Boarded

A/N:


Chapter 45 (Comfort and Acceptance)

Jeremy, Gibby, Melanie and Pam waited outside of the operating room while the doctors worked feverishly on Sam. Marissa was sitting outside, talking with Pam, who was in tears. Melanie was speaking with Gibby and Jeremy, trying to get to the bottom of everything. "You guys were attacked too? The same device?" Gibby nodded and rested his elbow on Jeremy's shoulder. He was watching the door of that operating room with such intensity, praying that his girlfriend would be safe. The pole that went through her upper body had just missed her heart by a few inches.

"I don't know, but someone tried to kill my brother and my girlfriend. I want to think it's someone after me, but for some reason it seems otherwise…" Jeremy's face tightened when he thought back to Lenny. Was it possible that the stalker did this? He knew they were often more than capable, but had Sam actually made an effort to find him? "Who did this to my girlfriend?" He looked into Melanie's eyes, as though she had the answer to the burning question of the day.

"I wish I knew Gibby. I think I have an idea, though, but I don't want you doing anything?" Gibby frowned, his adrenaline surging. How could anyone possibly expect him to do nothing when his girlfriend was nearly murdered? "Whoever it is might go after you, Gibby."

"Let them." Jeremy placed his hand on Gibby's shoulder, causing the younger sibling to look up at him. He closed his eyes and shook his head. "Ah whatever…" Gibby tore away from the two and stepped right next to the door, watching through the window with growing worry and concern. Jeremy felt this was the right time to talk to Melanie, while Gibby wasn't standing next to them and able to hear everything. He folded his arms over and it was then Melanie noticed the gauze pad over his cut. He had to get a tetanus shot, just in case.

"Okay Mel, I'm going to confess, I know Jessica has a stalker after her." Melanie frowned and snapped her fingers, how had he found out? He looked to the operating room and exhaled. "When you called me and said something was up, I actually looked around when I arrived and saw that one kid watching her. I was already with her, so I didn't want to say anything, and it was clear you knew he was there too." Melanie pressed her lips together and gazed tiredly at the door.

"Yeah, I knew he was there." Had he tried to confront Lenny afterwards? She wouldn't put it past him to do exactly what Sam did. Something in her said otherwise, though, like he had actually not tried to find Lenny. "So, you think he's responsible? Sam actually knew who he was and when she received a note, letting her know he was watching, she sought him out and threatened him."

"I see." Something had to be done about him, and it was up to Jessica to do it. "I actually didn't go after him. He followed me after our conversation and I realized he was, so I attacked him…" In hindsight, it probably would have been best to leave him be, but after the interaction he and Jessica had, Lenny probably would have already threatened him. He growled with frustration and rubbed his hand through his hair. "She does not need this. She's gone through enough hell."

"We all have, Jeremy. We all have."

"I won't let him hurt her. I will never let him touch her." Melanie smiled and moved her gaze to him. His eyes were so determined, so filled with fire and certainty. Pam and Marissa watched as well, they could see it in him too. They were glad to see it, glad to see just how he felt about Jessica. Someone else saw it too, though. Mrs. Trent. Jeremy didn't see her, but the others saw her walk in the room. Jessica was still securing the car. It wasn't long before she came running into the hospital in tears, shouting for Sam. "Whoa!" Jeremy turned around as a rageful, frightened Jessica ran into him. He placed his hands on her arms as she sobbed bitterly.

"Sam! I have to see her! I have to see my little cousin!"

"Jessica, the doctors are taking care of her, we can't see her right now though." She was hysterical, unable to control herself. She didn't know what happened, just that someone planted an explosive on Sam's bike. She shook her head and continued to scream.

"No! I have to make sure she's okay! I have to protect her, I have to see her, I have to let her know it's going to be okay!"

"Jessica. Jessica!"

"Please! I need to see her." Jeremy sighed and gently placed his hand on the side of her face, which calmed her a little as she leaned into his hand. She looked into his strong eyes and felt her heart start slowing with time. Someone needed to tell her it would be okay, someone needed to protect and comfort her, now who was it going to be? "Jeremy…"

"Jessica, listen to me. Sam is fine, okay? The doctors got there in time, they got to her. They're saving her life as we speak. You can see her when they're done, okay?" He knew she needed him to be calm right now, and perhaps he was the calmest one there, but inside, he wanted to find Lenny and tear his heart out. He knew better, though. At least now he definitely knew better. Any second later, Sam might not have made it. Her eyes shook as Jeremy wiped her tears with his thumb. She couldn't take her gaze away from his, no matter what she did. She didn't want to do so anyway. She didn't understand how he could have such power over her. She was reeling inside, like a wild storm brewing, but one look into his eyes and that storm came crashing down.

"I'm scared, Jeremy…" Her breath hitched and he pulled her close, letting her soak her tears onto his chest. She closed her eyes as she felt his warm breath hitting her skin. Did she ever think she could feel so protected, so safe in his arms? Yes, she'd always thought about how it would feel to feel his loving touch, to feel his tenderness. It took a long time to even get this far, but she was happy to say that she felt just right in his arms.

"I know you are." He placed his chin on her head and softly rubbed her back, soothing her. This felt right to him, holding her in his arms like this. The fact that she trusted him like this meant so much to him, made him incredibly happy. He'd give anything for her, anything to make her happy. She lowered her voice to a whisper as she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and scraped her fingers along his back. She felt like she could confide in him.

"Jeremy, I…someone's stalking me. You might have seen him at the park…he was lurking around."

"I did see him." Jessica frowned and looked up into his eyes. "I didn't want to tell you right then because I did not want to worry you."

"I understand."

