*mikes pov*

Why in the Hell did I just do that? I mean, I am a man of no regrets, but if Molly found out I even tried to kiss someone who wasn't her, I don't know what she would do. She already thinks I'm cheating on her because I don't spend every waking second with her. I know if I did kiss her, I would technically be cheating and I am not a cheat. I would never ever do that to someone, I don't even know what I was thinking, the worst part is I know I would do it again, in a heartbeat any day, anywhere. And that worries me, because one day soon someone won't be knocking at the door at the right moment.

During this debate in my head I think I heard Beth shout up to but I didn't catch what she said, It probably doesn't matter anyway.

"And he's hurt!" I got the just of what she said before and that once again had me running down the stairs, taking two at a time until I was standing facing my big brother and 'hurt' is an understatement of what he looked like. Vic was almost unrecognizable, his face was a mix of black and blue mainly around his eyes and nose, anywhere that wasn't black or blue was red, running from his forehead, nose and lip. I couldn't even bring myself to look farther down because I literally think I would have broken down just then.

He didn't make much noise as me and Beth shared his weight, he is so skinny I'm sure Beth could have managed on her own but it would hurt him less with the both of us. We stopped in front of the sofa while she covered it with a blanket so she doesn't get blood and stuff all over the sofa. Laying him down was hard for him but he looked like he melted into the sofa once he was there.

I would have thought Austin would have some more sense to mess with Vic again; I mean, I can be pretty convincing, in a dark ally, in the middle of the night, when no one is looking, anyway.

*flashback*

And. If. You. Ever. Even. Consider. Touching. My. Brother. Again. I. Will. Put. You. In. Hospital. Do. You. Understand? I practically growled in between punches to Austin Carlile's already bleeding face. He was a mess, much worse than he has done to Vic but he deserves it. He is the reason Vic doesn't want to go to school. He was the reason Vic shuts himself away in his room and he is the one responsible for the scars on his arms.

I walked away from his bleeding body, still slumped against the wall before I do more than I intended. I was already a few feet away before I heard his voice ringing in my ears, taunting me from all the way behind me.

"Tell your brother to watch his back." Followed by hysteric laughter, following me as I broke out in a run.

I wish I did do more that day.

*end flashback*

"Mike, Mike listen to me!" A cold hand on my arm bought me out of my flashback.

"Y-yeah?"

"Thank God, I thought you were going to pass out on me." She sounded so relieved "Listen, I need some hot water and clean towels."

She instructed before turning back around and brushing hair out of Vic's face before it stuck to the blood rapidly drying there. She clearly knew more about this than me and therefore he was in safe hands.

"Mike, the water." Beth gently reminded me, I realized I hadn't moved a single step for the water and towels.

*Beths pov*

Mike is in shock, which I can understand; if I had a brother and saw him like this I wouldn't know if I were coming or going, bless him. Actually bless them both, I mean Vic looks like a car crash victim and Mike doesn't know where his head is, It's a good thing they have me.

I keeled down next to where Vic was lying on the sofa. By the looks of things and where most of the blood has come from, his nose looks broken, looks like a cut or scratch on his forehead and he's burst his lip, everything has stopped bleeding apart from his lip but lips bleed forever because the blood is so close to the surface. All in all fairly minor injuries, they are going to hurt and sting for a while but they won't kill him. I removed his top to look for anything that was more serious than a broken nose, again there were scrapes and scratches which, I'm sure he swill enjoy when he showers but nothing too bad. He looks worse than he is which is always a bonus. Although his injuries on his torso were very minor, it doesn't mean they didn't bleed like hell, leaving his pale blue T-shirt a strange rusty brown color where the blood had dried and still red where it was damp, It's not really worth keeping so I just placed it in the bin, I'll ask mike for his top or I'm sure Paul will have a top that doesn't matter. He is a landscape gardener after all.

Shortly after I had done this, Mike came back with a bowel full of steaming water and what looks like as many small towels as he could find, which was good for me as there was a lot to clean. Wordlessly, he placed the items on the floor and took a seat facing my back, placing his chin to rest on his hands, forcing himself to watch me as I worked.

