Sibling spotlight - billie and Finneas story

The Fractured pieces

Chapter: The Fractured Pieces

Morning broke through the curtains, but the house was still cloaked in an unsettling quiet. Y/N had finally fallen asleep, her exhausted body giving in to the overwhelming mental and physical strain. Billie and Finneas sat together in the living room, each lost in their own thoughts, the gravity of everything weighing heavy on their hearts.

Finneas looked over at Billie, his expression tight. “I hate this. I hate that she’s going through this, and I hate that we can’t fix it.”

Billie sighed, her fingers rubbing the bridge of her nose as she leaned back on the couch. “I know. Every time she seems to be getting better, something else pulls her back into that darkness. It’s like… like she’s trapped there, and we can’t reach her.”

“She’s barely even eating. Did you see her last night? She couldn’t even look at me,” Finneas added, his voice barely above a whisper. He clenched his fists, the frustration bubbling under the surface. “She’s scared of me, Billie. Her own brother.”

Billie glanced at him, her eyes softening with a sadness she couldn’t shake. “She’s scared of everyone, Finneas. It’s not just you.”

“But I feel like I should be the one protecting her,” he admitted, his voice cracking slightly. “And I failed. We failed. How do we help her when she’s too scared to let us in?”

There was a beat of silence before Billie responded, her voice gentle but firm. “We don’t give up on her. We keep showing her that we’re here, no matter how long it takes for her to believe it. We remind her that she’s loved, that she’s safe… that she’s not alone.”

Finneas ran a hand through his hair, nodding, though the doubt still lingered in his eyes. “I just want to see her smile again. I miss the old Y/N.”

Billie smiled faintly, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Me too.”

Upstairs, Y/N stirred in her sleep, the shadows of her nightmares still clinging to her like a suffocating fog. Her dreams were a jumbled mess of memories and fears—flashes of the van, the man’s voice, the cold, rough hands holding her down. Even in sleep, she couldn’t escape the fear.

When she awoke, the sunlight filtering through the window seemed too bright, too sharp. Her body ached, but the emotional exhaustion was worse. She sat up slowly, her breath catching in her throat as a wave of panic threatened to wash over her. For a moment, she wasn’t in her room—she was back there, trapped and helpless. She could still hear his voice, still feel the terror.

But then she heard a soft knock at the door, pulling her back to the present.

“Y/N?” Billie’s voice was tentative. “Can I come in?”

Y/N hesitated, her heart racing, but she forced herself to nod. “Yeah.”

The door opened, and Billie stepped inside, her expression soft and careful. “Hey,” she said gently. “How are you feeling?”

Y/N shrugged, avoiding eye contact. “I don’t know. Just… tired.”

Billie sat down beside her on the bed, keeping a respectful distance. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Y/N shook her head, her throat tight. “No. I just want it to stop. I want the memories to stop.”

Billie’s heart broke a little more. “I know, sis. I wish I could take it all away for you.”

For a moment, neither of them said anything, the silence between them heavy with unspoken pain. Then, Y/N whispered, “I’m scared, Billie. I’m scared that I’ll never be okay again.”

Billie reached out, her hand hovering near Y/N’s before gently resting it on her sister’s shoulder. “You will be. It’ll take time, but you will be okay. And we’ll be with you every step of the way.”

Y/N blinked back tears, her voice small and fragile. “But what if I’m never the same? What if I can’t be the person I was before?”

“You don’t have to be the same,” Billie said softly. “You’re allowed to change. What you went through… it’s going to leave scars. But those scars don’t make you less. They just mean you survived.”

A tear slid down Y/N’s cheek as she looked at her sister, her lip trembling. “I don’t feel like I survived. I feel like I’m still stuck there, like it’s happening all over again every time I close my eyes.”

Billie pulled her into a gentle hug, her voice soothing. “It’s okay to feel that way. But you’re not stuck. You’re here. You’re with me, with Finneas. And we’ll remind you of that every single day, until you can feel it for yourself.”

Y/N held on to Billie, her small body trembling as more tears fell. The fear, the anger, the helplessness—it all poured out of her in sobs that wracked her frame. But Billie didn’t let go. She held on tight, offering her sister the only thing she could—her presence.

“I’ve got you,” Billie whispered. “You’re safe. You’re home.”

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Downstairs, Finneas sat at the table, staring blankly at his phone. The news had leaked about Y/N’s kidnapping, and the media was swarming like vultures. It felt like their family’s nightmare had been put on display for the world to dissect, and the comments… they were filled with everything from sympathy to sickening speculation.

He clenched his jaw, throwing the phone down in frustration. He hated this. Hated how their private pain was becoming public spectacle. But more than that, he hated how helpless he felt watching his sister unravel.

As the night dragged on, Billie and Finneas could only do what they always had—stand by her side. But no matter how much love they poured into her, the shadows of Y/N’s past clung to her like chains. Every step toward healing felt small, fragile, as though it could be undone in an instant.

Y/N was broken, and though they could hold the pieces together, they couldn’t take away the pain that had shattered her in the first place.