Lost In You

T W E N T Y - S I X

Tyler's POV:

I couldn't believe Haylee was actually here. She'd said she would come, but I didn't think she was being serious. I thought it was just a threat to get me to talk to her.

Shit.

Briar was silent in the seat next to me, with her knees tucked up under her chin and her back towards me. I kept thinking about how I would explain everything to her.

I couldn't lose her.

I pulled into the driveway and silently thanked whoever was listening that we still had the house to ourselves for one more night.

She got out without saying a word and disappeared into the house, I could see her journey by the way the lights flicked on through the house, and I knew she was waiting in the lounge.

"Just be honest," I murmured and leaned my head on the steering wheel.

"Fuck!" I yelled out and slammed my fist on the steering wheel. It wasn't meant to go this way.

I took some deep calming breaths before getting out of the car and making my way into the house. I found Briar perched at one end of the couch. Her hair had been tied loosely into a bun and she had a blanket thrown across her knees.

"Well?" She demanded, arching on eyebrow. I took a seat at the other end of the couch and took a deep breath.

"Where do you want me to start?" I asked, deciding to let her choose what she wanted to know. She hesitated before answering. I tried to ignore the way she tugged her bottom lip between her teeth while she was thinking, but it was useless.

I could never ignore anything about her.

"Tell me about why you got sent away," She said after a minute or so of silence.

"I'll just start at the start then," I said, and waited for her to nod before I went on.

"Every year, my family would go to this place, Lake Placid for two weeks. After my Dad left, we still went there. Me, my Mom and my sister, Rose," I winced when I said her name as flashbacks came rushing back. The sirens, the blood. Rose.

..."Tyler, please, can we just walk?" Rose begged, tears brimming her dark brown eyes as she tugged on my arm. I pulled my arm out of her grasp and glowered down at her young face.

"We're not walking in the snow," I growled, I think my words slurred, but I wasn't sure. I saw something similar to fear flick through her eyes before she nodded and trudged through the thick snow towards my car. She turned and looked at me one more time before getting into the car. When I got in next to her, I could see that her hands were shaking and tears silently streamed down her pale face.

"Ty, please, let's just walk. It's not far, you can't drive..." She pleaded one more time.

"shut up, we're driving," I snapped, and regretted the words instantly. I hated the way alcohol made me act, and I silently began to regret letting myself get roped into drinking. I gave my 11-year old sister a sideways glance before taking a deep breath and starting the car.

Focus Tyler, I told myself....

"We went two years ago, like we always did, but there was a group of my school friends there, and I didn't spend much time with my family, instead I was partying with my friends. One night, Mum had gone out for dinner with someone she'd met, and Rose was at a kid's club event, I was supposed to pick her up at 10 o'clock. At around 7, a group of my friends turned up at my house with booze and weed, and decided to have a party." I tensed my jaw at the memory, and I could see pity filling her eyes.

"I still needed to pick Rose up, but I was stupid, and thought 'it's only a 10-minute drive, I'll be fine,' So I went to pick up Rose. I was drunk and high, and she'd begged me not to drive, saying we could walk home. But it was snowing, so I dragged her into the car and I started driving home," I choked out. I hadn't talked about this with anyone since it had happened.

"There was a logging truck, I was going too fast and my reaction was too slow. We hit a patch of ice and I couldn't stop the car in time for us to swerve out of the way. The logging truck ploughed straight into us, straight into Rose's side..." I tried to finish, but my sobs cut me off. I buried my head in my hands and a moment later I felt her warm hands rubbing my back.

"Oh, Tyler..." She murmured and kissed my temple, pulling my shaking body into her chest while she held me.

"It's okay..." She said quietly, stroking the hair back from my face. I took a deep breath and looked up at her.

She deserved to know the rest of the story.

"After the funeral..." I began, but she cut me off.

"You don't need to tell me, it's okay," But I was already shaking my head.

"No, I want you to know."

"After the funeral, I was an absolute train wreck. All I did was drink and do drugs, I got in trouble with the police quite a lot, and after a year of my shit, Mum decided that enough was enough. I broke up with Haylee before I left. She'd been really good, stayed with me through all of it, but I began to realise that she wasn't trying to help me get out of trouble, she encouraged me. I told her it was over and that I was moving away, I asked her not to contact me, but she must've gotten my new number because she's constantly been texting me, I've just been ignoring it. I didn't think she'd actually come." I explained and grasped Briar's hands in mine.

"Please, Briar. You have to believe me. It's over with Haylee. I'll find her tomorrow and I'll tell her to go home. You're the person I want. I've wanted you since the first moment you walked down those stairs." I nearly pleaded. Her throat bobbed and I could see hesitation in her eyes before she slowly nodded. It felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest and I could finally breathe. I hadn't talked about it in so long, and it actually felt nice to be able to get it off my chest after a year of suffering in silence, but I knew things wouldn't be completely right between Briar and I until I got rid of Haylee

"I believe you," She murmured before wrapping her arms around my neck and hugging me tightly. I linked my arms around her narrow waist and breathed in, inhaling her scent. This is all I needed in life as far as I was aware. I can't imagine a life without her in it now, it just doesn't seem right in my mind. I don't think I can go back to America without her, I couldn't do it. She was part of my everyday life, and living without her, away from her, would be like living without a vital organ.

Impossible.

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FINALLY! Did you like it? I thought it would be better to write it in Tyler's POV to get more of a realistic view of what happened. I actually really enjoyed writing this because i got to make Tyler quite vulnerable, and you got to see the more forgiving side of Briar! Watch this space for more cuteness.

- K