Broken Submission

Caught

Dedicated to @MePurdy—your votes have not gone unnoticed!

"I'm gonna go up and check on them."

"Bro, chill," Matthew said, exasperated. "You haven't even finished your..." He squinted at Derek's plastic tray, "chicken club?"

He grunted. "I'm afraid I'll break my teeth if I take another bite."

Huffing a laugh, Matthew took another bite of his salad. The chunks of chicken actually looked somewhat appealing to Derek after his pressed patty of iron.

"What're you gonna do?" The question carried an uncharacteristic solemnity.

Derek sighed. "I don't know. I'm so... unsure of myself. And—" he broke off, eyes drilling into the wall.

"Derek," Matthew said, "talk to me."

Derek's brow furrowed. "I'm struggling, Matt. I can't stop picturing what must have gone down, and—" he broke off, lifting a hand. It was trembling. "It won't go away." His leg started the bounce. "I'm furious one second, terrified the next. I'm trying to keep it together because she doesn't need my shit on top of hers, but I'm about to lose it."

"Derek," Matt leaned forward, completely serious. "You need to chill out. You're too wound up. You're right—she doesn't need your shit right now. Hold on—" he said, holding up his hand when Derek's shoulders curled in self-recrimination. "Listen to me. What you're going through—it's normal."

Matthew caught his friend's forearm on a reassuring grip. "It's normal. You both just went through a trauma. And the worst thing you can do right now is to bottle it up out of guilt or fear. You should be upset. Something fucked up happened to someone you care about. So take my advice—" his grip tightened on Derek's arm, "see someone."

"A therapist?" Derek frowned. "I've meant for her to see one for a while—"

"No, Derek. I mean," Matt amended, "yes, she should see one, but I'm talking about you right now. You need to talk to someone who is completely on your side. Someone you can let all your shit out with and know that there's no possible way that it could hurt Amelia."

The thought was... an unexpected relief. Derek didn't hold the same prejudice that many men did about therapy, what with it being his mother's profession, but somehow the idea had also not occurred to him.

"I should talk to someone."

Matthew huffed, withdrawing his hand. "That's literally what I just said—"

"I gonna go check on the girls," he announced, almost toppling his chair with the abruptness with which he stood.

"Derek—"

Derek ignored Matthew who scrambled to discard his tray. He felt lighter, a stress he'd been only vaguely aware of melting away. He wanted to see Amelia, hold her and not feel like he was lying when he told her everything would be alright.

He walked through the door to her room just as Matthew called his name. Derek stared at the empty bed, eyes sweeping the room. Spinning, he rounded on Matt. "Where the hell are they?"

Matthew just held out his phone.

Snatching it from him, Derek blinked a few times before he was able to focus on the screen.

Grabbing some fresh air and girl time! Be back in a while, ready for you to reacquaint my ass with your belt 🙄😝. Love ya!

"Your sub," he growled, "is a bad influence."

"I know, I know," Matthew muttered, jogging after Derek as the man made a beeline for the elevators. But there was a little smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.