Comfort

Summary: In the summer before Grade 10, Frankie lost two boys. But lucky for her, she has one who will always be there.

Frankie had gone home not long after Winston had broken up with her. Miles had done the best he could, and Frankie had to admit, after dancing with him, she felt a bit better, but no matter how hard Miles tried to keep the former lovers apart, she felt herself able to concentrate on nothing but Winston. Sensing her discomfort, Miles eventually gave up and drove his sister home. Out of sight, out of mind, Frankie reasoned

"Do you want me to stay with you?" Miles asked, sympathetically, as they pulled up to the Hollingsworth house. He knew just how much breakups sucked. Maya, Tristan, Zoe.

"No. You should go back with your friends. Zoe, Tristan… Winston," she said, her voice cracking a bit.

"You know I'll keep him out of the house until you're over him, right?" Miles asked. He felt a bit bad, choosing between his sister and his best friend, but if there was one thing this year had taught him, it was that family comes first. Always.

"You don't have to do that. You warned me and I didn't listen," Frankie said, trying desperately to keep her composure. Miles placed a comforting hand on her shoulder for a moment, but Frankie soon moved to get out of the car. "I'll be fine. Go have fun." She faked a smiled before closing the door and walking up the driveway to the mansion.

Miles waited until he was sure Frankie was inside before pulling his phone out. He found the number he was looking for, and shot off a quick text before driving back to the beach. He wanted to stay and comfort her, but she was stubborn. She wouldn't let him see her break. There was only one person who would have that privilege.

Hunter had opted out of going to the beach with his classmates. He didn't have many friends, and to be honest, he was more content staying inside and playing video games. His siblings had both gone, leaving Hunter with the house all to himself. Perfect. He could stay in his room as long as he wanted without any judgement from them.

That plan had been working perfectly, until his phone buzzed on the table. He looked down, but when he saw it was just Miles, he ignored it. He was probably just telling him something stupid, such as "make sure to eat something and stay hydrated."

Frankie lost it the moment she'd closed the door. She had controlled herself at the beach, but now that she was alone, she could cry as hard as she wanted without anybody bothering her. Hunter wouldn't notice she was home. He probably had his headphones on anyway.

Frankie couldn't even make it to her bedroom. She just collapsed on the couch. The same couch her and Winston had lied on while watching that movie only days before. The reminder only served to make her cry harder. Was everything going to make her upset? How long was this feeling going to last? She'd honestly thought she'd loved Winston. She'd planned their wedding dozens of times in her head, but now, that was all fantasy. A fantasy that was ruined by harsh reality. None of this would have happened if it hadn't been for...Logan.

Logan.

How could Frankie have been so stupid? She'd trusted Logan. She'd thought there was a connection. But he had played her. In hindsight, she really should have seen it coming. But she had been so caught up in the excitement and the drama that she hadn't stopped to consider that he didn't actually care about her at all. Not only that, but her brother was out $5,000 now. And it was all because she had been stupid. Frankie wasn't nearly as mature as she'd thought she was. Mature people aren't caught between their crush of nearly their whole life and some guy they'd just met at work.

This was supposed to be Frankie's summer. But it had instead ended in her losing two people who were very important to her. Frankie's heart was twice as broken, and now she was left alone, crying on the couch.

Hunter continued his gaming for another 20 minutes before finally deciding to take a break. He figured all his online friends would want a break from getting their asses kicked. Hunter grabbed his phone, ready to switch to something handheld, when he remembered he'd never opened Miles's text. Hunter unlocked his phone, getting into his messages. He was going to read it for the sake of getting rid of the "1" that would otherwise hover over the icon, but when he tapped it, he saw something more serious than the run of the mill "get off your electronics" text from his brother.

Can u check on Frank? Brought her home, won't talk 2 me. Really upset.

Frankie was home? How had Hunter not noticed? Normally, she would just barge in uninvited and tell Hunter to go outside, or at least to the living room, but she hadn't made a single audible noise.

And why did Miles bring her home in the first place? Frankie had rambled on non-stop that morning about how excited she was to spend the day with Winston. She had been bummed out about Logan, sure, but she'd put on a smile and said that Logan was simply an idiot, which Hunter fully agreed with.

Hunter got up from his chair and walked down the hall, to where Frankie's room was. He opened the door, but found the room empty. It was then that he heard the sounds coming from the living room.

Crying?

That was undeniably his sister. Hunter was very familiar with what her crying sounded like. Sometimes, it was annoying how much she cried, but at the heart of it, Hunter couldn't help but be concerned. So he went down into the living room, and sure enough, she was lying face down on the couch, sobbing.

"Frankie?" Hunter asked, warily. He never knew how to comfort people, especially when they were crying. Frankie jumped a bit, clearly surprised by her brother's presence. She sat up, wiping her eyes in an attempt to pretend everything was okay.

"Oh. Hey, Hunter. Finally decided to come out of your abyss?" Frankie asked. Hunter raised an eyebrow at her, unimpressed by her facade. He sat down beside her, looking at her face. Her eyes were bloodshot, showing more red than brown. Her cheeks were wet with tears, and her normally adorable smile was replaced by a sad frown.

"Come on, Franks, I'm not stupid, you're obviously crying. So what happened?" He asked, not really giving her an option to deny that she wasn't okay. She looked down at the ground, and uttered the one word that made her fall apart all over again.

