As I'm scurrying out of Noah's room, I manage to locate the exit with ease. However, before I throw the door open and make my great escape, I find myself skidding to a halt, eyes transfixed on a photo of the boy when he was younger mounted up on the wall. The imaginary jackhammer appears again, drilling holes the size of Jupiter into my skull without mercy. I shake my head, as if doing so would help me somehow, before I stagger outside. I don't know what's going on, but I'm determined to get to the bottom of this. And I know the perfect place to start.

After I find my way home, thanks to Google Maps and the public transportation system, I inhale deeply before I twist the doorknob. You can do this, Rory. My parents are both in the living room and my mom sends me a smile. "Where have you been, sweetheart?" She might have problems of her own, but my mom never fails to show me her unconditional love. At least, when she's home that is.

Most of the time, she's out and about, doing god knows what. I've never told her about all of the awful things my sisters would say to me because I know there's not much she could do about it. She's old now. I don't want to burden her with my issues. Besides, if she does say something to them, it would probably piss them off, giving them another reason to treat me like I'm nothing.

"I have a question," I breathe out calmly, "for the both of you." I step in front of my dad and he tears his eyes from the television screen and place them on me instead. "I was in an accident when I was 12, wasn't I?" I notice both of their eyes widening and that's the only confirmation I need to know that everything Noah told me is true.

I might be crazy for believing a guy, who claims we'd been good friends when I couldn't even remember him, but sometimes, you have to have blind-faith in a person. If we don't, the world would undoubtedly be a hopeless place where nobody could be trusted. I don't know about you, but that's not the kind of place I want to live in. "Why didn't you guys tell me?" I question.

"We didn't have a reason to," my dad answers.

I scoff, my head falling back for a quick second. "Are you kidding me? That's the best answer you could come up with?" I didn't mean to raise my voice at him, but the damage is already done.

Next, my dad stands up with a hardened expression plastered on his face. "You were the one running around, getting tangled up with the wrong crowd, Rory! All we were trying to do was protect you!" he shouts, the veins in his neck protruding out.

"Take a deep breath, Rory. Your dad and I thought we were doing what was best for you. That boy was no good for you. Let's calm down and talk about this in a civil manner," my mom urges as she tries to reach for my hand.

Violently, I yank away. "Protect me from what?" I yell, tears welling up in my eyes. "The only people I need protection from are the ones living under this roof!" My chest heaves up and down in ragged pattern as I attempt to keep the tears from falling. I can't cry. I refuse to. I've wasted enough tears because of these people already.

"What are you talking about, baby? Why would you need protection from your own family?" That's right. I can't expect my mom to understand. She's barely here. Sometimes, it's like she doesn't even live with us.

"Family?" I repeat, a rancid taste lingers on my tongue. "Open your eyes already, would you? What kind of family is this? You and dad are always fighting about money, my so-called sisters are constantly putting me down while the other half of my siblings are nowhere to be found!" I can't hold it back anymore. Like he said, it's better to get everything out into the open before it's too late. I don't want to yell at my parents, but there's no other way to get through to them. This is my only option. This is the only way they'll listen.

"What's with all of the yelling?" Elise, Amy and Sadie appear with bags of clothing in their hands. Figures they went shopping without me. Then again, what was I expecting?

I turn to them, hurt written all over my face. "What's wrong with you guys?" I scream.

"What the hell is your problem?" Elise barks.

"You are!" I storm up to them and glare as fiercely as I could. "You guys are always saying something to me and it's never anything nice! Do you think I want to hear how stupid and undeserving I am from people who don't even understand what the word compassion means? Do you guys hate me that much? What did I ever do to you? Do I have to die for you to wake up and change your ways?"

"Whoa." Amy cuts in and shakes her head . "Why are you being dramatic, Rory? It's our job to make your life hell. We're siblings. What's dying have to do with any of this?"

"Are you kidding me? That's such bullshit!" I explode, stunning them. "What? Did you guys regret all of the crap you put me through when you saw me laying on that hospital bed? If it takes me ending up in the emergency room, unconscious, for you to realize how terrible you've treated me, it says a lot about you guys."

"You don't know how we feel. You're not us!" defends Sadie.

"Then do you know how I felt every time you guys slapped me with an insult?" I retort, my blood boiling. "You're just doing your job as my siblings you say?"—I shift to stare at Amy—"As if! You guys were just feeling guilty! You didn't yell at Noah because you worried about me. You were worried about yourselves and your consciences. You were scared of what people might think of you if they found out how horrible you were to me. That's all there is to it. If you really regretted everything you put me through, you would have changed. You would have treated me better. But you didn't."

