"You can still be broken, even when nothing's wrong."
. . .
"I've taken care of myself for three years, I don't need someone to take care of me now. I'm eighteen in two years, mom." She believed her mom when she said that Liam was kind. But she did...
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The boys could see the wheels turning in her head, her brain working on overdrive to try to make sense of her thoughts. She was struggling to remind herself of embracing change, staying open minded and everything Mai had attempted to get in her head before leaving.
Genevie thought it was challenging enough to move in with five strangers, but no, let's add this upon the mountain of emotions, information, impressions and events she was already struggling to process. Hell, she was still figuring out how to deal with memories from years ago.
Still, the girl wanted to make Mai proud, she wanted to make herself proud. And she wanted to get better. She wanted variation, not to keep waking up and knowing that the day would be exactly like the day before. She wanted to experience new things, without feeling anxious because she didn't know what was happening next.
But couldn't she do that without agreeing to this? If she agreed to it, what would really happen? What if she wanted to back out? What if she didn't like it?
"If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask," Zayn's gentle voice cut through. He hadn't spoken a lot, in fact, he hadn't uttered a word since they decided on what movie they were watching. It made sense now; all movies suggested were safe for children.
She thought about what to ask, trying to sort out what was important to know. "Can I say no later? If I agree now but don't like it or feel uncomfortable?" Her gentle voice asked, and Liam was quick to assure her. "Of course, you can back out whenever you want. We would never do anything to intentionally make you uncomfortable, and if you ever feel that way, please tell us so we can talk about it. This is important even if you don't agree with this, okay?"
He looked seriously at her and Genevie nodded her head. He looked happy with the response and asked if she had anymore questions. She had questions, a lot of them, but she didn't know what to ask. "If I have any questions later, I can ask them, right?" She felt her shyness returning while everyone nodded, watching as she made herself smaller, curling up more.
A small, next to nonexistent sound emitted from her lips while she looked down on the carpeted floor after a moment of silence. "I can try." And the sound made the men's day, maybe whole year. The smiles on their faces would be enough to light up the whole world like nobody else.
"Okay, so what would you be okay with doing for now, Genevie?" Harry asked, Genevie feeling his chest vibrating while speaking. The others leaning in curiously while the girl thought of what to respond. She had no idea; she didn't even know what she was supposed to do.
Yeah, she understood they wanted her to act like a baby, and somewhere along the way she would start thinking like one too, but how? She shrugged her shoulders from her place on Harry's lap. He was actually quite comfortable and his smell something she wouldn't oppose snuggling into, something fruity mixed with his scent.
