Silence.
Stillness.
Emptiness.
Noctis' departure not only brought quiet to Jasmine's days but also a type of sadness she'd been holding in since she came back from Traverse Town.
While Tifa did her best to make Jasmine comfortable and put her mind at ease, the girl's façade slipped as soon as she was left to her own devices.
Jasmine looked to her cell phone on the third day of Noctis and the team's mission. She had four messages: one from Roxas, two from Noctis, and one from Naminé. She grabbed her phone from her nightstand and sighed as she put it on silent.
That's when the guilt sunk in.
She knew it was wrong to ignore her friends for days. But ever since she came back from that mission, something within her was different.
Ever since she woke up in the hospital, Jasmine could barely feel anything emotionally. It was as if someone, or something, put a block in her that prevented her from feeling things she should be.
Tifa accompanied Jasmine to the hospital for every visit, but the doctors didn't have answers for them. They chalked it up to PTSD and stated that it would pass over time and with therapy. However, Jasmine was confident there was something else wrong with her, something the doctors couldn't see.
It was only 11 in the morning, and Tifa left a while ago to go to the grocery store. She promised Jasmine that she'd cook one of her favorite meals from when she first moved to the Destiny Islands. Jasmine had offered to accompany her to the market, but Tifa told Jasmine that it would be better to stay home. By her calculations, she only had an hour left to herself before Tifa came back.
Gripping her phone, Jasmine inhaled sharply and scrolled through her contacts.
Her thumb hovered over Sora's name and clicked the audio button, anxiously waiting for him to pick up. Then, on the third ring, Jasmine heard a very familiar male voice.
"JASMINE, OH MY GOD, I'M SO GLAD IT'S YOU!" Sora shouted on the other end of the line.
She pulled the phone away from her ear at the outburst.
"Hi, Sora," she said weakly, trying her best to put on a good front. "I'm sorry it's taken so long to get back to you," she apologized, pulling the weighted blanket Noctis gifted her over her legs. "It's been hectic this past week."
"No, no," Sora said quickly. He was shifting around wherever he was, and then Jasmine heard the sound of a door close in the background. "Tifa told me you were in the hospital. I was sure it was a work thing so I tried to not bug you."
Jasmine gave a sigh of relief.
Sora was always so sweet to her – in many ways, he was the closest thing she had to a loving, younger brother. Even though it had been a long time since they last spoke, the care was still intact as if nothing had happened.
She almost felt like she didn't deserve it.
"I got hurt on a mission," she admitted. "I've been out of the hospital for a few days, but I'm on medical leave for a month."
Sora gasped. "What happened? Wait – I know you probably can't tell me everything…but are you taking it easy? Is your team taking care of you? Is Tifa there?"
Jasmine's heart tightened. Though she understood why Sora was so inquisitive, it was a lot for her. Still, she explained what she could to the best of her abilities.
"I'm resting," she replied softly. "Noctis and the boys are gone for a few days, but Tifa's with me." Jasmine paused, thinking about what Tifa recommended a while back. "I know I haven't been returning you guys' calls. I'm sorry."
"Jaz," Sora began sternly, "you don't have to apologize - you got hurt. Have you talked to anyone else?"
Jasmine ran her fingers along the rich gold embroidery of her comforter. "No. You're the only one. But Riku called too - I feel bad because I don't want him to think I've been ignoring him."
"He knows you were in the hospital. I wouldn't worry about that too much," Sora said reasonably.
Jasmine went over recent events, namely the ones concerning Noctis and Ventus. While she wasn't exactly chomping at the bit to tell Riku about her current affairs, she knew she'd eventually have to come clean. Though she was confident that there was no way Riku would find out on his own, she knew she would have to say something.
Especially if things went further.
"I'll call Riku later," she told Sora. "I was hoping you guys could come by this week. I wanna see everyone, but I figured it would be less…overwhelming if it was small groups."
"Of course, whatever is less stressful on you! Do you need anything, Jaz?"
