Breathless: Emily's Story

Chapter 17

September 27- Asher

I wake up and try to remember anything after when I walked into the party with Henry and saw Emily holding up my sister's shirt, announcing to everyone she'd done some sort of punishing to Alix in the bathroom, but I couldn't.

I stretch and realize Emily wasn't in my bed, and from the sheets, it didn't look like she had been in it at all. I scrunch my eyebrows. Where was she?

I stand from the bed and throw on a shirt, walking downstairs, I see a blanket and pillow on the couch but no one laying on it. I walk into the kitchen to find the family eating noisily.

"Good morning, everybody" I smile at Emily but she's staring at the plate in front of her. I scrunch my eyebrows. I sit down far from her at the table. I would've sat beside her but Alix and Avalon had taken the seats on either side of Emily, while Wyatt sat in front with Callie and Hailey on either side of him. So, I ended up on the end, near Mom.

Everyone seemed to quiet as I walked in.

"We're having grilled cheese and soup for breakfast?"

"Mr. Hangover, you missed breakfast" Alix laughs and throws a piece of her sandwich at me.

"I didn't drink last night" I look at Emily but she won't meet my eyes. "Emily, tell them" She flinches when I say her name. I look back at Mom. "I didn't drink" She scrunches her eyebrows.

"Honey, what do you remember about last night?" Mom asks me, and I shrug.

"Everything up until Emily came out of the bathroom with Alix, holding Alix's shirt in her hand." I look around as Alix blushes. "How did I get home?"

"Alice brought you back drunk" Emily says, looking up from her plate for the first time, her eyes beat red.

"Alice?" I say in disbelief.

"You left the party with her while still sober then came back... very drunk" I shake my head and look at Emily desperately.

"Emily, I didn't-" I try to defend, but I honestly wasn't sure, I couldn't remember.

"Oh, you did" Alix says, "And came back bragging about it, only after man handling her" I see Momma try to suppress a smile from the corner of my eye as Mom warns, "Alix"

"I would never touch her like that"

"Oh, but you did, and you threw her to the ground like she was trash!" Alix says back standing. I stand as well, my chair falling to the ground behind me, barely noticing as Emily flinches and shrinks into her chair. I stare into Alix's eyes.

"I would never do that" I argue a little calmer.

"No?" she shrugs and backs up a bit. "Just look at what you just did" She said, making me look at the knocked over chair and then the scared faces of my siblings. I clench my jaw, then see Emily, tears filled her eyes and she looked terrified. I shrink away from them all.

"I- I'm sorry" I turn away from them and jog to the stairs, up them, and into my room. A few moments later, I hear a knock on the door. I look up to see Emily walking inside. She closes the door behind her and sits down on the floor in front of me. Far enough so she wasn't touching me but close enough to show she cared and wasn't afraid.

"You know the first time my dad hit me, he acted as if he hadn't the day after. After that he'd just act as if he were doing it for me. Like he didn't want to but he believed it was best for me."

"I'm sorry, I honestly didn't know what I was doing" I apologize, looking down into her blue eyes.

"I believe that" She answers making me look at her. "and that isn't the reason I'm breaking up with you" I meet her eyes.