With Mikes eyes boring into my back, I set to work cleaning Vic. I started with his forehead cleaning the dried blood away from the cut above his left eyebrow, it will scar but it won't need stitches, I carried on down trying to clean his nose without causing him too much pain however I knew it would hurt him. As I worked closer to his nose, he started wincing more and more, his mouth making hissing noises when the new water touched it. I tried my best to calm him, running my hand through his hair and making 'shh' noises much like you would to a baby, this was the best I could do, as I still had to clean the hard sticky mess from the center of his face.

Mike must have noticed how much Vic was hurting as he stood from his chair and came to look at his brother, his face still showing his pain.

"Can't you see your hurting him?"

"Mike, there's not a lot I can do."

"Try being more careful."

"You can not remove dried blood without some pressure, It's virtually impossible and his nose would hurt anyway. I'm trying my best to help here, give me a break!"

"Well I never asked for your help did I?" Mike lost his very small amount of cool, shouting at me. I felt Vic flinch under my hands and I realized him being in here won't help anyone.

I reached into a draw in the coffee table I think Paul and Jane had forgotten about as it was full of dust and odds and ends like hair pins and earring backs, now it held some of my cigarettes I had to hide in a rush once. I pulled out the packet and threw them at him along with the lighter.

"Take them and get out."

Mike simply walked out the back door leaving me alone with Vic. I sighed pushing some more of his long hair out of his face before going to get some clean water.

*Mikes pov*

Sitting under a tree, feeling the toxic fumes enter and exit my body really did help relax me and help me clear my head. Basically, my day went from good to bad to worse within a few hours I know I shouldn't have tried to kiss Beth, it puts my relationship in danger and it would lead her on which isn't fair, I shouldn't have snapped at Beth, I mean she's sat in there on a nice day cleaning up my brother while she could be doing something with her time and I'm just being a dick.

I groaned, my face falling into my hands, leaving my half finished cigarette on the floor next to me, thoughts of today still swarming my mind. When I opened my eyes again, god knows how long later, I about jumped out of my skin; I was so caught up in my own head I never noticed Beth come out with two cans of coke and re-started my-or her cigarette. When she noticed I was looking up, she exhaled the smoke and gave the cigarette to me before speaking.

"Vic's okay, his nose is broken, he's split his lip and by the looks of things he has dislocated his finger, plus lots of bruising and small scratches but nothing needs stitches. The only thing that worries me is the amount of bruising around his ribs, it looks like whoever did this kicked him there, it could be nothing but at best they would be bruised and the doctors couldn't do anything anyway but I don't know what you want to do really." She trailed off, and accepted the end of the cigarette I was offering her.

I let all this information sink in, all I really think was 'That bastard doing that to my brother'

"Thank you seriously for everything you've done for me, you never had to do that and you hardly even know us, I doubt that's how you want to spend your afternoon, fixing up my big brother" I slightly falter at the end, realizing I was rambling at her, I just took a new cigarette out of the packet and took a drag and passing it back to her.

"It's fine" She started before taking a drag and passing it back "Like you said, he's my friend and friends help each other out, if you ever got to know me, I treat my friends as I would family, he is my friend and your family, and family is important" She looked down as she said the end.

We just sat in silence, things obviously playing on both our minds, so we sat outside passing cigarettes and sipping coke, until my body got the better again, asking questions before I had time to think.

"How did you do that?" The question surprising us both.

"What?"

"How did you know what to do with Vic I mean?"

"Oh," She shrugged "My mums a nurse and I've seen her do it a thousand times and I just remember basic things y'know, stuff that would help me I guess" She finished shrugging again.

I was about to ask another question when I heard a cry come from the living room. Me and Beth looked at each other for a split second before running up the garden back to the house.

Notes

so i updated, if you read mu opolagy it kind of tells you why and i have a strange writing proses and this thing called tumblr exists...

anyway, are these getting better? i am trying let me know in the comments what you think.

32 subscribers wait, what? love you all and i will try and write faster:)

have a good week guys and if your lucky you might get another chapter this week, i am seriously trying ^.^