"I still don't know why it has to be at my house." Metal grumbled as they headed up his drive.
All of Bravo was in tow tonight, laughing, snorting and carrying on as they gathered.
"Because we miss Jess and you have the biggest TV!" Ray told him while trying to avoid getting kicked in the pants by Jason.
"Yeah, and the kid's been alone all week and whining about being lonely." Jason chimed in, pretending it was a big inconvenience to cater to her.
They all knew he was just trying to make up for lost time and prove to her he was trying to do better. He'd been in a better mood all week though.
"I'm sure she's fine," Metal growled as he went to open the door. He slowed when he noted it wasn't locked. Not locked and after dark. Oh…she was not going to like this.
When he entered the house, he stilled further because of the sight that met his eyes this time.
Behind him the boys piled up, going quiet for a second before Sonny whistled and said, "Holy shit! What happened ?!"
"Jess?!" Metal called warily, calming the initial alarm that shot through him when he put together the fact that the absolute chaos of his house was somewhat organized and purposefully done.
"Did someone break in?" Clay asked, looking around them. "This is…wow."
The main thing that tipped them all off to this not being an emergency was that the sink was full of plants. On top of that every dish was pulled out of the cupboard, piled on the counters, every cupboard door was open, there was a cloth and bowl of soap and water on the counter. Then there was laundry half folded on one couch and piles of not folded on the other. There were papers all over the kitchen table, three textbooks and two binders open, a charge cord plugged into the wall, but no computer. Then in the middle of the floor, just to top it all off, she'd pushed the coffee table out of the way and had a yoga mat down with some small weights and the Big Bang Theory playing in the background.
"Wow. What happened?!"
The quiet, feminine voice from the behind them brought barely controlled flinches and embarrassed startles. They'd been so absorbed in taking in the mess that they never noticed Jess slipping in behind them through the still open door.
The boys spun to face her, taking in the tank top, sweat pants and bare feet.
"Where the hell did you come from?!" Sonny exclaimed.
"I was…ah…out." Jess offered, going a dark red when she met Metal's long stare.
"Uh huh, yeah, in your bare feet and without a coat in this weather?" Ray smiled, easily drawing her out with his lightness.
"Yeah!"
"And you have no idea at all how the house got like this?" Jason added, a smile playing around his mouth.
The girl shook her head, "Nope! Looks like it just sorta happened!"
She could almost sell it, except that she kept shooting a worried look back to Metal.
Clay and Trent started to laugh.
"They must be pretty nice robbers if they folded some of your laundry and put a shit ton of plants in the sink!" Trent started in on her next, obviously teasing now.
"I'm a little confused about what they were looking for in the cupboards though!" Brock chimed in, grinning.
"Nevermind all that! I still wanna know why she's running around outside in her bare feet and no coat!" Sonny interrupted, waving his hand vaguely over her appearance.
"Nothing!" Jess started inside, dusting off her feet and starting into the livingroom to clear the laundry back into baskets. "I just went outside for a few minutes and came back. And I have no idea how all this happened."
"Now that I actually believe." Scott growled, bringing an even darker shade to Jess's cheeks and she flicked a guilty look at him. "What the hell were you doing outside?"
"Nothing!" Jess insisted as she started dragging the two baskets past toward her room.
Scott was in the way and he had no intention of moving yet.
"Did you climb out the window?"
Jess couldn't meet his eye, answering the question before her defeated words did, "Yes. I knew I forgot to lock the door again and thought if I could get out of the house before you came in then you wouldn't toss me in the trunk of a car to prove a point."
"Wow. I'm almost impressed, pipsqueak!"
"Well and then I thought if I could sneak up on you and play off the whole house as not being my fault you wouldn't give me as much shit for it all?"
"Uh huh."
"You still not locking doors?" Clay teased. "You're in for it now."
"We could just toss her in a trunk now! That sounds like fun!" Sonny said enthusiastically, playing as if he were going to get ready to grab her.
Skirting behind Metal and using him as a shield, which was ironic given that they all knew he was the one most likely to actually toss her in a car truck, Jess said, "Awww, shucks, see I can't because I have to finish what I was doing here."
"Oh, don't worry. I'll prove a point another day." Metal promised quietly, taking the heavy laundry baskets from her and taking them to her room while she followed.
"Are you mad at me?"
Even though they put distance between them and the rest of Bravo, they boys were still able to hear the quiet, anxious questions and explanations from Jess followed by the patient, arguably gentle replies from Metal.
"Not really. Bit much to walk into though, not gonna lie."
