Gift of the Goddess

Chapter 100 - You're only human

-Lux's Perspective-

"Stryder! Stryder! Are you okay!?" I screamed.

I dropped down next to him and grabbed his arm. Something sharp pricked at my palms, but I ignored it and got a more firm grip on his arm.

"Stop!" Stryder yelled and yanked his arm away from me.

"What do you mean stop!? You have glass all over you! And you just begged the universe to torture you!" I snapped and grabbed his arm again.

"If you keep grabbing me the glass is gonna cut you!" Stryder complained.

"Then you better stop fighting me! Or else it's gonna rip my hands to shreds!" I demanded.

He seemed to relax after that and tried to sit up. I pulled at his arm and he slowly rose to his feet. The glass rained down his body and I saw more blood rolling off of his cheeks.

"Go clean yourself off, then come back out here alright? Then, we can talk." I said.

Stryder bit his lip and he nodded. His eyes never met mine, he just stared down at the floor.

"R-right." He mumbled and shuffled off to his room.

Once he shut his door, I took a heavy breath. Maybe I should've said something sooner. I should've hugged him while he was talking. I Hadn't noticed, but my hand was latched around the snowflake pendant around my neck. I bit my lip and tried to hold back tears. His smile came into mind and I wanted to just collapse. I wanted him to hold my hand right now. I wanted him to fly into the room and tell me it was one big joke.

I moved my hand away and looked it over, glass was embedded deep into my palms. Making a small trail of blood down my arm. However, I didn't care about the cuts or the blood. My eyes stared at my ring finger.

'Hey, whenever this stuff is all over. Let's get lost together.'

His words filled my mind and caressed my heart. I tried to fight it, but the tears just came down. Focus Lux, your little brother is hurting. This isn't going to be like last time. You're not gonna leave him alone. Jack was there to help me grow, to help me be vulnerable and not run away.

I walked over to the sink and started picking the glass out of my hand. Then there's Zack and Annual. I sniffled and continued to pick at my hand. It's like the idea couldn't even form in my mind. The lovable idiot Zack? Yeah, he could be a bit violent every so often, but killing Jack? Trying to murder Stryder? I didn't believe it. No, I didn't want to believe it.

I took a breath and washed my hand a bit, then I went to the bathroom and started wrapping my hand. Stryder looked destroyed though. So it was more than likely true. I finished my hand and took another breath. I bet he's gonna try and hide the cuts he got. I walked back into the living room and leaned against the couch, waiting for Stryder to come out.

It wasn't long before he came out in a fresh pair of joggers and his old worn blue hoodie. He had the hood over his head and his eyes were stuck to the ground. I remembered the day I noticed how tall he got, all because he started looking up into my eyes more. I stepped forward and reached my hand out to him. Stryder flinched, but relaxed as I rested my palm against his cheek. I took a breath and tried to find his eyes.

"Look at me." I demanded. He bit his lip, but slowly looked up and faced me. His ocean blue eyes we're leaking, and tears ran down his cheek. "Didn't Jack work hard to have you see the world? Are you really gonna just let all of that go?"

He sniffled.

"B-but, I'm scared..." He admitted. "Lux, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't good enough. I'm a failure."