Aaron:
I stared at the TV not really seeing it. I sighed. I wish Silver would text me back. I had texted her yesterday to make sure she was ok, but she had yet to answer me. She was probably just mad at me, but I was starting to worry.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!"

I spun to see Austin stomping towards me. "What do you mean? I'm just watching TV."

"I haven't seen Silver in four days, and she's not answering my texts or calls. What the fuck did you do to her?! I swear to god if you hurt her I will kill you!" he fumed getting in my face.

I ground my teeth. "HURT HER? WHAT ABOUT ME? I FINALLY FIND A GIRL THAT I LIKE AND WHO LIKES ME FOR FUCKING ME, NOT THE FACT I'M IN A FUCKING BAND, AND I FIND OUT ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS IS IN LOVE WITH HER! WHAT THE FUCK WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DO AUSTIN? I CAN'T DATE HER BECAUSE IT WILL KILL ALAN!" I was shaking so bad I had to turn away to take some deep breaths. I never blew up like that, what was up with me?

I heard Austin sigh and turned to see him wipe a hand down his face. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. It's just, I'm really worried. Silver's been shutting everyone out for days, and the last time she did that was after everyone turned on her at Warped." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I finally had to go kick down her door, just to find her cutting after she'd been clean for almost a year."

My heart stopped. Before I knew what I was doing I was up and out of the bus.

"Where the fuck are you going?" Austin grabbed my arm.

"I-I have to make sure she's ok. I didn't even know she'd ever cut. If she started again and it's my fault I'll never forgive myself." I was damn close to tears. So much for being manly.

Austin sighed again. He looked tired. Not just like he'd had one long night, but more like he hadn't slept in weeks. His entire body heaved with effort each time he sighed, and his eyes looked sunken back and foggy. "Alright, fine. We'll take my car." He released my arm and trudged across the lot.

Silver:
I took a shaky breath. I don't need it. I'm better than that. I don't need it. I stared at the door I kept my blade it. I had curled up in the corner on my bed as far across the room as I could get. My roommate had been staying with me, making sure I don't relapse, and I hadn't. I'd been really good, but she had to go to work, and I was left alone with my thoughts. I don't need it. I don't need it. I felt hot tears fall down my face as I began to shake. I don't need it. I don't- I scurried up to rip the drawer open. I need it. I need it so bad. I'm useless. No one wants me. I deserve the pain. I felt the moment my body numbed in preparation for the blade. The moment I couldn't tell what temperature the room was. I couldn't smell the lilac air freshener. I couldn't taste the fresh piece of mint gum I had put in my mouth a few minutes ago to ease some of the tension. I'd gone numb, I was shaking, and I needed my blade. I felt my fingers wrap around the cool metal.

Just as I'd pulled it out of the drawer, my door knob fell to the floor. What the? My bedroom door flew back crashing into the wall as Austin stormed in, Aaron running frantically behind him.

"PUT IT DOWN SYLVANA!" Austin yelled storming over to me.

I was still shaking.

"I SAID-" the blade clattered to the floor. He picked it up and hurled in across the room. It stuck in my wall. He picked me up to throw me down on my bed. "YOU WANT PAIN? GIMME A CALL AND I'LL COME SLAP YOU!" He held me down by my shoulders as he bent over me. "BUT DON'T YOU DARE, EVER, EVEN FOR A FUCKING MINUTE, THINK ABOUT HURTING YOURSELF LIKE THAT! NOT AGAIN!" He shook me once. "DO YOU FUCKING UNDERSTAND ME?"

"I-I'm sorry," I whispered as I began to sob.

Austin sat on my bed and pulled me into his lap. "It's ok honey." He held me tight. "It's ok. I'm here." He pressed a kiss to my hair. "I've got you, it's ok. Can I see?"

I was hyperventilating, but I held my arms out for his inspection.

He smiled when he saw no fresh cuts, only the white lines of old scars. "That's my girl," he cooed.

Aaron:
Austin held Silver tightly on his lap until she stopped crying. I stood there stunned. It wasn't until she looked at me that I drew in a sharp breath closing my eyes, waiting for her or Austin to come beat me. I felt delicate hands on either side of my face. "Aaron look at me."

I looked at her and she smiled. "I'm sorry you had to see that. It's something I thought I'd gotten past."

I ran my hands down her arms, from her wrists to her elbows. "Sil, I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I-I should have-"

She chuckled. "It's not your fault sweetie." I stared at her in awe. She was an absolute wreck a minute ago. What the fuck? "Look Aaron, I understand. You don't want to hurt your buddy, right?" I nodded. "I get it, don't worry. It's just," she sighed, "it's been a while since anyone's looked at me with anything other than disgust."

I couldn't stop myself from pulling her into a tight hug. Fuck I'm starting to fall for her. I saw Austin smile. "I'm sorry Sil," I mumbled again. I was. I was sorry that I'd hurt her. I was sorry she was in this mess. I was sorry I couldn't make it better. Mostly though, I was sorry I couldn't give her the good relationship I'd wanted to.

"I know sweetie." She smiled at with the kind eyes of a mother. She'd totally just friend-zoned me. Well, that solves that I guess. "I have to go talk to Alan." She sighed again before turning to Austin. "Can I hitch a ride back to the bus?"

He smiled. "Course!"

She smiled back before turning to the wall behind me. She frowned at it before putting a hand against the wall and pulling out the blade. She ran a finger over the new hole. "Aust you have to fix this, and do a better job than last time."

He laughed, but I raised my eyebrow. "Last time?"

Silver smiled. "Yeah," she walked over to the wall by the head of her bed to pull off a taped picture. An uneven, lumpy chunk of wood had been wedged into the hole and painted a shade darker than the red of Silver's room.

Austin shrugged. "I thought I did a damn good job."

She rolled her eyes. "C'mon big guy." She walked out of the room.

I looked to Austin. He smiled at me. "She's somethin', huh?" I laughed and nodded.

Notes

Sorry about the insanity of this chapter, I had a breakdown and a need for my blade last night and I guess it leaked into my writing. I did label it though, so I hope you're enjoying! Feedback always appreciated! :) - Anna