Prisoners of Love ☾☾ Hayley Williams + Josh Franceschi

six ☽ save it for the bedroom

I felt like it was my fault Max almost had to leave. Moving in with Dan, my only option, didn't seem too bad. Dan didn't talk much, but I was more social. At least when I felt like it.

The next day, Max was there, but he was silent. He wouldn't talk at all. Hayley was avoiding me, it seemed. At breakfast, no one talked. We ate our breakfast and left. 

The three of them went to art and I went to therapy. We had two hours between lunch and breakfast. The first hour for me was at therapy. The second hour was in the community room. In the community room you could play chess with a crazy old man, watch the cooking channel, or read their boring selection of magazines.

When it came time for band practice, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. I didn't want to be in there if Hayley was gonna ignore me.

When I walked in, it was just Hayley sitting in the same chair as before. She was facing the drums again, hunched over like she was reading something. I walked over to her and saw my lyric journal.

"These are really good." She said, turning around to face me.

"I, uh, was always told I had a way with words in school." I said, scratching the back of neck nervously. I pulled a chair over and sat next to her.

"Thanks again for agreeing to trade rooms." Hayley said. She kept her eyes on the paper instead of looking at me. It worried me that she didn't talk about the kiss.

"It was no problem. Anything to keep Max here." I said, smiling even though she wouldn't see it. Hayley stood up, dropping the journal to the floor.

"Sorry, I just-" She started. I picked up the journal, and held onto it. We talked for a little bit. It was just the two of us. Dan had therapy, Max was on room arrest, and no one came to supervise.

"You never told me why you were in here." I said. Hayley and I had moved to the floor. She was lying down, staring at the ceiling. I was sitting next to her, facing the door.

"I don't believe you ever told me about you either." She said, looking over at me.

"Cutting for the most part. My best friend walked in on me." I said, reliving the scene briefly.

"I've got friends that cut. Somehow they never get caught. I wouldn't ever turn them in, though. This place is hell."

"You're changing the subject."

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

Hayley sighed and sat up. She stared off for a while, reliving her own experience as well. Her face changed. She looked so vulnerable and sad.

"People think I killed my ex-boyfriend. The court ruled me insane and I was sent here. Been here ever since." She said. It seemed pretty simple, but it was a big deal. People thought she killed someone.

"How long ago was that?" I asked. I didn't mean for my mouth to hang open, but it did. I couldn't see this little girl killing anyone.

"Three years." She whispered. I could see her eyes filling with tears and I pulled her into a hug. She cried on my shoulder until we had to leave. She looked like a wreck, but she didn't care. No one there judged each other. We were all a big family of messed up people.

I walked her to her room. We hugged briefly since there were nurses nearby, then she went inside and I went back to Dan and I's room.

Dan was back from therapy, just laying in bed. I noticed he was grinding his teeth as I walked by. "How was therapy?" I asked.

"Don't fucking talk to me." He yelled. I put my hands up in defense, and went to the bathroom. He was just in the middle of one of his moments. He needed to be alone.

I needed something sharp. I'd gone almost two weeks without cutting, and it was killing me. I needed to feel the sharp blade against my skin, and see the blood seeping out. This damn hospital didn't have anything dangerous anywhere.

I met up with Hayley again later. I told her about my urges, and how I felt like I was going to die. She rolled my sleeves up to look at my scars. She ran her fingers along them.

"I almost started this." She said quietly. She looked into my eyes. I felt like she could read my mind. I swallowed hard, and tried to work up the confidence. I did it quick, just pressed my lips to hers, and pulled back.

"Josh-"

"It's okay, you don't have to say anything."

"No, it's not that. It's just that we can't do that in front of other people."

"Why not?"

"They'll separate us."

She took my hand, and pulled me up. She dragged me to her room. I'd never been in there before. It looked like the other rooms. I don't know why I expected something different. There was only one bed. I guess if people think you're a murderer, they don't really wanna give you a roommate.

We both sat down on her bed, and she stared at me. It wasn't a bad staring, but I wasn't sure what to do. I leaned in slowly, and kissed her.

We both pulled away, out of breath. I knew that I needed to get away while I could. If I was caught coming out of her room, we'd be in big trouble. I stood up to leave, but she pulled me back onto the bed.

"No, don't leave." She said. She laid down, which pulled me on top of her. "It's been so long since I've had someone that loves me."

I was stunned. Did this technically mean that we loved each other?

"I do love you." I said.

"And I love you, too."