"No," she declined politely. "I think I'm taken care of." Jasmine sat back and felt a bit of relief as she talked to Sora. For some reason, she always felt…lighter when she was around him or even spoke to him. It was one of his many magical qualities. "I'm glad I got ahold of you. I didn't know if you'd be in class now."
"Nah. I don't take Wednesday or Friday classes," he informed her. "It was rough in high school, but it's even worse in college. And waking up is harder."
Jasmine smiled as she listened to Sora dramatically compare high school to college. It was the strangest thing – Sora was (and he even admitted it himself) the laziest student out of their group, but he was incredibly smart. If one day decided to stop lounging about as much, he would be at the top of his graduating class for sure.
"Well, just make sure you don't show up late," she playfully scolded him. "That stuff matters."
"I mean," Sora laughed, a bit of discomfort in his voice, "I've already been late a couple of times. I need to do better."
"Please," Jasmine requested. She pulled back her phone when she felt it vibrate against her cheek. She saw a text alert from, of course, Riku. "I gotta go now, Sora. I think Riku's trying to reach me. But tell me what your schedule looks like so you guys can come over."
"Sounds like a plan!" Sora said, the cheer in his voice loud and clear. "I'm happy you're safe, Jaz. I was worried about you."
A small smile tugged at the corners of Jasmine's lips. "I'm glad I got to talk to you, Sora. Tell Kairi I said hi and that I'll talk to her soon too. Take care."
"Will do! Bye, Jaz!"
Jasmine ended the call and rested against her headboard.
'That was easier than I thought it would be,' she thought to herself.
Taking a deep breath, Jasmine ignored Riku's text completely and called him straight away.
Jasmine held her breath when Riku picked up on the second ring.
'This is gonna be the hard one…' she told herself somberly.
Tifa closed Jasmine's door once she made sure the sleeping girl was settled for the night (well, day as it was only 6 in the evening). Once the door made a click, Tifa eased up and let loose a sigh.
There was something seriously wrong with Jasmine. Four days into Noctis' trip and she still hadn't improved in her overall mood. It was as if she were in a trance, and despite Tifa's best efforts, the girl was still a shell of her former self.
First thing in the morning, they would be at an appointment with a SOLDIER psychologist and then, after that, a psychiatrist.
'What a mess,' Tifa thought to herself, feeling more helpless now than she'd ever been with Jasmine.
Before she could go any further down the rabbit hole, her cell phone rang loudly. Realizing the time and knowing exactly who it was, Tifa took the call and switched to a more cheerful tone.
"Good evening, Your Highness," she greeted pleasantly. "How are you doing? How's the assignment going?"
"Good evening, Tifa," the prince said respectfully. "I'm doing well - it looks like everything is going according to plan. We should be good to come back home on the day we discussed. How are you doing?"
"I'm glad to hear that," she answered as she headed straight for the kitchen to clean up the dinner dishes. "I'm doing just fine. I'm straightening up in the kitchen right now - nothing too taxing."
The prince gave an audible sigh. "You don't have to do that. I can always call in a cleaning service. You're a guest – you shouldn't be doing anything."
Tifa reached into the cabinet under the sink and pulled out a bottle of cleanser and a clean white rag. "Don't be silly," she said with a laugh. "I run restaurants for a living. It's nothing I can't handle."
Tifa could sense that the prince wanted to protest. He was just trying to be generous. After all, he was used to maids and attendants. It was only when Jasmine moved in that the practice of hiring maids ceased.
"How is she doing? Is Jasmine getting any better?"
Tifa hesitated a bit.
The truth was, Jasmine was worse since the prince left. She wasn't eating, she slept on and off throughout the day (with nightmares often accompanying her sleep), and she always appeared to be elsewhere mentally. Tifa knew that it would take time for her to start her healing process from the Traverse Town incident, but she didn't think Jasmine would take such a sharp turn.
"Honestly," Tifa said with a sigh, "I thought she'd be further along in the recovery. We've been back and forth to the doctor doing tests. Apart from the PTSD, we don't know what else is causing her to act like this."
"Act like what?"
