wrestled with the monster. / beck & hailey & koda & renee.
date: december 4-5, 2021 characters: beckett carter, hailey carter, koda paledekis, & renee robinson trigger warnings: violence mention summary: beck is missing
"What are you feeling for dinner? I think we still have some of those meal prep recipes in the fridge that are pretty good. Or we can always just order something and be lazy...but those tacos are honestly so good." She couldn't remember if Renee had ever tried them the last time the twins had made them, but knew her best friend would say something if she had. Walking down the hallway of the apartment complex, the two conversed about various dinner options until they reached the front door and Hailey was quick to call out when they stepped through the door way. "Beck, I'm back! Renee's with me!" She was met with silence, which was a bit strange, but her brother could just be distracted by something in his room. However, Harley was quick to charge her owner, barking and hopping at her legs in a loud, but typical greeting of the golden.
"Hello Harls, I missed you too." At the sound of her voice, Harley dropped back down and ran towards the kitchen, tail wagging and barking once again. Now that was definitely not a normal greeting from her pup. Eyebrows furrowing, she followed the dog, who only seemed to get more excited when she saw Hailey following her. "What's up, girl?" Turning the corner, she was met with the sight of Harley circling her food bowl, who started barking again when her owner didn't immediately move to feed her. But, there was no way Harley hadn't already eaten, that was always Beck's job since he got home before her. Double checking her phone, she made sure that she hadn't missed any calls or texts from her brother saying he was going to be home late and to feed the dog.
Suddenly, the silence that had meet her greeting earlier didn't sit right. "Beck?" She called out, louder then when she first walked in. Once again meet with silence, she looked over at Renee, now more annoyed then anything. "Can you knock on his door or something? I have to feed her apparently."
"No lie, I was feeling Thai food. Up until you mentioned those tacos." Renee hummed, remembering the last time she'd come by for dinner. They'd even been able to change up the recipe a bit to vegetarianize some for her. "That recipe did. Not. Disappoint. I'm officially changing my vote to tacos." When the door opened and Hailey's high-energy pup came barreling towards them, Renee crouched down. "Hey cutie."
She looked up as the pup dashed after Hailey and raised an eyebrow. Beck forgot to feed Harley? Odd. "On it," Renee left the kitchen and walked down the hall. After rapping on Beck's door and being met with silence, she returned to the kitchen. "No answer. Maybe he's out running errands and forgot to text? Or he could be with Ko, I can text her."
Placing the food bowl down on the floor, Harley jumped into it like she hadn’t eaten in weeks. Typical. “Sorry girl.” Standing up again, Hailey walked into the hallway to meet Renee, already digging her phone out of her pocket. “Hang on, let me call this idiot first, I don’t wanna bug Ko if we don’t have to.”
Her annoyance was only deepened when her call was ignored and sent to voicemail. “What the fuck, his phone is off.” Sighing, she pulled up a new contact and put it on speaker this time. “I’m calling Ko.”
Her phone rang just as she was rinsing off her last paintbrush. Koda set it to the side to dry, shook water off her hands, and reached across the counter for her phone. "Hailey!" She answered brightly, situating her phone between her ear and shoulder to free up her hands. "What's up? Wanna come by for dinner? I was about to text our groupchat!"
There was nothing off the bat that directly gave away if Beck was there or not - though with Koda, that wasn’t always the case anyway. “Hey, Ko. Renee and I were talking about making this taco kit I have but I actually have a question for you.” Dropping her phone down into the counter, she slid onto one of their breakfast nook chairs. “Is Beck with you or have you heard from him at all? He’s not picking up his phone and I don’t even think he’s been home cause Harley never got her dinner.”
If not for the seriousness that seeped from Hailey’s tone, Koda would have remarked on how amazing tacos sounded. She checked her texts, making sure she hadn’t missed anything from her friend. Nothing— in fact, a text she’d sent Beck that morning was still unanswered. That wasn’t too distressing but coupled with this information from Hailey…well, Koda could see why she’d be worried. “Huh, no he’s not here. And he never texted me back earlier when I asked if he had weekend plans.” She was already moving towards the front door, grabbing her bag and slipping on shoes. “I’m on my way over. I can try calling him? And check out his usual spots. Give me fifteen minutes.”
