boundaries [s.m]

chapter forty-one

(oh look at that i'm lazy again)

-

aria let go of the glass in her hands, and watched it fall to the kitchen floor. she sighed softly, crouching down to pick it up, her shaky hands not coming in useful when trying to clear up.

"aria?" shawn races into the kitchen, seeing her sitting on the floor, picking up the glass pieces. "hey, hey, hey, what happened?"

"nothing," she mumbles, placing the pieces into her hand, where one cuts the skin sharply, making blood ooze out almost immediately. "fuck sake," she whispers, cursing herself.

"aria, oh my god," shawn comes to crouch down next to her, and taking the glass out of her hands, placing it on the counter above them instead. "shit, aria, hold on," he finishes to clean up the broken glass, before opening the cupboard which contains medical supplies, and taking out the first aid kit, going to sit back on the floor with her. "let me clean it up."

aria stays silent, letting shawn clean the cut, and bandage it up, before helping her to stand up. it's only then when she notices the massive christmas tree next to the television in the lounge, and she feels her frown soften into a small smile.

"a tree?" she asks shawn hopefully.

"yeah, i bought one," he says, rubbing the back of his head gently. "aaliyah's gonna come over to help decorate, is that okay?"

"mhm," aria nods, walking towards the tree, the fresh and homely smell of pine hitting her nose. she then notices the metal picture, which is perched on the side of the tree, on a clear perspex table. aria walks over to it, picking up the heavy object, examining it, before walking back to shawn. "merry early christmas," she whispers, handing it to shawn. "i didn't realise i packed it in your suitcase, i thought i put it in mine, i'm sorry."

"thank you," shawn says, taking the picture from her hands. "it's beautiful." aria nods, hugging her cardigan around her body, sitting down on the couch, and bringing her knees to her chest. shawn looks down at her, and feels his heart break as she sits there, completely and utterly mute. the house phone rings, making the two of them sigh gently. aria gets up, plodding her feet against the floor to answer it.

"hello?" she calls into the phone.

"hey babygirl, how you holding up?" haileys voice fills arias ear, making arias eyes fill with tears.

"i-i'm still here," she stutters, her voice cracking, whilst she walks into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. "hails i don't know what to do. he won't let me leave."

"what?" hailey asks softly, the new information shocking her slightly.

"he keeps acting like we're okay but i can't forget what he said to me, i can't forget what he did," aria tells her, sniffling slightly.

"come to new york and stay with me for a while," hailey bargains. "you need a break from him."

"we were engaged for literally twenty minutes," she chokes out, letting the tears roll down her cheeks. "what did i fucking do wrong?"

"there was a video, aria," hailey tells her gently. "i don't know if you've seen it, but i think he got angry from that."

"w-what?" aria asks confused. "what video?"

"it was a video of a brunette who looked like you, doing stuff to brian. some girl came forward recently saying it was her, and not you. no one believed it was you, but i guess shawn did," hailey says to her. "if he did, he's a fucking dick."

"can you book me a flight there for after christmas?" aria says, shock coursing through her veins, as she wipes away her tears. "thanks for telling me, hails."

"of course," she says gently, as aria settles her breath, wiping her cheeks. "i'll see you soon."

"bye," aria hangs up the phone, sitting down on the bed in silence for a few moments, not knowing particularly how to act or how to even think. carefully, she stands up, her legs feeling like jelly, scared to even walk into the same room as shawn.

she knows she has to do this though, so she perseveres, taking one step at a time, heading back into the lounge, where shawns sitting down, his head in his hands.

"i can't believe you," aria starts with, her voice shaky and uncontrolled. "i can't fucking believe you!" she yells, making shawn look up with a jump. she examines his face, seeing the tears rolling down his cheeks, and his eyes probably more red than hers. "how did you fucking think that the girl in the video was me? do you not trust me at all?" she screams, her emotions getting the better of her.

"a-aria i'm sorry," shawn croaks out, his feelings finally making him realise how much a dick he was.

"i don't want to hear it!" she yells back, causing shawn to jump again, and look at her in a different light.

the room falls to silence again, the only thing heard being arias heavy breathing, and shawns quiet cries. other than that, silence enveloped them, as they both ached to even look at each other.

"i-i can't do this," shawn whispers, getting up, and slipping a pair of shoes on. he chucks a coat over his shoulders, and a scarf around his neck, before walking out of the condo, taking his car keys with him.

shawn raced down to the car park, his tears blurring up his field of vision. he jumped into his jeep, starting the car immediately, and driving out of the complex, crying at the wheel.

he didn't anticipate how icy the roads were.

and he didn't anticipate the van that came hurdling towards him.