broken home - j.f✔️

twelve.

Sunday mornings were Elizabeth's favourite. Every Sunday, she would wake up early enough to catch the sunrise and have a strong coffee. Sunday for her and her dad were days of peace, doing whatever they wanted to do. Alone or together. But this morning was unlike any other Sunday morning. She woke up to her dad shaking her body to wake up.

"Mija, I need to go." He spoke, sitting beside her and bringing her into a hug. He stroked her hair gently, which was always a tactic to calm her down from a nightmare. Was this a nightmare? "Your tia is sick, but you must stay here, focus on school."

"What? You can't leave me here, all alone?" She argued, standing up from her bed. Her dad left the room and walked into his own, wheeling a suitcase down the stairs. "How long will you be gone, papa?" He glanced up at her and his eyes were filled with regret.

"I don't know, mija. I will call you as much as I can." He murmured, blowing her a kiss. "Te quiero mucho." She watched as he left, hearing his car drive away.

"I love you too." She sighed, entering her room again. Her phone buzzed a few times, and she picked it up to look at it.

Zach: Hey, it's early. But if you wanna do anything later, just text me.

I'm having trouble at the moment, I don't think I can hang out today.

Zach: Is everything okay?

I don't know

Elizabeth took a breath, laying her head back onto her pillow. Her blissful Sunday had disappeared, and she just wanted to sleep again. Her phone continued buzzing, but her body was too tired to even move. She spent her Sunday in bed, ignoring texts, watching movies, and trying to forget about everything.

She hadn't realised the time until she heard the doorbell. After the first few times, she thought it would stop ringing. But it never did. And as if by a miracle, it had stopped. There was also knocking on her window. She got up out of bed, stretching and opening her blinds to find Justin standing right outside of it. She looked below, figuring out his route up. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"Why aren't you answering your texts or calls?" He asked. She let him in, him resting comfortably in her bay window area. She huffed and walked back to bed, putting her head back down onto the pillow. She'd slept for most of the day, and just wanted to keep sleeping. "Nope. Up you get."

Justin pulled Elizabeth up by her arms, holding her shoulders to make sure she stood up properly. "Now tell me why you've ignored everyone today." She looked up at him, her stone wall of feelings breaking open. The tears fell from her face, Justin's arms wrapping around her to comfort her. "Oh, El. Don't cry."

"My dad's gone back to Spain for a while, my auntie is sick. I don't know when he'll be back." Elizabeth cried into his arms, his hands rubbed circles into her back as she cried. He hushed her, soothing her cries until she'd eventually stopped.

"If you need me at any time, 3am or 3pm. Absolutely whenever, I'm here." Justin reassured her. She sat at her bay window, beside him, staring at her skin. The sun shining through the blinds created little patterns on her skin. "Promise me, you'll call me if you need me."

"How did you and Zach trust me so quickly? You've known me for a week now, and you're already offering your constant support." She questioned. "It's not a bad thing, I was just wondering." Justin held his hand out, Elizabeth slowly slipping her fingers between his. He looked up into her eyes, smirking at her.

"You've helped me so much. With my relationship, my home life, hell, even my school work." He mentioned. "How couldn't I trust you?" She grinned back at him, squeezing his hand.

"Can you stay with me for a while?"

"Of course."