𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗧𝗬 - 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗙𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗛

•••

Charlie was begging me to hear him out and I wanted to listen. I knew I had slightly overreacted and it wasn't his fault entirely.

It couldn't be.

It seemed too perfect.

Scarlet not being there when I showed up.

Parker being Connor's friend and knowing about what happened the night before.

None of it sat well with me.

I wanted to tell him that we could talk, I was willing to listen, but when I opened my mouth the very few words I got out were silenced by the piercing sirens that pulled into the car park.

It never dawned on me that they would be here for Charlie, not until they started to place him in handcuffs.

"Charlie King, I am arresting you under the suspicion of aggravated assault and battery" The scrawny officer spoke.

I choked.

I let out a sob and the tears fell faster than ever before.

Charlie thrashed against the cuffs and the man placing him in them, my legs carried me to him, I wanted to tell him I forgave him and I knew he'd be okay, and more importantly, soothe his worries, tell him I'd be okay.

For a small moment we locked eyes and I could see the thousands of thoughts running through his head and the million things he wanted to say.

But that moment was cut short as his body was made to collide with the hood of his car, enough force used that I thought the car would even sustain damage.

Charlie's rights were still being read to him, but the officer's voice was like an annoying buzz in my ears, i just wanted to tell him to shut the fuck up.

I continued to sob, tears pathetically dribbling from my eyes when Charlie promised, "it'll be okay munch"

He was pulled up and slammed back into the hood of his car harder than before, winding him.

I closed the distance between Charlie and I, my legs working hard not to give way from underneath me.

"Don't touch him" I sobbed

"M'am I'm going to have to ask you to step back" the lanky officer from before told me.

"Don't fucking touch him!" I cried again after watching the bigger man use more for than needed on Charlie, who was writhing under him.

The officer shoved me back, making me stumble. It was Charlie's turn to shout. The words he spoke would make a sailor look tame as he shouted them with great aggression, resisting against the cuffs with as much force as he could.

But right after that his body was removed from the car and slammed against the gravel floor of the school parking lot.

The plump man pressed his face into the gravel below.

"It'll be okay Nyx, I love you okay?" He announced to the world.

I couldn't say it back though, not because I didn't love him but because i was choked up with unspilt tears and rage.

I was pulled out of my flashback which the trampled and dead pink roses on my dresser reminded me of.

I couldn't bring myself to throw them away, not after the news of his sentencing.

Once Charlie was put in the back of the police car, I had immediately phoned his dad, letting him know what had happened as best as I could between the tears and hiccups.

In return, his dad updated me on his trial and sentencing.

Two years in prison on a charge of felony level assault and class A substance possession, trialled as an adult.

A fucking adult.

The news had broken me, Charlie was almost three weeks into the sentencing and all I could think about was how i never told him I forgave him, that he wasn't ever truly in the wrong.

And it ate me up at night.

I numbed the guilt with sleeping pills, I'd take four or five at a time, hoping a dreamless sleep would consume me, but it never did. Rather I would have naps cut short by my own brain playing a horrible trick on me, replaying variations of the last time I seen Charlie.

I'd take codeines to numb a mental pain that I knew couldn't be healed with pharmaceuticals.

Life went on without Charlie and I couldn't handle it. I felt guilty that whilst he was stuck in a place filled with some of the worst kinds of people, I got to continue living life as if nothing had happened.

Noah felt guilty too, apparently he hadn't been the nicest friend in the hours leading up to the incident.

Noah and Alex would drop by after school for a short while on the days were it was too much for me to cope with. Making sure I was okay and that the void in my life created by the lack of Charlie's presence wasn't consuming me entirely.

Even mum had taken the last two days off of work to take care of me. I have strep throat and she seems to think I've given it to myself from all the stress. I tried to explain to her that bacterial throat infections don't really work like that but she's having none of it.

"Darling, can I come in?" Mum knocked from the other side of my door.

"Yeah" i croaked out, it being the first thing I've said since i woke up a couple of hours ago.

Mum came through the door, balancing a bowl and a mug on a tray a empathetic smile on her face.

"Its just some soup honey, and a hot chocolate"

"Thanks mum" i smile honestly at her, taking the tray from her.

"How long are you going to keep the roses?" Mum asks, her eyes glancing the wilted, now paled and and wrinkly pink roses that sat on my desk.

"About two more years?"

"Oh honey" she coos

"Is Brooklyn still coming tonight?" She asked as she sat on the edge of my bed.

"Shit is that tonight?"

"Yes darling"

I groan, "I cant even cancel on her"

"Honey, she knows whats happened, I'm sure she doesn't expect you to want to do much" she smiles a small smile at me.

"I know but still" i drag out, not knowing what i want to say.

"Now, please shower before she gets here. You can't be smelly and sad" she laughs at me.

"Mom!" I laugh.

•••

"I am so sorry my brother played a part in it" Mollie apologised profusely to me.

Brooklyn had reached out to her and now the three of us were sat on my bed, with both Romeo and Prince curled up next to us.

"Honestly its not your fault" I shrug it off, Mollie had nothing to do with it but I wanted to know why Parker got his sorry ass involved.

"No, seriously, I'm not too sure how he's involved but Scarlet had always been his favourite cousin"

"I'm sorry? Cousin?" I spluttered at the same time Brooklyn almost did a spit take with her pepsi.

"Did you not know? We're like third cousins or something, i never really liked her but she got along with Parker as kids" Mollie recalled.

"I'm so sorry you're related to that" Brooklyn feigned sympathy for Mollie's unfortunate circumstances.

"Tell me about it" she sighed, laying her head on Prince's back as he slept.

It was nice to spend some time with just girls, it made a difference from the three boys i usually hung out with. But my heart hurt at the fact that it was only made possible because of the circumstances.

I knew Brooklyn noticed the saddened look on my face but she didn't want to mention it. "You know you can talk about him right? I won't try and off myself if you bring Charlie's name up"

She let out a sigh of relief, "thank god, I've been dying to talk about it"

I shake my head with a small smile at her behaviour, i knew she was just trying to make light of a bad situation.

"Felony level aggravated assault huh?"

I nod, "yep, it was pretty bad, apparently Connor is still fucked up. Someone said he has a cane now" i laugh slightly.

"Don't forget the possession of class A drugs" Mollie chimed in, reminding us of what we already knew.

"How did that even happen?"

"They found an empty baggie in his pocket" I laugh at the ridiculousness of it.

"I can't believe they charged him as an adult though" she scoffed.

"Wait they did what?" Mollie sat up, intrigued by the new information.

"Yeah, trialled and charged as an adult"

"Thats so fucked, are his parents going to appeal the charge?" Brooklyn prods.

"I don't know, I'm too scared to ask and get an answer i don't like" I admit to them both.

"I can't imagine they wouldn't appeal it" Mollie says, a hint of hope in her tone

But hope doesn't get you anywhere in this life.

•••

AN:

Second to last chapter :(

Onto other projects after this.

I thought I'd share the titles of the ones I have in the works. If you like the sound of any let me know!

They're all romancey, a little bit of this, a little bit of that.

Here they are:

THE HEARTBREAKERS FUND

ARLIE'S HEART

LOST SOULS

HALFWAY DEAD

If i do a second one for Nyx and Charlie, it's none of the above.

Love ya x