Author Note: This chapter has a brief description of drowning and Shane's final thoughts before accepting his death. In addition, there's going to be talk about mental health and the complicated feelings around a loved one's suicide attempt. Just a heads up.

Promise Me

Marnie roused early that Monday, despite the rain that would usually keep her in bed a bit longer. She did not remember Shane coming in last night, so he must have stayed out later, as he said he would. I hope he had a good time… she thought to herself, swinging her legs off the bed and hearing the crackling of her joints as she rose to her feet. Ah, to be young and able to stay out all night.

The cows would not need milking for a few hours, so the brunette grabbed her robe off the hook near her bed and wrapped it around her. Putting on her slippers, the woman shuffled toward the kitchen to make a fresh pot of coffee. It was a miserably dreary morning. Jas would probably sleep in without the sunshine filtering through her window. Mornings like this, Marnie could sit at the table in peace and her daily crossword puzzle from the newspaper.

James had loved crossword puzzles. Marnie would sit with him in the mornings, reading her books, and occasionally watch him nibble on the end of his pen as he pondered the answers. It was one of those little, seemingly insignificant details that she missed about her late husband. He had always been much better at them than Marnie, but since James' passing, the widow took up the hobby herself. The rancher might even call herself "good" at them now. So, for a while, Marnie listened to the rain, sipping her heavily creamed coffee, and marking the little squares with the corresponding letters. Marnie was at peace.

About quarter past seven, Marnie noticed that she did not hear Shane getting ready for work. Did he have today off? Her nephew never had a weekday free from his job. Did he sleep through his alarm? Marnie had not heard one. She sighed, fiddling with her braid, which had loosened in her sleep. Shane was an adult, so she should allow him to make his own mistakes. And yet… her nephew had fallen rock bottom lately. Perhaps she had, too. Marnie scoffed. It must run in the family, she thought sadly.

Then, the phone rang. "Who could that be this early?" the livestock farmer asked herself, picking up the phone. "Marnie's Ranch! This is Marnie speaking," she answered in a chipper tone.

"Marnie? It's Doctor Harvey," the voice on the other line replied. Marnie felt her heart sink when the man stated, "I have Shane here in the clinic. I want to keep him here for observation a little long, but he wanted me to let you know he's here."

The woman covered her mouth with her hands to stifle the urge to sob. "W-What happened? Why is Shane at the clinic?" she asked Harvey.

Doctor Harvey did not answer for a moment, though the silence felt like eons to Marnie. "He… fell into the ocean last night from quite a way up," the local medic answered hesitantly. "Luckily, there were others with him when it happened, and they were able to get him here relatively quickly. I think we should all be thankful we have such a tight-knit community in times like these."

Marnie shuddered and pulled up a chair next to the phone to sit down. "Doctor…" she whispered. "I would appreciate it if we could keep this quiet, for Jas' sake." It would frighten her niece to find out her godfather was in the hospital. As her guardian, Marnie wanted to do everything she could to shield the little girl from another trauma. Jas had already dealt with enough.

"Of course," the physician assured Shane's aunt in a soothing tone. "I understand completely."

Though Harvey could not see it, Marnie nodded her head appreciatively. "When can I come see him?"

"That… depends on Shane," the practitioner responded. "He's been mostly asleep since we got him stable earlier this morning. When he wakes up again, I'll discuss it with him. In the meantime, please know that Shane's in good hands here."

"Thank you, Doctor," Marnie returned, her voice cracking a bit as the tears finally flowed from her eyes. She hung up the phone and allowed herself to sob as quietly as she could so not to wake Jas. She was both heartbroken that Shane was in such a state because of his drinking - she knew from the way the doctor hesitated when she asked what had happened - and terribly relieved he was still alive. It was all too much. Marnie could not bear the loss of another young life in the family. It was all just too much.

