Alone

Protected

Tyler's POV.

   "Mom, that is absolutely Idiotic! You can't just put her on a budget! She is a part of our family now too!" I yell at her,  my anger rising as I glance at her shaking body. This is unbelievable.

   "Sweet heart,  she is not apart of our family,  she is only a foster kid. We get a certain amount of money to take care of her every month. You know that skateboard you wanted so bad? If we only use half of the money we are given on her,  the rest can be used for cool things like that. We can go out to dinner more often,  go places as a family more often. This is a good thing!"

   Is she out of her mind? I have always known that my mother loved money, but I didn't know she was this greedy for it. Summer is apart of our family too now,  and she should be treated like it. "Mom,  you're insane! She is a kid like me too,  she deserves to be treated with respect!" I yell at her.

    "stop being selfish, " she says,  rolling her eyes. My eyes widen at how she is so blinded by money,  she can't even see the way she is acting. Just as I glanced over at Summer,  ready to take her with me to leave,  I see her eyes roll in the back of her head,  and she starts to fall.

   I quickly lean over and catch her. I glance at my mom,  but she was already moving on,  looking around at some expensive crap. I pick up Summers tiny frame. She was so tiny, barely even had a stomach. Not surprisingly,  she was light as a feather. I worriedly looked down at her, and my heart hurt to see her like this. I don't understand why she fainted,  was she overwhelmed? Was she too hungry?

   I quickly pay for our outfits and keep them on as we walk out. I take her to the car and take my time to situate her in the back seat. Maybe she is dehydrated. I get a water bottle and sit her up,  pouring a tiny bit through her parted lips. She instinctively swallows. I keep giving her more until the water bottle was empty.

   I sit in the back with her and hold her in my arms. She leans into my chest,  still unconscious. Eventually my mom comes back,  but I don't look at her or talk to her the whole way home. When we get home,  I pick Summer up and take her to my room.

  I lay her on the bed and put a damp, cold washcloth on her forehead. I walk downstairs and make some warm soup. I feel bad for poor Summer,  she must have already been through a lot,  and the last thing she needs is my mom disrespecting her and treating her like trash.

   I finish the soup and bring it upstairs, hoping to see that Summer is awake by now,  but with no such luck. I set the soup on the beside table, then lay down next to her. For some reason I constantly feel the need to protect her, she is so small and fragile, it's as if a simple touch could break her.

   She had no one,  and because of this,  I felt responsible for taking care of her and protecting her. I felt my eye lids get heavy,  and I wrap my arm around her,  pulling her to my chest. I promised my self right then,  that I would do everything in my power to protect this girl from harm,  verbally and physically.

Summers POV.

I wake up, my head pounding, but I feel immediate safeness. I realise that a arm is holding me,  but I feel no need to get out of its strong grasp. I turn around to face who is holding me. It was Tyler. I try to think about what happened,  how I got here,  but I can't recall it.

    I take the washcloth off my head. I smell something,  and I realise instantly that it smells like chicken soup. I look over and see it. I sit up carefully,  not wanting to disturb Tyler. But I'm so skinny that I just slide through his arm,  so now his arm is wrapped around my waist as I sit and lead against the headboard.

   I drink the soup, and it was still warm. My eyes adjusted to the dark and I realised that we were in Tyler's room. I look around for Candy. I assumed that everybody was asleep,  so I cleared my throat and quietly called out,  "Come here Candy, " and she immediately came trotting into the room.

   She had a bit of trouble jumping up onto Tyler's bed,  so I grabbed her. She walked around the bed,  exploring. She walked on Tyler's pillow and started to smell his hair and face. I let out a small chuckle. She suddenly started licking his face, and I gasped, instantly grabbing her. Tyler's face was scrunched up, probably because of Candy's breath. But soon his face went back to its peaceful state.

   I watched as Tyler breathed in a steady pattern, he was so peaceful. He looked so young when he slept. It was really cute... No,  I did not just think that. He was not really cute, and I certainly did not like him. I just met him for Christ's sake!

   I realised we were both still wearing the same outfit from earlier. I wonder why he wanted to match? Isn't that like what couples do? No Summer, stop thinking like that! What is wrong with you?!?

   I slip back down into his arm,  burying my face into his chest. Candy comes and lies between us,  fitting perfectly. I grasp onto Tyler's sweatshirt,  feeling secure and safe for the first time in forever. I breathe in his sent, falling back into a deep sleep.

***

   I wake up, surprised that the sun is out. I usually wake up multiple times in my sleep, but tonight I slept perfectly. I looked up at Tyler, who was still sleeping. Suddenly Candy came out from between us,  and started licking Tyler on the lips and nose. Tyler scrunched up his face, pulling away. I let out a small giggle, and he smiles down at me,  wiping off his face.

   Candy jumps around, excited we are awake. Tyler looks down at me, smiling. Im surprised that he still hasn't taken me out of his arm,  but instead wraps his other arm around me as well, pulling me closer,  as if I was a teddy bear meant for cuddling.

   My body tingles at his touch,  making my heart skip a beat. I glance at the clock. "We are gonna be late!" I say to him.

   "Shhh, five more minutes," he says, closing his eyes as he falls back into sleep. I do the same, not wanting this moment to ever end.

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   Sorry this one is boring,  I'm kind of running out of ideas. Please leave feedback, and any ideas for the story. Thanks for reading, please vote and share this story!