Now something didn’t feel right. Sure, Beck forgot to text her occasionally - but she or Koda were always able to get an answer from him at some point throughout the day. “Okay.” Her brain when to other reasons he could be late and latched onto it before she descended into a panic that not even be necessary . “Yeah, see if you can get him. I’m gonna call his job - he might’ve just gotten distracted with work or something.”
The promised fifteen minutes had passed and Koda had arrived at the apartment, looking a bit disheveled and out of breath. She'd jogged the last block and after kicking off her shoes, she sagged onto the couch. "Okay, he wasn't at the forges or the arena. Did you call Cleo? I don't have her number but I know sometimes they hang out."
Renee was sitting next to Hailey, a now-calm Harley sitting between them with her head in Renee's lap. She pet the pup's head gently. A crease formed between her brows as she glanced at Hailey. "You said he wasn't at work right, Hails?"
Over the last fifteen minutes, Hailey had resorted to pacing the living room and had almost bitten her thumb nail off by the time Renee had pulled her onto the couch next to her. Hearing the door, her head snapped up and her shoulders sagged slightly when she saw Koda walk in alone. “No, I don’t have her number anymore. But apparently, he just left work like, half an hour ago. It’s possible I bothered you for nothing…I don’t know, I’m giving him 45 minutes before I freak out.”
Koda nodded slowly. "I can get her number from Jesse if you want? Might as well chase that lead," she offered, already pulling out her phone to text her brother.
Renee stood up, careful not to disturb the dog. "How about I get started on those tacos? You might be more worried than hungry now but, trust me, food'll help." Looking to Hailey, she attempted a reassuring smile. "We'll hear something soon." At least, she hoped they would.
Eventually, 45 minutes had turned into 8 hours and it was the longest, yet shortest time of Hailey’s life. Every idea that had popped into her brain had led to a dead end, leaving her mind to wander to potential situations her twin had somehow gotten into and panic. She had seemed to go through every emotion possible in the last few hours, with only Koda and Renee keeping her from spiraling off a deep end and marching down to the big house to wake up Chiron.
Her friends had helped her set their living room into a makeshift sleepover space. Their couch had been pulled out into a bed and bowls of candy and other snacks laying around as the television drowned on in the background. They had been trying - with no avail, to get Hailey to eat since the tacos were finished, but she was simply too nervous to stomach anything right now. Curling further into Renee’s side, she tried to push the almost nauseous feeling out of her stomach as her eyes flickered from the phone to the front door for the hundredth time. The panic that had settled into her stomach reminded her too much of the night of Beck’s crash and it was a feeling she definitely didn’t miss.
Koda was tucking into Renee's other side, dozing lightly as Renee had her arm around Hailey. She did her best to comfort her friend, knowing that Hailey was in an impossible position. Her eyes found the glowing face of her watch and she let out a low grown. It was so late— or so early, depending on how you looked at it.
And then, there was a sound.
Someone was knocking. Koda sat bolt upright, startling Renee, who shook Hailey's shoulder. "Someone's at the door," she said, tired and dumbfounded.
Beck wasn't sure what time it was. 4 in the morning maybe? It had to be sometime around there by the time he made it back to New Athens. The streets were quiet and dark, and Beck was cold. He could feel a bruise starting to form on the swelling on the side of his face where he was punched. It was terrifying, waking up in an unknown hospital, with no way to call home. Even more terrifying remembering the bits and pieces of the event that had unfolded that night that landed him in the hospital. They took most of his things, from his phone, to his keys, his hand was gripped around the only thing valuable he managed to keep safe. It was the thing that in turn hurt him in the end. Hailey would kill him if he lost it. He couldn't seem to lose his grip on it even after he woke up.
He left the hospital against advisement, but he had to get home to his sister, no he wanted to get home. Besides, no mortal hospital had ambrosia that would be the best thing for him at the moment. He wanted to just go into his bed, curl up, and sleep away everything. There was also parts of him that wanted to have a drink. If he just got drunk, it would all go away, he could forget it, but he knew that he couldn't just have one, he would need to do it again and again to keep it buried. That and he promised Hailey.
Hailey.
He knew she had to be freaking out, he knew that she was probably scouring bars to make sure he wasn't passed out somewhere in one. He looked like how he used to, especially after he'd get into fights and come home late at night. How was he supposed to explain to her that wasn't the case? He could barely wrap his own head around the events that unfolded the night before. It all felt so fast, too fast. When he made it to the apartment, he knocked on the door, knowing he didn't have his keys with him. What muggers would do with keys, he didn't question. He just hoped Hailey was home.
