Shattered
Shattered, I stumble
Scared, I crumble
Shaken, I fall
Defiantly I fight it all
Voices.
Angry voices. These days there was never anything except loud, angry voices,
voices that he could hear echoing through the hallways to seep into the cracks of
the closed door and bring themselves to his ears.
His eyes
traveled around his bedroom in an attempt to distract him from the meaningless
words pouring through the air.
A couple of
posters stood proudly on the walls, along with trophies and pictures and
awards… he was such a perfect teenager. An overachiever through and through,
and he liked it that way.
Except when
it couldn't get him away from the truth of what was lying behind closed doors.
The voices that were imprisoned in his house. They had only started a week ago,
but already he was dying from it. The pain was so tremendous he was surprised
it didn't sweep him away.
He had gone
through it once, and he didn't want to go through it again.
He grabbed
his jacket and headed out of his room, intent on getting out of the jailhouse
that locked up his joy. One of these days, that joy might even suffer the death
penalty.
If it
hadn't already.
Shattered,
I break
Scared,
I take
Needing,
I want
Broken
– Broken – Broken
She
looked up as he entered the room.
"You're
late," she informed him with a tinge of annoyance brushed into her brusque
voice.
"Sorry. I
got held up." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Just don't
do it again," she warned him with a smile, surrendering.
"Of course
not."
She smiled
quickly at him and then looked back down at her book to study. He was never
late. This was only the second time in almost three years that he had been
late, or at least over five minutes, and something was up.
Oh yes,
something was definitely up.
Breaking,
I fall
Defiantly
I fight it all
Shattered,
I need
Shattered—so
shattered, I plead
"Whoa, Tyler, you look horrible," Hank
informed the blond. Val shrugged.
"I have to agree," she said. "What
happened? Did you get any sleep last night?"
"Not much," he admitted, but it was
already evident by his eyes, which were tired and slightly bloodshot.
"Did you have too much caffeine on one
of your two nights off?" Val teased. "I thought we were supposed to save the
coffee for when we had to do twenty-fours."
"Very funny," he said dryly. "I just
got caught with a bout of insomnia, I guess."
He didn't mention that the insomnia
was brought on by the heated argument that crackled in every breath and word.
Break me
Take me
Shake me
Shattered
"What's wrong?" she asked him, coming
up to the side of the table where he was eating lunch. He looked at her,
confusion in his eyes.
"What?"
"You've been pulling away from
everyone," she informed him, sliding into the seat across from him. "I mean,
look, you aren't even sitting with anyone today."
"That' s because Hank and Jeremy and
Alex are supposed to meet me here," he argued. "And I just sat down."
"No." Her one-syllable protest was
short and brisk. "You haven't been yourself lately, and I want to know why."
"I don't know what you're talking
about," he informed her. Val shrugged in reply, then frowned as she looked at
his neck.
"Is someone abusing you?" she asked in
a low voice, reaching out to touch the bruise on it. He stared at her in shock.
"No, that was when Jamie accidentally
hit me with a stethoscope yesterday, remember? No one's abusing me."
"Oh." Val turned slightly pink and
withdrew her hand, an action that he regretted. It had felt nice… No. No.
No. Not the right time or place, he reminded himself, and that was that.
"Well, I'm going to find out, Tyler,"
she informed him, standing up and heading over to another lunch table. "You
can't just hide from everyone."
Of course not—but it would be nice if
he could.
Shattered, I stumble
Scared, I crumble
Shaken, I fall
Defiantly I fight it all
The droplets of water sprayed onto the white metal,
cleansing methodically. He turned the hose off and walked around the ambulance.
Almost done, and then he could start on his English homework, and then the
shift would be over…
And then he would go home.
His eyes darkened at the thought. Home was not a welcome
place anymore. Maybe he could go to the library…
"Tell me." The two words startled him, pushing his thoughts
away with surprise as he turned around to see Val looking at him firmly, with
her hands planted on her hips.
"Tell you what?"
"Tell me what's happening, and don't say nothing's
happening, because I know that something's happening and something is wrong."
"Nothing's wrong, Val! Drop it!" He turned around, fully
intending to continue his job washing the ambulance, but she spun him around
again.
"Something is wrong," she insisted, "and if you don't tell
me what it is, then I'll tell Alex to put you on the DL and call your parents."
"Val…"
"Tell me," she said again, pleading him with her eyes. "I'm
not going to say it's stupid."
