All We Know Is Falling: Fall With Me: Volume One (15 page)

The floor was covered in people. Some sleeping. Some just staring blankly up and enjoying their high. The house was at least two stories and I could hardly see up the stairs.

“Do you have a picture of your brother?” I asked Hale. He pulled his phone out and went through his pictures. It was of just Ethan. He was sitting at a table glaring at the camera. He had short blonde hair, much lighter than Hale’s. But you could see the family resemblance at a glance. I handed the phone back. “Cover your eyes.”

He blinked in confusion and did nothing. I took his hand and covered his eyes with them. He held it and I looked around for something heavy. I spotted an empty beer bottle. I picked it up and hurled it through the big window. It shattered and a few of the people around us groaned.

Hale uncovered his eyes and looked at me. “Why?”

I smiled and yelled. “SOMEONE CALLED THE COPS!”

You wouldn’t believe how fast those little junkie bastards got up and started running. They stood and stumbled and went for the door. “Keep and eye out for Ethan,” I said to Hale. Now that the window was shattered, the light poured in.

The people ran by us and I scanned the crowd, not seeing what I was looking for. The amount of black in their auras was upsetting and it made my head pound more. I shut off my powers so I wouldn’t start bleeding again.

Once the bottom floor was cleared, the ground was covered in trash and blankets. Discarded needles and broken bottles of alcohol littered the house.

“He’s upstairs,” I decided.

Hale looked more worried than he did this morning. “What if he’s not here?”

“He is.” I started walking up the creaky stairs and almost stumbled. Hale caught me by the hips and steadied me. “Thank you.”

He nodded and we walked up to the top level. There were more people, ones that didn’t hear me yelling. A few were awake and using their party favors. I could smell smoke and alcohol as it burned my nose.

We searched the rooms and looked at everybody we found, searching desperately for the boy. There was only one room left and I was starting to feel unsure about him being here. As scared as I was, I couldn’t imagine how Hale was feeling.

We opened the door and the room was dark. I flipped on a light switch, and to my surprise, it worked. It was dim but nothing I couldn’t work with.

I turned and I saw Hale, tensed, at the door frame. His eyes were locked on something in the corner. I followed his gaze and saw what he saw. Ethan was on his side, eyes shut. His arm was covered in track marks and bruises.

I went to Hale as he started hyperventilating. I put my hands on his face. “Shh,” I soothed him. “Everything is going to be okay.”

“How?” his voice was broken.

I left him and went to the boy, kneeling on the floor beside him. I put my hand on his face and checked his neck for a pulse. It was slow, but it was there.

“Is he…”

“He’s breathing,” I said. Then I looked down at the boy. “Ethan? Can you hear me? My name is Rory and I’m with your brother.”

The boy groaned but didn’t open his eyes. I sat him up but he still didn’t wake up.

“Hale? Can you help me get him to the truck?” I could have carried him on my own, but it would be bad for Hale to see how strong I was.

He came over and picked his brother up. We walked him to the truck and buckled him between us. I got in the driver’s seat again.

“I’m taking him to my house,” I said. “My mom can help him.” I started driving, not waiting for Hale’s approval.

“How?”

“She’s got medical supplies at the house. Dad…was sick for a long time.”

He was quiet after that. I blasted through every red light on the road. It hurt to use my mind twisty stuff so soon after I used my tracking. But I needed to go unseen.

We got to my house and Hale carried him in.

“MOM! HADLEY!” I called and they were at attention within seconds.

“What happened?” my mom asked when she saw Ethan. I pointed upstairs and Hale started walking.

I explained the bare minimum to them, not sure how much Hale would want them to know. We went into a guest room and Hale laid him down on the bed.

“Hadley,” Mom said. “Go get the IV from the other room,” she pointed and my sister ran. Mom checked over the boy, looking into his eyes and checking his pulse. “How long has he been like this?”

“No clue,” I said. “Probably since Friday.” Hale winced and stared at his brother.

“Okay. Well I’m going to hook him up to an IV so he won’t dehydrate. He’s going to go into detox for the next few days and if we’re not careful, it might kill him.”

Hale was breathing heavy again and I could see a panic attack rising. It looked like he was watching his brother fade away.

“Don’t worry,” I said. “Mom has medical training. She knows what she’s doing.”

“I was a doctor in another life, love. Your brother will be fine,” Mom said as Hadley brought her what she needed and more. She hooked him up and kept checking on him.

“Hale,” Mom said. “Call your mother and tell her what’s happening. Or your father.”

“Dead,” he breathed. “They’re dead.”

“Hale,” I put my hands on his chest. “I’ll call Mollie and Mason. Just go down to my bedroom and wait for me. Alright?”

“But,” he breathed and stared at Ethan.

“Everything is going to be okay,” I said for the millionth time today. “Mom will take care of him. He can stay here as long as he needs to. Just go wait for me in my room.”

He hesitated but he eventually walked out of the room, his eyes on Ethan the whole time.

I walked over to my mother and asked, “He’s really going to be okay?”

Mom nodded. “He’s weak now, and the next few days won’t be easy, but he’ll make it.” She looked over her shoulder at me. “How did you find him?”

I didn’t want to tell her. She knew what it did to me when I had my powers on full blast. She stared me down ‘til I confessed.

“I tracked.”

Her face somehow became more serious than it had been. Hadley stayed quiet but her eyes went to my bloody hand. Mom caught her looking and grabbed it. “You got another nosebleed?”

I yanked my hand back. “I had to. If we didn’t find Ethan tonight how much longer do you think he would have lasted? It’s a miracle he didn’t OD.”

Mom frowned. “Fine. I can’t stop you from using your powers, but I can warn you that you shouldn’t push yourself.”