Finally, when the tears in her eyes finally dried up, Marnie dabbed her face with a cool cloth and picked up the phone to dial. "Jodi?" the rancher greeted her neighbor. "I'm sorry to bother you so early, but I have a favor to ask. Could I drop off Jas sometime today? It wouldn't be for long…"

The burning in his lungs was more than he could take. His vision swam shades of grey, brown, and blue and he felt the pounding of the surf toss him about. All he wanted was to stop the pain - in his head, in his heart… It was all too much. And yet, he wanted to live. Despite the universe pounding him to dust, Shane flailed about, trying to find his way up toward the surface. But the sea had another plan for him as the watery depths opened their maw to swallow him whole. Just another meal for the billions of creatures they inhabited. Nothing consequential.

Shane felt like he was on fire and he gripped his chest, which felt as if it were about to burst. His vision slowly faded to black as he released the air in his lung which he had so desperately protected, and the salty taste of the ocean filled him up like a balloon. As his vision faded to dark and he felt his consciousness slipping away, Shane could not help but consider the irony of his situation. Just when he had reached out his hand for help to pull himself out of this damn hole, the universe gave him one last "fuck you" by dropping him into the sea. At least he had let go of Emily so she would not suffer the same fate.

He hoped that Emily would not cry for him for long. Damn, he was touched that anyone other than family would shed tears for him. He thought of Jas and Marnie. Shane wished he had done better by them. Hopefully, Jas would find a better father figure, a more suitable role model than a drunken failure. Man, he really fucked up this life, even in his death. Poor Jas... She deserved so much more. His goddaughter did not deserve to lose so many parental figures so early in life. Maybe if there was a god, Shane could ask that they send the little girl some happiness. That's all he wanted.

Shane closed his eyes, realizing that he could not tell when they were open anyway, and accepted the end, allowing himself to be carried along by the current. He could not fight it anymore. He was too tired, too beaten down... Maybe this would not be so bad.

While he lost the last of his consciousness, Shane felt a tug on his clothing. Had a shark found him already? Of course it had. Just his luck...

Emily stirred to the gentle tapping of the raindrops on the window above the bed. It was difficult to tell how much time had passed, but the woman felt a bit better after some rest. Her throat was dry and luckily, someone had left her a glass of water resting on the top of the broad headboard. The woman drank it greedily, the liquid cooling the inflamed tissue.

Looking around, Emily realized that she was still in the clinic. Haley lay beside her in a cot, her chest rising and falling in a slow, steady rhythm. The sapphire-haired woman rose to her feet and found her dry clothes on the stool at the foot of the bed. Emily pulled them on quickly and turned the corner of the partition to find Shane.

He was in the largest segment of the recovery room and lay there still, but obviously breathing. Emily exhaled heavily, like a weight had been lifted from her chest. She knelt by his bedside and held his hand. Shane looked so ghostly pale, like all the blood had been drained from his face. It made his dark hair and stubble more striking in comparison. But the barkeep noticed something different about him today. She could not see his aura, Emily realized. Why?

Pulling Shane's hand to her body, Emily held it tightly. "You really terrified me back there, you know..." she scolded him half-heartedly. In truth, she was just glad he was alive, so she could not stay mad at him right now. Her anger would have to wait until later when Shane was able to receive it.

"I... suppose I'm not very brave for telling you while you're still resting," Emily explained to the unconscious man asleep on the bed. "But you're the only one who seems to accept me for who I am, you know." She glanced down at Shane's hand and stroked it with her thumb. "I've always been the weird girl that people make fun of..." Emily smiled sadly as she reflected inwardly. "Growing up, they tell you to be yourself," she stated, her body collapsing in on itself protectively, "but it turns out that I stick out too much. Too loud, too bold with the colors I wear, too 'out there' to fit in..."

Her chestnut eyes stared at Shane directly as she continued. "I never really had any friends growing up. I mean, my sister was always there, and she called me 'weird,' but that's to be expected of your sibling, right?" Before Emily knew it, she felt hot tears streaming down her cheeks. "But it got so lonely after a while, because I became the weird girl that no one wanted to play with, or hang out with on the weekends, or even talk to. I was always 'too much,' they said. I had to tone down my personality for people to want to be around me."