"My parents," he began, throat dry. Her eyes grew
understanding.
"William?"
"No—I mean—I'm used to him now, I've accepted him, but for
the past two weeks—they've been arguing. Fighting. All the sound rips through
the house and I feel like I can't breathe anymore, let alone do anything inside
of that—that jail cell. It feels like the world is just crashing down,
and… Val, this is what happened when my parents split. When my dad left."
He couldn't be crying, could he? The trickle of salty water
on his cheek told him that he was, but that was unbelievable. He couldn't
cry—especially not in front of Val.
"Oh… Tyler… I'm so sorry."
"There was so much fighting, and then they divorced and he
left us. You know that he forgot my birthday four out of five years? He left
when I was twelve—I'm seventeen now, and I'm willing to bet he only remembered
my sixteenth because my mom called and reminded him. Forced him to send the
card. Do you know how hard it is to have a dad you never see?"
"No, I don't," Val confessed in a soft voice, "but I'm
willing to bet that it's the worst thing on the face of the planet."
"The understatement of the year," he informed her, leaning
against the ambulance. "I don't want that to happen again." The trickles were
pouring now, in torrents down his face. Val gently put her arms around his neck
and let the tears fall into her shoulder.
"You know that my mom and dad used to fight a lot, before
the heart attack. I told you. Tyler, I'm sure William and your mom aren't
splitting. There's been a lot of stress lately—it's a busy time of the year.
It's hard to keep your head from ripping down the middle. I bet they're just
having trouble at the office or something." Her head was buried in his neck, so
the words were muffled, but he understood.
"Yeah, sure." He didn't sound like he believed her.
"Well, you know," she began, lifting her head from his
shoulder and looking him in the eye, "there's someone who will always be there
for you."
"And that would be…?" The look in her eyes answered his
question entirely.
"I thought that was painfully obvious," she whispered
before she gently kissed him.
Shattered, I miss
The way you kiss
Shaken, I know
Nowhere else to go
"Tyler's out in the back yard, I think," Daphne Connell
Jenks informed Val as the blonde entered the front hallway. Val flashed her a
smile.
"Thank you. Mind if I go out there?"
"Not at all."
Val disappeared out the back door and William nodded
approvingly.
"She's absolutely wonderful for Tyler," he told Daphne, who
nodded agreement.
"She's exactly what Tyler needs—now, come on, we're going
to be late."
The door closed behind them.
Broken, I need
You, I plead
Shattered – Shattered
Shatter me
"You know, I thought people were occasionally supposed to
come greet their girlfriends when they come over," Val said to him. He smiled
up at her.
"I didn't know you were coming."
"Very true." Val sat down in the hammock next to him. "So,
where are William and your mom going?"
"Marriage counseling. They're almost done with it."
"So the fights have stopped?" She laid down next to him,
balancing the hammock better.
"Thankfully, yes." Val grinned and snuggled into him.
"There wasn't a reason why you came over, was there?"
"No. I just wanted to come bother you."
"You never bother me." He kissed her, as if to prove his
point. "I love you."
"I love you, too," she replied. Her eyes flew open quickly
as she sat up…
And tumbled out of the hammock.
"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly. Val nodded and got up,
looking at him suspiciously.
"You never said you loved me before," she said accusingly.
"I didn't know how you would take it," he responded. "And
you've never said it before either."
"Don't say it if you don't mean it," she warned him,
beginning to pace. "Because I don't want to hear it if you don't mean it."
He tumbled out of the hammock. "Val, look. You were the
only one who was there for me throughout this whole thing, you were the one who
cared about me enough not to let me go. If I wasn't in love with you by now—our
one-month anniversary—then don't you think I would be the biggest imbecile
alive?" He kissed her again. "I. Love. You."
"You always have to do everything exactly right, don't
you?" she inquired. He shrugged.
"Mostly. When I was nine I used the wrong fork at a fancy
dinner, but other than that? I'm the ideal man in every way." Val rolled her
eyes.
"Self-absorbed jerk," she teased.
"I wish I could say the same about you," he said. Val
grinned.
"Well, me? I'm just perfect."
Scared, I miss
The way you kiss
So shatter me
Shatter me
Shatter me
Ick. That was SUPPOSED to turn
out better. Ah well. *deep sigh* Um, the song is *cough* mine and was literally
written in two minutes, so that the title would fit. *sheepish grin* Don't
comment. Ah well. I need to pack for camp *groan*, so I have to go, but please
review!
---IVY
