She could feel it. It was threatening to overwhelm her. The sorrow she had kept locked up inside for the last week was going to swallow her whole, into some dark void, unless she let it out somehow. She had tried putting her feelings into her ever faithful journal, but a sharp pain pulled at her chest whenever she even looked at the blue leather book that had been a present from her recently deceased mother.
She knew there was plenty of people she could go to. People who would gladly open their arms and let her bury herself in them, the tears that had been held at bay for so long finally escaping. But as much as that was what she wanted, it wasn't what she needed. What she needed was somebody who would listen to her, let her pour everything out until she felt so empty she couldn't breathe.
She needed a boy with broad shoulders, dark hair and a warm smile. She needed a boy who she was no longer friends with. A boy she had tossed away carelessly. They hadn't drifted. Their friendship hadn't weakened, but he had hurt Jeremy. Become someone she didn't really know anymore. He changed, and she just didn't happen to like it. It was selfish, and it was so very her.
Her body moved on auto-pilot. Grabbing a jacket, car keys, writing a note to Jenna and then she was gone. Gone from the house that held so many precious memories. Memories that now hung down on her chest. Suffocating her. The sharp night air was welcoming, stinging any bare skin as she drove towards the familiar house, windows down.
She didn't realise she had no idea what she was going to say until the door was pulled open and she came face to chest with the very boy she had been avoiding. The boy she needed. Neither spoke. He obviously saw something in her eyes as he stepped outside, softly closing the door behind him. She waited, anticipating some harsh words, questioning why come see him now, but he stayed silent, watching her with careful eyes.
"I couldn't stay in that house anymore. I just.. I couldn't breathe. They're everywhere, and it just hurts so much. I'm trying to stay strong, but the longer I hold it in the heavier it becomes. And I need to just let it out. I need to breathe again." He never interrupted. His face never moving from it's composed mask, but she saw his eyes soften, a sort of sorrow filling them. He loved her parents too. Most of the town did.
"I just need you, Tyler." She couldn't see him anymore, the tears obscuring her view of him. She found it hard to catch her breath, her hands trying to wipe the tears away. A sob built in her throat, choking her but she refused to let it out. She couldn't break down. Not now. It took a moment to notice the heat surrounding her. It was familiar but almost forgotten. It wasn't until her head fell against his chest she realised Tyler had pulled her into a hug.
It was like that suddenly sprung her from her confused mind and back into reality. Her own choked breaths filled her ears as did a quiet word, whispered against the top of her head. A word she had been needing to hear. "Just breathe, Elena. Breathe."
