Mine & Yours

Author's Note

If you've already read the unedited version, please skip to just before the end.

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Doesn't Tori have a fucking home to go to, how do her parents let her go anywhere she wants for as long she wants always.

Tori is sitting with Dante's hand in both of hers, at Dante's bed side, where she hasn't left since we got here and came into his room.

The rest of us have to stand around his bed where he lays lighting less that flat on the tilted bed.

'This is the coach's fault. You should never have been dropped,' Brad says to Dante while still fuming over the loss and pacing the room, 'never been injured, never missed a game, barely ever had a bad one and some chumped up pre-teen takes your spot and makes you get yourself a dislocated knee!'

'Cap!' I finish for him.

A dislocated knee-CAP, just the kneecap! A dislocated knee could have put him out of the season.

'How are you feeling brother?' Shane asks standing by my side.

'It looked and felt a lot worse than it was, I'll be up and moving by tomorrow, it just feels a little weird right now.'

Tori, it seems has had enough with being modest and just hikes herself up on the bed and cuddles against Dante's side in front of everyone.

'I was so fucking worried about you.' She whispers but still loud enough to hear.

Yeah, we were all fucking worried. That's why were here!

She whispers something again and it's a a lot more quiet but roughly sounds like, I'm sorry.

The doctor returns we're told to leave Dante alone, but he'll be discharge tonight and since Tori's car isn't the most spacious Shane stays back to drive Dante home, leaving me to go back with Tori.

I try not to look in her direction as she drives, though I am curious about how to drive a car where you have to change gears yourself. I see Tori's face in the relfection of the window and it looks down trodden and on the brink of tears.

'Tori, I'm sorry about tonight.' She doesn't respond, 'Tori?'

'Huh!' Tori says blinking back to attention, 'sorry Cara, what was that?'

'I said I'm sorry about tonight, and how I messed up so much.'

'Oh,' Tori's voice sounds beaten and worn, like nothing in the world matters, 'don't worry about it Cara. I'm the one who should be sorry, I shouldn't have been so hard on you. It was my fault.'

'Cara, can I ask you a question?' Tori says breaking the silence again.

'Uhm, sure.'

'Your names,' Tori says, 'everyone just accepts them, but how the hell did you get Dante and Cara, from Donald and Caroline.'

'Oh,' that wasn't what I was expecting at all, 'they were names we gave each other, after an incident that happened when we were younger and after we moved here. I guess we never really felt like the same people, and we wanted a fresh start, something new.'

'Ah,' Tori reacts, 'I understand.'

Tori is silent yet again as we approach home.

'Do you think Dante... Do you think he, or that he could...' Tori sighs as she parks the car on my street, 'things with your brother, haven't been... perfect lately.'

Good.

I might actually feel bad for Tori, she hasn't done anything wrong really, but I'm still glad Dante loves me more than her.

'You're his sister, did anything happen? Did he ever tell you about... someone else?'

Oh crap, what do I say to her? I have to admit that this is uncomfortable and I can't imagine what it must feel like to have Dante and yet never be able to be with him.

'I think, the only person Dante truly wants to be with is in this car right now.'

Tori smiles happily and then reaches over the and warps me in a tight hug.

'Thank you so much Cara,' Tori chokes out, 'I'm so glad the two of us are friends.'

I get into the house after Tori leaves, mother naturally screams at me upon arrival for being later than I'm supposed to be, when I tell her it was because Dante is in the hospital she asks me why that makes a difference.

Dante arrives in with Shane, who helps him up the stairs to his room before leaving himself. Mother has gone to sleep and all I want to do is see Dante but I know he can't come see me because of his leg. I need to see him. I need to tell him how sorry I am for causing all of this, I need to tell him how much I love him and I need to know if he still loves me.

I put one leg over the ledge of the window, the wind is blowing heavy, and when my foot makes contact with the top of the roof I slip.

'Crap.'

The surface is slanted and I don't have a lot of space to place both feet without having one practically falling.

