I. Heart Of Gold (Uneditied) ✔️ ORIGINAL

Twenty-Five - Truth of Emmilia

Emmi's POV:

I walked back into the room, sitting on the hospital bed and pulled the covers over me. I waited for Maddox to follow and sit beside me before I actually got to my story. "So, what do you need to tell me?" He asked softly.

"The reason why I don't use my full name anymore..." I paused. This was going to be harder than I thought. I inhaled, held it for a moment and exhaled shakily. Tears filled my eyes and I felt the familiar lump in my throat I knew too well. "I had an older brother...his name is Chester. He and I were eight years apart, same as Brooks and I. He would only call Emmilia, not Emmi or Em. I don't know why, but I guess he just preferred it." I paused, trying to swallow.

Maddox grabbed my hand, letting me know it was okay and to take my time. "What happened with Chester?" He asked.

"Well, he was seeing this girl who I thought seemed pretty nice. But, I also see the good in everyone, or at least try to. So I wasn't expecting what happened." Tears slowly fell as I tried to talk. "Chester went off to college and the girl was upset he went to a different school than her. So, when he came home over winter break, the girl stormed over with some of her guy friends I guess. My dad and I were home, but my mom and Brooks were out shopping.

"Dad and I heard arguing from the living room between Chester and the girl. I walked out of my room, but I couldn't get far, since the burly guys were standing guard. I found an opening between the two large guys and saw my brother on the floor. The girl had a knife, while the third large guy was on top of him..." I couldn't hold in my tears anymore. I broke down, unable to get the rest of the story out.

I felt Maddox hug me and rub my back, soothing me. "I am so sorry you witnessed that." He said softly.

"And my dad thinks it's his fault, because he was the adult home. He could have stopped it." I choked as I sobbed harder.

This was the first time I talked about it. My friends knew, but I didn't tell them. They found out from the news. Our last name wasn't mentioned, but my girls knew immediately it was my brother. They noticed my somber attitude right away, no matter how hard I tried to hide it after it happened. My nightmares of that day finally stopped when I turned thirteen. Therapy helped, but not in the way I wanted it to.

I was finally accepting it all. I couldn't change it, but I missed him so much. "Em, I'm proud of you." I heard a whisper.

"Why?" I choked.

"Because you told me what has been bothering you for so long. That's a huge step, and we only just started seeing each other. It's a huge load, but I will always be here for a shoulder to cry on." Maddox told me, kissing the top of my head.

He just let me cry it out until I didn't have anything left in me. I had never cried so hard in my life. Even at his funeral, I didn't cry this hard. Maddox held me and rocked me well after I stopped crying. It felt nice being comforted. It was the way Chester used to, and then I started crying for a whole different reason, but it wasn't as hard. "What's got you upset now, honey?" Maddox asked in my ear.

"Just a memory is all. When I was scared, my brother would do this exact thing with me. They're kind of happy tears, kind of not." I sniffled, moving away from him. "I'll be okay. Thank you for listening and being here." I brushed my hair that was pasted to my face behind my ear and wiped my face off with the sleeve of my gown.

Maddox brushed a single tear from my cheek, "That's what friends and boyfriends do, Em. I will always be here for you, no matter the distance between us, I am always a phone call, text, or videochat away." He kissed me on the forehead and by the time I was done pouring my emotions out, the movie was three quarters of the way done.

I frowned, "Well, might as well change the channel. We missed the whole movie pretty much." I grabbed the remote, but Maddox took it from me.

"I'm gonna put something on for you. It'll be stupid, mindless tv that we both need. You trust me?" I nodded and waited as he pulled up a long going show that had been around since we were kids. I loved the show, it was so stupid, but good.

"Solar Warriors, Ghost Knights, and Lunar Sorceresses are the best shows. I loved them growing up. Did you know they are made by the same people?" I was getting super giddy.

Maddox chuckled softly, "You're so cute when you get excited." He handed me my lion and a cookie. "I did not know they were made by the same people. But it makes sense, since the same actors are a part of it and the crossovers are killer." He grinned. "Kyrie loves to dress up as Lunar Fox and pretends that I am the Shadow King. It's entertaining."

"Brooks does the same thing with me! But he dresses as Ghost Knight Preston and pretends I'm a dragon he has to defeat in order to save the princess which is his stuffed bear." I laughed. "It's adorable."

"We should have a play date with Kyrie and Brooks when we're all better. We can dress up and be as childish as we want!"

I looked at him and in that single moment, I saw Chester for a second. I took a long blink and when I focused, I saw Maddox again. "What the hell?"

"Hmm?"

"I never thought I'd be dating someone that reminded me of Chester in some ways. It's not a bad thing, just...strange to me."

"It could be because you miss him and it's a comfort thing. I don't find it strange at all. I remind you of your dad too, so the two men you look up to are resembled in me in certain ways."

I looked at him in awe. Why the hell did he have to be wise, intelligent, and so damn handsome? The whole dang package and he had a childish side for his sister, which made me love him even more. I felt my face twist in shock. That word, love...I've never thought to use it for a boy before, much less a boy I just started dating. Did I really love him? Or was it the kindness I loved? My mind spun trying to figure it out.

"What's wrong?" Maddox asked. I assumed he noticed my expression.

"Nothing. Just...thinking a little too hard." I chuckled softly. It wasn't a total lie.

He nodded, leaving it alone, but I could tell he wanted to push. I was glad he didn't, because I had no answer for him that wasn't blunt as hell. We went back to watching the show and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.