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An Artie/Tina fic

Chapter Six.

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Disclaimer:Doing these every chapter is sort of adding insult to injury...

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A/N: Time for the mysterious phone call! Sorry if the person she called is disappointing. I had every intention of it being someone else, but that didn't seem to happen.

Anywho, I loved all of your guys' reviews. I was a little worried about how you would respond to a bit of a darker side of the story, but it seems like you guys liked it! And I'm even getting new readers! Yay!

So, in this chapter, it sort of starts earning it's 'M' rating, okay? It's kind of graphic, and very blunt. I don't tip toe around things, I lay them right out there.

I have to give a shout out to two people this chapter. First, my Beta, who is really the BEST. Beta. Ever. doxthextimexwarp! You put up with my ridiculously sporadic schedule and you always give me great ideas!

And second, to my bestie Booksey. (she started reading my fic even though she 'hates' Glee. But I think it might be growing on her an itsy bitsy bit.) You are the greatest. Thanks for sucking it up and enduring the Glee glory! I know you'd like it if you gave it a shot!

ANYWHO!!!! Let's get onto the chapter, shall we?

PLEASE REVIEW! And enjoy!

The warble of the ringing cell-phone roused its owner, causing him to roll over onto his side and reach for it. He flipped it open without looking at the screen. Clearing his throat softly, he sat up a bit in his bed.

"Hello?" His voice was scratchy with sleep. And as the single word hung in the air between he and the mystery caller, he heard a single sob. Suddenly very awake, he sat up fully with the blanket falling away from his bare chest.

"Tina? Is that you?"

"Sorry, Marcus. I just… I didn't know who to call." Her voice was small and choppy. Running a hand through his short, black hair, Marcus' mind whirred with all the things that could have happened. He knew almost immediately that it was about their dad. What had he done now?

"It's okay, Tee. What happened?" The words came out softly and very nurturing. He heard the next torrent of tears wash over his sister, and he couldn't help but wish he was there.

As she spoke brokenly through sobs, he listened. He knew he should have moved from his bed, but he didn't want to risk waking the sleeping man beside him. Of course, fate has a cruel way of informing you that you cannot control everything. Even though his voice was rarely above a whisper and he spoke only a few words, the slumbering mound beside him still awoke. And when Marcus felt cold fingers on his back, he knew he needed to end the conversation quickly or risk his sister finding out his secret.

"Hey, Tee?" He whispered, his boyfriend had sat up and was now looking quizzically at him. "It's really late here and I have a seminar in the morning."

The implied statement remained unstated, but Tina caught on.

"No, of course. I'll let you…" She began before hearing a deep mumbling on the other side of the line followed by a shushing sound from her brother. Someone was there with him. And Marcus didn't want her to know. "… go."

"Thanks, sis. I'll call you in the morning." Then the line went dead and Tina was left to her own thoughts. Which consisted mostly of why there would be a strange man in her brother's bedroom and why he would be more important than her. She noticed the tears still running down her cheeks. She cursed herself, wondering why she cried so damn much. She thought of the only way to silence the tears. Shifting to the edge of her bed, she felt the blade beneath her palm again, and, this time without hesitation, lifted it to her wrist and pulled.

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Marcus was worried about his sister. He knew she needed someone there to talk to. With him being away at NYU, he could hardly be relied upon. Then he remembered Artie. With a ridiculous fervor, he searched through his phone for the boy's number. He had added it when it became clear that when Tina didn't answer her cell-phone, one could usually call Artie's and get a hold of her. He prayed he hadn't deleted it, and when he got to the 'W's', he was overcome with relief. Under 'Wheels' was Artie's number, and he quickly punched the send button.

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"Hello?" Artie answered the phone confused as to why Marcus was calling him so late. When Marcus quickly launched into a worried tirade about Tina, all thoughts about time in New York were pushed from his mind. He quickly agreed to do as the he asked; which was to call her and check up on her. Once satisfied, he heard Marcus hang up.

Unsure what to do, Artie cradled the phone in his hands for a moment. Did Marcus know about he and his sister's falling out? Did he know how he'd hurt Tina, forcing her into the arms of someone else? If he did, would he still ask him to do this? With a shake of his head, Artie pushed the thoughts from his mind, deciding that the questions didn't matter, because despite the answers, he had been asked to do this. And he had promised.

