Consumed

Chapter 10: Milan

The cops finally leave after nearly an hour of questions. Meri clings to me most of the time, and her eyes are wide. They're kind of glassy too, and I think maybe she's in shock. Once the police leave with her statement, I take her into the kitchen and ask my mom if we can make hot chocolate.

She agrees with a sympathetic smile in Meri's direction. In a few moments, she finds an excuse to leave the two of us alone and heads off to the computer in the office across the hall. I'm fine with this. The water starts whistling quietly as I dump a few tablespoons of the rich hot chocolate mix into two mugs.

When it's done several minutes later, I bring it over and sit across from Meri, sipping mine slowly to avoid burning my tongue. She just swirls hers around with a spoon. As I watch, a tear flees down her cheek.

She's not in shock. She's struggling to hold in everything she's feeling. After a few moments, she pushes the cup towards me and buries her face in her arms. I watch her shoulders shake with quiet sobs for a moment, and then I get up to go to her. I'm at eye level with her now due to the height of the chairs, and I pull her into my arms, letting her bury her face in my neck.

It surprises me how quickly she's welcomed me into her life. We've known each other for three days now. Just three. But it seems like a lifetime after everything I've seen and done for her. Granted, I'd probably help any girl in her situation, but something whispers to me that Meri's still different from them. I'm not sure how yet, but she is.

Regardless, I'm thankful that she's letting me in instead of pushing me away. I have a feeling that she's never experienced kindness before. I've seen how the kids at school treat her, how her own family treats her, and now how her soon-to-be step-dad treats her. She's probably been yearning for someone – anyone, most likely – to love her for years. It shouldn't be such a shock, then, that she has welcomed me in so readily. While I've seen and had people use kindness as a weapon against me, Meri never has. How could she when everyone shuns her or blatantly abuses her?

She stops sobbing and sighs, wrapping her arms around my neck. "Thank you," she says softly.

I smile, stroking her hair. "What for?"

"Helping me. You're the first one to actually make an active attempt to help. My other friend, Millie, ran for the hills when she found out what was going on. Never spoke to me again." She shudders, tightening her arms around my neck.

I've noticed that she doesn't look me in the eye or even look at me when she's feeling vulnerable or telling me things that have hurt her deeply. It's almost as though she's afraid to do it. Or embarrassed. I don't know which, but I let it go, deciding that pushing it will just make it worse.

"I'm sorry for everything that's happened to you, Meri." I hug her closer to me. "Hey... Why don't we go watch a movie? My dad had a surround sound system installed last Christmas. It's like going to the theater." I tug her gently off the chair and set her on her feet. Then I grab her mug, hand it to her, and pick up my own. She accepts my guidance as I weave my fingers through hers and lead her toward the basement stairs.

She stops when we get to the stairs leading down and clears her throat softly. "C-can... Can we just... Do something else?"

I frown, turning to look at her. "What's wrong, Meri?"

"I..." She bites her lip and stares at the basement stairs. "The..."

"You don't like basements?"

She shakes her head, a blush spreading over her cheeks.

"If you really don't want to go down there, I can grab a movie, and we can use the TV in my room. What do you want to watch?" I ask, smiling at her encouragingly.