Chapter 30- Taunting Pasts

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I sat beside Amelia on the cold snow-covered grass. It was freezing outside, but I couldn't feel it.

I was too nervous to feel anything.

I had my arms sprawled out behind me as I lazily sat in front of the trees we were just under a few moments ago. To anyone looking at me, I'd seem calm, relaxed even. But my exterior position had no relevance to the storm I felt inside.

The only that stopped me from simply getting up and running away from here, was how patient Amelia was at the moment. She didn't ask any questions as I dragged her here and sat her down, nor did she complain about sitting on the cold wet grass. She simply waited, and was still waiting.

I cautiously looked over to her and let out a small breath when I saw her sitting beside me. Her brown eyes were wide with wonder as she took in the scenery around her.

It wasn't much to look at it, but she made it seem as if we were sitting in front of the Eiffel Tower, and not just in a garden behind one of the campus buildings.

It honestly surprised me just how much Amelia loved this place. If I knew she would like it this much, I would've brought her here much sooner.

She was rubbing her hands together, and it suddenly dawned on me just how cold it must be for her. She was already dressed in a thick coat, but her hands were bare. I felt like smacking myself for being so inconsiderate, but in my defense, I didn't think that she would start shaking the snow off of trees to smother us with it.

A small smile escaped me, thinking that what she did was completely idiotic, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. After staring at her for a few moments longer, I realized that this was it. This was simple.

With her it was simple.

I simply needed to tell her about my past so that she understands she is not alone.

And that was it.

Finally, I cleared my throat to get her attention. She finally shifted her gaze to me and I stayed silent for a moment before finally speaking.

"There's something that I want you to know Amelia, but before I start, you need to know that I'm telling you this because I want to, and not because I think I owe you any sort of explanation."

Her burrows furrowed at my words, and she nodded her head slowly.

I took one last look at her, her wide innocent eyes, and her wet hair. She looked like a puffy snowman with all of her winter attire on, especially the giant scarf that covered most of her upper body, and it would be absolutely comical if she didn't pull it off so well.

Okay, it was still a little comical.

I finally let out the breath I had been holding and looked away from her to face the front. It took me another to think of where to start this from.

"We were a happy family growing up, my sister, mother, father, and me. We were normal," I started, swallowing after thta one sentence. "Six years go, there was a moment that changed my family. I thought it was so miniscule. Soemthing we could get ocer if worked together as a family."

My mind drifted off to that time almost instantly, remembering the strianed voices of my parents as they delivered this news.

"My father lost his job. At first, he tried supporting my mother. She was a nurse at the local hospital and could work enough to feed our family. But my father didn't like it. He was the typical, 'men should lead the house' type of guy. In his hatred for the situation we were stuck in, he got stuck in a slump. Seeing only one way out, he turned to his old best friend, alcohol. And from there on forth, all he wanted was just that," I said starting slow.

Then I took a deep breath, scrunching my nose as I said the next part.

"But that wasn't the worst part. The bad part was that he got abusive in his addiction. I didn't notice at first. I noticed it much, much later. At first, he became more verbally abusive than he used to be. He stopped acknowledging my sister and I, only turning to my mother when he needed money. He was more painful to be around. And then, my mother got unhealthier. One day, I came home and heard them fighting. My mother had just announced that she wanted a divorce. And then, it just became worse," I said.

I let in a shaky breath before saying the rest.

"He hit her that day."

A sharp intake of breath came out of Amelia's mouth.

I clenched my jaw, already not wanting to go further.

But I did. I continued with the story. Because I wanted Amelia to know.

"She tried then. She tried harder to get out. But he wouldn't let her. In this time, my mother stumbled across a senior doctor at her hospital. They had been friends for a long time. Before things got bad, he even used to visit at times. James, was his name. After his wife died, he barely came around anymore. But he was the first person who noticed the change in her. So one day, he showed up to the house to check up on her.

Unfortunately, my dad opened the door. When he asked for my mother, my dad lost it. He went after him to nearly beat the living daylights out of him, but mom came in the way. She stopped him. Surprised, my dad went inside. She followed, telling James to leave. I came home that day just when James was leaving."

I stopped to catch my breath and noticed that Amelia's hand had enveloped my own. Who initiated this, I will never know.

But somehow, her hand in mine, made this easier.

"He looked so worried Amelia. He kept asking me what was wrong and I simply told him to wait by the curb."

