Chapter One
Foggy Nelson had always been the protective brother when it came to his younger sister Isabelle. She was his best friend as soon as she was able to talk and communicate with him; she would laugh at his jokes even when they were anything but funny, would prank him just as much as he pranked her, and tried to make him laugh whenever the stresses of school and the bullying that came with it began to take its toll on him. They were inseparable, and their relationship was something to be admired and it was by many people who were able to witness them both together. Their relationship only seemed to strengthen and mature as they both got older, and as Foggy announced to his family that he was leaving for college, life seemed pretty unbearable to think about neither one of them being able to spend much time with each other but promises were made, and promises were kept.
The years at college went by relatively quickly, with Isabelle travelling up to see Foggy on every weekend he was free to hang out with her. She was introduced to Matt quite early on, and it was nice to see her brother have a friend who cared for him as much as she did. He had struggled with school but he was thriving at college; he had a friend who pushed him to his limit and he was studying a subject he was wholly interested in. As the years passed by, Foggy and Isabelle remained incredibly close despite Isabelle moving thousands of miles to start a new life with her husband. It had been a whirlwind romance that Isabelle's entire family knew she wasn't prepared for, but she was happy and that was the only thing that mattered.
A few years later, Foggy had graduated from college at the top of his class alongside Matt. Isabelle and Foggy's parents were there to cheer both him and Matt on as they graduated, but Foggy had seen the strain on Isabelle's face when it was time for her to say goodbye to them and return to Las Vegas. He knew she didn't want to go, that something had happened but there wasn't anything he could do or say to make it better. So he offered her a brotherly hug; one full of love and support, and she was grateful to him for that. Whenever she needed him, he was always there.
But when Foggy Nelson opened the door to his apartment on a Friday evening to see his sister standing there drenched with rain with a suitcase at her feet, he was shocked to see her. He wasn't sure if it was the fact that she had never been to his new apartment before and had somehow found it, or if it was the black eye that she was trying so desperately to hide under her dark, wet hair.
"Issy," he whispered, shocked to see her standing in front of him. "What are you doing here?"
"You've been telling me for so long to come up and see you and your new apartment, and I thought, what the hell," she beamed at him. "So I hope I'm not here at a bad time."
"Of course not, come in," he said, stepping out of the way and allowing her entry into his apartment. She heaved the suitcase in with her, and Foggy watched her for a moment. "How long were you thinking about staying, sis?" He watched as she stopped dead in her tracks and turned to stare at him, keeping her hair in front of her bruised eye.
"A couple of days, at the least," Isabelle said, her eyes searching her brothers. "That okay? I can always find a place to stay if not, I don't want to put you out."
"It's fine," Foggy said. "A heads up would've been nice but it's okay. Is everything okay at home?"
"Yeah."
"You sure?" Foggy asked, again.
"Yeah, of course it is," Isabelle said, laughing it off. "Why wouldn't it be?"
"Oh I don't know, sis. Just the fact that you've travelled all the way here without letting me know beforehand, and I'm pretty sure you've noticed the black eye you keep trying to hide from me."
Isabelle turned away from him. "I don't want to talk about it."
"Okay. That's fine," Foggy said. "But we're going to have to talk about it sooner or later. He's hit you, hasn't he?"
"I said I don't want to talk about it, Franklin."
The use of his first name stopped him and he took a moment to look at her properly. She looked tired; her eyes were dark and her face pale. She was stood awkwardly, with her eyes cast down to the floor. Her clothes were soaked, and the thin material of her jacket was sodden.
"Does mom and dad know that he's beating you?"
"Foggy, he's not beating me. We just had an argument, that's all."
"Yeah," Foggy sighed. "And you walked into a door."
Isabelle avoided his gaze, running her tongue along her bottom lip and wincing as it ran over a cut. "Foggy, it's not that simple."
"If he's hit you," Foggy warned. "I'll kill him. I swear."
The siblings stood awkwardly in front of each other for a few moments, neither of them knowing what to say. Foggy's threat was clear, and Isabelle knew Foggy meant well. It was complicated. She was married to the man who felt that beating her up was a way to communicate with her; everything that she did wasn't good enough for him and she didn't understand what else she had to do to get him to stop. It wasn't the first time he had done it, for he had started being violent towards her as soon as she had signed her name on the line declaring her as his wife. She had never had a good enough reason to leave until now.
"I'll set the bed up for you. Why don't you get out of those wet clothes, yeah?"
Isabelle nodded and made her way to the bathroom that Foggy showed her to. Foggy waited until he heard the click of the door and sound of the lock before he pulled his phone out of his back pocket and dialled a number. He moved into his bedroom, and pulled out fresh sheets from the drawer just as a voice answered on the other end.
"Do you miss me or something, Foggy?" Matt's voice filled his ear.
"Or something," Foggy counted. "I've got a bit of a situation."
"Right…"
"My sister has just turned up at my door," Foggy explained as quietly as possible.
"Isabelle?"
"Well, I only have one sister, Matt," Foggy said. "Unless you know of another that I didn't know about."
Matt was quiet for a moment. "Maybe she just wanted to see you. It's been a while since you've spent some time together."
"She has a black eye."
"Wait…" Matt said. "Repeat that? I don't think I got what you said."
"She has a black eye," Foggy whispered, hoping Isabelle couldn't hear from the bathroom. "She avoided my question about whether everything was good at home."