"I'm sorry…I started with the plants from school because my teacher said as part of our practice for taking samples and such for the trip we could take samples and cutting from the plants in the big greenhouse and start them, so I had a bunch to bring home and then when I was looking for those little yogurt containers you keep sometimes I got a little distracted by the cupboards and decided I should wipe them all down so that's why they're all pulled apart. It's all clean I just have to put it away again and then the laundry-"
"Relax, pips. You're getting all twisted up for nothing. Come here- Kid! What-"
"Please, Scott, don't toss me in the trunk of a car! I know I should have locked the door."
"Shit, Jess. Take a breath, ok? Is that what's got you upset the most right now?"
"Yes."
"Ok. Calm down, I'm not going to put you in the trunk of a car this time. Get over here."
The boys quietly started putting things away in the cupboards as the other two talked because Jess's tone had spiked with anxiety and Metal's usual growl was swiftly disappearing, replaced with a soothing gruffness. They were all well aware Full Metal had taken a back seat and this was pure Scott Carter dealing with Jess now. Metal would have dragged any of them out by their toes no matter how much they didn't want to be put in the trunk of a car.
"Wish he was that soft and cuddly with me." Sonny griped. "Did you hear what he said to me on the plane when I mentioned my sciatic acting up again?"
"Shut up, Sonny." They all chorused.
"Exactly! Now why can't he be as understanding with me as he is with Jess?"
"Because you're a big baby, Sonny." Clay quipped.
"And he puts up with a hell of a lot from you. You have no idea how nice he is," Trent laughed.
"What do we do with all these plants?" Brock asked, picking up the various little pots and looking at them.
"Leave them. You don't want to mess them up." Jason ordered quickly.
"Jess is going to sort that out in a minute." Metal growled as he came in. "Do not put those in there, Trent, you know they don't belong there. Sonny, eat that cookie and I'll land your ass on the ground."
"Alright, alright, brother grizzley," Sonny grumbled, taking his hand away from where it was hovering over the singular cookie left on a plate in the corner. "I won't eat it."
"Can we have an evening where Sonny isn't getting on Metal's bad side?" Jason asked like a tired parent as he helped finish putting the kitchen to rights.
"Oh, please don't have anyone mad at each other!" Jess came breezing back into the room, beelining for the sink of plants. "I don't think I can handle that tonight."
"What's got you all stressed?" Clay asked.
"Assignment. And a test. Due tomorrow."
Metal threw a mild glare over his shoulder, grumbling, "Should we be packing this all up and heading somewhere else then?"
"No!" Jess struggled with figuring out where she was going to put the new potted plants that were dripping in her hands onto feet. "I'll work better if you're all here."
"That doesn't make a lot of sense," said Ray. "Wouldn't peace and quiet be better?"
Grabbing a worn cookie sheet, Jess started piling the pots onto it and said, "No. Hey! Does Jameelah want some plants!?"
"I would have to ask her," Ray said carefully.
"I'll take one!" Brock volunteered eagerly.
"Which one?!" Jess asked. "I've got a baby Jade, and an Aloe, and a Spider plant, or there's an Ivy too! Or a Peace Lily, Pothos, mabye a Snake Plant? Oh! And I've got some tiny little Money Trees too!"
"I don't know, what's hard to kill?" Brock asked, peering at the mix with a frown.
"All of them, mostly. The Spider plant is easiest to see if you need to water it, and it's super forgiving!"
"That's the sort of relationship Brock needs in his life," Trent snickered.
"Yeah…that last one?" Sonny chuckled and whistled. "I thought he was gonna get buried!"
Jess went serious and concern etching her expression. "Who was going to bury you, Brock?! I'll bury them !"
Shaking his head and snagging the last two plants from the sink, Metal set them on the tray, grabbed Jess firmly by the shoulders and pushed her toward her room, growling, "Leave the burying to me, pipsqueak. Go do your work."
About an hour passed of good natured entertainment, sports and a decent amount of drinking. During that time Jess reappeared, unbothered or oblivious to the mild intoxication around her. She'd brought an arm load of books and her computer.
After a while if finally occurred to them to notice her.
"How in the hell are you even studying out here?"
Jess looked over her shoulder at Sonny from her spot laying sprawled on her stomach on the floor.
"My back hates me for sitting in a chair too long today, I'm lonely and this way someone knows if I'm not doing what I'm supposed to be."
"You sure we aren't distracting you though, kid?" Ray asked squinting at her, not totally convinced of her plan.
"Nope. I'm at that stage of panic now."
"Panic?" Jason asked.
"Yeah, that panic stage she lets herself get to when something is due and she hasn't been working on it at all for weeks." Brock supplied.
"Sounds like a good plan." Ray said dryly, shaking his head at Jess because she was already back in her own world with her music blasting in her ears. "Damn, she's going to go deaf faster than we will."
Narrowing his eyes at the screen, Jason grabbed a kernel of popcorn that hadn't popped and tossed it at her.
"Hey!"
"Do you work!"
