Hope Begins to Fade

Scar’s POV

People filed out of the room. Brian told me to eat and sit down, Val would take care of Serenity until she needed to be fed. He needed to talk to Matt, he said.

“Mattie, Bri needs you,” I called as I walked into the kitchen. Judging by the fact we had been driving, I assumed we had everything from that God-forsaken venue.

As Matt passed me, I saw out of the corner of my eye, he gazed at me. “Hey,” I turned. “Thanks for the hoodie. It’s so fucking warm.”

“Don’t mention it.” He paused, as if deciding if he should say something. “Do you recognize it? It was your favorite to wear when we dated…” there was hurt in his eyes.

“Oh,” was all I could muster to say.

He went to talk to Brian and I couldn’t help but have a strange feeling in my stomach when I brought the sleeve up to my face; breathing in: it smelled just like Matt. Dark, rich cologne smell with a scent I couldn’t pinpoint except to call it Matt’s skin. I loved it.

Until the yelling: “Dude! What the hell? She’s MINE.”

“What? No one ever second-guessed that!”

“Don’t think I didn’t see what you did at the hospital!”

By now I was standing in the doorway. “What?” I wondered aloud.

Both pairs of eyes shot in my direction. “He…he-did…something,” Brian stuttered.

Matt clamed up instantly. This can’t be good… “What?” I repeated.

“Do I have to say it in front of you?” Brian pleaded.

“Yes. You already brought it up, now spit it out!”

Sighing, he blurted: “He told you that he loved you and then kissed you.”

There was an awkward silence. “And?”

“This asshole wants to be with you!” Brian screamed.

“Brian-” Matt was about to explain, but Brian’s temper flared and Matt got an upper cut to the jaw. So, defending himself, he hit back which began an all out brawl between the two. I didn’t know what to do.

Matt’s arms bulged with every movement he made. There was really nothing I could do to stop it, especially since I wasn’t feeling too hot from my recent issue.

Brian kicked Matt’s legs out from under him, pushing him to the floor and pummeling from there.

When Matt’s blood dripped to the floor, I knelt down, bruises quickly forming on my knees. “Guys!” I screamed a bit. They ignored me.

Placing my hands on Brian’s arms, I attempted pulling him back. It was no use. He was too angry to stop.

“She’s fucking mine, Shads!” he called loudly, getting another hit to the cheek. Matt was enraged as well.

Though Matt had something on his mind, he glared straight ahead, blood dripping from his cuts.

When Brian started strangling Matt, I had tears in my eyes. Would Brian really be able to kill his band mate!?

“Brian! Stop!”

My words struck nothingness. Matt slowly pulled something out of his pocket as his face tuned red.

A knife. He had a damn pocket knife.

“Matt!”

Brian tried to pry it out of his grasp, knocking his wrist to the floor. In turn, it cut me. Deeply into my arm. I could feel the flesh and muscle tare roughly.

“Fuck!” I cried out while the blood cascaded from me.

“Scar!?” Jimmy ran in, the sun beaming through the window, onto his face, making him look every inch like an angel. “My love!” He called in a fake British accent.

Johnny and Zack entered behind, each swiftly grabbing Matt and Brian. Jimmy picked me up in his arms, not minding that my blood drenched his own arm.

“What the fuck happened in here!?” Zacky screamed, eyeing my blood and the matching crimson on Matt’s knife.

“We-we got carried away. It-it’s…” Brian seemed completely distraught.

“Scar. Are you ok?” Matt was completely fine. Minus the blood re-gaining to his head, the cuts and the bruises that matched Brian’s.

“Guys, what the fuck!?” Jimmy carried me out of the room. My head was spinning, no air reached my lungs.

“Jim-Jimmy…” I stuttered, breathless.

“Shhh, it’s ok. I have you.”

“Thanks…” I swallowed hard. “It feels like I…I can’t breathe.”
“We’re gonna have to fix that, now aren’t we?” he whispered. I rest my head against him. When he set me down, I groaned from my lost safe-haven.

His hands worked quickly as he cleaned and wrapped the wound, making me feel a bit better. I was still woozy and sleepy but I decided to stand. He steadied me, pulling me to him in a soft but loving hug. I felt his lips pressed to my hair.

He groaned, making me blush a bit. “When I walked in there and saw you bleeding, it was one of the worst sights…” he breathed in my scent as I did his, making sure that this comfort was real.

Things seemed…absent and burly lately. I missed the feeling of friendship. It seemed like I’d lost contact with everyone I cared about.

“Jimmy, never leave me, please? No matter what happens, please tell me you’ll always be here…”

“I’ll always be here. Right here, holding you in my arms. That’s a promise.” His eyes brimmed with tears as did mine.

“Thanks.” I kissed his cheek as he stroked my face. An intimate moment. But, he had Daytona and I had Brian. This was nothing more the friendship. Jimmy was always there for me when everyone else wasn’t. That’s what I loved about him. He meant the world to me.

I held Jimmy’s hand as we walked to the room where everyone still stood.

“Brian, you’re overreacting. Ever heard of being caught up in the moment? Yes, he loves me, but not in the way you’re thinking. Brian, it’s seriously fine. Besides, he’s like your best friend. Don’t fucking do that to him. Best friends are hard to come by now. Don’t lose him over this,” and I stormed into the other room, furiously.

Jimmy followed sweetly behind, grabbing the pint of ice cream from the freezer. I could always count on him to be my shoulder…