Glass Hearts [BL]

My chest was still heaving when Mrs. Torres’ voice cut in, steady but cold. "Ash... it’s no longer a choice."

I blinked at her. My stomach flipped. "What the hell do you mean by that?"

She didn’t answer me right away. Instead, she reached for the telephone on the side of her desk, pressed a button, and spoke calmly into it.

"They can come in now."

My throat went dry. Who the hell was she talking to?

Then came the knock.

I spun toward the door just as it opened. Two people walked in.... a woman with a clipboard hugged to her chest, and a man in a button-up with a badge clipped to his belt.

The woman gave me a polite smile that made my skin crawl. "Mr. Rivera? I’m Ms. Daniels, from Child Protective Services. This is my colleague, Mr. Owens."

My eyes widened.

This is not happening right?

I knew that badge. That tone. That fake calmness.

I’d seen it before.

The first time was when Dad died and Mom got sick. They came sniffing around, asking questions, poking at our lives like we were some project they could fix.

I froze, glaring at them.

"So? No, no, no..." I shook my head, stepping back. "You’re not doing this again."

Ms. Daniels tilted her head slightly, like she’d rehearsed the line a hundred times. "We’re just here to talk, Ash. Nothing more. Can we sit?"

"I don’t care if you sit, stand, or crawl," I snapped. "You’re not taking my sister. That’s my decision!"

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Mr. Owens cleared his throat. "This isn’t about taking her away. It’s about assessing if she’s safe..."

"She is safe!" I shouted, my hands were shaking now. "She’s always safe with me. She’s always been safe with me. You don’t know us. You don’t know what we’ve been through."

Mrs. Torres finally spoke up, softening her eyes, trying to touch my arms as I glared at her and walked back.

"Ash, please. No one here wants to hurt you. But you’re just one person. You’re a kid yourself. It’s not fair to you, or to Alia."

I turned on her. "Don’t. Don’t you talk like you care about me right now. You went behind my back. You called them. You..." my voice cracked, "...you betrayed me."

The room went silent.

Ms. Daniels softened her tone. "We understand this is hard. But we need to speak with Alia directly. Is she in class right now?"

My stomach twisted so hard I thought I’d throw up. The thought of them going near her made me feel sick.

I walked towards the door before they moved. "You’re not going near her."

"Mr. Rivera..."

"I said no," I snapped, my throat went dry. "You’re not taking her anywhere."

Mr. Owens sighed, opening a file on his clipboard. "Ash, you’re nineteen. We see it on record...you’ve been the one paying for your mother’s hospital bills. Thousands. Millions, even. How do you expect to carry that and raise a child?"

"That’s none of your damn business," I shot back. "I’ve done it. I am doing it. You think I don’t know what it costs? You think I don’t know what it takes to keep her fed, to keep the lights on?" My voice cracked. "You weren’t there when I sold everything, when I stayed up all night praying she’d make it. That’s on me. Not you."

Ms. Daniels stayed calm, too calm, and pulled something from her folder. "We’re not saying you haven’t tried. But Ash..."

"I never complained to you, I never said it was too much for me. So leave us alone."

My chest heaved..

Ma Daniels slid a phone across the table.

It was Alia. A video. She was soaked, crying in the rain, the day she’d wandered off. Another clip...her tiny body in the police station, sitting in that cold metal chair while an officer brought her water.

My knees went weak.

"Mr. Rivera," Ms. Daniels said softly. "This is not safety. She is not safe with you right now. We need to talk to her. We need to make sure she’s okay."

I slammed the phone back across the desk. "She is okay with me. That was one time. One mistake! Don’t twist it like I’m failing her."

Mrs. Torres tried again. "Ash... they’re not here to punish you. They’re here to help."

"Help?" I laughed bitterly. "Help is what I’ve been begging for since Dad died. Nobody showed up then. Not one person cared when I was dragging myself through the mud to keep this family alive. But now....now that I’ve kept her safe, kept her fed, kept her happy, you want to swoop in and take her? Hell no!"

My fists clenched so tight my nails dug into my palms. My chest was burning.

"I don’t care who you are, I don’t care what badge you show me. You’re not taking my sister."

Ms. Daniels’ tone hardened. "Ash, if you walk out that door without cooperating..."

"I’m already gone," I cut her off, storming back towards the door.

I yanked it open, and the hallway light spilled in.

Behind me, I heard Ms. Daniels called out. "Mr. Rivera, please. Don’t make this harder."

I didn’t look back. My heart kept racing.

I ran down the hall toward Alia’s classroom, their footsteps kept following me.

My mind was spiraling. Who the hell did Mrs Torres think she is? Going behind my back to call stupid child services? What a betrayal!

I wasn’t going to let them near her. Never!

When I reached the door, I could see her through the window, resting her head on her desk, looking so peaceful.

I pushed the door open. "Alia," I said, my voice broke, "come on. We’re leaving."

Her head shot up, confused. "Ash? What’s going on?"

The CPS workers caught up, walking into the room.

"Alia," Ms. Daniels said gently, "we just want to ask you some questions..."

I stepped in front of them, shielding her. My hand shook as I held hers. "No. You don’t touch her. You don’t talk to her. She’s my sister. She goes with me."

Alia’s little hand curled tighter around mine, eyes darting between us. "Ash... what’s happening?"

I swallowed hard, forcing my voice to stay steady. "Nothing you have to worry about, baby. Just trust me."

And with that, I pulled her out of the room.