I let out a small breath and finally turned to Amelia. This part got me every time. I hated it. I hated this part. I just needed to know that Amelia was still here. That she was still listening.

Because she made this seem as if retelling the horrors of my past was a piece of cake.

"I was so scared that day Amelia. So I told him to wait and call the cops if he sensed anything weird. Then I went into the house and my mother was lying there. But in front of her..." I trailed off, my mind immediately transporting back into that time.

It was as if it was all happening in front of me. As if I was walking back into my home now, seeing the blood splattered all over our kitchen tiles, and my mother on the ground, sobs wracking her body.

Something snapped me out of it, and I looked down to see Amelia squeezing my hand tightly. Looking for some sort of comfort, I quickly flipped my hand around so that it was tightly clasping hers. I didn't look up. I stayed where I was, staring at our joined hands.

"In front of her, Amelia, was my sister, only 14 at the time. She tried to stop my dad from hitting my mother, and he hit her repeatedly instead for disobeying him."

I heard Amelia suck in a sharp breath and I took in a deep breath of my own.

"I attacked him then. How many times I hit him, I wouldn't know. James had called the cops by then, and they came in just soon after. We took my sister to the hospital and my dad was taken to jail."

I let out a long sigh, finally loosening my grip on Amelia's hand. But I didn't let go just yet. I held onto her, wanting to finish the whole story before I let her go.

"My mother got married to James nearly four months later, and we ended up starting a new family. It's been 5 years since then. My new dad, Dr. Kennedy, is great. He treats everyone with respect, especially my mama. He helped me get into college and got my sister therapy. We took his last name so people wouldn't bother us anymore. Mama is finally happier. It took time, but somehow, we found strength in each other to get over what happened. That's who you will be meeting. The Kennedy's."

I took a deep breath and continued staring at our joined hands, not ready to see her reaction yet.

After a few moments of hesitation, I slowly peered up to her. Of course, Amelia Harrison left me surprised once again.

Tears flowed freely down her cheeks and a small smile was playing on her lips. I stared at her in confusion, moving a little closer to her to see why she was crying.

"Moonie-"

"You're amazing, you know that?"

The words came out of her mouth so carelessly and I suddenly had the urge to kiss her then and there.

"What?" I mumbled dumbly instead.

"You didn't leave her side. For that only, you're amazing. You could've easily ran away from it all. You could've easily given up. But you didn't Leo. You chose to stay with your family. No matter what the outcome would be."

She let out a shaky breath and smiled at me.

"You grew up well Leo. I can't wait to meet your family."

And if possible, her grin got wider.

I scratched the back of my head nervously.

"Uh, you're putting me on quite the high pedestal there, Moonie," I murmured. "I didn't do much. I couldn't save her in time. If only I got there a minute sooner-"

Suddenly Amelia ripped her hand out of my own. For a moment, I missed the warmth her hand provided, but it was gone when she placed both her hands on my cheeks and tilted my head towards her.

"Leo. You did save her. You got there in time Leo. She's still alive. Still breathing. And that's the greatest feat," she said, her voice strong. "Leo, you did save her on time," she finally said, her voice breaking slightly at the end.

My eyes watered at her words and I looked down in shame. Shame because I realized how stupid it was that I had been blaming myself for the incident.

Amelia was right.

I somehow did get there on time. Some people weren't as lucky I was, and an example of that was right in front of me.

"I'm sorry Moonie. You're right. I'm sorry."

Suddenly, Amelia's small hands came around my waist and she sprang herself onto my chest.

At first, I didn't react. My arms stayed splayed out in the air. Then slowly, I brought my hands down and wrapped them around her shoulders. this felt awkward with the bulky coats we had on, but somehow, Amelia's warmth radiated onto me. I could feel her all around me, despite the things that separated us.

My shirt was wet, and I bet I shed a few of own tears onto her hair. It was freezing and we were in an awkward position. But it was the most comfortable moment of my entire life.

After what seemed like days, we finally detached ourselves from one another. Amelia turned away from me and discretely wiped a few tears away. We stayed queit for a moment, both lost in our own thoughts. Then I got up, patted my jeans and held out a hand for her to take.

"Come on Moonie. It's past your bed time now," I cooed, trying to lighten the mood.

To my surprise, Amelia let out a chuckle.

And when she finally reached up and placed her hand in mine, I knew then that no one in the world could make me feel the way Amelia Harrison does.