Swallowing his insecurities, he punched the numbers slowly, his thumb hesitating over each one as if assuring him this was a bad idea. But he forged on. The phone rang once, twice, tree times, four. He was about to hang up, concluding that she wasn't going to answer, when it halted mid-fifth ring. There was a pause, and Artie shifted awkwardly, waiting for a 'Hello' or a 'What do you want' or something. Finally when he was about to say something, her voice broke the silence.

"Artie, I messed up."

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The tears spilling down her cheeks were replaced with a different kind of tears, dripping from her fingertips, soaking into her red cut-off shorts. She watched as she eased her skin open, loving the feeling of the blood coursing from her body. She lavished in the pain she caused when she pulled the blade across her skin. She could stop it or increase it with her own hand. And as soon as she saw herself bleed, she knew she needed to bleed more.

She slowly floated away from the present moment, leaving her room and her house and her life behind as she descended into a deep red sea where all she ever felt was controlled and governed by her. She was alone, no one else around to hurt her but herself. It was all her, and no one else had any power over her. Only her.

The ring of her cell yanked her back to reality. Her eyes refocused as she startled a bit, dropping the blade. She lifted the phone from her bed spread with her now empty hand. She saw the familiar name flash across the screen and panic filled her. What would she say? For a moment, she thought she wouldn't answer, just let it go to voicemail. But at the very last possible moment, she flipped the phone open. She needed to hear his voice, to know it was him. As she waited, she realized she needed to say something. She didn't know what to say. She heard him breathe in, and suddenly, she decided she wasn't ready to hear his voice just yet. As soon as she did, she knew she'd cry. So she opened her mouth, willing anything to come out.

"Artie, I messed up." Her eyes fell to her still-bleeding wrist and she slowly started moving her fingers if only to test that she could. How could she possibly tell him what she'd done?

"It's okay, Tee. We'll fix it." His voice was pained, and she felt the words tug at her heart. She was slowly coming back to the realm of feeling, and she wasn't sure she wanted to be there. Often, when she cut herself, she was numb for a long while afterwards. And she was able to exist as if normal for however long it lasted. She didn't know if she was willing to give up that numbness. How would she be able to function like a normal human being?

"How?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She felt the odd tearing in her chest, and she knew whether she liked it or not, the numb was fading.

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How? Artie wondered that himself. How were they going to fix it? But more importantly, what was 'it'? Was she bleeding? Had she cut herself? What had happened?

"Tee, what happened? Are you hurt?" He heard her breath catch and he knew without even a word from her that she'd cut herself. He forged ahead. "Are you still bleeding?"

There was a pause, and he pictured her assessing the damage. He had to shake his head to rid himself of the image. "Yes." The word was slightly panicked, but mostly just disconcertingly calm.

"How deep did you… How deep is it?" He couldn't bring himself to realize she had actually done this to herself.

"I… I don't.. I was really mad, and…" He finally heard the tears flood her voice, and he suddenly felt the urge to be there.

"It's okay, Tee. Go wash it off, grab a towel and put some pressure on it." He walked her through the steps as she bandaged and cleaned herself. His tone remained constant and calm, and he heard the cycle of her tears run, starting of slowly then increasing until there just were no more. She said very little, leaving Artie to do most of the talking. He liked to think that his voice was soothing her.

About twenty minutes later, he had walked her through everything, and she had assured him she was tucked into bed. He could hear her voice growing tired, and he knew that she'd probably want to go so she could sleep.

"Well, um, I guess I'll see you to-"

"Stay on the line with me?" She begged abruptly. He was a little shocked and didn't say anything, so she continued. "I don't want to fall asleep alone."

"Okay." He whispered and he heard a rustling on the other side of the line, picturing Tina settling into the comfort of her blankets. He smiled, and he hummed quietly to her until he heard her breathing grow heavy and fall into a rhythm. He moved to hang up the phone, but he couldn't quite muster it. Instead, he laid back against the pillows and fell asleep to the lull of Tina's breathing.

End of chapter Six.

Yup... Mr. Perfect isn't as perfect as we thought! He's gay!! I love gaysians...

... I will probably get a lot of comments about that comment either getting really mad at me or concurring...

So I really like this chapter. Actually it's probably my favorite so far. I know it's the favorite of some of the other people I show it to. I hope you guys feel the same.

Hope it's tolerable! If not enjoyable!!

Like I said before, reviews are appreciated, positive or negative.

Until next time ...!