I BLEED FOR HIM

Chapter 6

Bryan Pov

_Chimes_

A ping from my phone. Who could it be?

*From Jake:* Have you seen today’s news?

*From Bryan:* Which video?

I was trying to reply Jake when an officer raced to my side.

"Everyone, there’s a video going around about your brother," the officer glanced at me fearfully.

"What the hell is this video, and why are you so hesitant to speak?"

"Just come and watch it."

I followed him, trying to imagine what could be in the video for him to be that afraid to speak.

He led me to a room. We stepped inside, and all eyes focused on me — some with pity, others with suspicion.

"Show me already. Why are you all looking like that?"

I was shocked, to say the least. In the video, my brother was pushing his best friend off the stairs. I stood there, dumbfounded. The phone slipped from my hand.

"He actually did it. Just who is the boy I called my brother, and how deep in a mess is he?" I rasped as I raced out of the house.

The captain came to my side and patted my back. "What’s your decision? Will you still partake in this investigation or withdraw? I will respect your decision. But you know, if you partake, your brother is a criminal and must be apprehended."

I couldn’t reply. Too many emotions were racing in my head.

I need out.

I took my car and went home.

What will Mom think when she watches this video? She’ll be heartbroken. She believes her son wouldn’t do it.

When I got home, I saw my mom glaring at her phone. "My son will never do this. He is too sweet to kill his friend."

"Mom! Maybe it’s high time we admit that the sweet young boy may have been corrupted and is now a murderer," I shouted.

I looked at her. She looked so tired and had lost a lot of weight, with the disappearance of her son and now with him being the one who pushed his friend.

She looked at me. "It’s my fault," she whispered. "I saw the signs. He doesn’t eat and he fidgets when being shouted at, but I thought he was just growing."

I hugged her as she sobbed in my chest. Her breathing quickened and she fell asleep. I carried her to her room and laid her down.

When I walked out, I came across my brother, Jake.

"Did he do it? You know he would never do it without someone bothering him. I know him. He’s naive, but he can be stupid and make bad decisions. So please, save him," Jake whispered, tears blurring his eyes. This was the first time I’d actually seen him drop his big-boy attitude and cry.

I patted his back and led him to his room.

Should I continue or stop? This is getting out of hand, and I don’t think I can handle my brother being a killer.

---

*Zayn POV*

The air feels suffocating. Nurses whisper and avert their eyes when they come to check on me. I could see my mother’s shock when a message came in on her phone.

I questioned her with my eyes.

"Nothing," she replied quickly, pocketing her phone and wiping her eyes. "I just saw some disturbing post online. You wouldn’t want to waste your time watching those."

I didn’t believe her. Whatever shook her wasn’t just some disturbing post. The whispering of the nurses was grating on my nerves.

I’d been on an IV since every meal I ate, I puked it back up. It got so bad that I tried to kill myself twice.

"Do you really want to die?" Mom asked me.

I nodded, not missing the pain flashing through her eyes.

"What about what Louis did to you? Are you just going to forget everything and move on?"

She wasn’t speaking like my mom.

I tried to retreat back into my shell.

She screamed at me, "You will answer me when I question you! Do you want revenge for what Louis did to you? I need your words."

"Yes," I answered, my voice hoarse since I hadn’t done much talking.

"I’ll show you something. Whenever you feel down, watch this and live for revenge. I know it may sound toxic and unhealthy, but use this and channel your anger into making him pay."

My hands shook as she handed me her phone. I could see a blurry picture of Louis and me. The video captured his face, but not clearly. My breath quickened as I replayed the memory. The phone slipped from my hand as I grabbed my head, like my skull was being cracked open.

The memory began to replay.

"M...ake it stop," I screamed, my voice laced with pain. "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

I began to hit my head against the rail. Blood began to gush out.

"Doctor! Doctor! Help! My son is dying!" Mom panted in panic.

I couldn’t feel anything. I just wanted to crawl out of my body. The doctor had to sedate me, and I was placed in intensive care.

"Waking up is in his hands," the doctor dropped the bombshell, and my mom passed out.