Picking Up The Pieces (Vahn Seele x Zyrelle)

[Vahn Seele]

Pack your things and meet me in the park. I'm on my way.

The interior of the car was filled with the sound an audiobook, the reader's voice a bit louder than usual as Alex drove through the night. In the cup holders of the car were two thermoses of coffee, Alex having prepared for what he knew would be a hard thing for him to face. As he drove, he tried to keep his focus on the road, the streetlights overhead briefly lighting up his pale white Civic, the paint chipping in spots and obvious dents in the body showing by a few faint shadows here and there. With the narrator discussing the plight of a character Alex knew the fate of, the audiobook a rerun of an old favorite, his pale gray eyes watched as he slowly began to pull away from the city. It wouldn't take more than two hours for him to get there, but those two hours felt like a lifetime with what he had read.

As much as Alex wanted the audiobook to keep him alert to the story, his mind would drift back to the memory of the day he had graduated high school.

A man with a deeply receding hairline stood less than five feet away from him, his shirt filthy and reeking of spilled booze from an unsteady hand. "You heard what I said. You're graduated now, so it's time you pay your share of the rent." The notion hadn't been unfair. Alex had been working for the last few months to save up money for a car, as well as a place of his own. If it wasn't for the fact of what price his father was asking him to pay, to stay in the same home he had grown up in, perhaps he wouldn't have snapped at him.

"My fair share? Do you hear yourself? With that kind of money, I'll have to work two jobs just to cover the rent, let alone the utilities you tacked onto this bullshit!" Alex had shouted. The conversation was as vivid as if it were happening right then and there.

"If you don't like it, move out. That's what's fair, you ungrateful little shit." If Alex hadn't been paying attention, he wouldn't have seen his father's hand reach out to slap him. Raising his hand, he stopped it before it could make contact with his face, grabbing and shoving it away.

"Is that your answer to everything? Hit it until it does what you want? Fuck you, fuck this. You can take your rent agreement and choke on it." Alex said, shoving past him and moving down the hall to his room, passing his sister's room in the process. He'd been too angry to look, but Alex could feel that his sister was listening, watching him.

Watching him run away, and leave her alone with that monster. Hitting his palm against the steering wheel, the blare of the car horn shook his focus and brought him back to reality, bitter tears trying to well up in his eyes. "I'm coming, Eva. I promise." He said, the beat up car carrying him down the road toward his hometown.

 

[ophelia.]

​

Hey, I don’t know if you’ll see this, but, It’s dad...he, uh, he touched me, Alex. I can’t...I can’t stay here anymore.

When Nieva was twelve years old, she discovered something no twelve year old ever should. In the middle of the locker room, a few minutes after gym class, all the girls were crowded around Lilia Becket. It wasn’t because the blonde was popular, no, she wasn’t by a long shot - it was because of what they had witnessed. What had peered behind the thin fabric of gym shorts.

Tiny little scars littered both her wrists, and her thighs.

At first, Eva hadn’t thought much of it. She figured perhaps the girl had parents who were exactly like hers. Perhaps her father got drunk just like Evas, maybe she was the victim of backlash when something didn’t go her fathers way, too. It didn’t occur to her that it wasn’t right to think things like that. No parent should be hitting their child, and no parent should be that naive about it they barely even paid it any heed.

As it turns out, Lilia had done it to herself.

It horrified the brunette at first - how could someone willingly harm themselves the way she was? As she got older though, and her father got worse, she found herself slowly edging towards the packet of blades hidden behind shampoo bottles in the cupboard above the sink. She had never done anything, of course. She was too scared, always too fucking scared. Everything changed the day she watched Alex leave.

Alex - her big brother, her rock - had picked up and left the day after he had graduated. He was stronger than she was, he fought back, refused to be a stepping stone to their father. She could never be like him. She was afraid, fucking terrified. It didn’t help that she was left to fend herself from their fathers drunken rage.

