Grayson Pov.
I sat up in my warm bed for a second, waiting. I had just been woken up to the sound of a scream & it sounded like it came from Ethan. I didn't hear anymore noises. Maybe he just stubbed his toe or something? I reached for my phone & clicked the power button, the light illuminating off the five inch screen & lighting up my room with a dim glow. It was 5:24 a.m. The fuck? How could Ethan stub his toe at five in the morni-"AHHHH!" Another scream erupted from down the hallway & I scrambled out of my bed, tossing my phone carelessly into the pocket of my hoodie as I sprinted down the hall to Ethan's room.
I burst through Ethan's closed bedroom door & flicked the light on, revealing Ethan who was sitting on the edge of his bed with his head in his bands & his elbows resting on his knees. "What the fuck happened?!" I asked & Ethan shook his head. "I don't know what's happening." I heard him mumble, still not looking at me & I scoffed. "So you wake up screaming at five in the morning and you don't know why. Bullshit. What the hell happe-" I started but stopped mid-sentence when Ethan shit his head up to look at me. My stomach flipped. His eyes were swollen & red, barely open as he attempted to look at me. He had tears running down his face but he wasn't crying, it just looked like whatever happened hurt really bad.
"I woke up like this and I can barely see fucking anything! You're a huge blob of blur right now! Am I going blind?!" He yelled & his facial expression showed extreme worry. I was about to say something but he stood up & went to walk towards me, only to run harshly into his night table & trip. He groaned as he stumbled back & fell onto the floor. He winced extremely loudly for some reason when his back hit the carpet though. I sighed, running over to him & picking him up by his shoulders to set him back on his bed. "I don't know what the fuck to do." He whined, wrapping his almost protectively around his abdomen as a look of slight pain crossed his face. "Neither do I! I don't have fucking glasses so I don't know what the fuck is happening! I also have no clue why your face looks like a baboon's ass right now because of how red it is!" I yelled, feeling anxious that I didn't know how to handle this situation. I watched with guilt as Ethan flinched slightly at my words, especially when I mentioned his glasses. He reached up with his hands & touched his face hesitantly, then ducking his head down as if he gave up. I took a deep breath in. I needed to calm the fuck down. Who has glasses would know what to-Emma.
I snatched my phone out of my pocket & hastily unlocked it, pressing my finger onto the messaging app & texting Emma. After a few texts of urgent-ness, she finally seemed to wake up to the sound of her notifications & text back;
Me: EMMA I NEED UR HELP PLZ ANSWER!!
Me: EMMA WAKE UP SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH ETHAN
Me: EMMAAAAAAAAAA IDK WHAT TO DO ANSWER ME!!!
Asshole <3: wtf what's wrong I was sleeping?
Me: ethan woke up screaming in pain & his eyes r all red & swollen shut, idk what to do & I thought u would know since u got glasses so maybe it has something to do with that???
Asshole <3: wut does he look like atm? send a pic.
Me: k one min.
I swiped out of the messaging all & went to the camera icon on my phone, flipping the camera around so it wasn't facing myself & pointing it at Ethan's ducked head. "E, look up I need to take a picture of you for Emma." I stated & he shook his head. "No she doesn't need to see me like this. She should be sleeping." He said & I sighed. "Ethan. Let me see your face, your in pain right?" I questioned & Ethan nodded slowly. "Well if you let me take a picture then Emma might know what to do to stop the pain." I bargained & he seemed to have a mental debate about it for a second, before lifting his bed-head up reluctantly. I quickly snapped a picture with the flash on & lowered my phone back down to send it to Emma;
Me:
Asshole <3: well shit, I'll be over in a few mins. he needs to go to the doctors & u needa get to school since u got that biology exam today that's half of ur grade so u can't miss that.
Me: k. u can just walk in when u get here, don't bother knocking since u might wake up our parents.
Asshole <3: wait ur dads home again?
Me: yea he got home last night y?
