Sibling spotlight - billie and Finneas story

break down

Chapter 54: Break down

Y/N stormed down the stairs, her footsteps heavy with frustration. Her mind was racing, filled with thoughts she couldn’t organize, emotions she couldn’t name. She needed to get it out—she needed to shout, to make her siblings understand that they were suffocating her.

Billie and Finneas were sitting on the couch, mid-conversation, when they heard her coming. They exchanged a quick glance, bracing themselves. They could see the storm in her eyes before she even opened her mouth.

“What the hell is wrong with you two?” Y/N’s voice cracked as she yelled, her chest heaving with each breath. “Why can’t you just leave me alone? Stop trying to control everything I do!”

Billie stood up, her face soft with concern. “Y/N, we’re not trying to control you—”

“Yes, you are!” Y/N cut her off, her hands shaking. “You’re always watching me, always talking about me like I’m not even in the room! You’re treating me like I’m some broken toy you need to fix!”

Finneas stood too, his hands raised slightly as if to calm her down. “We just want to help. We love you, Y/N, and we don’t know what else to do.”

The words hit Y/N hard, her anger faltering for a moment. She clenched her fists, trying to hold onto the rage, but something else was creeping in. Something heavier.

“You don’t get it!” she screamed, her voice trembling as her eyes welled up. “I’m drowning, and nothing you do is helping. You can’t just keep hovering over me like I’m gonna break!”

Her voice cracked again, and that was it. The dam broke.

Her shoulders shook as the tears came, the anger dissolving into raw, aching pain. Y/N’s legs seemed to give way, and she stumbled forward, her body collapsing into Billie’s arms. She sobbed, her face buried against Billie’s chest like she was a little girl again.

Billie, her heart breaking at the sight, wrapped her arms tightly around her sister, holding her as close as possible. She didn’t say anything—she didn’t need to. Y/N’s sobs were loud and messy, and they filled the room, a painful reminder of just how much she’d been bottling up.

Finneas stood there, frozen for a second, watching his baby sister fall apart. He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes wet as he stepped closer, placing a gentle hand on Y/N’s back.

“It’s okay, Y/N,” Billie whispered softly, her own tears starting to fall. “We’re here, okay? We’re not going anywhere.”

Y/N clung to Billie, her small body shaking as she cried, all the weight of the past weeks pouring out of her. She felt so young, so small, so fragile in that moment, like the world had just become too much for her to handle.

“I can’t do it anymore,” Y/N whimpered through her sobs, her voice muffled against Billie’s hoodie. “I can’t take all of it...”

“You don’t have to,” Billie whispered, her voice gentle but firm. “You’re not alone in this, Y/N. We’ve got you, okay? We’ve got you.”

Y/N didn’t say anything, just cried harder, clutching Billie like she was her only lifeline. Finneas moved closer, wrapping his arms around both of them, creating a tight circle of comfort, of love.

For a moment, nothing else mattered. Not the comments, not the pressure, not the world outside their bubble. It was just the three of them, holding on to each other as Y/N let out everything she’d been holding inside.

Eventually, her sobs began to quiet, but Y/N didn’t move from Billie’s arms. She stayed there, her face still buried, her body still trembling slightly. She felt exhausted, drained from everything she had just let out. But in Billie’s arms, and with Finneas close by, she felt a flicker of something she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Safe.