@Fraust
"Believe me, I've had enough of it from my father to be used to it. That doesn't make it any more pleasant, though." He looked around to make sure they were about to get hit by a car as they walked across.
"Believe me, I've had enough of it from my father to be used to it. That doesn't make it any more pleasant, though." He looked around to make sure they were about to get hit by a car as they walked across.
"Oh, no for sure. It just gets easier to cope with. On my end at least." She shrugged, picking up her pace just a bit as they made their way across. "I don't know how it is for you."
Lucas shrugged as well. "Your mother isn't usually drunk, from what I can tell. I find it a bit difficult with my father because he didn't usually only yell at me."
"I didn't want to say anything… but yeah. That makes a difference. There's rarely any alcohol in the house, for sake of some unknown reason." Melissa shrugged, rolling her eyes just a bit.
Lucas nodded. "I don't think there's any place in that house I feel safe. Funnily enough, my room is one of the worst for me."
"I can't imagine why…" Melissa mumbled, giving him a soft frown. "If this is bugging you, just say so."
"No… you're not bugging me, I'm bugging myself." Lucas sighed. "So many bad things happened in my room, and my dad wasn't even in there most of the time…"
A lump formed in the base of her throat, but she tried not to show anything. "Physical abuse to yourself?" Melissa asked softly, holding onto his hand loosely.
"Not just that… bad memories." Lucas sighed again, almost inaudibly. He seemed unable to meet Melissa's eyes.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" Melissa asked him softly, running her thumb across his. "We can talk while we look around."
"Um… I guess so…" Lucas hesitated for a few seconds. "I just… I'm never comfortable in there, because Claus sort of… um…" He hesitated again. "…Claus hung himself in there…" He said in a quiet, weak voice. He still couldn't make eye contact with Melissa. "And I can't be in there without remembering , and… and seeing it in my mind, I guess…"
Melissa froze up, looking over to him as tears stung at her eyes. "I- I… I didn't know…" She whispered, pulling him out of the way of anyone trying to walk down the sidewalk. "I'm sorry Lucas, I…I don't know what to say." She whispered to him, trying to keep back the tears. It was scary how clear she could picture it, the horror she felt completely real.
Lucas closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind so that he could keep himself together. "I-I just… it's even worse because he and I look so alike…" He whispered. "It… it's almost like I was the one up there… like some horrible nightmare, you know?"
"Yeah… it's awful." She whispered, trying to swallow down all of her feelings. "I… I can't imagine how awful…" Pausing, she shook her head trying to gather herself. "That's a lie. I can completely imagine it…"
Lucas hugged Melissa tightly and buried his face in her shoulder, controlling his breathing to try and keep himself from crying. He couldn't be thinking about this right now. He was supposed to be getting better.
“We can stop talking, if this is putting too much on you.” Melissa whispered, holding on to him just as tightly as he was. “It can be saved for someone who can actually help you.”
"You do help me, Mel… but now probably isn't the time…" Lucas sighed. "We're about to go shopping. I can't go in crying." He laughed weakly.
“You might get funny looks, but no one is going to tell you to stop crying.” Melissa responded, giving him a weak smile. “I’m really sorry… I really didn’t know all of this.” Melissa whispered, resting her forehead against his.
"It's alright, Mel… I probably should've told you sooner. I just… I feel so guilty about it…" He sighed. "Claus is my twin brother. We think almost on the same wavelength. I knew we were both struggling, and I… I could have stopped him… I don't know how, but there must have been some way…"
“And I knew you were both struggling, but kept my mouth shut. Don’t blame yourself fully for his actions. There’s a lot more to it.” Melissa told him, going back to running her fingers through his hair. “You can’t stick to the past. You’re going to have to move on eventually, and I don’t mean to say that insensitively. But it’s got to happen.”
Lucas nodded, relaxing a bit when Melissa started petting him again. "I know, I know… I… I'll get over it eventually, and I'm trying… I think it'll be better now that I don't have to be there or sleep there every night."
“That’s a good thing, and I’m not trying to force you to forget your brighter or anything. Just trying to keep you from continuously blaming yourself.” She whispered, sighing softly in content. “But I can’t force you to. Is there anything I can do to help you?”
"Mmmm… love me…" Lucas hugged Melissa a bit tighter and gently kissed her before laying his head back on her shoulder.
“I-…I can do that Lu.” Melissa whispered, resting her head on his when he buried his face in her shoulder. “I’ve loved you for a long time. I’m not going to stop now.”
"Thanks, Mel…" He sighed and closed his eyes, just letting Melissa hold him for now. "You're great… I'm glad you like me back…"
Letting out a weak laugh, she tightened her hold on him. “If something like that comes up again, just come talk to me. I won’t make fun of you, I promise.” Melissa told him in a soothing tone, beginning to him a soft melody under her breath.
"Mmkay…" Lucas gradually relaxed in Melissa's arms, seeming to be comfortable and content after a while. Once he'd calmed down, he reluctantly pulled away and looked at Melissa sheepishly.
"You feel better?" She asked softly, giving him a light smile. Melissa honestly felt like a terrible person, for reasons unknown to her. It was just a feeling, deep in the pit of her stomach.
"A little bit, yeah… um… sorry about that…" He mumbled, looking away and flushing a bit. "Probably shouldn't have brought it up…"
"Hey, don't worry about it. It's alright." Melissa attempted to reassure him, taking a step forwards on her toes. Pressing a soft kiss to his forehead, she flattened her feet so she was shorter than him once more. "Are you ready to head in, or do you want to wait until tomorrow? We won't have much time if we go today."
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