Asshole <3: uhm nothing, just wondering.
Me: ok...well I gtg get ready, ethans in his room & he said he can barely see anything but blobs so I don't think he'll go anywhere.
Asshole <3: k bye gray.
Me: by em.
I sighed, clicking my phone off & looking back at Ethan who was just staring at the ground with a blank expression. "Emma's coming, she knows what to do. Be nice to her please." I said & Ethan pulled his gaze up from the ground to look at me, his eyebrows furrowed. "Why wouldn't I be nice to her?" He snapped slightly & I put my hands up. "Woah, sorry. Didn't know you were such a delicate flower. I was just saying since you seem mad right now." I stated & his expression softened only slightly before nodding curtly. "Okay, well I'm gonna go get ready for school. Hope you feel better." I said & he shrugged as I turned on my heel to walk out of his room & down the hallway towards mine. I wonder what happened with his eyes. Also why was he acting like his chest hurt so bad? I shrugged to myself as I entered my room, opening the doors of closet after flicking on the light switch.
Emma Pov.
I held my breath as I opened the front door of the Dolan's house quietly as possible, not wanting to wake up the twin's parents. Especially not their dad. When Grayson texted me saying that their dad got home last night, I immediately got the shivers. What if Sean did something that caused Ethan's eyes to look like that? Ethan looked so sad & lost in the picture Grayson had sent to me that it really made me wonder what the hell happened.
I trotted up the wooden stairs lightly & then padded softly down the dark hallway, passing Grayson's room where I could hear 'Kid Cudi' music quietly playing over the sound of his shower water running. I chuckled to myself as I continued walking down the hallway, hearing him singing horribly along with the lyrics.
Once I reached Ethan's door to his room, I pushed it open slowly & looked inside. The light in his room was on & he way laying on his bed with his back to me, curled up in an almost protective position over himself. "Hey E." I said, my voice coming out slightly drowsy since I hadn't spoken since I woke up this morning. His still form jumped, not knowing I had entered his room as his arms seemed to tighten around himself. He didn't respond to my greeting, just groaned. "Go away. You should be at school, not wasting your time." I heard him mumble & I sighed, walking over to the side of his bed & sitting down gently on the edge. "I'm not wasting my time. And I'm already here so I'm not just gonna drive back to my house to get ready and then be late for school." I explained, fixing my messy bun the best I could. He didn't reply. "E, let me see your eyes." I coaxed & his shaggy hair ruffled wildly as he shook his head. "Ethan," I started with a pleading tone, "Grayson told me that they hurt. If you want the pain to go away then you have to let me help you. Please." I said & he stayed still for a few seconds before sitting up slowly & turning around so that he was sitting in front of me, his arms still wrapped around his abdomen as he made attempted eye contact with me. "Oh, Ethan." I said softly, bringing my hands up to lightly cup his face & gently stroke my thumbs over his swollen under eyes. From the small sliver I could see of his emerald green eyes, he was examining my face silently.
"What happened?" I asked quietly & Ethan shrugged. "I don't know. Woke up like this." He stated & I nodded slowly, dropping my hands back down into my lap. "Do you have a stomach ache or what?" I asked, referring to his protective arm looped around his stomach. He seemed to tense at the question & then realization hit me. It wasn't a fucking stomach ache. His dad coming home last night, him keeping his arms around himself, sleeping with a shirt on instead of no shirt. His dad fucking beat him again, didn't he?!
