ℍ𝔸ℝ𝔻𝕊ℍ𝕀ℙ (Falling #2)

21

Avery

As I knock down this Martin Scott, I try to find Damon. I am either blind or he left. Which makes me feel a little bit like I failed. Why does he keep walking away? Why can't he just man up and do something right, for once? Maybe I am just angry. It doesn't stop me from holding my breath.

"You okay?" Will asks, his hand on my shoulder. Our breaths quicken and we both stare at each other for a moment. I think he's trying to help me breathe and I think I might be in a panic state. I don't know these guys. Why are they after me? What did I do?

"Fine" I answer. I know he doesn't believe me but he doesn't push it. That's what I like about Will. He tries his best to avoid confrontation. This doesn't really affect him. They're not after him, they're after me.

Why?

"Where's Damon?" The anger in his voice makes me smile. I realize, I am not the only one who missed him. Will missed him, too. Maybe even more than I did.

"Damon?" He calls out and I guess he thinks I am following him because he doesn't look back. I don't rere.

I am freaking out.

This whole thing is messed up. I didn't even know these guys.

But, didn't Will say it was his mess? How is it his mess? I am smart, I should figure it out. There's something I am missing.

"He left" Will comes back and I nod sitting down on the floor. Far away from these two sick bastards. Will is quick to kneel in front of me and as much as I want closure, I push him away. I don't understand what's happening.

I think he's saying my name a few times. I don't know, I am trying to puzzle this out. What did they want from me? What could I have done to them? Most importantly, what did Will do? ClIt'sis fault.

"What in the fuck!" Kai raises his voice as Rika and Michael follow behind him. They're staring wide-eyed at the men on the floor and us.

"Where were you guys?" Will is angry. But not just because of Damon. He's upset because I just pushed him away and there's something else. He feels guilty. He fucking feels guilty. What did he do?

"Upstairs we just-"

"No, what the fuck! Didn't you hear us?"

Yup, Will is extremely mad. I know I should be trying to calm him but I am realizing now, what are we really to each other? I love him. I am in love with him, I know that. But why do we rely so much on each other? This isn't normal. It shouldn't be normal.

"Will just calm down" Rika catches my eyes before narrowing her eyes. As much as I want to stay mad at her, I can't be. She's my sister. She did a huge mistake but she's here now. It has to count for something, am I wrong?

"Calm down? Damon was here!"

I wish he hadn't mentioned that. He will throw me under the bus, I know it. I'd pick him, I told him what he wanted to hear. And I truly would pick him. But if he doesn't trust me, if he doesn't behave, that might just change.

"What?" Michael sounds incredibly annoyed and scared. I don't think I've ever heard Mikey's voice shake like that. I told you, I have them all wrapped around my fingers.

"Damon was here" I repeat, not daring to look up. If I do, I know this is over. I'll have to tell them, whether Will throws me under the bus or not. We work together. We are a team.

Here's the thing.

We can never, completely, be a team.

I will never expose Damon, I won't betray him. I can't do it.

Rika looks at me.

"Avery?" She whispers. Oh my god. I can't believe we are back at it, again. Why does she sound so innocent? Why can't she just be who she is?

"Why are you looking at me?"

I am beginning to be very distracted from the thing I am missing about this. I don't want them here, I am tired. I want everything to stop.

Will stands up and I don't expect him to back away but he does. Only to let through my sister and that pisses me the fuck off.

"Stop treating me like this!" I think I scream. It feels like I am not even in my own body. Something possesses me and it takes control of everything, and I can't stop it. The headaches are back, Damon is back, and fucking some guys are after me.

"Like what?" She asks. No, but seriously, could she be more clueless? I hate that I am being like this right now. I hate that I probably will say something I'll regret. If I do, Will will never be mine again. But I am not angry at him. I am angry at the world, more specifically, Damon.

"Like everyone else does like I am broken, like I can't handle things on my own"

She opens her mouth and I know she'll lie again. I can't take it, not anymore. Have I been living in a fucking fantasy?

"You all treat me like a baby, like a fucking bird that can't fly"

I can tell they're all stunned. Will is the only one who doesn't look surprised, I think he was waiting for a reaction. He knows me better than I know myself. And as much as I love him, a part of me never wants to see him again. A part of me never wants to see them ever again.

"Avery, you're not broken," Michael says, walking closer to us. That's when I notice Rika has taken a step back. Really? She's afraid of me now?

"How the fuck would you know? You don't ever even talk to me" I am being childish. But I really do feel like this. How did I get to this point? Why can't I figure this out?

"I have other things to do" that actually strikes a nerve. I am breathing harder and I am standing now. I think there's something wrong with me. Or maybe I am just lost. I don't know which one makes more sense. Why did he have to leave?

"I have other fucking things to do, too!"

"Emory Scott" Will says, my gaze flying to him.

"What?"

My body relaxes as he smiles and walks toward me. I hate that I let him cup my cheek, I hate that I let him kiss my lips, I hate that I let him make me feel this way. But I can't deny him, not again.

"That's what you're trying to figure out. It's because of me, and Emory Scott" he admits, the color of his face draining away.

Who the fuck is Emory Scott?