traumatized minds, luke hemmings

just like your mother.

( Charlie Abbot,
September 6th, 6:50 PM )

Vincent grabbed onto my shoulders harshly and shouted at me about Oliver entering the apartment. I stared at him.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?!" He shouted.

"He's a bad man!" He also shouted.

"You're going to end up just like your mother!" He shouted too.

I looked at him with narrow eyes and grabbed his collar. "Say that one more time, Vincent, and I swear to god."

He pushed me into the wall behind me harshly and his face grew red. "Go to your room."

So, I did. I stayed in my bedroom the entire night with Strawberry by my side. I cleaned my room, I unpacked from Luke's house, finally, and I did homework. It wasn't until 1 am when I heard my uncle get up that I knew this night wasn't gonna end well.

I stayed under the covers with my door locked and my lights turned out.

My uncle likes to get drunk a lot, and do drugs which causes him to be more hostile and tend to throw things— which is why I stay away.

It was silent and fine until about 30 minutes later, when I heard my bedroom door being messed with. "Charlie! Come here, I know it's late but I would like to apologize."

I turned over.

"I'm sober, I promise." He slurred. I rolled my eyes.

Sober, sure. I thought. "No, Vincent." I called out.

"Please, Charlie." He begged. "Please."

I closed my eyes and hoped he would just leave and stop bugging me. But oh dear, I was wrong. See, for the next hour he banged and shouted at me and cried and said he was sorry.

I had enough. I got up, unlocked my door and swung it open. "Stop fucking banging on my door." I shouted. "It's 2 am, Vincent, and you absolutely reek of alcohol. Please, take an Advil and go to bed."

When I tried to close my door, Vincent pushed it open and his hands flew to my t-shirt collar. "Okay, first, I have done everything for you, Charlie. I have welcomed you to my home with open arms and you treat me like this? And two, don't you dare talk to me like that again."

For the first time in a while, I was actually kind of scared to be in front of Vincent like this.

"I-I'm sorry." I whispered.

"Come with me."

I followed him into the kitchen with Strawberry behind me. Vincent grabbed a beer bottle from the fridge and sat down in the chair. "Come sit."

I was slightly more scared.

I sat down on the couch with my bare knees to my chest.

"Let me tell you something, Charlie." Vincent said. "Your dad and I used to be close. We used to go out to the bar every weekend when he finally turned 21, and it was amazing."

I listened carefully.

"It was up until this woman with blonde hair and brown eyes strolled into the bar with her friends. She was obviously underaged, but your father could not keep his eyes from her. For the next year, he only hung out with her." He gritted his teeth. "It was your mother."

I perked up. Alizabeth?

"Alizabeth." He shook his head in disappointment. "It was always her. Not even a year later, she became pregnant and I never heard from your father again. Radio silence. When you came into the world, you looked exactly like your mother and it made me angry."

He has a weird connection to my father, obviously. I blinked at him and Strawberry could sense my tension.

"When Aiden said you needed a place to stay, I jumped at it. I wanted to know if you were like your mother or your father. I prayed you would be like your father because at least you'd be sufferable." He stood up and started getting closer, and I started backing up. "But I was wrong. You are exactly like your mother. You're insufferable."

Why does he have such a vendetta toward Alizabeth? All she ever did was love my dad. Why was I to blame for it?

"But now, I get to hurt you and hope that it's the exact same way I would've hurt your mother for ruining what I had goin'."

Instantly, he lunged at me and I jumped up off the couch in time and ran toward the other side of the room. "What are you doing?" I cried.

"What I've been wanting to do all along!" He laughed evilly. I felt as if I were in a movie.

Vincent picked up a beer bottle and started throwing it at me. I ducked and dodged the best I could, but when I ran to the front door, and turned to see how close he was, he shot one straight into my face which broke and cut my cheek and my neck.

Strawberry was barking at him too, but all I could hear was the ringing of my ear— I froze. It gave him an advantage and he was able to throw one more, which hit my bare thigh.

But I opened the front door, and ran with Strawberry beside me.

I ran like my life depended on it. My bare feet hit the concrete that had slivers embedded into the crevices, no doubt; But I couldn't stop. Vincent was chasing after me.

I could see him running after me. What was he on— Crack?

I ran since my life did depend on it and ran toward a safe place I knew. I ran toward Luke's house. After an hour of just straight running, he wasn't following me anymore.

It was now that I realized my t-shirt was stained with my blood and the cuts on my cheek and thigh were stinging badly. I winced in pain and tried to run again, but my adrenaline was running off. I sat down on a bench and Strawberry put her head on my lap.

"I know, girl." I pet her head gently. "We'll find Luke. I promise."

After another hour of trying to keep my cuts from bleeding, I finally arrived in Luke's neighborhood. It was fenced up, so me and Strawberry had to somehow jump it.

When I finally figured it out, I helped Strawberry over the fence and tried to climb it myself. However, when I did, a nail was sticking out and it caused a tear in my shirt and yet another slightly deep scratch in my side.

I groaned in pain as I hit the floor on my bare feet. "Shit," I grumbled. "That hurt."

Strawberry whined but I waved my hand off. We trudged up the steep hill up to Luke's house and when we appeared, I saw that the lights were off and the cars were parked in the driveway.

I quietly walked past the gate, hoping no one would see me and think I was a criminal, and walked up to the door and went to knock— but froze.

Why are you frozen, Charlie? He can help you. I lectured myself. I glanced down at Strawberry, who had pleading eyes, and I went for it and knocked.

I knocked loudly and even rang the doorbell. I saw the hallway light come on and someone shouted, "Jesus Christ! It's 3 am, who the hell is here?"

A tall boy with dirty blonde hair swung open the door in sweatpants and no shirt on. Michael's eyebrows were furrowed angrily until he noticed who I was and the state I was in.

"Holy shit, Charlie? You're bleeding, oh my god—" He frantically said, gently picking me up as I was swaying back and forth and bringing Strawberry and I inside. "Luke! Ashton! Calum! Wake the fuck up, get the first aid kit!"