Emily's chapped lips twitched as she tried to stop herself from openly sobbing. "And it hurt so much that I could not be myself and be accepted by the people around me, you know?" She felt a few droplets fall onto her ruby red dress and she watched the moisture bloom into larger circles on the fabric. "So... when you came along and did not try to change me… When you accepted me for all my silliness and quirks, Shane... I -"

There was a rustling of fabric from the bed. "I didn't do all that much," Shane groaned softly, returning the pressure on her hands in assurance. "I was a jackass to you when we first met, just like everyone else... You're the one that broke me out of my shell." His eyes were barely open, but Emily could tell he was awake now. "Only someone as wonderfully weird as you, Emily…" When his words finally processed, the young woman gasped in surprise and flung herself onto Shane, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug.

"Shane!" Emily cried happily, this time her tears turning to those of joy. "I'm so glad you're safe!"

Shane coughed slightly. "Easy there, Em..." he begged, gritting his teeth to brace himself from the pain in his chest.

Emily immediately withdrew when she realized the problem. "I'm so sorry!" she wailed apologetically.

"I deserved that after what I put you through last night..." he admitted, looking ashamed of himself. "So quit apologizing to me. You're the last person who should be sorry for anything." He stole a look at her before averting his gaze once again. "You literally talked me out of killing myself last night and then I had the audacity to almost get myself killed anyway." He chuckled at the morbid irony. "If that isn't a cruel thing to do, I don't know what is."

Emily frowned; her eyebrows raised with concern. "Shane, I'm so proud of you for calling me last night," she articulated with a sweet smile. "You kept your promise, and that's what matters." The red-clad woman took both his hands in hers again. "Because of that, you're still here. You are so unbelievably resilient, Shane. I believe in you."

So far, Emily's words had done nothing but sober Shane further, if the near-death experience had not done enough of that already. He wiggled his hands free from her grasp and set them on his lap. The man could not look at the woman kneeling beside his bed, he was so embarrassed and angry at himself. "Emily, I... I know I need professional help so I can get a grip on my condition," he began wearily, rubbing the back of his neck. "So, I'm not gonna ask you or anyone else to fix me." He paused, exasperated with his own actions. "And fuck, no one deserves to be put through the kind of hell I've put you through lately..." His dark eyes met Emily's warm orbs and he balled his fists on his thighs as he made a vow to her. "But I hope - maybe someday - I can be the kind of man you think I am."

Emily beamed at Shane, the grin reaching her eyes in a way that he knew she was being genuine. He returned the gesture weakly. "I know you can do it, Shane. I look forward to it..." she told him earnestly. The red-clad woman patted his leg from atop the blanket and stood up. "Now, shall we get ourselves something to eat? I think everyone could use a meal..."

Sebastian lay half-awake in the bed of the hospital idyllically warm and comfortable. Did this place have weighted blankets? There was a warm pressure on one side of his body. As Sebastian eased into consciousness, he realized that he heard the gentle rise and fall of another person's breathing. Blinking, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, but for some reason his left arm was stuck in place. Something pinned it to his side.

His ink-black eyes glanced toward his shoulder and found a silky mass of purple strands resting on his chest. Confused, Sebastian found an arm draped across his body and tucked slightly under the right side of his torso and realized the weight he felt under the blanket was a leg wrapped around his own left one. The young man froze. Violet was in the same bed as him. Not only that, but she had also ensconced Sebastian, trapping his form against her own. The black-haired male was suddenly acutely aware that they were both practically naked, with only hospital gowns separating them.

Sebastian could feel the warmth of her breath on his neck, making the little hairs on his skin stand on-end. Violet was warm and soft, yet he could not escape with her thigh pinning down his waist. He was trapped and through entirely no fault of his own he had morning wood. The programmer tried to clear his mind of the pleasurable sensations of her breasts pressed up against his left arm and chest and the gentle pressure of her embrace.