My life is a complete mess. How twisted is this? How could they try to justify their actions in such a manner? Could my family get any more dysfunctional than this? I understand sometimes siblings bicker and banter, but usually it's a give and take scenario and that's not what took place between us. It has been all one-sided on their part. What they've done to me is cruel. Although they have only abused me with words, to me, it makes no difference.

Abuse is abuse.

"From now on, just please leave me alone," I declare before I go to my room, locking myself inside.

I might not ever be able to fathom what is going on in their brains, but I don't need to. Because sometimes, although actions can speak louder than words, words can still be deadly.

* * *

After the big confrontation at my house, things have been quiet. None of my sisters bothers me anymore and to be frank, it feels nice to have some peace and serenity for once in my life. My mom and dad haven't been arguing either and I can't help but feel like they've decided to set aside their differences for me. They still talk to me, and of course I respond. They are the people who raised me. Without them, I wouldn't even be alive. I'm not going to blame them for being oblivious to what had been going on between my sisters and I. I'm just glad they know now.

I'm also glad I found my voice. Glad I found me, the real me.

At school, Peyton and Maria have noticed my timid attitude and this time, when they ask me if something is wrong, I don't try to hide it. I don't force myself to put on a fake smile, acting as if everything in my life is wonderful. Because it isn't and it's okay. So I tell them what has been bothering me. I don't go into much detail. I just give them the general overview of me having a nasty fight with my family. One step at a time. It'll take a while, but eventually, I hope I'll be able to be honest with them about everything.

Noah hasn't been around lately either and my friends have been asking about him as well. All I could offer up is a shrug of the shoulders, and surprisingly enough, the answer seems to satisfy them. I never did explain to them what's been going on with the two of us. Where would I even begin? Hell, my memories from that eventful summer still hasn't returned in its entirety. I mean, I see tiny snippets here and there, but never a complete recollection. I don't know if I will ever recall the bond we used to share but should that really matter?

To be honest, I miss him. I miss him lot actually.

I want to see him, hold him, kiss him, tell him everything's going to be alright but I can't. Because even I don't know if everything will be alright. This is for the best. For the time being, I think it'll be smart if we both stayed away from each other. My brain still needs time to digest and adjust to everything that's happened within the last two weeks. However, deep down, I can't help but worry about him.

Has he eaten today?

Did he dress warmly since it's cold out?

What about the ordeal with his biological mother?

Like a mindless zombie, I make my way towards the library, my books clutched to my chest. After returning the items that are due to the clerk, I head to the aisle in the back to find another world I could jump into, leaving the one I'm stuck in, even if it's only for a brief period of time. My heart stops, however, when I see Noah sitting on the floor, his back pressed up against the wall and a book opened up in his lap. But it isn't just any ordinary book. It's the book that started all of this.

Our meeting, just like the time we had spent apart, had been bittersweet.

"You were wrong," I say, revealing myself. He immediately lifts his head up and we lock gazes. "They don't love me. They love themselves. But that's how the world works. Until college, I will just have to steer clear from them."

"Rory," he whispers in awe.

My fingers lock together behind my back. "Can I join you?"

He nods. "Of course."

Carefully, I get down and sit next to him. "I wanted to say thank you," I announce. "You know, for giving me back a piece of me that's been missing all these years. So, thank you for coming back to me, Noah Costa."

"I should be the one saying thank you. You were the one who saved me. You were the one who made me realize that life's worth living because of the people that are in it." There's a prolonged pause exchanged between the two of us before he resumes. "So what do we do now?" That's a good question.

I take the book from his hands and close it. "We learn from the past, forget about the future,"—I pause and turn to look at him—"and focus on the present."

Because the reality is, if we dwell too long on the past without learning from our mistakes, we'll unknowingly allow the same mishaps to dictate our futures. But on the other hand, if we think too much about what we want our futures to look like, we'll forget to live life and miss out on everything that's right in front of us. And right in front of me is a boy who is part of my past, part of my present, and possibly, even part of my future. Who knows?

We'll have to wait and see.

For the first time, in what feels like a very long time, I flash Noah a small, placid and genuine smile, knowing well that he can decipher what it means, what he means to me.

I N C I P E R E

- - -

Author's Thoughts: It's the end! I don't know if it was good or not, I hope it was. To explain Rory's sisters, we will never be able to understand fully why they did what they did to her because this is only Rory's perspective. Who knows, maybe they are not as bad as they seem or maybe they've got issues of their own. However, her words finally got through to them. After the confrontation, Rory has also learned to be more expressive, which is good as well.

Yes, the ending is open, left to your interpretations. Do Noah and Rory end up together? Or do they stay friends? You tell me! Totally love this song too <3. I think it fits these two perfectly. Should I write a special chapter with Noah's perspective?

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. Please vote and comment if you'd like.