She had gone to sleep that night with more bruises than she could count.

Over the years, She had learnt to get used to it. She was merely a ghost drifting from room to room, on some days, her existence would be ignored completely. Most of the time though, she found herself on the receiving end of her fathers fist. There has to be more to life, than this. Despite her eagerness to get away, and start a whole new life, she couldn’t do either. She had barely graduated high school herself, she wouldn’t have the grades to get herself into a decent college or university, she couldn’t leave the house she grew up in without money, either.

Pack your things and meet me in the park, I’m on my way.

That was the message that had her scrambling for the backpack hidden underneath the torn mattress she called a bed. She didn’t have much, as humiliating as it was. She wasn’t able to buy things for herself with the little money she had, especially considering she needed that for food - and their parents didn’t give a damn about whether she had clothes or not. In a teary haze, she shoved clothes into the bag, gripping the material of her shirt with shaky fingers, she lifted it over her head, throwing it into the corner of the room. She didn’t want to be near that thing. Holding back the bile that clawed up her throat, she changed into a sweatshirt, something that covered her completely.

Oh god, she was going to be sick.

Without much thought, she threw the packet of blades into the bag, before fastening it around her back. Without even so much as a glance behind her, she was practically fucking flew down the stairs, stumbling out of the front door - and away from the snoring drunken mess of her father, and the practically absent presence of her mother.

She was going to be okay. She hoped.

 

[Vahn Seele]

After nearly two hours of driving, Alex pulled off of the highway onto the exit that would take him down the familiar paths of his hometown. Thinking about that word, something about it rang so empty. When most people talked about their home town, it was always about the great times they had. Whether it be great parties in school, or amazing friends, Alex couldn't recall having a single one of those. There were bright spots in his dark past, most of them when his father was asleep on the couch. Some of his darker thoughts would come out during those moments, the urge to grab him by his throat and not let go until no more breath came free.

The town was smaller than where he lived now. He had wanted to put more distance between him and this place, the town's name always giving him a feeling of bile that rose in his chest. When other kids his age would complain about their parents not having great gifts at Christmas, or not having plans for the summer, Alex had to keep quiet. That was his role, right? Be the good son, keep the family affairs quiet.

Forcing his mind away from the darker thoughts that littered his mind, Alex pulled his car into the parking lot of the park. As it was nearly 2 a.m., the park was empty, various signs spread out on the parking lot that warned about being in the park late at night. Blatantly ignoring them, Alex walked down the path, curious where she might be. She'd likely be here before him, given that he'd had a two hour drive to make to get there. If he had to bet anything, he'd wager she'd be near the swings.

Growing up, it had been the only place that had been their oasis. Even as the hurricane of their life swept through, ripping up everything that wasn't bolted down, they could always come here and get away from everything.

If he starts to get mad at you, just tell him I did it. That's what older brothers are for.

You can't blame a brother who runs away.

 

[ophelia.]

She had been near the swings.

The second she made it to the seemingly open safe spot, she had dumped the backpack onto the floor, and plopped down onto one of the swings. It had been a long while since she last saw Alex, but she wasn’t entirely too worried about not recognising him, especially considering he’d probably be the only maniac out on the roads at two in the morning.

Nieva hadn’t wanted Alex to see the small cut on her lip, or the bruise blossoming beneath her right eye, but she hadn’t exactly thought about applying concealer before she left the house. Makeup - ironically - was the one thing she was provided with. After all, they had to keep their facade up somehow. Waltzing into the school building looking as if she had just gotten into a fight with multiple bears probably wasn’t the way to go about it.

The damage covering her face was a relief in some way though. It’d serve as the last time her father would touch her, hopefully. Alex wouldn’t send me back, would he? No, he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t drive so far out in the middle of the night just to march her back to that monster.

He had touched her.