"He hit you again, didn't he?" I said, it was more of a statement than a question. His whole body seemed to freeze up. "I-uh n-" Ethan began to stutter but I decided to cut him off, placing my hands on his tense arms. "Let me see." I said, sighing sadly. He shook his head quickly & I groaned, throwing my hands up in the air. "Ethan." I pleaded, exaggerating the 'n' in his name. He didn't reply yet again, biting his lip. I watched as a single tear rolled out of his reddened & puffy eye, trickling down his cheek. I reached out my with my hand, making him flinch at first but then relax when my hand made gentle contact with his skin. I gently wiped the salty tear away & stared at his melancholy expression before dropping my hand & standing up from his bed. I held my hand out for him to take. "Come on, we gotta get you to the doctors." I stated & from what I could tell, his eyes attempted at widening. "Fuck no! They can't know about this! What the hell are you thinking?! They'll call the police and-and then-" He started to freak out & I cut his words short. "E, calm down. I'm talking about for your eyes." I soothed & gazed upon him as his stiffened form relaxed slightly. My outstretched hand hung emptily in the air for a second before he reached a hesitant hand out & accepted my gesture, pulling himself up. I smiled at his displeased expression, causing a small smile to dance on the corners of his lips as well. I dropped my small hand from his large one & turned on my heel, walking out the door & down the hallway without looking back.
Then I heard a loud crashing sound & a few groans of pain from behind me. My eyebrows furrowed & I turned around, realizing Ethan was indeed not behind me. I sprinted back into his room, seeing him sitting on his ass as he gripped his torso with a pained expression. His night table was knocked over as well. Oh shit. I completely forgot that he can't see well at the moment. "You okay?" I asked, squatting down next to him. He nodded with his eyes tightly shut, clearly not okay. "Okay come on, I'll be your guide." I coaxed, softly gripping his shoulders & standing up with him. I moved my one hand to be gripping the crook of his elbow & dropped my other hand back to my side. I flicked the light off in his room & led him along with me as we made our way out of his room & down the hallway.
We almost reached the staircase when the door to a room opened in front of us & the worst person that could've possibly appeared, walked out. Ethan's father. Sean.
I felt Ethan's whole figure tense up next to me, not even having to be able to see well to know who stood in front of us. I tightened my grip on Ethan's arm comfortingly as Sean gave Ethan an almost disgusted look, not even noticing me in the dark hallway. "What happened to your face? Did your brother finally knock some sense into you as well?" Sean asked, maliciousness lacing through his voice as he made a snarling face at Ethan. I felt Ethan flinch under my fingertips & was slightly shocked as he began to place himself in front of me slightly. Was he trying to protect me or something?
I watched as Sean opened his mouth to say something to Ethan but I cut him off before he was able to, "Oh hi Mr. Dolan, long time no see." Sean snapped his eyes to me, shocked as I gave him a fake smile. Sean shook his head slightly, squinting his eyes at me. "Emma?" He asked & I nodded. "How's my baby boy Grayson's best friend?" He questioned, holding his arms out for a hug & completely ignoring Ethan as he shoved him out of the way. As I was encased into an unwanted hug from Sean, I saw as Ethan stumbled slightly from being shoved & just looked down while fiddling with the sleeves of his dark green hoodie.
I pulled away from the hug quite quickly, not caring if Sean found it rude. Sean just shrugged while smiling, before turning his stare back to Ethan & placing a hand on his covered wrist. Right under that sleeve were Ethan's bandaged cuts. "Have a good day at school today." Sean almost gritted out to Ethan & I watched as he tightened his grip on Ethan's sleeved wrist, making him let out a small noise of presumably pain. I was quick to reach over & gently grab Ethan by his bicep, pulling him on the other side of me & making Sean drop his hand. "Well, if you don't mind sir, I was just about to take Ethan to school so we must be on our way." I lied, fake chuckling. Sean nodded slowly, looking between us. "Of course," Sean said & clapped his hands together, "have a great day Emma." He said, almost sounding sincere. I nodded & softly tugged a dazed Ethan along with me towards the staircase, glancing behind us once to see Sean simply going into the bathroom.
Once we reached the top of stairs I put both of my hands on Ethan's arm, just to make sure he wouldn't fall down the steep wooden steps. I walked down the stairs slowly, a silent Ethan one step behind me. For some reason he wasn't talking like usual. Maybe just the fact that something would've happened to him because of his father if I wasn't there?
