‘Nothing was going okay.’

Lily’s voice cut through her mom’s bitter thoughts.

“You don’t get it, dad! You ruined me!”

Luke’s response was louder. “You need to stop acting like a victim, Lily! You went on your own free will! We never asked you to go, not your mother, not me. I even apologized, so what’s the big deal?!”

Ash’s mom pressed her trembling fingers to her temples. She glanced at Noah, curled up beside her, his small frame trembling with every raised voice.

“Mommy…” he whimpered, clutching her sleeve. “Why are they fighting?”

Her heart broke, what did Noah deserve to see it? She interfered once or twice in their furious conversation, but it did nothing to calm them down. She wanted Luke to keep his composure, but she knew he held Noah the closest to him.

She hugged him closer. “It’s okay, sweety,” she whispered. “They’re just upset. It’ll calm down soon.”

But she wasn’t sure if that was true.

And besides, Lily had made her intentions chillingly clear.

“I’m taking Noah with me,” Lily had said earlier, her voice cold.

Noah. Her youngest son.

‘Where’s Ash?’ A sudden thought cut through, Noah said he would come back soon, but it was already two hours before.

‘Where is he…?’

Her only hope now was Ash, maybe he would come and try to calm them down, maybe he would help a bit.

Ash’s mom clutched Noah a little tighter at the thought, when her husband’s voice cut through.

“You can’t just take him, Lily,” Luke replied, with disbelief and anger. “You don’t have the right to take him away from us!”

“I have every right!” Lily had shot back. “I’m doing this for him and for his future. To get him away from you and this toxic mess you call a family!”

Noah sniffled, burying his face into her lap, his small body trembling. “Mommy… I don’t want to go.”

Tears welled in her eyes as she kissed the top of his head. “You won’t, Noah. I promise. No one is taking you away.”

But how could she promise that when everything screamed otherwise?

And then- three knocks at the door.

Noah’s head shot up. “It’s big brother!” he exclaimed.

She froze for a moment, then hurried to her feet, wiping her tears.

Opening the door, she gasped. “Ash! Oh my God, what happened?!”

Her son stood there, battered and bruised, blood dried on his face, his clothes torn. He leaned on the door. He looked like he had been through hell and back.

“Ash…” Her voice broke as she reached for him.

Noah peeked out from behind her, his voice small and scared. “Big brother… are you okay?”

Ash didn’t answer.

‘What happened to him?! Who did this? Looks like he fought someone…’

“Dammit, dad! Why are you making things harder for me?!”

Ash flinched at the sound, and then, slowly, he turned his head. “Mom…What is Lily…doing here?”

His voice sounded hoarse, as if he was summoning all his energy to utter a single word.

She could see it in Ash’s eyes- the exhaustion, the hurt.

“Ash, please, what happened? Who did this to you?”

He blinked, meeting her gaze for a second before looking away. “I’m fine…but why is Lily…here?” he muttered.

His mother placed a gentle hand on his arm, her eyes filled with worry. “Ash, you’re not fine. Look at you-”

Inside, Lily screamed again, her words cold.

“Shut it, you old hag!”

Ash flinched. His mother’s voice trembled. “Ash… please, talk to me. I need to know what’s going on.”

Ash moved past her, and then to the lounge, it looked like he was dragging his way there, and then he stopped at the doorstep.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He stepped inside, his eyes scanning the scene before him.

Lily stood in the center of the room, her arms crossed, her expression a mix of anger and hatred. Luke was sitting on the edge of the couch, his head in his hands, silent and defeated.

‘I didn’t want this,’ Ash thought bitterly. ‘I didn’t want to come home to this disaster. I just… wanted to rest. To forget.’

Forget the pain in his head, the throbbing in his leg, Lucas’s words.

“I am taking Noah, and that’s final!” Lily’s voice echoed, and Ash blinked.

‘Noah…? What does she mean by taking Noah?’