"Dead frogs, dead frogs, dead frogs," he chanted to himself quietly, trying to kill his body's natural reaction. But all his dirty mind could think about was how easily Violet could swing her leg over his body the rest of the way and straddle him. Then he could pull her down to lie atop of him and wrap his hand around the back of her head to kiss her. And they were hardly wearing clothing, it would not take much effort to just…

Fuck! he cursed himself silently. Sebastian yanked at his tapered black bangs with his free right hand, trying to stop the train of thought with physical pain to distract him. He glanced at the woman who had trapped him in this cozy, comfortable prison. Sebastian felt both guilty and justified. Yes, his mind was in the gutter, but he was a man, wasn't he? There was a woman he was already attracted to in the same bed as him. This was a perfectly normal reaction to the situation! But why did it make him feel like he needed to shower?

Sebastian sighed. Maybe if he went back to sleep, he could wait it out. He did not want to wake Violet up, after all. And by then, maybe this poorly timed boner would be gone and he would not have to worry about it. He knew if he left it alone long enough, it would go away on its own. Besides, despite his sexual fantasies about where this situation could lead, it also felt comforting to have Violet snuggled up to him.

Also, he had been in the bed first, so Violet was the one who crawled into bed with him. Clearly, he was not the pervert in this scenario. Was there really anything wrong with closing his eyes and just enjoying the moment while it lasted? Carefully, Sebastian wiggled his left arm free from between his torso, resting it around Violet's waist, and closed his eyes to drift back off into blissful unconsciousness.

Haley awakened in her cot when she heard the murmuring of a voice somewhere in the room. It took a few seconds, but the blonde recognized Emily's voice. The woman sat up, stretching her aching muscles. Haley did not work out a lot, so practically dragging her sister from the cliffs to town the night before had been a strain on her body.

Emily was not in her bed, so she listened more closely to the sound of her sister's voice. She felt a lump form in the pit of her stomach as her older sister spoke about her loneliness for being so different. Haley always got on Emily's case for being so strange, but she did not realize that so many others had done the same. Then again, now that she thought about it, she never really defended Emily when she heard people talking about her sibling. The blonde would just laugh along with everyone else. The former "it" girl wondered how things might have been different for Emily, had Haley chosen to do something about all the people who made fun of her older sister. Would Emily have fit in better?

It quickly became apparent that Shane was awake as well with the grunt of pain on the other side of the privacy screen. Haley wanted to go in and yell at him for his irresponsible behavior, but he and Emily were having a moment and she was not about to spoil that. Especially after she overheard him acknowledge that he needed professional help and that Emily was not responsible for his recovery. The blonde could respect that. Still, she would have to find another time to chew him out when Emily was not around. Haley supposed she would have to wait.

Haley quickly ducked into the bathroom to dress into her clothes and when she emerged, Doctor Harvey was in the recovery room talking to Shane and Emily had disappeared. Glancing to the area she and Emily slept, the bed had already been stripped of its sheets and the cot was gone. Haley wandered out into the waiting room and discovered Emily there with Maru.

Emily spotted her sister and smiled. "Good morning, sunshine!" the sapphire-haired woman greeted her in a singsong tune. "Did you sleep well?" Haley shifted uncomfortably realizing that her sister's face showed no indication that she was crying recently. Did she have that much practice hiding her pain?

"I slept enough," Haley answered with a shrug. "We should probably get home and get out of Maru and Doctor Harvey's way," the blonde added, glancing at Maru as she spoke.

The nurse nodded. "Yes, don't worry about Shane, we'll take care of him from here - including his meals." Ah, of course. Emily probably wanted to go home and make a feast for everyone and lug it back here. Haley knew her sister was that kind of person, so it made it difficult to imagine that Emily had trouble making friends.

Haley took her sister by the arm. "You heard Maru, let's go home, sis." Emily's big brown eyes blinked in surprise but allowed herself to be led away by her younger sibling. The blonde realized that she called Emily "weirdo" often, so the term of endearment probably caught her older sibling off-guard.

Once they were outside, Haley loosened her grip on Emily and chose instead to link arms. "You could have told me being called 'weird' hurt your feelings so much," the blue-eyed sister pouted. While Emily had always been there to provide a pep talk when Haley felt down, it never occurred to Haley that her older sister would need looking after, too. Emily always seemed bright and cheerful around her.

