Pretty Things Bleed Too

Luca's Rage

I floated home that night like I was in a dream. My lips still tingled from where Damian’s breath had brushed them. My cheek still felt warm from his gentle touches. The festival lights were still sparkling behind my eyes, and for once, the usual heavy weight in my chest felt lighter. I had smiled. A real smile. And Damian had smiled back. He even let me put eyeliner on him like it was the most normal thing in the world. Like I wasn’t a freak. Like I was… special.

I touched my wrist absentmindedly. The bruises from yesterday were still there, but they didn’t hurt as much when I remembered Damian’s promise. “Nobody touches what’s mine.” Those words kept replaying in my head like my favorite song. I caught myself smiling again as I turned the corner to our street. Stupid. Dangerous. But I couldn’t stop.

The second I stepped inside the house, the dream cracked.

Luca was waiting.

He was sitting on the couch, legs spread wide, scrolling on his phone with that mean look on his face. Dad was passed out in the armchair like usual, snoring loud with a beer bottle still in his hand. The house smelled like smoke and old food. My safe little bubble from the festival popped instantly.

“You’re late,” Luca growled without even looking up at first. His voice was low and rough. “Where the f**k were you, princess?”

I froze in the doorway, clutching my bag tighter. “School festival. It ran late. I texted Dad but he didn’t reply…”

Luca finally looked up. His eyes narrowed the second they landed on me. I saw the exact moment something in him snapped. Maybe it was the tiny bit of glitter still on my cheeks from the booth. Or the way my lips were extra glossy because I kept reapplying thinking about Damian. Or maybe it was just the smile I couldn’t wipe off my face fast enough.

“You’re smiling,” he said. Like it was the worst thing I could possibly do. He stood up slowly, towering over me. “The f**k you got to smile about, huh?”

My heart started racing. I backed up a step but the door was behind me. “N-nothing. Just… it was a good day. That’s all.”

Luca laughed, but it wasn’t funny. It was mean and sharp and made my stomach twist. He stepped closer, eyes roaming over me like he was looking for proof I didn’t belong here. “A good day? Because of that Valenti asshole? I heard s**t at school. You letting him touch you now? Parading around like his little b***h?”

I shook my head fast, tears already burning. “He’s just… he’s protecting me. That’s it. Please, Luca, I didn’t do anything wrong—”

“Protecting you?” He grabbed my hoodie collar and yanked me forward so hard my feet almost left the ground. His face was inches from mine. I could smell the anger on him. Sweat and something darker. “You think somebody actually wants you now? Huh? You think that rich pretty-boy mafia wannabe gives a f**k about a worthless little slut like you?”

His words cut deeper than any slap. I whimpered, trying to pull away, but his grip was iron. “Luca, stop… you’re hurting me…”

“Good.” He slammed me against the wall. My back hit hard and pain exploded up my spine. “You’ve been different lately. Walking around with your head up. Wearing that stupid gloss like you’re hot s**t. Smiling like someone actually wants your pathetic ass.” His voice dropped lower, almost a whisper. “You’re mine to break. Not his.”

My eyes widened. The way he said “mine” sounded wrong. Not like brotherly. Not like family. It sounded possessive. Obsessed. Like he hated me but couldn’t stand anyone else having me. It made my skin crawl.

“Luca… please…” I begged, voice cracking. Tears were falling now, ruining my gloss. “I’m sorry. I’ll stop smiling. I’ll stop everything. Just don’t—”

He backhanded me across the face. Hard. My head snapped to the side and I tasted blood on my lip. The sting was instant. I slid down the wall a little, holding my cheek.

“You think you can just change?” he snarled, grabbing my hair and forcing me to look at him. “You think putting on makeup and letting that bastard touch you makes you special? You’re still the same disgusting pretty boy we took in. The same weak little b***h who cries every night.”

His fingers tightened in my hair. Pain shot through my scalp. But worse than the pain was the look in his eyes. It wasn’t just anger anymore. There was jealousy. Hunger. Something twisted and broken that made me feel sick to my stomach.

“I hate how you look at him,” Luca whispered. His face was too close. His breath hot against my skin. “All soft and hopeful. You never looked at me like that. Never.”

My heart stopped. What was he saying?