Ash turned to see his mom, who was standing at one corner of the room, tears brimming at the corner of her eyes, Noah standing beside her, his fists clenching the hem of his shirt.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“Mom…what does she mean?”

His mom flinched, as if wanting not to tell him, but then she bit her lip, and said, “Ash…she wants to…take Noah with her.”

‘What the-’

“What does that mean…?” He asked, although he was understanding her purpose.

Noah ran to him, and clutched his trousers, and then whimpered, “Big brother…I don’t wanna leave…”

Ash looked down to him, and then to his mom, “Why…?”

“C’mon Noah, you’re coming with me!” Lily snapped, keeping her gaze locked into her father’s, who just sighed and stood up.

He had hoped that the shouting would have stopped by now. But it hadn’t.

Lily was pacing now, her sharp words directed at Luke. “You think you can just guilt me into staying? Into pretending like nothing ever happened?”

Luke’s silence was louder than any shout he could have mustered.

Ash’s gaze swept over the scene again. He didn’t want to be here, didn’t want to be part of this. But he was.

“Dad…” The word slipped from his lips, barely more than a whisper.

Lily froze mid-step, her head snapping toward him. Luke slowly looked up, his face etched with exhaustion and pain.

Ash stood in the doorway, his battered form clearly visible.

“What the hell happened to you?” Lily asked, her voice sharp but with something softer- concern, perhaps.

Luke’s eyes widened as he took in Ash’s appearance. “Ash…What happened?”

‘I come home…only to find my family being torn apart by none other than my beloved big sister? …Can today get any worse?’

“Nothing…happened,” Ash said, keeping his gaze fixed on his dad, and then looked at Lily. “What do you think…you’re doing?”

Lily flinched, and then moved closer to Ash, and grabbed his arm, then said in a softer voice. “Asher…You understand me, don’t you? Dad and mom deserve to know what I felt, right?”

‘What…is she saying?’

Ash looked at his dad, who only sighed and lowered his gaze. He then felt someone tug at his trousers, he looked at Noah, who seemed like he had been scared for his life.

“Big brother, she says she wants to take me…with her.”

Ash crouched down slightly, his trembling hand resting on Noah’s shoulder. His voice came out hoarse, barely above a whisper. “W-what…do you mean, Noah? Why…does she want to take you?”

Noah looked at him with wide, frightened eyes, his small hand clutching Ash’s sleeve. “She said… she wants to take me away… to protect me.”

‘Protect him?…From what?’

Ash’s gaze shifted to Lily, his mind foggy with pain, his head throbbing. “P-protect him?” he rasped, struggling to straighten up. “By… t-taking him…away?”

Lily sighed, exasperated, her arms crossed. “Yes, Ash. Someone has to. Look around- this house, this family, it’s toxic. Noah doesn’t deserve to grow up in this chaos. I’ll protect him.”

‘Protection…Lucas… he said the same thing. That he wanted to protect me from Blake and bullies. But why…do people think taking things away is the same as protecting them?’

Ash looked up at her, “Noah…is perfectly fine here. You don’t…have to do anything like taking him away. B-Besides, he doesn’t want to go.”

Lily glared at him, “You don’t know. The moment Noah grows up, mom and dad will ruin him!”

‘I’ve had enough of this-’

Ash sighed, his leg throbbing, “Lily…I’m not ruined,” Lily’s eyes widened, “You’re only using Noah as a way to take revenge from dad. It’s…not dad’s fault.”

Lily chuckled darkly, “Yeah? You only think this because dad brain-washed you. Dad is a maniac, when will you realize it?”

Luke took a step forward, his hands raised slightly as if to calm Lily down. “Lily, please. I’ve made mistakes, I’m a terrible father - I know that. But I promise, I have no intention of ruining anyone, least of all my children.” His voice was steady, but there was a hint of desperation in his eyes.

Their mother stepped in, her voice trembling. “Lily… I’m sorry too. For everything. I know we weren’t perfect, and maybe we’ve hurt you in ways we can’t even understand. But please, leave Noah out of this. Don’t take him away. He’s happy here, with us.”

