*(Is this all we see?)*

~*Chapter 15*~

Hands shook his shoulders. Midnight felt his cold hand be held by another. "Midnight. You should have told me."

The voice was quiet, sympathetic. Hearing that tone was common. When it came to him. Midnight blinked his eyes open, looking to the side to see a cloth harshly whipping his arm off. He saw many others, to the side, covered in blood. Dawn was there, sniffling and crying while tears covered her face. His sisters eyes were red, a burning red.

"D-Dawn?" He quickly sat up. Pulling his arm away. She put the cloth down, sitting next to her twin. "Hey.."

He pulled down his sleeve, wincing at the fabric sticking to his cuts. His sweater felt warm, supposedly after leaving his skin out in the cold room. "I don't want to talk about it."  He mumbled groggily. Watching Dawn stand up to carry the blood covered cloths to his bathroom. 

She walked out soon after he heard washing and more sniffling from her. Dawn sat back on his bed by him, hand on his before he pulled away. Midnight could feel his entire body shake at the fact; she knew. Already. So soon after he had done what he had. 'She doesn't have any right to pry.'

It was silent, only the noise of chirping birds could be heard by Midnight, and he assumed his sister too. He could hardly hide his feelings, she was an empath, how could he? Her empathy was just growing stronger by the day. "Midnight I know you don't want to--."

"I said," He turned his anger filled expression towards her. "I don't want to talk about it." He snapped, standing up to walk to his closet, grabbing a pair of jeans and a black flannel as well as a shirt to go under it. He slipped off his wool sweater and threw it in his sisters lap. After getting in his closet, he slammed the door shut. 

"You know you can't avoid it forever Mid." She yelled. "It's very important. I care about you. Our mothers care about you." 

Midnight pulled off his shirt and snickered. "Sure. I'm important, I am so," He pulled his new shirt over his head, "important." 

"Midnight not this." 

"Not what?!" He questioned in anger, pulling up his grey washed jeans after taking off his other ones. He pulled up his flannel from the shelf he put it on before and pulled it on. It hurt, the tightening around his arms, the stinging of his closing skin. He hissed through his teeth at the feeling. "I'm not pulling any stupid fucking manipulation game, I'm being honest." He opened the door, grabbing his bag from the corner of his closet. "And now, honestly, I want to go to school to get away from you." 

Midnight shoved past his sister and down the stairs, he could almost hear her yelling for him to come back, but he kept his way. Downstairs was Fawn, sitting at the stool. She looked distressed, almost as much as he did. Or, thought he did. She smiled looking at him. "Hey kid." She ruffled his hair. "You didn't straighten you're hair." 

Midnight looked up to his hair. His soft curls sat on his head. "Oh.." He pulled on a chunk of his supposed curled hair. "Yeah I um..went to sleep early. Couldn't straighten it." 

"Oh." She looked confused. Walking towards the door, she grabbed her jacket. "Well we should go then. You can't be late." 

~~~

Midnight hurried out of the car and to to school inside, mostly to avoid Levi, Kevin and his group. One thing that stuck in his mind was Noah, he still was wondering about him. Why he protected him so many times, why he was so kind and generous to help someone like him. 

After going to his locker, Midnight hurried off to his homeroom, running through the halls to get to the classroom. When he got in, Mr. Kelve was sitting at his desk. "Ah, Midnight." 

Midnight jumped hearing his introduction. His blue eyes flashed confusion. "Oh--Mr. Kelve..Hey." He placed his bag down a the desk leg, pulling out his book. "I finished the papers for today, the practice ones that I needed, and I did them as best as I could."

"That's wonderful." He turned to face Midnight. "Are you still staying after school this evening?"

"Staying after school?" 

Mr. Kelve nodded, setting down the papers on his desk. "I told you yesterday." 

Midnight held his forehead after remembering, he chuckled. "Yeah, yeah I'm sorry. Been a rough few days I--."

"Your face is bruised Midnight..and you look pretty pale..are you doing alright?" Mr. Kelve asked caring. Midnight shuffled his shoulders and smiled. "Fine. I just have had a long night. Sisters-." He felt a strong shiver when he mentioned sisters. Dawn, and her care for him. She only wanted to help but--he couldn't let her. He felt bad, he didn't have much of a choice though. He shook his head. "I promise I'm fine." 

As silence and tension grew, many knocks finally came to the door. Midnight looked back, seeing his fellow students faces through the window. "Great. Sit, class is about to start." 

~~~

The entire day had gone by and an exhausted Midnight was edging to go home. He had finished his practice  lesson with Mr. Kelve and a few other math Ed Techs' to help him, it was almost midnight when he had finished. All the papers and new homework was enough already. 'I just want to get home, when will Leah be here?' 

"Ah..look who is here at this time of night." A drunken voice entered the boys ears, he knew who it was, someone familiar. "Noah..Jesus Christ you scared me." He jumped, holding his chest. 

"Sorry." He held a wine bottle in his hands, holding it up for Midnight to see. "You probably thought I was Levi." 

Midnight rolled his eyes, Noah leaning on the gate next to him, putting down the bottle. "I did..You sound so much like him it's uncanny." 

"Mm." He hummed, amused at Midnight's joke. "Maybe I drank too much."

"A whole bottle of wine?" He eyed the bottle up and down. The yellow liquid was all the way at the bottom part of the glass bottle. With a chuckle he sighed. "You're a weird man Noah."

"What can I say? Midnight drinking is pretty great." 

Noah's drinking reminded him of his own problem. Midnight fiddled with his sleeve, his arm still tense and stung like it was in the morning. He wished he could tell Noah, only to get it off his chest. To someone that was not his sister. 'Judgmental Ass.'  But Noah was drunk, and would probably not understand anyway, he would forget all about it. 

Noah held his shoulder, he staggered a bit before looking at Midnight with seriousness. "You look pale Mid, you alright?"

'Why does everyone keep asking me that?' 

"I'm fine."

"You look like my friend when he first saw you."

"Your friend?" Midnight knocked his hand away. "Pale when he saw me?"

"Yep." Noah crossed his arms, leaning back on the gate. He put down the bottle and smirked. "Looked so shocked that he saw you. Like he had seen a ghost or something." 

"What's his name?"

"Ni--" Before Midnight could listen to the rest, his phone went on a buzz. "Oh my--moms friend is here to pick me up.  Bye Noah, maybe you can tell me tomorrow? I'll be available after." 

"Okay," He sent a wave. "See you." 

Midnight sent a wave back and grabbed his bag off of the floor. He shuffled it to his shoulders, running to the car he saw Leah at the steering wheel, head against it. "Leah?"

"Oh!" She perked up her head. "Yeah. Sorry I was busy at the guardian bases. Meetings and Fawn calling me up to get you.."

Midnight opened the car door to climb in. "I don't want to talk right now." He paused before taking an exhausted breath. "I just want to go home."

"Okay."

______

Stuff is happening for reallll. 

Thanks for reading!
~Liz <3