[unedited]

what was wrong with her?

i'm being a hypocrite. of course she'd be upset, i left and didn't give her a chance to explain herself, what was i expecting? hugs and kisses?

maybe. never in a hundred years did i think she'd be so...different. something about her had drastically changed that shook me to the core.

her cheeks were scarcely hollow, and her skin was ghostly pale. but that wasn't even the worst part.

eyes were thought to be the windows to the soul, but hers were sealed up like a vault. when she had looked up at me, her brown eyes―the ones that used to be the only doors that would open for me―slammed shut in my face. there wasn't even a flicker of recognition that crossed her face. it was like she had changed the locks to her heart, and my minuscule key no longer held any meaning.

now i lay here awake at an ungodly hour in my new apartment, kindly provided to me by my dear mother.

"it's the least i can do." she had said, taking my shoulders and letting out a faux sniff. "have fun my dear son. stay safe."

the whole conversation was incredibly weird. she had "lent" me―her sixteen year old son―an old apartment near the high school. and she had the nerve to act as if she was forced into it, as if she couldn't have just let me live with her. my relationship with my parents was so toxic, when she touched me, i could feel the poison that they had been feeding me burning into my soul like a curse.

now i had bigger issues. i couldn't figure out what happened to anna. the anna i knew.

and i was going to find out.

i knock swiftly on her window. "annalise." i hiss, the cold biting at my cheeks. "i know you're in there."

when she doesn't respond, i take matters into my own hands and give the window a good shove.

surprisingly, it opens without hesitation, and i slip inside her room wordlessly. it's exactly the same way it was months before. this makes me relax, something that hasn't changed.

a soft creaking noise coming from the bathroom makes my head turn, and i find myself creeping out of her bedroom and down the small hall.

in the darkness, anna sits in the corner, crouched in a ball. small sobs wrack through her body as she rocks back and forth. my heart clenches painfully and i take a step into the bathroom. "anna?"

her head shoots up. "what are you doing here?" she spats out, but her tone isn't the thing that fazes me. it's the tears staining her face, and her bloodshot eyes.

"what's wrong?" i rush out, crouching down in front of her.

she turns away. "nothing go away."

"annalise, please!" i beg her, brushing away clumps of her hair that stuck to her face.

she closes her eyes. "i'm fine, i'm fine."

"no." i tell her. "you're not. i know what you're going through. anna, you helped me! i would be nowhere without you, and like hell am i going to leave you when you need someone. i don't care if you hate me, i'm not going anywhere."

she looks up at me, tears pooling down her face. the vulnerability so strong, i wrap my arms around her, savoring the moment. surprisingly, she lets me cradle her.

"i'm sorry." she cries into my shoulder. "i'm sorry, i-i don't know what's wrong with me, i'm sorry, i'm sorry."

"don't worry, i'm always here." i tell her, stroking her back soothingly.

she squeezes my torso, pressing her cheek against my chest. "but you weren't, and i called and called and-"

"i'm here now, and i'm here to stay."

a/n

#66 in short story!!