The sounds of the television and her friends even breathing seemed to be lulling Hailey into a sense of exhaustion - though it might also have something to do with the very long day finally catching up with her. Renee's hand continuing its gentle rhythm on her arm certainly didn't help, only dragging her closer and closer to the realm of sleep.
At least, until there was a knock at the door and everything around her exploded. Harley started freaking out and barking as she raced to the door, not use to motion at this time, then Koda bolted, which caused a chain reaction down their cuddle puddle until Hailey was up on her feet and racing to the door. Her heart was pounding in her ears and for a very brief moment she was fifteen again, and the knocking at their door late into the night wasn't a happy greeting. Her hand shook at the thought before it grasped the doorknob and pulled it open. The sight of her brother at the door almost made Hailey drop to her knees in relief, though she had to grip the doorframe to keep her upright. "Beck." She choked out, not realizing she was already crying as she pulled him into a strong hug. "Thank gods. Where the fuck have you been?!"
Beck let out an unintentional small yelp in pain when Hailey hugged him. "Hailey, please," he said, to have her stop hugging him. "It's a long story," he said, signaling that something had happened. "I'm sober though, I swear to Gods I'm sober, Hails," he said, hoping that she wouldn't think he was drunk. "I kind of wish I wasn't right now, though," he admitted.
Koda was still standing by the couch, her features shifting rapidly in her worry. When Hailey pulled Beck into a hug, Koda let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. Her friend was safe, for the most part, though he looked a little worse for wear.
Renee stepped forward, slipping her hand into Koda's and giving it a tight squeeze. She was still bit shocked at Beck's appearance— shocked and relieved. "What happened? Should I get ambrosia?" The question was pointless as she was already moving to find her bag, producing a small container of ambrosia squares that she kept for emergencies. If this wasn't an emergency, Renee didn't know what would be.
It took Hailey's brain a bit to process what everyone was saying before pulling back just enough to look over Beck's appearance. His promise sounded genuine, but she was quick to check for herself as she looked into his eyes. She was meet with his eyes clear and alert, which was enough to convince her that he was telling the truth. Though she was soon after quick to realize why Renee was talking about Ambrosia and she was quick to pull Harley down before she tackled Beck to the floor to let him walk inside. "Holy fuck, what happened?" Heart still racing, she closed the door behind him as soon as she was able to, leading him to sit down on the couch-turned-bed. "Ren, don't use up your stash, we have some. Kitchen pantry, top left drawer."
Beck sat down, wincing as he did, instantly leaning into his twin for comfort. He shrugged. "I just, it happened so fast," he said, not being very specific. "I didn't even have time to really react. They took pretty much everything I had on me. I managed to save this," he said, handing Hailey their dad's lucky coin, his hand finally not gripping it anymore felt weird to him. "I uh, some guy called 9-1-1 before I passed out. Woke up about an hour ago, I would've called, but I wanted to just get out of there."
Renee nodded, her practical side taking over. As she passed Hailey on her way to the kitchen, she gave her arm a squeeze. A moment later, she reappeared, having retrieved what they needed from the pantry. Sitting down opposite the twins, to give them space, Renee unwrapped the container of ambrosia. Her fingers hovered over the squares. "How much..." She cleared her throat, tried again. "How much do you need? I don't really know."
Through it all, Koda was hovering to the side, not wanting to interrupt. She had busied herself with corralling Harley, who knew something was going on but didn't understand what. She watched Renee freeze, her hand still above the ambrosia and that was what finally unrooted her from her place. "Here, let me." Koda broke off a piece and held it out for Hailey to accept, not wanting Beck to move more than he needed to. "Where did this happen? In town?"
At the same time, Renee asked, "Did you get a look at any of them? Their faces? Anything?"
Instantly, Hailey's arm wrapped around him to let him sink further into her side. Her eyes watched his every move, taking in all the bruises, cuts and reactions to all the ones she couldn't see. Blood rushed through her ears, leaving everyone's voices sounding muted and as if she was listening from under the lake. Every bone in her body wanted to march out of here, hunt down the monsters that did this to her brother and make them pay. She hadn't realized she was shaking - though she was unsure if it was out of fury, panic, or both, until something was pressed into her hand. The coin that now laid in her hand made her heart clench and a small sob to burst out of her mouth before she could pull it back.