That was something she couldn’t wrap her mind around. He was her father. He hadn’t ever touched her like that before. She would’ve much rather taken beatings everyday than go through that again. It wasn’t until she heard the soft sound of a car pull up, that she turned her body ever so slightly, blue hues flickering in the direction of the vehicle that held her brother. A sigh of relief falling quietly from her lips.

 

[Vahn Seele]

As Alex approached the swings, the faint shadow of what he hoped was his sister would begin to fill in with color. The more detail he was able to make of her, the more that he wanted to change his plans. There was no hiding the mark under her eye, something he had learned to deal with growing up. The abuse was written on Eva plainly, no attempts to conceal it.

Stepping up toward the swings, Alex stopped a few feet away from her. Taking in the details up close and person, it reignited his anger towards his father in a way that none of his memories could do. An old abuse could be forgotten, but a new one was much harder to stomach. It was fresh, and Alex could just as easily drive that car back to their home and stop him.

No, that's not why you are here.

If Alex went and confronted their father, what good would it do? Get him thrown in jail? What good was he to Eva if his father had him sent away, the police on that drunk's side?

He was there for Eva, nothing more.

Moving forward, Alex pulled his sister into a hug, his arms wrapping tightly around her shoulders as he held her silently. The silence would only be broken when he spoke up, the words low and full of meaning.

"I'm sorry."

He had wanted to say it to her so many times, but it felt empty if he wasn't with her. He could only apologize when he had freed her, and he was making good on that now.

 

[ophelia.]

It had taken everything for the brunette to not break down. She hadn’t broken down as her father slithered away into the night, acting as if he hadn’t had his hands on her. She hadn’t broken down as she tended to the wounds he left behind - and she hadn’t broken down as she scrambled the only items she held in her possession into that small bag.

That all seemed to fall apart the moment she was pulled into her brothers arms, though. Without much hesitation, her own arms wrapped tightly around him as she buried her face into the crook of his neck. Her heart fell into her stomach, and just like that, she was fighting to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.

No, stop. Don’t be weak.

“Yeah, me too.” Her voice was a murmur, a whisper that seemed to be swept away with the wind. She wasn’t mad at him. She had been at first, heavily, actually. But she had talked herself out of that. He wasn’t in a position where he could take her. She was too young to live with him, especially if he hadn’t been granted custody of her. It would’ve been too much hassle. Besides, it was better her suffering than him.

 

[Vahn Seele]

As Alex held her close, he didn't dare move. Part of him was afraid that if he were to attempt to draw away from her that Eva would vanish. The sound of her voice, alone, was far more haunting than any ghost story, no matter how true it might be. Eva was broken, and he only hoped that she wasn't resentful of that moment three years ago.

After a short eternity, Alex drew back from their hug, his face holding a neutral smile as he looked into her eyes. "Let's get out of here." He said, looking to see if she had grabbed her things. Stepping away, Alex would lead the way to the car, the light flash of headlights signalling that the car was unlocked. The two would have the next two hours to talk, if she wanted to talk. If she'd rather sit in silence, that was fine, as well.

What mattered most was that this was her moment of freedom, her chance to feel safe from a nightmare that had lasted most of her teenage years. The first night that Alex had spent outside of their childhood home, Alex had slept the hardest he'd ever been able to in his life. No fear of his father bursting through the door, accusing him of drinking his beer. Though he had found his way into a nightmare or two, Alex eventually had gained his freedom from his childhood tormentor. Hopefully, Eva could, too.

 

[ophelia.]

Had it been Anyone else, she wouldn’t of let anybody close to her, let alone touch her, right now. Not so soon after what had happened, but this was Alex. He wouldn’t hurt her, she knew that more than anyone. She cast him a soft smile, nodding a single time. “Thank you for uh, for driving all the way out here, you didn’t have to.” She lifted the backpack over her shoulder, making small steps towards the car.

She wasn’t exactly lying, he really didn’t have to. He had a whole life now, something try as she might, she wasn’t part of - not anymore. He had his own city, his own friends, his own house and job, and if she hadn’t been so desperate to get away from their father, she wouldn’t of called him in the first place. He didn’t need to worry about her, or her trauma. Not after having only just got over his own.