Ash leaned heavily against the wall, his body barely holding up, but his voice broke through. “L-Lily… Noah doesn’t…want to leave. You know that.”

Lily’s glare hardened, her hands balling into fists. “You’re all just blind. Blind to what this family has done to me! Blind to what this house does to everyone who stays in it!”

Ash shook his head weakly, his breath labored. “You’re wrong…I won’t let you take…Noah.”

Lily laughed bitterly, taking a step back. “You all think you’re so righteous, but everyone here knows this family is a wrecked ship! Everyone…hates me!”

‘She’s…wrong. No one…not even dad hates her.’

Luke’s face fell. “Lily, I don’t hate-”

“Of course, you do! You are the worst, dad!”

Ash looked at her, and only one word came to his mind.

‘Family…’

Lily took another step back, her eyes darting around the room as if searching for something. And then, almost like a reflex, her hand shot out, grabbing a glass vessel from the nearby table. “I hate you!” she screamed, hurling the glass down.

Everyone flinched. Shards of glass scattered across the floor.

“Look out!” Ash gasped, immediately reaching for his little brother. Noah let out a frightened scream, burying his face into their mother’s arms.

“Lily!” their mother cried, her voice breaking. “What are you doing?”

Luke’s eyes widened in horror, “Lily, my daughter-”

“Don’t call me your daughter!” Lily cut him off, her chest heaving, her hands shaking. “You said you cared about me, huh dad? Well, let's see how much you care!”

‘...What is she playing at?’

Lily picks up a piece of glass from the ground, and holds it dangerously close to her throat- everyone in the room goes death silent upon understanding what she was about to do.

“Let’s say, by a miracle, dad does care about me,” she said, her voice trembling, “Then he’ll let me take Noah. Or else, he’ll see his first-born take her own life right here, right now.”

Her breath was ragged. No one replied, everyone just stood there, pleading Lily to stop. Ash’s heart pounded in his chest, a cold sweat breaking out across his skin. ‘No, not like this.’

Noah was sobbing now, his face was streaked with tears, his wide eyes filled with fear. "Mom… Big brother…” His voice cracked, barely audible.

Lily’s mother was trembling, her hands shaking as she reached out to her daughter, her voice barely a whisper. “Lily… please. Don’t do this… we’re your family… we’re trying to help.”

But Lily didn’t listen. She stood there, the glass still pressed against her skin, her eyes wild, desperate for something, anything - to make sense of the pain, of the mess that was their family.

"You all destroyed me! And now you want me to let you keep Noah?!" She screamed, her voice cracking.

Luke stood frozen, horrified. His hands trembled at his sides, and his mouth opened and closed, struggling for words that didn’t come.

Ash, his own body aching with every movement, couldn’t help but stare at his sister, and at the piece of glass now inches away from her throat. ‘Why does she always have to push everything so far?’ His mind screamed at him. ‘Why can’t she just understand?’

His hands clenched into fists at his sides. He wanted to shout, to stop her, but the words caught in his throat. He felt helpless-

.

.

You are pathetic.

.

.

Pathetic, that’s what he was.

He was a mess, he couldn't fix this. He couldn’t make it stop. Every attempt he had ever made to hold things together had only made everything worse. ‘I'm a mess, a pathetic fool.’ he thought again, the words gnawing at him like a constant reminder of his own helplessness.

It was all falling apart, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

And worse, the fear began to creep in.

What if Lily actually went through with it?

What if she really hurt herself?

What if she took Noah?

What if he lost them both?

His stomach turned. His limbs felt heavy, like lead. He was too tired to think, too scared to breathe. He had no chance of winning this time, not against Lily, not against his own feelings.

Every choice felt like a no-win situation. If he stopped Lily from taking Noah, then he'd lose her for sure. But if he let her go, he’d lose Noah.

His parents- his mom, his dad- looked desperate, pleading with Lily. And Ash... he was too broken to do anything. What if he just let her go?