Koda appearing in her line of sight forced her back above water and she rushed to tuck the coin safely into her pocket before reaching for the offered ambrosia. Almost stiffly, she held it up to Beck's mouth. "Eat it." She demanded, though her voice was weak and full of emotion. "What do you need?"
Beck did as he was instructed from Hailey, taking the ambrosia, waiting for it to help. "I don't, I don't really know," he said, shaking his head slightly. "No, no, it wasn't in New Athens. It was near work." He felt like he was shaking, but mostly he felt numb. "I had a friend pick me up from the hospital and drive me toward the border."
He looked up at Hailey when she let out a sob, and he wanted to tell her to please not cry, but he couldn't do it. Their words felt so far away, that Beck wasn't sure how to respond. "Honestly? I need a drink, but I know that's not going to happen. I don't know." He paused slightly before adding, "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to worry you guys." He wasn't fully sure why had was apologizing, he just felt like he needed to.
Koda sat on the couch, wanting to fold herself into Renee's side, but instead perching at the edge. Her leg was bouncing up and down, she was filled with worry. "Why are you apologizing? It's okay," she said, even though, in ways it wasn't. But it would be, and her words carried that sentiment. As did the reassuring smile she did her best to show. "I'm glad you made it back."
Renee's expression softened as she watched Hailey with her brother. She knew how hard the past few hours had been for her best friend, and she could guess most of the thoughts that had been doing laps around Hailey's head. And then Beck was apologizing and Renee was shaking her head. "Do you two want space?"
Every time Hailey opened her mouth to speak, Koda had already spoken the exact words that were in her brain. So she sat in silence, letting her friends handle the talking so that she could focus on the fact that Beck was here, he was - mostly, okay and by her side. Those facts circled around in her brain, almost echoing throughout her skull before Renee spoke. Her best friends voice pulled her out of herself and her eyes turned to focus on Renee and Koda, blinking a few times as she caught up with everything happening around her.
"Shit." She breathed out, eyes flashing between the clock and the exhausted faces of her friends. "Gods, I'm so sorry guys, go get some sleep." She didn't really want to leave Beck's side, but she did long enough to swear up and down that yes, she was fine, and that she would message Renee in the morning. With one quick, grateful hug, and a promise to text when they got back to their place, she let the two girls out of the apartment. As much as she wanted to rush back to her brother's side, she forced herself to walk into the kitchen long enough to get him a glass of water - the best drink she was willing to give him at this point, before finally returning back to the couch. Pressing the water into his hands, she dropped down heavily, but suddenly unsure of what to say in the silence that fell upon them.
Beck hated the silence that fell after Renee and Koda left. It felt like hours rather than minutes till Hailey got back to the couch, shoving water into his hands. It was that moment that Beckett let the dam break, tears flowing down his face, causing his current headache to grow. "Can you get me an ice pack or a bag of peas or something?" he asked, through a gasp of air after his slight cries.
Seeing the tears streaming down Beck's face weirdly came as a shock to Hailey, though she wasn't exactly sure what she was expecting. She felt panic take over her body for a minute, torn between doing as he requested and ignoring him to pull him into her arms where he was safe. Feeling helpless, she just watched with wide eyes for a moment before the pain laced in his eyes registered in her brain and kicked her into action. Nodding, she raced into the kitchen, quickly returning with a bag wrapped in one of their dish towels.
There was no hesitation in her now, focusing on taking care of her twin over everything else. Facing Beck, she gently placed the bag on one of his larger bruises before inching closer to him and resting her head against his arm, her own tears now welling in her eyes. "It's okay, Beck. I'm here, you're okay."
Beck winced when he felt the cold touch his bruise. Beck let out a shaky breath. “I’m always scaring you,” he stated. “I’m sorry.” He hated this, seeing Hailey scared made him feel so powerless and he hated that. This wasn’t his fault, but part of him felt like there was something he could’ve done, anything. Something so that he didn’t have to see his sister like this.
His apologies were met with a shake of her head and a mumbled "Don't you dare be sorry." mumbled into arm. Deja vu washed over her, making her feel like she's been here before, feeling this same devastated relief as she inched closer to her twin. She didn't have the strength to speak more, letting herself get washed away in the emotions welling inside her instead. Making sure not to hurt him, she shifted so that he was in her arms, and her head pressed into his shoulder as much as she was willing to without causing him pain. All she wanted was for him to feel safe, too let it out instead of keeping it inside like the last time they ended up here and she prayed that was able to give him some relief.