We were about halfway down the stairs when Ethan stepped too far ahead & stumbled, falling down on his ass & dragging me down with him. I landed next to him, one step above. I chuckled lightly but stopped when I looked at Ethan's blank expression. "E, you okay?" I asked quietly & he just barely shook his head. "What's wrong?" I coaxed softly. "My da-d." He responded, voice cracking slightly. "Why me?" He asked sounding like he was about to cry & ducked his head down. "Hey, it's okay." I said softly & wrapped my arms around him gently, remembering that he liked affection even if he wouldn't admit it. He flinched momentarily but then gave into the hug & wrapped his arms around me as well, stuffing his swollen face into the fabric of my hoodie. He winced at the contact of his irritated eyes against me & I softly cupped his face, pulling him away from me slightly. His eyebrows furrowed at me & he tried to hug me again but I stopped him, holding his face away gently as possible. "Oh." He said quietly at my actions. His facial expression flashed with a hint of hurt & he pulled away completely, looking like he was about to stand up & walk away.
"No, no, no, Ethan come here." I said, gently pulling Ethan back in for a hug but making sure to keep his face so it wasn't touching me. I didn't want him to hurt himself just by hugging me, that's why I pulled him away. "I just didn't want to hurt your eyes." I explained, carding my fingers softly through his ash-colored hair. I felt a sigh of relief hit my back as he relaxed against me. "I won't let him hurt you." I soothed, referring to his father as I dragged my fingertips lightly on the back of his hoodie. He hummed gratefully into my shoulder & I smiled warmly, welcoming the peaceful silence that then fell between us.
After Ethan having his small breakdown on the stairs & me comforting him for awhile, we had gotten into my car & I had driven us to the doctor's office. I guided Ethan through the main doors of the doctors office, still leading him by his muscular arm. He was pretty quiet on the way here & it made me kind of sad; I wanted him to be happy again...even if that meant me getting beaten again, considering he was happy then.
I snapped out of my thoughts as the automatic glass doors shut behind us, pulling Ethan gently over to the front counter. "Ethan Dolan." I said to one of the receptionists who had extremely curly molasses-colored hair, causing her to lift her head up from looking at her computer. Her name tag read: 'Sandra'. Sandra nodded, glancing at Ethan for a split second & giving him an almost disgusted look as she looked back down at the computer screen. The fuck? Rude bitch.
I looked to Ethan at my side as he ducked his head down after receiving the look from Sandra. I rubbed my thumb on the sleeve of his hoodie where I was holding his arm comfortingly & turned to look down at where Sandra sat. "Is there a problem?" I snapped, referring to Sandra's rude gesture & she flicked her head up at me with an almost shocked expression. "Uh-no sorry." She replied curtly, getting back to typing. "You may sit in the waiting room, Dr. Moore will come get you in a few minutes." Sandra stated, not looking up again. I thanked her in an annoyed tone & tugged Ethan gently along with me as I walked us over to sit down in two of the waiting room chairs.
"Thanks." Ethan said quietly, making me turn my head to look at him next to me. "For what?" I asked, cocking my head in confusion at him. "For what you did to that girl at the receptionist desk." He responded & I nodded. "Of course, Ethan. She had no fucking right to give you that look. I wanted to slap that poorly applied lipstick right off her face when she did that." I vented, crossing my arms & scuffing my feet on the floor irritatedly. "Well, I mean, she did have a reason. I look like a fucking baboon's ass that was enlarged." He said with dry humor, looking down at his fiddling fingers even though I doubted he could actually see them well. "Stop. You look fucking fine. Just a little swollen." I assured him, causing a tiny smile to appear on his saddened face. He shrugged & I chuckled lightly.
"Ethan Dolan?" We suddenly heard the doctor call out from across the room.
****
Author's Note: ur comments make me so happy lolol. also btw I usually update on thursdays if u were wondering. u probably weren't tho lol. ok. good fucking night im so tired. ly. <3