hurting me?".
"I know someone is, and this big burly asshole hasn't exactly made an impression." he snapped at my brother.
"Hey!" I cried, trying my best not to raise my voice at him, I didn't want to upset anybody, especially the 6'4 rugby player in front of me... or players. "Don't talk about Joe like that." I defended, turning to face Ethan while I grabbed Joey's hand from behind me, mainly to prevent him from swinging again.
"Then who is it Marc? Someone's hurting you and it kills me that I don't know how to help you" he pleaded helplessly.
"I- I I uh uhm" I stuttered, speechless at the realization that he knew.
he knew.
oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit.
don't cry don't cry
shit i'm gonna cry.
Ethan's gaze softened at my speechless state, and he opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, all other heads in the room whipped to the doorway.
Shannon scrambled into the room nervously, and I eyed her reassuringly, trying to mentally tell her that it was okay.
it was not okay.
This was not okay.
★・・・・・・★
Authors Note
i'm sorry if you don't like this chapter, i wanted to make sure to update for y'all since it's a monday. If y'all want any sort of thing added to the plot then comment it here and i'll try to add it!!
shout out to Juliet-Gomez
(I think you might have gotten one earlier but it's okay because your a real one)
Ily all! You are so fucking loved!💗
-Kat
WC- 1344