Emily frowned. "You overheard that, huh?" she replied quietly, the sound of her voice almost drowned out by the drumming of the rain droplets on the ground. "I didn't mean for you to hear that…"

Haley rolled her eyes. "Well, it's too late now," she declared. She gave Emily a playful shove with her shoulder. "I'm not your responsibility anymore. We're adults now." Her lips stretched in a small smile. "Though I think it was good I heard your conversation. It helped me understand you better." Haley gave her sister a hopeful look. "I want you to be more open with me in the future, Emily."

Emily returned the grin with one of her own. "Well, for starters, I actually don't mind being called weird. It's more about how a person uses the word." The red-clad woman twiddled her fingers, "Sometimes it's endearing…" she added with a shy smirk.

"Like when Shane calls you weird?" Haley snorted, hopping over the enormous puddle in front of their house. "At least now I know what you see in him. I didn't really like you being friends with him until I heard what he said to you today." The blonde pulled the key to their house from her pocket and unlocked the door, gesturing for Emily to go in first. "He's like - a decent guy sometimes." While Haley hated to admit it, she had just written Shane off as a local drunk. And although she still had that first impression of him, if he really got the help he needed, Haley might give him a chance to improve that image. "You're still way out of his league, though."

"You're sweet, Haley," Emily replied, entering the house, and getting out of the rain. The two shed their rain gear near the front door so they did not drip all over the floor and hung things up to dry. Haley headed straight for her room. "I'm going back to sleep for a while," she informed her older sister. The blonde paused at the door, pursing her lips as she pondered her next words. "Unless you want to hang out or something?"

Emily beamed. "Maybe another time," she replied. "I should probably get a few things done before I head to work today."

Her younger sister shrugged. "Suit yourself, weir-" Haley stopped herself mid-word. "... Sis," she finished before closing the door to her room and heading back to bed.

Violet felt a comforting warmth beside her as she stirred. Had Bruno sprawled out on the bed again? The farmer did not mind too much. Her loyal canine companion was a welcomed bedmate. But unlike usual, Violet did not feel the soft fur of her faithful German Shepherd brushing up against her face. In fact, not only did it feel as if she were snuggled up to another person, but Violet could also have sworn there was an arm around her as well.

Her deep blue eyes fluttered open and Violet saw the beige of the blanket over her. She was lying on her side, but it looked like the other half of the bed was occupied. Wait, why was her pillow moving? Tilting her head upward, the farmer realized that what she thought was a pillow was in fact Sebastian's chest and his arm looped under her neck and around her. Violet's left side was draped across the man beside her. The young woman imploded with questions, none of which she verbalized as she silently screamed at the situation.

How did they end up in the same bed? Doctor Harvey had told her the bed was empty! Then again, Violet never saw Sebastian leave last night. Did she seriously just fall into bed with her cute guy friend? She must have. Did Sebastian even know? Violet remembered coming in to check on him at one point and seeing him asleep. How could she have been so stupid?

Violet felt the heat rising in her body. She could have died of embarrassment, and yet… careful not to move much, she glanced up at the sleeping Sebastian. He still smelled like the sea and his hair was a little messy, but Violet could not help but think he still looked handsome. His mouth was open a bit as he breathed in and out so serenely. For some reason, Violet felt an intense urge to kiss him, but she knew that would not be okay.

Pouting, Violet nestled her head back onto Sebastian's chest to think things through. This was a comfortable sleeping position, she noticed. She even enjoyed the feeling of Sebastian's arm around her. The young woman's eyes went wide as saucers when she realized both she and Sebastian were in hospital gowns. Trying not to disturb her bedfellow, Violet turned her head to look around the room. Near the foot of the bed was a lightly colored wooden table with two small piles of neatly folded clothing. Oh, no… Someone saw them sleeping together. Whoever left their clothes in the room stacked the underwear on top of each pile. Who would do that?! Now anyone who walked in here would see her cute underwear! Violet only felt slightly better when she realized that Sebastian's frog-patterned boxers were laying out for everyone to see, too.

But wait, that meant… Violet went as red as the radishes she harvested the day before. This was even worse than she thought. Disaster level: Wolf! she thought in a panic. The farmer had to get out of this situation immediately and slip out of the room before Sebastian woke up to avoid any further mortification.