Before I could process it, he shoved me harder against the wall. His body pressed against mine, trapping me. One of his hands grabbed my wrist, squeezing right over the old bruises. I cried out in pain.

“Luca, stop! You’re scaring me!”

“Good,” he hissed. “You should be scared. Because if Valenti thinks he can have you, he’s wrong. You belong here. With me. Getting what you deserve.”

He raised his hand again. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the next hit.

But it didn’t come.

Instead, the front door slammed open so hard it sounded like it cracked.

“Get your f*****g hands off him.”

Damian’s voice was ice cold. Deadly.

I opened my eyes. Damian stood in the doorway like a shadow come to life. His eyes were pure rage. Fists clenched. The eyeliner I put on him earlier was still there, making him look even more terrifying. Like a beautiful demon ready to destroy everything.

Luca froze. For the first time ever, I saw fear flash across my adoptive brother’s face. But he didn’t let me go. “This is my house. My brother. Mind your own f*****g business, Valenti.”

Damian stepped inside without hesitation. The air got thicker. Scarier. “He’s not your brother. And he’s sure as hell not yours.” His voice dropped dangerously low. “Touch him again and I’ll make sure you never use that hand.”

Luca laughed, but it sounded nervous. He finally shoved me away. I stumbled and almost fell, but Damian caught me in one smooth move, pulling me behind him protectively. His arm wrapped around my waist like steel.

“You okay?” he asked me softly, eyes never leaving Luca.

I nodded against his back, shaking. “Y-yeah…”

Dad was still snoring, completely useless like always. Typical.

Luca glared at us, chest heaving. “You think you’re saving him? He’s broken. Worthless. One day you’ll get tired of his crying and throw him away just like everyone else.”

Damian’s whole body tensed. I felt it. He took one step forward, ready to attack, but I grabbed his sleeve. “Don’t… please. Not worth it.”

For a second I thought he’d ignore me and beat Luca anyway. But he stayed. For me.

“Get the f**k out of my house,” Luca spat.

Damian just smiled. Cold. Dangerous. “This stops tonight. I’m watching you, Reyes. Every move. Every bruise. Every tear. If I see one more mark on him, you’re dead.”

He turned, keeping me tucked against his side, and walked me out of the house. I didn’t even fight it. I just clung to him, tears streaming down my face as we stepped into the cool night air.

We didn’t go far. Just to his black car parked down the street. He helped me into the passenger seat like I was made of glass. Then he got in and slammed the door. For a long moment, it was silent except for my quiet sobs.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I didn’t want you to see that. I’m so embarrassing…”

“Stop.” Damian reached over and gently wiped my tears with his thumb. His touch was so soft compared to Luca’s violence. “None of this is your fault. You hear me? None of it.”

He started the car and drove. Not toward my house. Just… away. We ended up at this quiet spot overlooking the city. He parked and pulled me into his lap right there in the driver’s seat. I curled up against his chest, hiding my face in his neck.

“You look better smiling,” he whispered, stroking my hair. “So smile for me again, Kai. Even if it’s small.”

I tried. Through the tears and the pain and the fear, I smiled. Small and broken, but real.

Damian kissed my forehead. Then my temple. Then the corner of my bruised lip, so gently it barely hurt. “I’ve got you now. No one’s ever going to hurt you like that again.”

I wanted to believe him so badly. But deep down, I knew Luca’s rage was only getting worse. There was something twisted in the way he looked at me tonight. Something that went way beyond normal brother hate.

That night, after Damian drove me to a safe hotel and paid for the room himself (he refused to let me go home), I lay in the big clean bed and opened my laptop.

VelvetGhost got a new post.

[Image: A boy covered in bruises, but black roses blooming from every wound. A devil’s hand gently touching one of the roses, turning the blood into something beautiful.]

Caption:

“he saw the monster tonight.

my own brother.

the way he touched me felt wrong. like hate mixed with something darker.

but my devil came. held me. kissed my tears.

i’m scared. so scared.

but for the first time… i feel like maybe i’m worth saving.

pretty things bleed too.

but maybe this time the bleeding will be worth it.”

I posted it and cried myself to sleep in the fancy hotel bed that smelled like safety and Damian’s cologne.

Luca’s rage was just beginning.

And the real darkness in our story was only starting to wake up.