Who wants a romance o/o? (OPEN)

Laura was still gasping for air. "N-Nicky, what are y-you doing?"
Her father glared at Nicky. "Get outta my house."

"Laura, please." Nicky's voice softened just a bit, but he didn't look back at her, never taking his eyes off her father. "Nice try, man. You don't get to pull that here."

His features tightened even more. "Get outta. My house."
Laura began to move towards the door.
"Slut! Don't move!" he snarled at her.
She froze mid-step.

"Keep going, Laura." Nicky said, taking a menacing step towards the man. "The only one not leaving is him."

Just as Laura was about to keep moving, her father snapped at her again. "Don't you move an inch you little whore!"
Laura covered her mouth, but it was no use to stop her sobs.

Nicky had him up against a wall in a split second, his anger bubbling up from his careful calm, a hand on his throat. "Watch your fucking mouth when you talk to her." He growled, eyes flashing. He needed Laura out of the house, because he didn't want her having to see him angry.

"Don't tell me how to talk to my daughter. Go to your room, bitch!"
Laura broke down and ran up the stairs to her room. She hated herself, but it was the truth: she had been whipped into obeying him.

If he had plans to say anything else, he would have been cut off by Nicky's punch to his gut before he let him drop to the ground. "You lost that right the first time you laid a hand on her."

"You can't tell me how to live, boy! I know what's best for my daughter!" He pushed himself up clumsily. Not only were Nicky's hits hard, but the man was still very drunk.

It probably wasn't very sportsman like to hit a man while he was drunk, but Nicky did anyway. Another hit to the face, this time his nose. He'd hit Laura first. "Like hell."

The man crashed backwards into his coffee table and was still, passed out in the mess.

Nicky looked up as he heard sirens nearing. He glanced down at the man, before turning and heading up the stairs to make sure Laura was okay.

Laura was curled up in a ball on her bed. Her forehead was resting on her knees, and she was rocking ever so slowly, mumbling little things to herself.

"Laura." Nicky called softly, knocking on the doorframe of the first room he came upon. His hands throbbed, but he ignored that for the time being.

She quickly jerked her head up and saw Nicky. First, relief washed over her, and she got off the bed quickly. "Are you ok-kay?" she asked quietly. "He d-didn't hurt you, d-did he?"

"I'm fine." He assured her, taking a cautious step towards her. "Can I check you over for injuries that need medical attention?"

She bit her lip softly and nodded.

"C'mere, sweetheart." He took another step forward, gesturing for her to come closer.

Laura came about and arms length away before stopping. She paused, then started to cry quietly.

"Hey, hey." Nicky softened in concern, holding his arms open to offer a hug. "Laura, talk to me."

"I hate him!" she sobbed, stepping into Nicky's arms willingly. "I hate him I hate him I hate him!"

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. "I know. It's alright, it's alright."

She was shaking terribly. "It's my fault…"

"No, no, Laura, it's not." He shook his head, tightening his grip on her protectively. "It's not your fault at all."

"Yes it is!" she cried. "I killed my mom and my sister!"

He blinked, then looked down at her. "Somehow, I really doubt that. Can you explain how you think you did?"

"I-I-I was driving," she began, but her throat closed around her words.

"Laura, that's not your fault." He said, pulling away to make her look at him.

"They were in the car!" she cried. "I was going through a green light, and we got hit. I should've died, not them! It should have been me!" Here, she broke off into plain tears.

He lifted his hands to cup her face, shaking his head. "That wasn't your fault, and you shouldn't keep telling yourself it was. Sometimes…sometimes horrible things happen. That doesn't mean it should've been you."