"I was just switching the song!"
Clay laughed and said, "You're the one who said you wanted people to keep you on task. Jase will take that seriously."
Jess sighed dramatically. "Finnneee."
A few moments later she went back to work, laser focused now with her fingers drumming softly on the side of her computer.
With the pressure and company of her family, Jess did eventually get her work done. The test went well, she thought anyway. Her assignment was acceptable. All in all, it was a good day. Now all she needed to do this week was to study for the exams coming up, go to the hospital and get that last booster that Naima arranged for her, and then go to work. Three weeks till done this semester and she could go on the trip.
"Jessica?"
That unmistakable voice stopped her in her tracks and Jess turned slowly, dread flooding every fiber of her being.
"Mom?"
The woman got up from where she'd been sitting outside near greenhouses as her class finished.
"Oh, honey! I'm so glad I found you! I figured if I could find you anywhere it would be near here. You do have quite the obsession with plants."
"What are you doing here?" Heart hammering in her chest, Jess couldn't move and her classmate, Alyssa, gave her a funny look. They'd been planning to go to the library and study together.
"Is that really the way you're going to greet your mother? After everything you've done?" Ellen turned to Alysaa and said with almost believable pleasantness, "Sorry, dear, but would you be so kind as to leave us in private? I haven't seen my daughter in a long time and we have some things we need to discuss."
"Yeah, no!" Jess reached out a hand unthinking and touched Alyssa on the arm. "You don't have to go. We actually have nothing to talk about and she was just leaving."
"My daughter is overreacting about a small disagreement we had a while back and," Ellen fixed Jess with a lok that made her drop her hand from Alyssa's arm. "She's going to apologize right now for her behavior. I'm so sorry, dear. I raised her better than this. Now, Jessica? Come along. We need to talk."
Looking uncertain, but not wanting to go toe to toe with Ellen, Alyssa shifted awkwardly and started to leave, saying, "Sorry…I'll see you in class, Jess?"
"You know what?! Let's go study." Jess said, moving to follow her. Panic was making her brain stop working and she couldn't even think right.
"Jessica. Don't cause a scene."
Alyssa gave Jess another worried look and kept going, digging out her own phone and seemingly starting to text someone. She was probably telling someone about the weird interaction.
Ellen won.
"I have nothing to say to you. Leave." Jess said, walking away and taking a shortcut through a small garden to her car. If she could get there she could just leave.
"Jessica! Show some respect! I drove all this way to see you and make things right, I don't understand why you have to be like this!"
"Sorry you wasted the trip." Jess snapped, stalking quickly now as her mother followed her through the row of hedges. Who could she call? Scott was gone. He got spun up late this morning. Naima was at work. Should she call the cops? No. Her phone was in her bag. She would have to stop to get it out.
"Like it or not, you need me." Ellen said, longer legs keeping up as her earrings clinked and the heels clipped on the stone.
"Name one way in which I need a sadistic narcissist in my life who threatens to kill my dog if I don't call her and then sends one of the people who drugged me to see me!?"
"I thought you liked that boy! He was always so nice and frankly you can't do much better than him, Jessica. You're fortunate he was interested in reaching out. I can't imagine you've had many people interested, especially with how much weight you've put on. Really! Don't you think you should wear something a little more flattering for your figure? This style isn't working for you anymore, which is a shame. You looked so nice before-"
"Shut up!" Jess turned on her, standing her ground now and facing her just at the mouth of the hedge ally and the parking lot.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. You don't get to speak to me like that and don't you dare comment on my weight."
Ellen rolled her eyes and threw her hands up in the air, "It was a joke, Jessica! Why are you taking this so seriously!? Everyone but you can read my humor and you never take it well. Have you ever considered that maybe you should speak to someone about that paranoia of yours? It's really concerning!"
"Don't ever come near me again." Jess spat, turning on her heel saying, "I'm getting a restraining order. Come near me again and I'll press charges."
"Is that a threat, girl?"
Jess recoiled as Harold blocked her path, face red with anger as he glared down at her.
"Stay away from me," Jess ordered in a fragile voice.
"We only want to talk, Jessica," Ellen said, trying to touch her shoulder only to have Jess duck out from under her hand. "Harold just didn't like the tone you were using with me."
"Use it again and I'll teach you a lesson."
Jess knew what he meant and all the sudden she was a pre–teen again, finally figuring out what sort of a man her step-father was as he made the same veiled threat.
With little choice, nowhere to go and her mind getting battered into submission, Jess said tightly, "What do you want."
"We heard you're going on a trip." Ellen said soothingly. "And we just couldn't sleep without voicing our concerns. Why…the Amazon? Really Jess. What are you thinking!? A girl like you?"
"Yeah. Anything could happen," said Harold. "You wouldn't want to piss off the wrong people."