Violet rolled back on her side slightly to gauge the space with which she could work. Unfortunately, she was right on the edge. These beds were only made for one person, after all. Okay, so the first step is to get my leg off him, then my arm, so I don't lose balance and fall off the bed. Violet lifted her leg from Sebastian's hips slightly and pulled it toward the rest of her body. The farmer did not think she could get any more embarrassed until her naked thigh brushed up something firm as she brought her own legs together. Violet knew from growing up with a brother that these things happened while they slept, but it did not make her feel better. In fact, it kind of turned her on for some reason. She swore silently as Bex's mocking words "Violet wants the D!" rang in her mind and the train of thought flew off the tracks from there.

The woman shook her head, trying to shake herself out of the gutter. This is just my monkey brain telling me to reproduce to ensure the continuation of the species… she thought in annoyance. I am more than my monkey brain. I am evolved! Violet could not allow her first time to be pure primal urge. Besides, there was no guarantee that Sebastian would even want to anyway. She could not just jump him like that, especially in a hospital bed.

While the angel and demon on her shoulder continued their debate, Violet decided to slip out of bed. Gently lifting Sebastian's arm from her body, Violet wiggled free and successfully landed her feet on the floor without harm to herself or her dignity.

Laying Sebastian's arm back on the bed, Violet went to retrieve her clothing and ducked into the bathroom adjoining this section of the room to use the facilities and dress. When she emerged, the farmer found her friend still fast asleep on the bed. To save face, the pastel-haired woman decided to let him sleep and head home. Maybe this way, Sebastian would be unaware that she had ever been there at all.

Shane heard Marnie's voice before she entered the room. The man recovering at the clinic told the doctor to let his aunt know he was here, but part of him regretted it now. Shane sat up, attempting to look as well as possible. The patient did not want Marnie to experience another scare by seeing him in a sorry state. He hoped it did not look as ragged as he felt.

Marnie entered the room screened off by green fabric and sat on the stool beside Shane's bed. Though she had done well to hide it, he could tell the brunette had been crying. "I'm so glad you're alive…" she began quietly. "But I've got a lot of emotions right now. Another part of me is angry at you, I'll admit that." Her fingers twisted together in her lap, as if knotting a rope in her hands. "I can't believe you would do something as terrible as trying to kill yourself when there are people who love and care about you in the world. And I'm devastated you thought to do that before reaching out to the people who have been offering their hand to you." Her jaw set rigidly, and a tear rolled down her cheek before she added, "You just slap them away and do something like this!"

His fingers fiddled with the beige fabric of the blanket that covered him guiltily, unsure of what to say. "Aunt Marnie, I…" he sighed in exasperation. "I know I've been a total fuck-up since the accident -"

The rancher, despite her tense body language, placed a gentle hand on her nephew's balled fist. "Shane, I've never thought of you as a 'fuck-up,'" she told him quietly. Shane could see her posture soften and collapse in on itself slightly. "I just saw a young man struggling to find his place in the world after all his dreams came crashing down on him."

Shane avoided his aunt's gaze, thrown off by Marnie's sympathetic point of view. The woman heaved heavily. "I know it was always my brother's dream to have a son go gridball pro," Marnie knitted her brow, brushing a stray lock of hair from Shane's face in a motherly fashion. "But I always wondered if that was what you really wanted with your life, Shane."

Shane kept his eyes glued to his lap. It was not as if he had not considered the possibility Marnie posed many times over the last decade. But what could be done about it now? Did it really matter whose dream had been brutally slaughtered that day if he could not change the fact it was an impossibility now? Either way, Shane had yet to figure out what the hell to do with the rest of his miserable existence. "Maybe it was dad's dream," he admitted hesitantly. "But it doesn't change the fact that I'm in a dead-end job with no major life plans. I just… wake up, go to work, drink, sleep, repeat. What kind of life is that Aunt Marn?"