After they were both seated in the car, she tugged the seatbelt over her shoulder, before clearing her throat. “So, tell me.” She started, sending a small grin his way. “What have I missed? Hows your new life?” This was pretty much how it was going to go for them, Nieva had never been one to openly talk about her feelings, not if she could help it, at least.

 

[Vahn Seele]

Alex turned the ignition as she took her seat, slipping his seat belt on as the car made its rebuttal with a squealing belt. It would calm a moment or two after the car settled into a low RPM. Turning over to her as she posed her question, Alex smiled at her. "I can't remember how much I've been able to tell you." He said, backing out of the parking spot and bringing the car to point toward the highway.

The way she had phrased it had stung Alex to his core. His new life? It was as if he were no longer her brother, just another person to talk to casually. "There's been a bit of change, that's for sure. I'm working for an IT consultant firm. I'm still doing entry level type work, running errands and doing the physical work that a desk monkey doesn't want to do. It keeps the apartment paid up and the bills paid." Alex said, pulling the car toward the on ramp and slowly accelerating toward the city. Reaching down, he took a sip of coffee from one of the thermoses, the other now practically empty.

Rather than let the awkward thoughts hang in his mind, Alex kept his head forward and spoke, his lips drawing into a thin line as he did. "There's a lot we could talk about, things that aren't small talk. However, I'm not going to press you to talk to me." He said, knowing a little about where she might be coming from. "Just know that you aren't alone. No matter what, I'm always going to be here for you. And, if I could change one thing... I'd have taken you with me three years ago." He said, letting the air grow still beneath them.

That felt like a cop out, if Alex was being honest with himself. A convenient way to absolve himself of his darkest of sins. It didn't make it less true, though.

 

[ophelia.]

A small laugh fell from cracked lips as she shook her head. “It’s been three years, and that’s all you can tell me?” She rose a brow, glancing in his direction. “Tell me ‘bout your friends! What’s your town like? Have you got a girl?” The teasing in her tone wasn’t hard to ignore towards the end of her sentence, she didn’t mind as much if he did have a girlfriend, or boyfriend, she wasn’t one to judge. It’d feel weird, yeah. It genuinely would feel as if she were intruding on his life.

As soon as you settle down - get a job. You can help pay the bills.

She cleared her throat as he spoke, a sigh falling from her lips. “What’s there to talk ‘bout Alex? He’s your father too, remember? You know what he was like, that’s it.” She lifted a single shoulder in a half assed shrug, allowing her forehead to press against the cool glass of the window. She wasn’t going to talk about how his fingers slipped and found themselves buried within her shorts, and under her shirt. She wasn’t too sure she’d be able to handle that, not so soon after it happened, at least.

 

[Vahn Seele]

Alex gave a little grin at the comment. Sure, there were a lot of things that had changed for him in the last three years. Having a stable job, a stable life, getting an education that would help him to take care of himself. "I wasn't quite done. You always were impatient when it came to me telling you stories." Alex said, remembering that he'd read to her on nights that their father was in a particularly bad mood. They had had to hide in a closet, only a flashlight used to light the pages. When he was certain that their father had gone off to pass out in his drunken stupor, Alex would carry Nieva to his bed, letting her curl up and sleep near him.

"I don't have too many friends, yet. I made a few in technical school, some of which helped me to get the job I have now. I've never told anyone about what we went through, mostly because I don't want their pity." Alex said, a look of determination in his features. He never wanted a handout. There were so many times growing up that he could have broken free of the chains that his father had put on their lives, but they all required a permanent label. Damaged, abused, broken. The counseling that they'd have had to go through after that made his stomach churn, as he had done some research into the State's approach to handling abuse with children.

