Through The Dark

Chapter 8

Little rant about the song. This is Over Again by One Direction. I know that this song is mostly about a couple starting over but it can also be applied for Em and Nathan. Him wanting to make her pain go away, him telling her to stop pretending, him trying to mend her heart and lending her his broken parts and his heart. And the bridge by Zayn definitely fits their situation very much perfectly. Hope you enjoy!!

Emerald's POV:

As soon as he saw me, he quickly tried to wipe his tears away, but I stopped him by holding his hand. There was no need for him to hide the real himself from me. I think he got the message because he slumped and let the tears stream down. I went and sat down next to him and simply held his hand in support. Funny how small gestures like these matter more than the grand ones, because he completely opened the dam. He completely let down his guard and didn't even try to hold back the sobs which were now racking his entire body. I set down the first aid and held him in an embrace. At first he stiffened but then relaxed in my arms. He held on to me as though I was a lifeline trying to save him.

After some time, he finally calmed down enough to explain to me what had happened. He slowly started to explain and by the time he finished, I had tears in my eyes. I felt so bad for him, but felt even more guilty for not being able to help him before this. For how long has he been suffering? The answer was too long. He doesn't deserve this. No one does. But then again, this is life and life isn't fair. Ever. His tears had started again so I moved my hand to rub his back. But as soon as I touched it, he winced. He tried to cover it but I had already noticed it. I looked at him and asked him to remove his jacket and t-shirt. At first he protested but I wasn't having any of it. He finally accepted defeat and removed his jacket. But when he went to remove his shirt, he winced and hunched over. His breathes were irregular and he was panting. I helped him remove it and when I did I was shocked.

His stomach was literally only purple and blue. There were many bruises, so many that I had to turn my eyes away, not being able to see the sight anymore. Tears formed in my eyes. But when I moved to inspect his back, a gasp left my mouth. His stomach was nothing compared to his back, which was literally covered in slashes and blood. Skin was barely visible and blood was dripping down his body. I covered my mouth in an attempt to cover a sob which was threatening to escape from my mouth. What had his father even done to his back for it to be so wounded?

Apparently I had asked that question out loud,because he murmured a simple "Telephone cord". Anger boiled inside me. True that I as well was subjected to this many times,but I deserved it. He didn't. Why was his father so cruel towards him? What has he even done? I could quite literally see red through my tears. If I had the chance,I would love to put that man in prison. Nathan doesn't deserve this type of inhuman treatment nor any thing else his father does to him. He deserves only love and kindness. Because that is what he deserves. Love, kindness and all the happiness of the world. Not abuse, mistreatment and blood. And certainly not this type of lifestyle and these tears.

I cleaned his wounds and when his back was clean of all the blood, that is when I could truly see his wounds. I try my hardest to not flinch but it was hard not to. There were red, angry marks all over his back. Some of them were deep, which would definitely leave scars, while most were shallow. There were places where his father had slashed hard enough to tear into the flesh rather than just into the skin. A single tear slipped down my cheek. This was a sight I never wished to see again.

I took the antiseptic and put some of it on a piece of cotton. As soon as it came into contact with his back, he winced and bit his lip to prevent a scream from coming out. It was not because he didn't want anyone to see him. No that was definitely not the case because it was way past midnight and there was no one in the park. It was more of the case that he didn't want me to hear his pain. I gave him a look and clearly stated that it was okay for you to scream out if you want to. It is only me. After that I started to disinfect his wounds and every time I would put the cotton on his back, he would either clench his jaw or close his eyes. I first finished the shallow wounds. The real challenge started when I went to the deeper wounds.

The first deeper one I went for, he screamed out and didn't hold back. I gave him a few minutes to recover from it before going to the next one. This continued for a long time and each time the scream would become lower and lower until finally it turned completely into a whimper. This was not because he got used to the pain, but because he was growing tired and very fast. By the time I finished disinfecting all the wounds, his forehead was totally covered in sweat and his breath was irregular, he was panting. But that was not the main concern. His eyelids were starting to droop down and this was not a good sign. He couldn't sleep until I finished treating his wounds completely, else it's going to be a huge risk to him. And so I forced him to stay awake until I finished bandaging his back completely.

After I finished bandaging him and put away the rest of it back in the box, I went and sat down next to him. I helped him put his t shirt and jacket on. He was too tired to speak anything and simply put his head on my shoulder. Pain shot right through my entire left hand, but I ingored it. Very soon, he fell asleep and that left me to ponder upon things. I looked at the night sky and tried to silently converse with my mum. I asked her if she was happy and all those random things.

I then looked back at the sleeping form of the lad on my shoulder. Just one look at him and my eyes filled with tears. Why was life so cruel on him? He doesn't deserve any of the torture he has to go through. Why did he receive such an inhuman beating just because it was his parents anniversary. Besides it wasn't even his mistake that his brother was in that accident or that his mother had committed suicide. None of this was his fault. Then why is it that he was the one receiving the punishment? Why was he suffering when it wasn't even his fault? Why couldn't God show some mercy on him?

Somewhere in all these thoughts, I also found myself pondering about myself. How did I let him in my life? How did I let my guard down,just enough to let him in? How did all the walls I built around myself, come crumbling down? How is it that every single positive thought I have revolves around him? Do I like him? Am I falling for him? I look at his sleeping form. I want to deny it so much. How can he like a broken soul like mine? Why would he even like me? I was a freak and my life was a mess. Then why was it so, that while my brain was giving me so many reasons to not fall for him, my heart gave me just one reason to fall for him? Two broken souls are the ones who find each other and heal each other.

As I was pondering on these things,I saw a sillhouette in the dark. By the looks of it, it was definitely a guy. He was standing near the willow tree. I furrowed my brows. Why did he seem so familiar to me? I squinted my eyes and looked more closely and carefully. He had brown hair, which was straight. He extended his hand to touch the tree and that is when I saw the scar on his hand. My eyes widened. No. Oh God no. This can't be him, can it? Why would it be him? Why would he come back over here? There was no reason for him to, right? But the scar on his hand told another story. A story where it indeed was him. He was either here or my eyes were playing games with me. Now there was only one question remaining.

Was Liam really here?

(A/N):Hey guys. So this is the eighth chapter. I can't see Nathan's pain guys. It's so sad to see him like this. Do you think Emerald did a good job on treating his wounds? Was Nathan crying out okay or should he have controlled his pain? Is Emerald falling for Nathan? Is it really Liam? Let me know your thoughts on the chapter.

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Happy reading!!! :)