I Treated You So Wrong

Val had taken me to the mall that afternoon. She said I needed to get out, stop being so cooped up. We went out to the mall; Val spoiled me, I guess. She bought a whole bunch of clothes and stuff for me, on Matt of course.

We called it a day when four o’clock hit. We went back to her and Matt’s house to relax the rest of the night. Val pulled up in front of the house and parked the car, then turned it off. We each grabbed some bags and went inside. As soon as Val walked through the door, she dropped her bags and ran to the backyard, leaving me confused.

I set my bags down and walked over to the sliding doors, seeing Val pulling Matt off of a bloodied person. As soon as they sat up, I recognized him as Zacky.

Part of me felt bad, but then I didn’t. Zacky deserved it. Zacky wiped his mouth and nose on the sleeve of his hoodie and stood up shakily. My eyes darted from Matt’s bloody fists to Zacky’s battered and bruised face. Zacky caught me peering at him, and immediately glared.

“This is your fault, you little bitch,” he snarled and stepped forward.

“HEY!” Matt yelled and yanked his arm away from Val’s grasp, his fist colliding with Zacky’s right jaw.

Zacky stumbled to the left with a yell, then he spit the blood onto the ground.

My eyes filled with tears, I’d never seen Matt do anything like this, “Matt…stop…”

Matt froze, then turned around to face me, “Rae, I’m not going to let him treat you like this.”

“Let her fight her own fights, Mattie,” Zacky snorted.

Val glared, “Zacky, be quiet.”

“I don’t think so.”

Matt growled, “you will not talk to my sister or Val that way, asshole!”

Zacky merely shrugged and popped his neck, then spit more blood to the ground.

“Val, take Rae inside,” Matt said lowly.

Val looked over at me, I just bit onto my lip and turned around, taking myself inside. I shut the doors behind me, but a few seconds after I started up the stairs, the doors opened and closed again.

“Rae…” Val said softly.
Val came up the stairs, I let my tears fall from my eyes.

“It’ll be fine, Rae. I promise,” Val pulled me into a hug.

I sobbed, laying my head on her shoulder, with my arms wrapped around her waist while hers were around my shoulders.

“Val…” she rubbed her hands up and down my back.

“What, sweetie?”

“I just want everything…back to normal…is that too much to ask?”

“No. All of us want things back to the way they used to be…”

“Why can’t…Zacky just help…”

“Come on…lets go to your room and we’ll talk,” Val kissed the top of my head, then took us to my room.

She sat on the bed, with her back against the head board. I sat down and she pulled me down, then laid a pillow on her lap for me to rest my head. She ran her fingers through my hair as I held onto her free hand.

“I can’t do this on my own…” I cried.

“We’re helping you, Rae. You don’t need to ask for our help.”

“I feel like such a burden, though…”

“You’re not, I promise. You’re family to everyone…I’m sure you’d do the same for anyone else,” she said softly.

“Yeah…I just hope no one else goes through this…it’s too much.”

Val sighed, “we all want Zacky to grow up, hun.”

“I don’t want my baby to be fatherless…”

“Rae, with Matt, Brian, Jimmy, and Johnny, the baby is far from fatherless. But I know what you’re saying.”

“Please Zacky…just help…”