Taking a seat on a barstool and making sure that Jasmine wasn't up and about, Tifa went on to explain.
"Like she's in a daze," she explained. "Emotionally? She's not there. I know this is the worst mission to date, but…she didn't even act like this when her parents died. I'm taking her to another psychologist tomorrow."
While not in his presence, Tifa could feel the prince's energy shift.
"I…she didn't seem this bad off when she first got out. I wonder why she's backsliding like this."
Tifa had a theory about why Jasmine was regressing.
With everything going on, Jasmine was probably overexerting herself while Noctis and the others were there.
Her hunch?
Jasmine had been putting on a front for the team so they wouldn't worry about her.
"She's going through a lot," Tifa explained. "If you think about it, one of her friends is in a coma, two are missing, and you guys are out of town. Plus, I know she's processing Traverse Town."
The prince paused for a moment, almost as if he was gathering his thoughts. "If she's not doing any better by the time we get back, I'll look into other soldier treatment facilities outside of Radiant Garden; maybe we can get a second opinion."
Tifa leaned against the countertop and pursed her lips.
It was a good idea.
At least then, they could potentially get a more honest diagnosis.
"We can do that," Tifa twirled a nearby spoon in her hand. "I'm still hoping she'll pick up a little energy as the week goes on. That's my hope anyway."
"I hope so too," Noctis said distantly. "Is she awake? I tried calling her phone, but she hasn't returned my texts or calls."
"She's asleep, Your Highness," Tifa informed him. "I'll check on her in a bit. If she's awake, I'll have her call you."
Tifa could hear the prince was shuffling in the background and walking somewhere. Once the noises stopped, Noctis spoke again.
"I know this is probably going to…well…come off as a little weird, but there's something else I wanted to ask you, Tifa."
"Go ahead," Tifa said sweetly, picking up on the anxiousness behind Noctis' words. "Ask away, Your Highness."
Noctis paused for a few seconds before he continued. "I know this is crazy, but…I haven't heard from Jasmine as much as I normally would. I mean – yes, I've been away, and yes, she's been recovering…but…I was just wondering if I've done anything wrong."
"You think she's ignoring you?" Tifa asked gently.
"Well…maybe a little? If I've done something wrong or came off too strong, I wanted to apologize."
Tifa smiled. She'd known Noctis for a while, and he'd always been nothing but calm and confident in every interaction she'd seen. But seeing him like this was...endearing, and it really showed that he valued what Jasmine thought of him.
"She's not ignoring you," she reassured him. "She's just been sleeping. I know you're in new territory and things are a little awkward, but I wouldn't worry about it too much. If you guys parted on good terms, I'm sure you're fine now."
"Oh, okay…that makes sense."
Another thought crossed Tifa's mind. "You miss her, don't you?"
Noctis let out a long, heavy sigh. "Is it that obvious?" he asked timidly.
"I'd be surprised if you didn't," Tifa began, "you're always together for the most part. It's completely normal and I'm sure Jasmine feels the same way you do."
The prince took in all of Tifa's advice and encouragement.
"Well…thank you, Tifa," Noctis said kindly. "I appreciate that."
"Of course," Tifa replied, feeling Noctis' tension lift. "I'll keep you updated. And when she wakes up, I'll tell her to give you a call. Just be safe…all of you."
Once the pair said their goodbyes, Tifa was the first to hang up. She set her phone down on the countertop and reached back for the rag and cleanser she'd set down at the start of the call. Then, she began cleaning off the kitchen like she intended to do.
'What a sweet boy,' she mused. 'I wonder what it'll be like when they can actually date each other.'
Author's Note: Keeping this one short and sweet as I'm uploading another chapter later on tonight. Thanks for all the views on the last few chapters as well as the reviews from hopefuldreamer1991 (We'll definitely be seeing more of Ventus and Vanitas shortly) and rawrrbreee (thank you for all the well wishes! I'm glad you've been enjoying the updates! Every person mentioned in your review is most likely going get their own chapter just so we can flesh out their stories a little bit more!). Let me know what you guys think and I'll be seeing you guys shortly! Take care!