Caught In Between

XV. The Aftermath

"Brooke, was that Cam?" Nat starts walking closer to the door, but I shut it before she can see what's out there. I can't let her see a dead body.

"No. No, it wasn't. Um, just. Can I- Can you- Stay in the living room. Do not come outside, got it?" I stutter. I haven't processed the fact that Ty's dead and beaten body is lying on the front porch right now.

"What the fuck, are you okay?" This time Abby comes closer to me.

"Stay in the living room! Do not fucking leave. Trust me." They both look scared and confused, but they listen to me and go back to the living room. I go back out the front door and walk outside, stepping over Ty's body. Stepping over Ty's body. I quickly get my phone out of my back pocket and dial Cam's number.

"I'm on my way, don't miss me that much, New York." He chuckles.

"Cam, get here quickly. Please."

"Shit, what's wrong? I'm about five minutes away."

"Speed. Fucking speed."

"What happened? Is Nat okay? Are you okay?"

"There's a... there's a body."

"What?" I didn't answer. I'm staring down at Ty's body on the fucking welcome mat in front of our house. "Brooklyn, a body?"

"Yes." My voice is quiet and timid right now. I'm not usually quiet nor timid.

"Do you know whose body it is?"

"Yes."

"Holy fucking shit. I'm almost there, okay? I'm fucking speeding right now."

"Okay." Cam doesn't reply, but he doesn't end the call either. I keep the phone up to my ear and don't say anything. I'm still staring down at Ty's body. I lean down and place my pointer and middle finger on the side of his windpipe. Nothing. I place my fingers on the sides of both of his wrists. Still nothing. He's gone. I pick the note up from in between his hands and pocket it. I get back up and continue staring down at him. I hear a car pull up onto the driveway behind me, but I don't turn around. My phone must've dropped from my hand because it's no longer up to my ear. I hear Cam yelling behind me, running up to me and looking down at Ty. I don't hear what he's saying, but he's shaking me by my shoulders, grabbing my face with his hands so I'll look at him, and talking to me. Yelling at me. But I still don't listen to him or look at him. All I keep hearing is Ty's voice in my head. One of the last things he ever told me, "You can call me whenever you need to." No, I can't, Ty. I can't call you whenever I need to.

I now feel a new pair of hands shaking me and a feminine voice talking to me now. Nat. She shouldn't have to see this. I look up at her and she's crying. I still don't listen to what she's saying, but she's pulling me inside the house and sitting me on the couch. She sits next to me and pulls me into a hug. I hear her muffled sobs against my shoulder, but I don't cry. I don't feel anything. I peek over Nat's shoulder at Abby standing in the corner of the room. Her eyes are tearing up and she's looking around at everyone. Cam isn't in here, so I can assume he's still on the porch with Ty's body.

It's like I press play on a movie again, and I can suddenly hear what everyone's saying.

"Brooke, I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry." Nat.

"Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit." Abby.

"It's fucking Ty! He's gone." Cam.

I peak out the blinds and see Cam with his phone to his ear on the front porch. He's yelling at whoever's on the other line. He's crying. I've only seen happy Cam and one time an angry Cam, but Cam right now is crying and his voice is breaking. He looks heartbroken. I know Ty's been an older brother figure in his life for the past couple of years, and now he's dealing with the loss of his friend. Damien pulls up in the driveway and runs up to the porch. How long has it been? He looks down at Ty and his own usual composed facade morphs into anguish. Why can't I feel like that?