"Jessica, I won't let him hurt you. I won't let anybody hurt you. The world can start exploding, going crazy with all sorts of storms, and I will still make damn sure you are safe." The corner of her lips turned upwards and slowly grew into a smile as her heart jumped to her throat. The fact that he cared so much about her touched her in ways that he could never know. "You know that sounded better in my head."

"It still came out well enough. Jeremy…" Her cheeks became red as she glanced to the side, wanting to avert her eyes from his so she could regain some sort of composure. "Thank you." It was then she noticed Freddie running into the hospital. Melanie had texted him, so he rushed over as fast as he could. She looked at his wrist and smiled, that watch was still in perfect condition. She never did ask for it back, she wanted him to keep it. Her eyes then traveled up his arm, then was when she caught a glimpse of his bandage. "Oh my god, what happened to your arm?"

"My arm?" His brow furrowed as she lifted his sleeve up. "Oh that." Now she was going to worry more and didn't want to lie to her. She'd know he was lying anyway. "Someone blew my mailbox up and a piece of the metal cut my arm." She gasped and covered her mouth. Someone tried to hurt him? What was going on and why was this happening? "It's nothing, really."

"It's nothing? Jeremy they could have amputated your arm!" He chuckled nervously as Melanie simply smiled at her. "Did you get checked to make sure you don't get infected?"

"Yes."

"The doctors said you were okay?"

"Yes…" He rolled his eyes and smiled as she stared at the gauze pad. She had a feeling Lenny was behind the attacks on both Jeremy and Sam, she blamed herself. The tears started to come and Jeremy quickly sprang to action, placing his finger under her chin and lifting her gaze to his. "Hey, hey, now don't fret okay? It's nothing major."

"But it could have been more serious! You could be like Sam is, and it would be all my fault…"

"Your fault? What do you mean, your fault?"

"It's Lenny, isn't it? He's the reason…" She sniffed and Jeremy's face softened as she wiped her eyes. "He's obsessed with me and now he's hurting those I care about. It's all my fault!"

"Now you listen to me, it is not your fault. You have no control over what he does, okay? The only good thing about that guy is, hey, he's got good taste." She raised her eyebrow curiously and her mind left Lenny for the minute and she focused on Jeremy.

"What do you mean?"

"He thinks you're pretty good looking. I have to say, most guys must find you good looking." She smiled and chuckled, wiping her eyes as her heart pulsated. Her body relaxed as she looked into his soft eyes.

"You think I'm good looking?"

"Truthfully?" He smiled and moved to her ear, whispering softly and sending shivers down her spine. "I find you incredibly beautiful." The blood shot to her cheeks and her eyes widened. She couldn't believe it, he actually thought she was beautiful. "It has always killed me to see you hurting, that's why it's so hard to explain these feelings that I have. Only, I've had them for the longest time, ever since we were children."

"Give it time." She whispered so softly, nobody could know what they were saying. Jeremy's eyes quivered as his heart trembled inside, a powerful urge to hold onto her forever building up inside. "The past is past, you'll see that in time. The stronger feelings, the ones from the heart, don't ever let them be snuffed out. Do you understand this?"

"Yes."

"Don't be afraid of your heart. Do you want to know what I think of every time I think of you? Whenever I think of you…I can only think of how handsome you are, how sweet and understanding you are, and how amazing you make me feel."

"Really?"

"I feel safe, do you understand? It may be hard for you to understand it, but I feel safer with you than I've ever felt with anybody."

"Jessica, I…" His eyes glazed over as his heart swelled up, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. That she actually felt this way about him meant so much. He closed his eyes and held on to her tightly. "I will always keep you safe."

"I know you will. I trust you, Jeremy." The operating door opened and scared the two apart as the doctors walked out of the room. Jessica moved over to them and Jeremy watched her, smiling softly. "How is she? How is my cousin?"

"She is fine." The doctor smiled and placed his hand on Jessica's shoulder. Relief washed over her and everybody could stop holding their breathes. "We need to keep her a couple nights for observation as she recovers, but everything considered, she is a very lucky girl." Jessica nodded and memories of Lenny flashed through her mind, making her feel a bit uncomfortable about Sam staying here.

"Can you have someone stationed in her room, watching her?"

"Yes we can, is there a reason?"

"Yes, and an important one…"

Jeremy exhaled and looked up as he felt a soft hand resting upon his shoulder. He turned around to see Janet looking at him with a smile on her face. "You make my daughter very happy, you know that?"

"Thank you, Ms. Trent."

"I know you will never harm her. I could never believe you would hurt her in the first place." Jeremy frowned as Janet waved her hand in the air. "Never think about the bad times, but remember the times you were children, when you two were practically inseparable. Think about how things are now…as I'm sure you know, she's confused about how she feels, but not so much anymore as she was before."

"I know. I want to take away from that confusion."

"And you do. I love seeing my child so happy and I trust you with her. I want you to know that." His heart jumped and tears once again threatened his eyes. He hated it, but hell, he wasn't complaining.

"It means a lot to hear you say that…"

"I want you to know that it is okay, perhaps once all this blows over, if you want to ask her on a date. Neither of us has any qualms about that and she would love for you to ask her out." He blushed as Janet looked over to her daughter. She was so proud of the woman she was becoming. So strong, so independent. She was an inspiration, truly an inspiration. Jeremy looked back to Jessica and smiled as she looked over to him, her face brightening up. She was right, he wouldn't let his fear suppress his emotions. He had no reason to be afraid, but he wanted to wait a while before asking her out, assuming he worked up the courage to do that at all.


So Sam's okay and basically given Jeremy and Jessica a green light. We also hear a little bit about Jessica's father, who should be making a very grand, action packed appearance very soon.