Saved for Macha

It took a few minutes but I eventually coaxed her to open the door and let me in. I joined her on the floor, one arm around her while I spoke quietly with her. Her bruises were upsetting but practice at hiding my feelings kept it from showing. After almost thirty minutes I finally told her to go shower and went back down stairs.

Emily:
When I heard footsteps coming back down the stairs, I stood up and looked at him. "Did she tell you what happened?" I asked, ringing my hands in front of me.

"Yes and no.". I frowned at the ground and slowly flexed a hand into a fist. "She talks easily about how school is going, about life here. But when I asked how our parents were...she clammed up and started trembling. They had to have done it..."

Emily:
I bit my lip. "But she didn't actually say it?" I asked. I don't know how far I could get with the police if she wouldn't even admit that her parents had hit her. "What do we do?" I asked, feeling helpless.

"We keep her here for the night...I don't want to force it out of her but...i think it might be best to do it.". Sighing I looked at her. "If it turns out she was hit by them, CPS is going to take her away."

Emily:
I looked down at my hands. That was what I had been worried about from the moment I saw her face. "Well, maybe if they met me...if I talked to them...maybe they would let her stay here?" I mumbled, knowing it was more than a long shot. I wasn't gonna cry, I told myself as my breathing started to hitch. I had just gotten so close to her. Sometimes it almost felt like she was my kid.

"That would be good Emily.". Reaching out after taking s look at her face I settled my hand on hers. "I am not going to be separated from her, but I don't think they would let me have her...look we will work something out. I promise. We aren't going to lose her."

Emily:
"They have to let one of us stay with her." I said, looking up at him, my voice a little desperate. My eyes were filling with tears. "I know she's not a baby anymore, but she's still little and-" I broke off and sniffled. I wasn't gonna cry, I lied to myself again.

"I'm sure they will." I promised, giving her hand a squeeze. I had dealt with plenty of injured men in the war. Held a few of them during it. And yet I'd never felt more helpless than seeing her face right now.

Emily:
As soon as he squeezed my hand, it was like he pressed a button for the water works. Without thinking, I stepped closer and dropped his hand, instead opting to throw my arms around him and cry into his chest.

I'd meant to offer comfort but my eyes went wide as she stepped closer and I awkwardly stood there while she cried into my chest. Slowly though I wrapped my arms around her. I smoothed a hand down her back, the other at the small of her back. "Sh....she isn't going to go anywhere. Just let the tears out alright?"

Emily:
I couldn't stop thinking about how long it had been going on. What if I kept sending her home to parents who hit her? And you always here things about foster homes...
I sniffled again but quickly pulled away and tried to get myself together. "No, its better that she doesn't see me like this," I said, wiping my eyes to try to get any trace of tears away.

I let her go, my gaze soft as I watched her. "For that very reason I would support her living with you. You do so much for her already and it's obvious you care." I smiled gently.

Emily:
I halfheartedly smiled at him. "That means a lot to me," I said. I smoothed my hand down my shirt, trying to fix myself. I wasn't sure when she was coming back down stairs. "And I love her. She's like my whole life right now," I said.

"I love you too..." a soft voice called from the stairs. Turning I saw Lexi standing there with her hair still dripping wet though she had changed into one of the sets of clothes she had kept here. I held out an arm and she walked over, fidgeting with her hands.

Emily:
When she got closer, I reached a hand out and ran my fingers through her wet hair. "How are you feeling kiddo?" I asked, hoping I didnt look like I had just sobbed on her brother.

"I'm okay....I think I used up all the hot water though...sorry." Her apology came with a side arm hug as she leaned into Emily and held onto her. I smiled softly at her and slowly crouched down.

"Lexi. Would you prefer to stay here with Emily?" I asked gently.

Emily:
I wrapped my arms around her when he leaned in and waited for her response. If she didn't want to, I would figure something out so she could stay with her brother for a little while. Her parents wouldnt know the difference for at least a few days. Sometimes she could even go a week without ever going home.

"I....I want..." I could see the tremble in her shoulders, they deer in the headlights look. And though words seemed to fail her for a moment, as she looked between myself and up at Emily I could see the will and strength build up. It wasn't a lot, but for her in that moment to say anything was a tremendous effort.

"I don't want to go home anymore..."

Emily:
I knelt down so I could hug her better kissed her forehead. "Okay. We're gonna figure this out, okay?" I said. "We're not gonna let anything bad happen to you," I promised.

Slowly she nodded, "I dont want daddy to hit me again..." The words were a whisper and it sent a chill down my spine.

Emily:
I couldn't help letting my eyes fall on her brother when she said that. At least we now knew for sure that it was her parents. Although I wasn't happy about it. I wanted to believe that she had just fallen down or something. "He's not gonna touch you again." I said, hoping I would be able to keep that promise.

Gently I coaxed both of them into curling up on the couch with a movie. I went as far as baking some rice crispy treats just to bring a smile to Lexi's face. After I was sure she was starting to come out of her shell again I quietly told Emily I was going to make the call.

Emily:
I stayed with Lexi on the couch when he excused himself. After seeing her slowly come back to her old self, I was feeling a little better too. "So I didn't know your brother could cook..." I smiled at Lexi and gestured to the plate of rice crispies. "Did you teach him this at some point when I wasn't looking?" I teased.

"He can cook sometimes! Just not much.". I giggled softly and plucked s treat from the table. Nibbling at the sticky dessert I leaned into her. It was easy to forget what had happened like this. I had s funny movie on, i had yummy treats, and i had the two people who cared about me.

Michael came back after ten or so minutes and he sat on the floor, leaning his head back so it rested half on my leg and half on Emily's. Ruffling his short hair I looked at him and his tired expression, "I'm sorry if I worried you Michael....". A soft smile curved his lips and he looked up at me.

"You are just fine sweetie." He promised.