Breaking The Law
1. He was eight. He had been into toy cars and Spongebob and The Gurgles. She was six. She was into Barbies and Dora the Explorer and puppies. They had absolutely nothing in common, but she still looked up to him. He was her big brother, the bravest person she knew – much braver than their daddy. So when him and Emmett had gone to the park and she followed them, she hadn't meant anything by it. But he had yelled at her, told her to get lost. He never thought she would have taken it so literally. He came home from the park, his palms sweaty and his heart pounding in his chest when he didn't see Teddy anywhere. He looked around the whole house and when he realized she wasn't there, he only knew one thing – Teddy never came home. He wanted to call his mother at work, he wanted to take all the blame. He would've faced the consequences. He would go to jail for life if that's what he had to do. His little sister was missing and it was his fault. That was punishment enough.
Two hours later and Teddy had been home safe and sound. It was like nothing that day had ever happened. She had told PJ and their parents how Mrs Dabney had found her and brought her to her house and they ate Oreos and played Hungry Hungry Hippos until Amy came home. And PJ had listened to her so carefully because he had been so afraid that he had lost her forever, and nothing had made him happier than hearing his pest of a little sister tell him about her day.
That night, though, PJ woke up to his sister shaking his shoulder. He sat up, rubbing his eyes and yawning. He had asked her what she was doing up so late and she told him that she couldn't sleep. He let her climb into the bed next to him and when he asked her what was wrong, she had told him how scared she really was when she was at Mrs Dabney's. She had told him how at first, she had been afraid she would never see him again, but Mrs Dabney had told her how he would always be there, and Teddy would be able to see him whenever she needed him. PJ had assured her that there was no way he was ever leaving her again.
"Promise?" She asked, her brown, tear-filled eyes looking up at him. She clutched her teddy bear tighter, her thumb out of her mouth just long enough to make sure he wasn't lying.
"Promise."
2. Teddy was nine. She had come home from school, tiny puppy in her arms. She had told her mother how she found it on the streets and after a lot of begging and pouting from Teddy, she had finally let her keep it until they found it's owner. Teddy had been ecstatic.
Two weeks later, someone responded to one of the many ads that Bob and Amy had put out, taking their dog back. Eleven-year-old PJ had tried everything to cheer his sister up. Nothing had worked. He spent days trying to figure out what he could do to make her happy.
It had been Teddy's birthday. He had saved up all his allowance money to buy her the perfect gift, and it took everything in him not to give it to her early. His parents had told him to wait until her party was over, and when it finally was, he found her in the living room playing with her new dollhouse. He told her to close her eyes and put her hands out in front of her, and as reluctant as she was, she did as her big brother told her. She quickly opened her eyes when she felt something furry in her hands, and PJ will never be able to forget the look on her face as she saw the puppy that was no bigger than the palm of her little ten-year-old hand.
In all the excitement, she had forgotten to thank him. So that night, she snuck into his room after her parents had thought she was asleep, puppy in her arms. She thanked PJ for the best present ever, and she promised him he could play with it any time he wanted. She told him how she named him PJ. When PJ asked her why, she said it was because it reminded her of him. They were both blonde, easily distracted, and she loved them both more than anything.
"I love you too," PJ assured her. "More than anything. I promise."
3. PJ was fifteen. Teddy was thirteen. She had come home from school, ignoring everyone she ran into on the way to her bedroom. She ignored her mother's calls for her to come back and talk to her, she ignored her father's worried glances, and she ignored her younger brother's comments about how it was just Teddy and she was always that moody. She collapsed onto her bed, her face buried in her pillow. She knew he was there, she would've told him to go away, except she was afraid that he would. She felt the bed shift next to her and she rolled over to face him, her cheeks wet with her tears. She told him how her first boyfriend Logan Shearman had been cheating on her. She told him how he had told her that she was the best thing to happen to him and told her that he loved her.
The next day, PJ had made a surprise visit to Teddy's school. He had tracked down Logan Shearman, given him a chance to explain himself, and when Logan had simply told PJ that he had 'gotten tired' of Teddy, PJ had punched him so hard in the face that his nose broke and before anybody knew what had really happened, PJ had been long gone.
Teddy came home that day, running straight into PJ's arms. She told him how she had heard about how 'some high schooler' had punched Logan square in the nose. Teddy knew who it was as soon as she heard about it, and even though she wasn't one for violence, she knew PJ had done it for her. "Thank you," she mumbled into his chest.
"It'll be okay," he assured his sister as he hugged her back. "I promise."
4. PJ had noticed she was feeling a little insecure lately. Their mother would tell her that she looked pretty, or her boyfriend Spencer would call her beautiful, and Teddy would stare at the ground and shake her head before changing the subject. He hadn't known what on Earth would make her feel like she wasn't good enough, or pretty enough, but he had been determined to find out.
It had been the first time she'd ever yelled at him like that. They had been watching some Jennifer Aniston movie that Teddy had wanted to see for a while. He noticed the scars when she reached for the bowl of popcorn. He paused the movie, causing a sound of disapproval from Teddy. PJ grabbed her arm, probably a little less gentle than he could have, but he was angry. He rolled up the sleeve of her sweatshirt and stared at her wrist before releasing her arm and staring at her, waiting for an explanation. Teddy looked away from him, subconsciously pulling her long sleeves down and telling him not to worry about it. PJ scoffed, his arms crossed over his chest. He had asked her how he was supposed to be okay with it. Teddy shrugged, standing up and starting to leave the room. PJ grabbed her wrist. He touched the scars. She had yanked it away like he had just poured hot water all over her arm. She yelled at him, told him to mind his own business, to stay out of her life and that she hated him.
The next night, he had gone to her bedroom to tell her to come downstairs for dinner. He didn't bother to knock, walking in on something he won't ever be able to unsee. She had been sitting on her bed, razor in hand, sliding across her forearm. He couldn't get to her fast enough. It was like slow motion as he ran to her bed, kneeled down in front of her and tried to pry the razor from his sister's hands. He had finally gotten it, putting it aside to tend to his little sister.
"God, Teddy, what did you do?" He whispered, just staring at the blood coming from her arm.
"I'm sorry," she whimpered, tears soaking her cheeks. "I'm so sorry, PJ."
PJ grabbed her hand, leading her to the bathroom. He grabbed a washcloth, quickly wetting it and pressing it against Teddy's arm. She winced. He tightened his hold on her hand, silently telling her it was okay. "Keep applying pressure, okay? I'm going to get Mom."
"No!" Teddy yelled, causing him to stop and turn around. "PJ, please. You can't tell Mom and Dad. Please, PJ. Promise me."
PJ stared between his sister and the door, finally kneeling down in front of Teddy and grabbing her hand. "I promise."
5. PJ had been in class when she called him. She told him that she was having a bad day and she needed him in between sobs. He told her that he would call her back, and hung up before she could say anything else. It had been three hours before he tried calling her back. He had decided to get pizza with Emmett, figuring Teddy would still be there when he got to their parents' house. If he had known that it would be the last time he would ever hear her voice, he would've been there before Teddy had even finished dialling his number.
Once he reached his old house, he knew exactly what had happened. He pushed his way past police officers and EMTs and found his parents sitting on the couch, Amy crying into Bob's shoulder. "Mom? Dad?" He whispered, knowing what they were going to say before they said it.
"PJ, honey…" Amy started, standing up and making her way over to her son. "Teddy's gone."
God, this is a short story. It shouldn't have taken me as long as it did, but whatever. Review if I should write a chapter for PJ's reaction/thoughts.