A/N: two chapters in a day... either i have no life or i'm having another fit of inspiration... or both...
Five days passed. Kayla recovered and the stitches healed slowly but surely. The doctor used dissolvable thread so she wouldn't have to worry about getting the stitches removed.
Jett was with her every single day from morning til late afternoon, except when he had to go to set. Kayla was walking and sitting up again and she seemed to be doing fine, except for the nightmares.
Both Jett and Kayla were still haunted by recurring dreams of what had happened that night. Wood was doing his best to investigate everything, but so far they had come up with only one lead.
Bryan "Brainer" Caldwell, a notorious assaulter who had escaped the police on many occasions, was famous for his stabbing incidents. His nickname made some officers shudder, and others laugh. To Wood, he was a nuisance, a guy who thought he wasn't going to be caught.
But that didn't make sense, because Caldwell wasn't anywhere near Wilsted, last he had heard from the reports, and he wouldn't know Jett or Kayla. Whoever this was had a grudge against them, or knew them somehow. Otherwise, how would they know Fairfield Street was closed? And that Kayla would have to take Greene Street to get home? Somebody right in Wilsted was guilty.
But who?
Kayla and Jett grew closer to each other each day. They told each other every dream, everything that happened to them each day.
And the day Kayla was released from the hospital, Jett was right there beside her. Kate and Victor were beaming as Kayla was wheeled out, smiling. It would be a few more weeks before the stitches were healed completely, but for now, having Kayla out and about was enough for them. The doctors advised plenty of rest, and to "keep that boy around her. They seem to help each other."
Jett smiled when he heard this bit of advice.
"So, what are you gonna do now?" Victor asked his daughter.
"I think I've had my share of excitement," Kayla said tiredly. "Jett, come hang out for a little while. Please?"
Jett looked from his dad to Kayla's parents. "Okay?"
"Sure." Wood said, and Kate nodded.
"I don't see why not." She opened the West family pickup door. "Hop in."
The drive back to the West farm was a silent one. Jett and Kayla sat together in the back seat, holding hands and watching the familiar scenery pass by. Kate and Victor looked back at them from time to time, just to check.
"Well, here we are," Victor pulled up to the side of the garage. "Home again."
Jett opened the door and helped Kayla out of the truck. They simply stood there, looking at each other, their hands still linked. Kate cleared her throat, smiling, remembering how she and Victor had been the same way when they met. Two pairs of chocolate brown eyes turned to her. "Do you want to go in?" Kate asked.
Kayla exchanged a glance with Jett. "Umm... could I maybe walk around for a bit? I missed this place."
Victor nodded. "All right. But the minute you don't feel good you come home, hear?"
"Yes, Daddy." Kayla watched as her parents went inside the house and turned to Jett. "Wanna walk around?"
He grinned, completely disarming her again. "Of course." He practically had the layout of the land memorized from being there almost every day. Likewise, Kayla had come to visit him a lot more often. As they walked to the stables, the scent of fresh cut grass reached them, and Kayla stopped, closing her eyes, and inhaled deeply.
"I love that smell," she said, catching up to Jett. He smiled. The stables were right up ahead, and Kayla made her way to them with the eagerness of a long-lost friend. Jett kept pace beside her, loving her and her joy at the simple things like the stables or the scent of new grass.
She pulled him by the hand into the stable, petting every horse that stuck its nose out. "I missed you guys," Kayla said as she stroked the nose of one of the mares. "It's good to be home."
Jett watched, leaning against the wall, marveling at how beautiful he found her. She came back to him, smiling and happy, and took his hand again. He led her outside and they stopped in front of the stable again. "I can see how much you love this place," Jett said, pulling Kayla closer to him. "You look so happy."
"It's also the company," Kayla teased. She leaned on him, looking up into his eyes, her smile never leaving her face. They stayed like that for a long moment, and then Kayla did something she never thought she would have the courage or the chance to do. She lifted one hand and touched his face.
Jett's hand lifted to touch the place where her stitches were, and his other arm encircled her waist. He leaned down, and she lifted her face up to meet him halfway. Their lips met in their first real kiss.
Kayla's thoughts scattered as warmth spread to her very fingertips. Jett's kiss was warm, gentle, his lips slightly dry. She let herself relax, and felt his arms tighten around her. She lifted her arms around his neck, and he kissed her more deeply, drawing her awareness to nothing but him.
And from then on, that was how he would always hold her when he kissed her, one hand on the place where she had been hurt, even long after it faded into nothing but a scar.