"She probably doesn't want to talk about it," Matt said. "Give her some time and she might open up to you."
"What do I do, Matt? She's my little sister."
"Just be there for her," Matt offered.
"I threatened to kill him if he had touched her," Foggy announced, to which Matt smiled slightly.
"I'll help," Matt said.
"Thanks," Foggy said. "I knew I could trust you, Daredevil. You'll have to get me a costume too."
"Maybe for your birthday," Matt smirked.
"Are you going out tonight?"
"Yeah."
"Alright, be safe. I don't want to find out you died or got kidnapped, yeah?"
Matt winced at his words. "Okay. I promise. Tell Isabelle I said hi."
"Will do," Foggy said, ending the call. He walked over to his couch, with his eyes remaining on the bathroom door. He hated seeing his sister the way she was, but he knew he couldn't do anything other than remain by her side and be there when Isabelle thought it was time to tell him what had happened. Matt had been right, giving her time was the most important thing he could do for her. She would appreciate it wholeheartedly knowing that he would be there for her when she needed her big brother.
The sound of the door opening caught his attention and he offered Isabelle a soft, reassuring smile as she stepped out. It took her a moment to return it but when she did, he felt his heart tug. She had changed into a set of pyjamas that looked as if they were four sizes too big for her, like a child in adult clothing.
"I'm here for you, sis," he said reassuringly. "I'll always be here for you, you know that. When and if you want to talk about it, don't be afraid coming to me. While you're here, you're safe with me."
Tears stung at Isabelle's eyes as she bit her lip and nodded. "Thank you."
"How about…" Foggy began, standing from his seat. "I order us some food in and we watch a crappy movie together?"
"That sounds amazing," Isabelle smiled, watching as her brother picked up the phone.
"I know the numbers off by heart," Foggy smirked. "What do you fancy? Pizza, Chinese?"
"Pizza sounds great!" Isabelle said, the sound of her stomach growling overwhelming her body. Foggy seemed to not notice as he pressed the number in.
"Still don't like mushrooms?" Foggy asked to which Isabelle shook her head and pulled a horrified look.
"Only if they're magic," Isabelle teased, and Foggy shook his head smirking.
A few hours later, a movie had been watched and pizza had been consumed. They had sprawled themselves out on individual couches with a blanket wrapped around them as they eagerly began to eat their pizza and watch a film that Isabelle had chosen. She had chosen Dumb & Dumber, a favourite of theirs growing up and even though they hadn't seen it in years, laughter filled the air. It was nice to hear her laugh in a way she hadn't for a long time; especially when it was her real laugh that caught her off guard sometimes, that came from deep in her stomach. It always made him laugh out loud.
He didn't question her again about where she had gotten the black eye from, but he could see that she was deeply troubled by it. During parts of the movie, she would tenderly touch it until it hurt as if to remind her of something. He wasn't sure why she kept doing it but he remembered watching Matt do it absentmindedly one day in the office. It must be a reminder of what happened, to make sure that it had happened and it decorated their skin.
He glanced over at the couch. Isabelle was lying there, unfazed by the credits that were rolling up on the screen. Foggy leaned over and saw that her eyes were closed. He waited a moment before standing, and taking the pizza boxes and plates to the counter. He debated whether to check her phone that had remained in her bag all evening. He had heard it buzzing continuously throughout the film and he knew Isabelle had heard it too but had chosen to ignore it. He was tempted but he also knew that knowing too much would cause too many problems. If Isabelle knew he was tempted to check her phone, he knew that she wouldn't feel comfortable staying with him. It was her privacy, and he respected her too much to invade it.
For now, he would just be there for her when she needed him.
He moved back over to her side, and watched as she slept soundly. He smiled, remembering finding her curled up on the couch back at home waiting for him. She would wake up with wide eyes before the realisation hit her that he was home and with her. Foggy moved towards her, and brushed the hair away that had fallen into her face. His eyes fell on the black eye that was trying to hide in the shadows of the dark room but like the moon shining brightly in the night sky, he could see it plain as day.
"Issy," he whispered. No answer.
He slipped his arms underneath her and lifted her with ease. He carried her slowly towards his bedroom, noticing the lightness of her body. She was like a delicate feather. He laid her gently on the bed, watching as she automatically snuggled into the pillow, and he laid a blanket over her. He watched her for a moment before leaving the room and closing the door behind him, unaware of the shadow that swiftly passed by the window.
Matt waited until Foggy had left the room before he moved in front of the window. He listened into her breathing; soft and calm breaths escaped her mouth and he knew she was asleep. He listened in for a few moments, listening as Foggy walked up and down his apartment floor trying to process everything that had happened. He was worried which wasn't surprising. Matt was too, but he never gave Foggy any clue to how much. He hated the idea of Isabelle having to run away from something so bad that she had turned up on Foggy's doorstep without any warning. She must've been desperate enough to leave quickly.
He had been passing. That was a lie. As soon as Foggy had told him that Isabelle was on his doorstep, he knew he was going to make another stop that night. He had always been protective over Isabelle.
He heard Foggy settle down on the couch, his breathing and heartbeat calming down. He didn't know what it was and he furrowed his brow. He silenced the secondary noise and focused on the primary noises.
He was right. Three heartbeats filled his senses.