"Jack, honey, Alex is here to see you!"


I grunted, pulling Ember closer to my body as the sleep lingered in my soul. She was so warm and she fit so perfect against my.. Oh fuck, that was my mom. Her footsteps were getting closer. She couldn't see Ember in my bed, at least not with with the bruise on her face, she'd freak. Shaking Ember as gently as I could, she tried to slap my hand away and curl up closer to my body. She was so fucking adorable, but my mom would be at the door any second now. I had no other choice. I put my hand over her mouth and pulled her off of the bed. She was confused, kicking her legs as her teeth dug into my hand. I squished up my face and shoved her in my closet, putting my index finger over my mouth to tell her to be quiet. She was pissed.


The moment I stepped away from the closet door, my mom let herself in. Alex had a crooked grin plastered to his face, as if he were hoping that we'd get caught. Rolling my eyes, I waited for my mom to start in on how we were out so late last night.


"Breakfast is ready, Jack. Do you think I should wake Ember up?"


"No, mom. Let her sleep. She's a devil in the mornings. I wouldn't doubt it if she bit you. Literally."


"That's no way to talk about your sister, Jack," mom sighed, shaking her head at my remark.

"Fine, I'll let her sleep, but you two need to eat breakfast. You're both so skinny."


"Mom, seriously, I haven't even pissed yet. Can you give me a minute?"


"Watch your mouth."


"Yeah, yeah."


She gave me a stern look before she closed the door. We all remained silent until we hear her feet hit the stairs, giving us the okay to speak. Alex plopped down on the bed and eyed Ember's pants on the floor. He was going to push the subject, but seeing Ember crawl out of my closet changed his mind.


The poor girl didn't look any better this morning. The bruise on her face was more of a green color than a purple, but it was a bruise nonetheless. Her hair was flying in all different directions and she held on to her torso as she stumbled to the bed.


"How you feeling, champ?"


Ember growled at Alex, obviously not in the mood for jokes. Not that I blamed her. It was too early for Alex to be sitting in my bedroom. I should be asleep right now, with Ember against my chest giving me goosebumps every time she squirmed in her sleep.


My best friend frowned and shifted his weight on the bed. From where I was standing, I could see him staring at her cheek with rage boiling in his gut. I was thankful there was someone else who cared about her just as much as I did, but watching him stare at her like that made me angry all over again.


It was Saturday morning. I was pissed and I knew exactly where Jared would be, but I couldn't let Ember know that. Instead, I gathered some clothes and told them I was going to run through the shower. Ember gently nodded her head but didn't protest.


It's not like I was lying to her. I just didn't let her see me grab my phone as I collected my clothes. Ten minutes was all it took for me to shower, five minutes to brush my teeth and fix my hair. I assumed they'd both realize something was up when they didn't hear my blow dryer, so I darted from the house, going unseen, and dialed Zack and Rian as I slid into my car.


The gym was only about a seventeen minute drive from my house. I only knew Jared hung out here because he was constantly bragging about it. That, and Zack came here a lot. This guys deserved someone to put him in his place. If only Ember had known what a lying son of a bitch he was, she wouldn't have risked her life by getting in the car with him. She did it for me. I had a personal battle to pick with that dick.


"Jack, you are not seriously going after Jared."


"Don't start with me, Rian," I spat, walking past him and towards the door. "Wait till you see the size of the bruise on Ember's face, you'll be going after him too."


"Hold up," Rian grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back. "When did he hit Ember?"


"Last night. Why do you think Alex bailed? He tried to fucking rape her."


Rian and Zack both stared at me with sad eyes. Ember wouldn't have liked me telling them that, but I knew it wouldn't leave our circle and I would most likely need help beating some sense into Jared. Without saying another word, Zack pushed me forward and we marched into the gym, noticing Jared instantly. He was hitting on a girl that worked here, had the poor girl back in a corner with a shitty grin on his face.