"As for the city, it's so much bigger than back there. There is always something open, no matter what time of day. There's always talk of the crime and the need to be safe on the streets, which drove a friend to give me a pocket knife. While his heart had been in the right place, I can't imagine that small knife doing me much good." Alex joked, trying to keep his tone light. "And, as for a nice girl, I... I can't really see that happening for me, not for a while." He said, a frown curling at his lips. Alex couldn't give her a reason why, mostly because there were things about his own abuse that he'd kept bottled up.

Her reply to his previous inquiry seemed about as standard as it was going to get. "Just know, Eva, if you need me to listen, just say so. We both experienced our own abuse, and I'm just making myself available." He said, smiling as one eye looked over at her. With his statement standing, Alex turned to focus back at the road again.

 

[ophelia.]

Nieva offered her own small smile at the fountain of memories that poured from his statement. They were good memories, something she hardly ever recalled. Given their upbringing, they only ever managed to find solace in one another, and despite the tragedy that followed, she thought that to be beautiful. Most siblings relationships crash and burn after having gone through something so traumatic, not them though. Never them.

“A few, huh?” She echoed, gaze drifting outside the window. “Can I meet ‘em?” Though the question seemed innocent enough for some, it was a big deal to her. Neither of them had ever managed to keep whatever friend they made, it was hard having friends when you could never do anything with them. Sitting around the back of class hardly counted as a fun enough activity for them. Even through high school she was reserved.

The mention of the city being bigger had the young girl jolting forward, eyes wide. “Really?” Growing up in a small town definitely had more cons than it did pros, she wasn’t a small town kinda gal. She wanted to see the world, she wanted to explore. She just wanted to be somewhere where only a few people knew her name. Her hometown was a killer for that. Everybody knew everybody, and everybody knew everything about everybody. For once, she wanted to walk into a room and have nobody know her name.

The brunette tugged her lower lip between her teeth, offering a single nod. “Well...you’ve got time!” She hummed, breathing a sigh as he spoke. “I know,” She murmured, shifting so her head was resting on his shoulder, over the console.

 

[Vahn Seele]

The conversation helped to ease some of the tension that had gathered in the back of Alex's mind. In his head, for the last two hours, he had pictured her in much worse shape, both physically and mentally. So far, she was holding things together pretty well. Talking, chuckling, being encouraging, all things that he wouldn't have expected given the urgency of the text message that she had sent to him.

"You'll get a chance to meet them. I think we have a game night this Sunday." He said, his eyes tilting a little in thought before coming back down to focus on the road. It was Saturday morning, which would give Nieva a day to settle in before he had his friends come over. They were pretty boring, a fact that had made it very easy for Alex to get along with them. They didn't dig into his past, and he didn't seek out excitement. They were dependable friends, with some mutual interests.

"When we get a chance, after you've had some time to relax and decompress, I'll take you on a walk through the neighborhood." Alex offered, knowing that Nieva would love that part of her time in the city with him. She'd be able to breathe, much as Alex had when he finally landed where he did.

Keeping a hand on the steering wheel, Alex moved his hand to curl lightly against the back of Nieva's head as it laid against his shoulder. "I'll worry about a nice girl when things settle down." He said, driving down the road for a mile or two like that before returning his hand to the steering wheel.

They had driven for about two hours before Alex took an off-ramp, the road carrying them down into a dense part of the city. Teh buildings were 20-30 stories tall in some of the denser parts of the city. Where his apartment was, thankfully, didn't have to deal with a lot of the congestion that those areas had. Pulling into a parking garage, Alex went up a few floors before parking in his spot, 304B, looking over to Nieva. "Time to see your new home." He said, smiling as he moved to get out of the car. The parking garage was next to a 5-story apartment building called Glenwood Heights. In the early morning lights, most if it being streetlights and passing headlights from cars, it looked like a glass obelisk, with small breaks here and there where concrete separated the floors in its construction. A small breezeway connected the parking garage to the apartment building, the edges of the parking garage giving a preview of what size the city truly was.