"Winston."

"What about him?" Hunter asked, still unsure of what the problem was.

"He-he broke up with me." Hunter stared at Frankie, wide eyed. Winston and Frankie...broke up?

Hunter had to admit, when they'd first gotten together, he hadn't approved, which may have had something to do with Miles continually venting about how nobody was good enough for Frankie, and how all high school guys were looking for one thing. Hunter's concerns had only multiplied when he found Winston and Frankie in bed together, Winston missing a shirt.

But still, anything was better than seeing Frankie upset. There was a range of emotions Hunter went through. Relieved, at first, because now he didn't have to worry about his sister getting pregnant. Then anger. How could Winston do that to Frankie? She was the best girl he was ever going to get. Finally, sadness, for his twin was sad. When she was upset, so was he. Maybe it was a twin thing. He put an arm around her and she leaned into his touch.

"I'm sorry, Frankie. Do you want me to go kill him?" He half-joked. That managed to get a laugh out of her, but it didn't stop her tears.

"No. I just- I feel so stupid," she admitted. "I didn't appreciate what I had and now I've lost it."

"You made an honest mistake. You were doing what you thought was right. It's not your fault that Logan guy turned out to be a jerk," Hunter said in an attempt to be comforting.

"I know, but I lost Winston over it. I lost two guys over it. I...I never told Winston I loved him," she confessed, causing Hunter to stiffen a bit.

"You love him?"

"I thought I did. But then, would I have crushed on Logan?" She looked up at him, as if he held all the answers. The two had grown surprisingly close over the summer, with Hunter helping Frankie deal with Logan.

"Franks, I'm not experienced in the romance department, you know that. I can't tell you how to feel," Hunter said, honestly.

"I wish I could take it all back," she said, shrugging.

"You know, Winston was kind of a dick. Didn't he kiss Lola?"

"Yeah, but he said what I did was way worse."

"I don't think it was," Hunter said. This got Frankie to smile, feeling a bit more validated.

"Thanks. How long is this going to last, Hunter?" She asked. Hunter looked at her, confused.

"How long is what going to last?"

"The hurt. The heartache. It feels like I can't breathe. Everybody says love is such a good thing, but did those people ever feel like this?" Another tear began to fall and Hunter wiped it away. He had a feeling there would be a lot of tears in the coming weeks from his sister.

"I don't- I don't know, Frankie. I'm sorry Winston sucks," he said, at a loss for words. He knew how intelligent his sister was, but her words seemed so poetic. She looked older, somehow. He hugged her just a little bit tighter, hoping it could somehow help alleviate her pain.

This pain was so much worse. With physical pain, Hunter could just give Frankie some advil and let her go on with her day. But how can you cure emotional pain? Hunter didn't know what to do in the slightest. He remembered how it felt when Arlene left, sure. But that couldn't be compared to what Frankie was going through. They were in different leagues.

"I don't want to see him ever again but I also want to see him right now."

"Just stay here. Maybe Miles will talk to him." It was an empty idea, but it seemed to comfort her somewhat.

"Maybe." She shrugged. "I'm sorry I stole $5000 from you. I'll pay you back, promise."

"Hey, you didn't steal from me, I gave it to you. And I'm not worried about getting the money back. It's not like we're exactly lacking," he pointed out.

"I know, but still. I will, as soon as I can."

"If it makes you feel better. But I don't expect you to." There was a slight pause before Frankie spoke again.

"Thank you, Hunter. I feel a little better. Or at least, not so alone."

"That's what brothers are for, isn't it?" He smiled at her, happy to see genuine positivity written on her face. Maybe he wasn't such a bad comforter after all.

She leaned her head on his shoulder, content to be there with him. It felt so much better than being on that beach, watching Winston hopelessly, or in her room alone, crying to an empty space. It had just felt nice to be listened to while she vented.

He handed her a box of tissues from the table next to the couch, which she took gratefully, wiping away the residue of tears that remained on her face. She was pretty sure she was done crying- at least for now. But she liked the feeling of sibling camaraderie with Hunter. They had been through so much in the past year, and everything was changing it seemed.

"Hey Frankie?" Hunter asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah?"

"You know, a lot of guys are going to love you in your lifetime. But no matter what happens, just remember, there's always going to be someone who loved you first," Hunter told her, meaning every word. Frankie was the first girl (other than his mother) Hunter had ever loved, and she would be the last as well. She would always come first. Even if Hunter had a difficult time expressing his emotions, it didn't mean he didn't feel them. He would have to be heartless to not love his sister. Sure, they had their ups and downs, but at the end of the day, the two of them would always have each other.

"Love you too, Hunter."

Heartbreak sucked, but for Frankie, it sucked a little less knowing she had people around who loved her regardless of how many boys came into her life, how many times she hurt, or how many mistakes she made.

You may have noticed a new cover for this story! Well, you can thank my friend Lua for that! She has truly been the Hunter to my Frankie these past few weeks. She makes amazing edits and concept art and has kept me going for the past weeks.

In fact, this chapter is dedicated to Lua! She requested Hunter comforting Frankie after the events of 'Don't Look Back.' I hope you like it, Lua!

Del's recommended song to listen to is: Don't You Worry Child (Madilyn Bailey cover) and Summertime Sadness (Also Madilyn Bailey).

Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, favored, or followed. It means the world!