"Yo Jared," Rian cupped his hands over his mouth, calling for the man to come over. "Got a bone to pick with you, dude. Can you come outside?"


"Oh, well isn't this just precious! Barakat came to defend his slut sister."


"I didn't know being held against her will made her a legit slut, asshat."


"Is that what she told you?" He laughed, shaking his fat head. "Last I recall, she was moaning my name, begging me for more. Even pulled my hair so I wouldn't stop kissing her stomach. She's a good lay, Baraslut. Too bad she's your sister or you could hit that. Wouldn't be hard."


I clenched my fists and my jaw. Zack and Rian were mocking me, both of them ready to pounce at any given moment, but I wanted him first. How dare he try to pin this on Ember, but what got to me even more than that was the idea that she might have lied to me last night to spare my feelings. I knew for a fact he kissed her stomach, I mean, that was obvious from the marks. What I didn't approve of was the fact that he was talking about fucking her. The very idea that he may have taken it any further made my vision go black.


"So what brings you three here on such a lovely day? Did you come to tell me to stay away from Ember? Because if you did, you're wasting your breath. She'll be back for more. I please her more than any of you faggots ever could."


And that was it. I just couldn't take it anymore. Rian and Zack stepped out of the way as I ran full-force at Jared. I may have been small and lanky, but I wasn't weak. That much was obvious when his body fell back against the ground. I had the upper hand, my knees digging into his ribs as I raised my fist and sent a punch against his jaw bone. He threw one back, socking me in the cheek bone one good time, but I was too pissed to feel it.


The way I felt about Ember was stronger than he could dream of being. The very instinct I had to protect her gave me a strength I never knew I had. On a typical day, Jared could beat my ass and not think twice about it, but he went too far this time. Ember was a human being, not a piece of meat.


I punched him for every tear she cried. I punched him for the things he did to her. I punched him for every bad thing he'd ever done to any female. His nose and lip were bleeding. A small circle had formed around us, Rian and Zack sticking close by the scene just in case he got over on me.


But it was a girlish scream that brought me back to my senses. My fist was bruised and sore, I hadn't realized it until Ember burst through the crowd with Alex by her side. Her eyes flickered back and forth from me, to Jared. Fear and a little bit of surprise in her eyes when she was that I was the one throwing the punches, not him.


"Jack, stop! You've proved your point, let's go!"


"What'd I tell you, Barakat?" Jared slurred, spitting blood on my shirt. Even as fucked up as he was, he had that same, shitty grin on his lips. "They always come back. Sluts just love a good fuck."


"She is not a slut!"


One last time, I slammed my hand against his face. He'd be bruised and bloody for a while, but he'd be okay. That's better than I can say for Ember who was suffering emotional damage from that dick. Shaking out my hand, I hadn't realized that Zack dragged me to my feet. He shot a warning glance at Jared, who was laughing, before he tugged me through the crowd.


"I'm not going to say anything," Alex mumbled, leading the way back to our cars, "other than I'm proud of you, Jack."


He gave me a slap on the back, telling me that he'd text us later to make plans, and drove away. Rian and Zack bid us farewell, too, getting in Rian's borrowed car, claiming that his mom would have a shit fit if she found out why he took it. Ember was the only one who hadn't spoken to me. I guess we were both getting used to this, slumping in the seats of my car after a shitty event.


"You shouldn't have done that, Jack," Ember kept her eyes locked on the window, completely avoiding eye contact with me. I knew she wouldn't understand my actions, but I never thought she'd be mad at me over them. I frowned, putting the car in drive as we started the journey to our house. "Why did you do that?"


There was a certain tone in her voice that convinced me to tell her the truth, even though I didn't want to. The last thing I needed to do after everything she'd been through was scare her away or put more pressure on her.


"Answer me, Jack."


"I did it because-" I took a moment to catch my breath and calm myself down. My hands firmly gripped the steering wheel as I found the courage in my heart to spill my guts. "I did it because I love you, Ember."

Notes

You go Jack!
-Jess.