Marnie reached over and stroked his head affectionately. "Oh, Shane," she whispered pitifully. "You sound like me after I lost James…" she crooned softly. "Just adrift in the world with nothing to anchor you." Despite how much Shane wanted to brush her away, he leaned to rest his head on Marnie's shoulder, and allowed her to gently pet his head as she spoke.

Marnie reached around Shane's back and rested her elbow on his shoulder as she stroked his head soothingly. "It was a tragedy when Cousin David and Lila died that day," she told her nephew. "And I know it hurt you just as much. Those two were better parents to you than my brother and his wife. Anyone who saw you all together could see that." Marnie gave a knowing look in Shane's direction. "And Jas is about the same age as Samantha was when you left the house. I think that's been stirring up a lot of dusty, old feelings for you, hasn't it?"

Shane felt both relieved that Marnie understood him so well and guilty that it was true. "Yeah…" he confessed in a whisper. He felt the tears forming in his eyes. The man's voice trembled as he opened up about all the things he kept locked inside. "I just wanted to do right by one kid, Marnie."

The rancher did not care about her nephew's tears wetting the coppery fabric of her shirt. "Both Samantha and Jas still adore you, Shane. I hope you know that."

"Sure, Jas is still young, but how could Samantha ever forgive me for ditching her like that?" Shane lamented to his kin. "I'm her brother and I left without explaining what was going on to her."

Marnie chuckled and patted her nephew on the back. "You clearly haven't spoken to your little sister lately, Shane."

Shane straightened his posture, not quite daring to hope, and yet he could not help but wonder. "You're still in touch with Samantha?"

The brunette nodded. "Of course, I still talk to my favorite niece!" she retorted as she beamed with pride. "She'll be off to her senior year of college soon."

Shane's mouth twisted in a frown. "Shouldn't it be her junior year?" he countered. Sure, he had not been home in over a decade, but he still knew his sister was not old enough to be a senior in college yet.

Marnie smirked, knowing that despite her nephew's words, his little sister was on his mind enough that he kept track of her age and progress in school. "Oh, she went in with enough advanced placement credits from high school that she's graduating early."

The dark-haired man exhaled sharply through his nose. "Sounds just like Sammy. She's a bright kid…"

"A kid who still loves her big brother!" Marnie insisted, nudging her younger brother's son affectionately.

Shane shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe she would ever forgive," he said miserably.

"From what I understand, Samantha doesn't think there's anything to forgive." Marnie smiled, giving Shane a one-armed hug. "We don't have to be perfect to be deserving of love, Shane. We must be willing to let others in. That's what makes our silly little lives worth living, you know."

The woman gave him one last squeeze before leaning back to her perch on the stool beside the bed. "There are a lot of people in this town who want you to succeed, Shane. It's a good community here." Marnie's lips curved upward weakly. "I ran into Emily on the way here. She let me know that you called her for help when you thought you would do yourself harm. The poor girl even said that before you fell, you had agreed to come home. So, I can at least relax a little knowing that you chose to live when it came right down to it…"

She tilted her head toward the partition. "But if not for those girls, I don't think you would be sitting here right now. I'm forever grateful to them." She paused for a moment, considering how to phrase her meaning. "But other people can only do so much. You can't help someone that doesn't want to be helped, after all." Marnie reasoned.

The brunette shifted forward in her seat, her thick braid falling over her shoulder as she clasped Shane's hands tightly. "Promise me you'll ask for help when things get to be too much like you did last night. And that you'll give the other villagers here a chance, alright? You might be surprised how many people want to be a part of your life, Shane."

Shane scoffed, freeing his hands from his aunt's grasp, but nodded his response to her request. "Fine, I promise," he answered with a grumpy shrug.

"Good boy." Marnie planted a kiss atop his head and rose from the stool with a sense of purpose, straightening the skirt of her emerald green dress. "Now, let's get Doctor Harvey in here and see what we can do to get you feeling better, shall we?"

As his relative disappeared around the privacy screen to find the local doctor, Shane could not help but feel grateful for his father's sister. There were people in his life willing to help him, but now he had to learn to accept that help. Shane wanted to feel better again, and he knew the only way to do it was to start seeing himself the way his loved ones did. But why did the mere idea of that make him so anxious?