Still holding to the edge of the window frame I put my other foot over and slowly stand up right, the wind seemingly taking notice and picking up. I try to hold onto the side of the wall as I move, a small step at a time. Dante's window is only a few feet away.

I small step with the right, another with the left, not lifting either off the slippery surface, the wind is still blowing straight in my face and making it hard to keep my eyes open, and my foot slips again, before I catch myself. I'm too far from my window to grab for safety and so I stop and hold on to the wall to regain my composure.

And Dante does this for me almost every night?

With both hands still on the side of the house I take more tiny steps. I can't fall. Besides likeyl breaking something, I won't be able to explain this to mother. What could I be doing on the roof at this time, at any time?

I'm practically at Dante's window but it's closed with the curtains drawn, I crotch a little and release a hand from the wall to knock lightly.

The wind, for goodness sakes—

'ah!' I stupidly raise my other hand to shield my eyes and now my feet are slipping all over the place and I have nothing to hold on to. I lose balance landing on the roof on my butt, I reach up to grab hold of anything, but nothing is there and now I'm falling to—

My descent stops abruptly.

'Cara?' Dante is leaning out the window, my wrist in his hand and another pushing against the inside of the frame, 'what are you doing out here?'

'Hi,' I reply with a still fast beating heart.

Dante grunts hard as he begins to drag me up from the outside into his room and I collapse on top of him when he's unable to move his leg.

'Oh my god, are you okay?'

'Yeah, I'm fine,' Dante answers as I get up to my feet and help pull him up to his, 'what were you thinking? You could've have gotten hurt?'

'You could get hurt every time you come see me.'

'That's different, Cara.'

Except it shouldn't be. Why is it always like this? Why is he the one always risking everything, always putting himself in harm's way so that we can be together?

'I wanted to see you.' I am standing in front of him as he roughly straightens himself out.

'You could've waited until morning.'

'No,' I lower my head, because I know logically he's right but I'm not using a lot of logic right now, 'I had to see you, Dante.'

Dante sits down on the bed, his head hanging low, and a thousand fears surface to the fore of my mind.

'I wanted to see you too.' Dante replies.

I sit down next to him, our sides touching, 'Are you okay?'

'Yeah,' Dante chuckles, 'I think I actually am.' He pauses for a moment, looking far and away, 'hey, you know what would be funny.'

'What?'

'I was just thinking, I'm exhausted and hopped up on pain meds,' my big brother turns his head to me with a wistful smile on his face, 'you could totally have your way with me and I wouldn't be able to stop you.'

I silent laugh shakes my whole body, 'Oh, yeah, I guess I could,' it's the most ridiculous thing that would ever happen, 'but what kind of idiot would even think that was a good idea.' I love him, how could I ever?

'A dumbass probably.'

'An utter nincompoop.'

'Stupidest person alive.'

'I hate him already.'

'Mother.'

I laugh, and so does he and all at once, my soul is at peace.

'Who knows, maybe I'd be in to it?' He says, with a glowing smile directed at me.

I slap his shoulder, 'Don't even joke about that.'

My little slap turns into me rubbing his shoulder, then resting my head on it, right before he rests his head on mine and pulls my free hand into his, lacing our fingers together.

Dante sighs into the night, 'It's just me and you, beautiful.'

'As mine and yours,' I shut my eyes against the warmth of his body, 'our little story's not over, is it?'

'Not even close, if anything,' Dante takes a deep breath, 'I'd say it's only just begun.'

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Authors note. EDITED

Hey everyone,

I'm sorry I couldn't deliver a good enough ending. I really believed in what I wrote and truly thought it would be received better. Having read the comments though, I understand your criticisms.

I tried to do something different and I can admit that it backfired completely.

I am thankful to everyone who took the time to tell me I suck, ;) , and as you are reading this I am currently working on new chapters, that I hope will be worthy of your time.

My little blunder has actually given me an idea that I hope you'll all think is okay. Essentially the story will have two endings. It will eventually have a faux end here on this site, but it will continue for anyone who is willing to help make writing a full time occupation for me through patreon.

The absolute best of wishes!