Reject's POV

When we got back to the house it was dark outside.  Really dark.  Except for the light in the windows, I couldn't tell what anything was.  That slightly scared me.  I'm more vulnerable now.  I stayed close to Ashton.

"It's okay Rae," He assured me, "There's nothing hiding in the dark that will hurt you."  But I wasn't so sure.  There was something out there.

We opened the door and went into the house.  The rest of the guys were eating pizza on the kitchen table.

"Hey guys!" Calum cheerfully greeted us, "Want some food?"

"Sure." Ashton said and sat down at the table, "Rae?"

They probably contaminated that food.  You can't trust them.  They're trying to get rid of you.

I shook my head.  No food.  I didn't want to believe the voice, but it could be right.  What if they are actually trying to poison me?

"Okay, that's fine.  Just come up if you want anything."

I went down to my studio and over to the closet where my colored pencils and sketchbook were.  But then I stopped just as I was about to turn the handle.  What if something is in there?  I've been hearing the voice a lot.  What if they're hiding in there?  My hand shook as I turned the handle. 

Something fell from the top shelf and shattered on the floor. Oh my God, it's them!  They put it up there!  I up to the living room.  I just have to get out of there before they get me. 

"Rae?  What's wrong?  What happened?" Ashton immediately rushed to my side, the rest of the guys following close behind him.  "Are you okay?"

No no no.  I scooted farther away.  They're too close to me.  I feel like the walls are closing in.  Everything just keeps getting tighter and tighter.

"Give her some space." Ashton said.  The rest of the guys moved back.  "Rae, what happened?"

"M-My studio," I mumbled, "S-Something was there."  Shit!  I talked.  I really shouldn't have talked.  They're going to kill me for talking.  Oh my God I screw everything up.  Everything!

"Go took a look down in the studio." Ashton instructed Calum, who immediately jogged down the hallway.

Rae...

I felt hot breath on the back of my neck.  I jumped away from the wall that I was against, and landed right next to Ashton.

"Hey, sweetheart.  You're okay." He pulled me closer to him.  His touch felt like fire, and not in a good way.  I struggled out of his grasp and pressed myself into a corner of the room.  It was then I started crying.  I don't know why.  It was almost like I wasn't in control of my emotions.

"There's nobody in the practice room," I heard Calum say, "There was a broken mug and paintbrushes on the floor, though.  And one of the cupboards was open."

"What if the mug or whatever fell when she opened the cupboard?" Luke said.

"That must be it.  Rae, the mug fell when you opened the cupboard.  There was no one actually in the room.  Nobody is going to hurt you."

Lies.  All lies.  It was me.  You know that.

I was torn.  Should I believe the boys or the voice?  I don't know.  Am I shaking or is the whole room collapsing on itself?  I managed to look up at the guys.  They were all staring at me and looked really concerned.  I saw a shadow flash by Calum.  They're here.  In the same room as me.

Did you see me there?  I'm here with you.

"G-Go away." I whispered.

Stop talking.  Your father would beat you when you talked.  Don't expect them to be any different.

The silent tears turned into sobs.  I hate it.  I hate it so much.  I want to trust the boys, but every time I try the voice always says something and I'm back to square one.  I hate it I hate I hate it.

"I don't need you." I said aloud, not caring if anyone was going to hurt me.  I need the it out.  Maybe doing the opposite of what it says will make it go away.

You're so stupid.  The more you talk the more I'm going to stay.  I'm never going away.

I shut up for good.  It's right.  There's no hope.  I'm going to be living with it forever.

"Let me try." I felt a presence beside me.  Instinctively, I moved away.

"It's Michael.  I swear I'm not going to hit you.  I'm worried about you, love.  You're crying really hard."  I felt my shoulders loosen.  It's just Michael.

"We're all really concerned," He continued, "We've never seen you cry like this.  Are you scared?  What happening?  Is there anything we can do to help?"

I reached over and gripped Michael's hand in mine.  Every fiber of my body was screaming at me not to do it, but I pushed all those aside.

"You can hold my hand if it helps.  You can even hug me if you want."

The tears starting coming faster than before.  But these tears weren't out of fear.  I moved closer to Michael and allowed him to put his arms around me.

"There we go.  You're safe." He pulled me into his chest and rested his chin on the top of my head.  "Everything will be okay."

Michael's POV

I could feel Rae trembling against me.  I've never seen her act like this.  Is she having a panic attack?  No, it can't be a panic attack.  Those aren't nearly this bad.

Rae pulled away from my hug.  Her cheeks were tearstained and her hair was a mess.

"Better?" I asked her softly.  She shrugged.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Rae shook her head and pulled her knees up to her chest.  She took a few shaky breaths in and out.  I handed Rae her whiteboard.

Can I go up to my room?

"Yeah, of course.  Are you sure that you'll be okay?"  I asked her, "I don't want you freaking out again."

I'll be fine.  Goodnight.

"What just happened?" Calum asked us as soon Rae was out of earshot.

"I'm not sure." Ashton said, "But did any of you notice that she talked?  She said 'Go away' and 'I don't need you'."

"Was she talking to us?"

Ashton shook his head, "I don't think so.  She wasn't looking at any of us.  When said it she was sorta looking off into the distance, like she wasn't specifically focusing on anything."

"What if she hears voices?" I said aloud.    Now that I think about it, it wasn't something that was out of the picture.  I couldn't get that picture that she made out of my mind.  Those figures, they were so dark and menacing.  They were so real.  A person can't just draw those demons without having some sort personal experience with them.

Luke snorted, "Voices?  I don't think so.  She's not insane."

"But just think about it."  Ashton said quietly, "If she wasn't talking to us, then who was she talking to?"

We were all silent for a moment.  Ashton had a good point.  She's never said anything to any of us before.  I highly doubt she'd decide to break the silence in the middle of a breakdown.  Sometimes when we were all doing something together she'd just stop and have this terrified look on her face.

Normal 13 year olds don't do that.  Rae is struggling with something way more complex than anxiety.

"She's not insane." Luke repeated, "They didn't give us an insane kid.  If she did hear voices, wouldn't the agency would have told us about it?"

"Not necessarily," Ashton said, "What if she never told them about it?  They only know what she tells them."

"Well, what we going to do?" Luke threw his hands up in the air, "Are going to take her to a therapist or something?"

"We should wait for a little while.  I mean, you guys could be wrong.  That could have just been a panic attack." Calum said, "We shouldn't rush anything."

The rest of us nodded.  Calum was right.  We shouldn't jump to conclusions.  It could just be anxiety.  Just anxiety.

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Looks like the boys are catching on

Awe but Michael is so cute tho

Frens don't forget to vote :D