“I know,” I pulled Ethan’s phone from my pocket and called Mollie and Mason.

It rang once before Mason answered. “Ethan? Where are you?”

“No, it’s not Ethan. I’m Rory. Do you know who I am?”

“Yes. Hale’s friend. Why are you calling from Ethan’s phone? Are you with him?”

I stared at the sleeping boy and hoped that Mom was right about him being okay. “Hale and I found him. Ethan’s…he’s on a lot of drugs right now. And he’s unconscious. But he’s at my house and he’s going to be okay. My mother is taking care of him. She’s a doc—” Mom gestured for the phone and I gave it to her.

“Hello? I’m Maddy, Aurora’s mother. Ethan is in very good hands, I assure you. And so is Hale. They’re both spending the night. You can come see them anytime…” she carried on and gestured for me to go take care of Hale.

I ran back downstairs and went into my bedroom, closing the door. Hale was on my bed and his hands were shaking. I sat next to him and held his hands.

“It’s my fault he’s dying. Everything I did. Everything he watched me do. I ruined him.”

“No,” I held his hands tighter. “This isn’t your fault. He made his own choices and you can’t be held accountable for that. It’s not your job to take care of him.”

He turned his eyes to mine. “Yes it is. And I failed.”

I shook my head. “He’s going to be fine.”

He hung his head and didn’t say anything after that. But he kept shaking. I leaned over and shut off the light on my nightstand. Then I pulled Hale’s head to my chest and ran my fingers through his hair until he fell asleep.



I wasn’t sure when I fell asleep. Or how. My body was tired and I think the darkness just took over. I only woke up once. When I had, Hale was behind me with his arm draped over me and his hand on my stomach. The next time I woke up, he was gone.

I sat up in bed, still wearing my dress from the night before. The sun was up and I could hear chatter from outside of my closed door. The door opened and Hale walked back in. He was holding a tray of food.

“Oh, you’re awake,” he said.

I nodded, realizing that we’d just slept together. That was…huge for me. I’d shared my bed with him.

“Yeah,” I watched him cautiously.

He sat beside me and put the tray in front of me. “I made this for you. Your mother said that you like chocolate, so…”

I looked down at the food and took in everything. There were chocolate chip pancakes. I was sure they were pancakes, though there were so many chocolate chips that it took me a second to figure it out. The breakfast also came with bacon, sausages, and a glass of chocolate milk.

“Why would you do this for me?”

“Because what you did yesterday. You went to great lengths to help me. And you put yourself in danger. The least I could do was make you breakfast.”

I fought the urge to kiss him on the cheek and just said, “Thank you. That was very sweet.”

His eyes were on my lips. “Five.”

I sighed. “I’m not going to bother asking anymore.”

I started eating and I forced Hale to eat with me. He sat close enough that our legs were touching, but I didn’t make him move. I didn’t want to be my usual snippy self when he was in such a bad place.

“How’s Ethan?” I asked.

He finished chewing and said, “Better. He’s still sleeping but his heart rate is steady now. Mason and Mollie came by last night when we were asleep. They had to leave for work, but at least they got to see him.”

The worst was yet to come, but I was sure he knew that already. But my mom could handle it. She’d dealt with much worst in her time.

“And,” he continued. “We’re excused from school today. Your mother wanted us here.”

I nodded. “Good. I don’t think I’d do well in today.”

“Same.”

When we were done eating, Hale took the tray and brought it back to the kitchen. I offered but he wouldn’t let me. While he was gone I showered and got dressed for the day. By the time I was done, he was sitting on my bed waiting for me.

“Anything new?” I asked.

He shook his head, “No.”

I stood awkwardly by the wall. With no places to sit other than the bed, my options were limited. And I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to linger in a bed with Hale. One more slip like last time and I’d have to cut him off all together. Distance was the only thing that could keep him safe.

“Lamb?” he said after a few minutes of quiet. “Why don’t you want to sit with me?” I didn’t answer him. He sighed and leaned against the bed. “Are you upset that we slept together?”

My cheeks flushed and my body felt warmer. I knew what he meant but the way it sounded… The way he made it sound… “No,” I said honestly. “I just don’t want to give you the wrong idea.”

“About you? I don’t think you do that kind of thing often, if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m willing to bet that I’m the only person other than you to sleep in this bed.”

I nodded. “Yeah. I told you I don’t date. And I don’t do anything that goes with it. But that wasn’t what I was worried about.”

“Good. Because one day we’ll be sharing a bed on a permanent basis. It would be upsetting if you didn’t enjoy it.”

I chewed on my bottom lip. “That’s the problem. We’re never going to be more than friends. I can’t be with you in any way other than that.”

He stood and started sauntering over to me. “And you won’t tell me why. I don’t think that’s fair.”

“I know,” I closed my eyes. “I know it’s not fair. And that doesn’t change anything. You need to drop any and all thoughts of us being a thing. I just can’t do it.”

He closed the distance between us and his hands went to my face. He gently held it and whispered, “No.”

“Yes,” I corrected him. “Please.”

“If there was ever any doubt in my mind about me wanting to keep you, it left yesterday. You keep telling me no, and I keep finding reasons to say yes. I want you, Aurora.”

I shifted on my feet. “You can’t always get what you want.”

He smiled for a fraction of a second. “Let me rephrase that. I got it wrong. I need you. I feel better when I’m with you. Life doesn’t seem nearly as pointless.”

I wasn’t sure what to say. He didn’t understand what I was telling him and I didn’t think he would take the hint.

“Maybe we shouldn’t see each other anymore,” I said out loud even though it made my chest tighten.

His eyes widened like he never expected that to come out of my mouth. “No,” he nearly growled. His hands dropped to my hips and he held me tighter. Like he was scared I might take off.