Ice washed through her veins. "Who told you I was going on a trip? Did Jeremy tell you?!"
Frowning at her like she was stupid, Harold's face twisted and he said, "Why would Jeremy know about this?"
"We saw it in the school newsletter, Jessica. I must say I was shocked when your name came up as one of the students going!"
Staring at the ground, hardly believing her ears, Jess felt like she might be sick. The school newsletter ? The school had a newsletter? How did she miss that one!?
"Look," Jess tried to start moving around Harold and kept stepping in her way. "Let me pass. I listened. I have nothing more to say. It's none of your business."
"You'll listen as long as we say-" Harold grabbed her arm roughly when she tried to push past and Jess drew a sharp breath of air, her fist balling up and instincts screaming at her to stop being pathetic and defend herself.
"Let. Me. Go." Voice shaking, Jess lifted a glare up to meet Harold's, digging as deep as she could into that defiance that saved her from living under their room so long ago.
"Watch your attitude." Harold snarled, tightening his grip until it hurt.
"You really want to do this?" Jess asked, trying not to let the fear show. "You walk away now and I won't scream bloody murder."
"You wouldn't dare-"
"Try me." Jess bit out as Harold jerked her toward him a step and she tried to twist her thin arm from his grip.
"Harold!" Ellen hissed in a worried tone.
"Excuse me! Is there a problem here?"
A woman's voice called out. It was familiar, but Jess couldn't exactly place it yet, nor could she make herself turn her head as relief sang deep in her bones. She could have sagged to the ground and wept with joy.
Instantly Harold changed, loosening his hold to one that seemed more unassuming and kind. "Oh! No, of course not. My daughter here just isn't in any condition to drive and we were just-"
Jess ripped her arm from his loosened grip and stumbled back from him, reaching her hand across her chest to massage the tender spot on her bicep, never taking her eyes from the man as she backed away toward were the woman's voice came from.
"Jessica, dear-" Ellen tried to come after her, face etched with almost convincing concern.
"No. You're going to step away right now." A second male voice cut in with a firm, cold steel from behind them all, walking up behind Ellen in the hedge alleyway.
Jess whipped her chin up, craning her head round so she could see past her mother and step father. She knew that voice too!
One quick look over her shoulder and then back to the unmistakable form of a cop stepping from the shaded shadows of the hedge told her why.
It was Bailey and his partner, Fletcher. That's why she recognized her voice. The woman's dog, Luna, was one of Jess's favorite's at work.
"We don't need your help, thank you." Ellen said coldly, clearly also remembering the pair. They'd been the responding officers when she'd tried to get all of Bravo in trouble at the hospital.
"Jess?" Trevor was already switching places with his partner, giving her charge of the two while holding out a hand and motioning Jess to him. "It's ok. Why don't you come chat with me for a moment. You two? Stay right there. No. Right. There. On that spot. Don't you go anywhere."
"This is ridiculous!" Harold laughed. "We were just talking-"
"Not another word, sir." Fletcher said coolly, stepping between him and Jess as she moved rigidly in step with Bailey. "Consider yourselves detained . Put up a fuss and I'll upgrade your status to arrested ."
It wasn't until she was next to Trevor and he'd ghosted a hand behind her back, guiding her further from her mother and step-dad that the full force of everything began to close in on her.
A ragged gasp escaped her lungs and she struggled to take another in.
"It's ok, you're safe," Trevor stopped them a careful distance and glanced back at his partner who was still dauntlessly countering everything that Harold and Ellen were saying. "Tell me what happened."
"T-they just showed up, and then…I tried to walk away but they wouldn't let me-"
"Did he hurt you?"
Blinking rapidly, Jess covered her arm with her other hand and curled in on herself, frightened of telling the truth for no good reason other than that little girl in her still not wanting to make Harold mad.
"Jess?" Trevor was quiet, using his body to block her from view.
"Grabbed my arm pretty hard," Jess whispered, avoiding all eye contact and getting the insane urge to go take a shower. She felt so dumb. She should never have let her mother win in the first place.
"Can I see?" Trevor asked grimly. Somehow he still managed to keep a gentle amount of caring in his voice that put Jess at ease. It probably helped that she knew he and Brock were close.
Slowly, she shrugged out of her jacket and they peered at her bicep. There were angry red marks in her skin, threatening to bruise already.
"Bastard." Trevor muttered. "Want to press charges?"
"Can I do that?" Jess perked up noticeably, tearing her attention from the red marks on her harm. Hope and the healthy thirst for justice rose in her chest.
"Hell yeah! I can write up a whole list right here and now that would land him in jail and give him a court date!"
"Court date?" Jess hesitated. "What do you mean court date?"
"You'd win, hands down. Don't worry."
"No." Jess shook her head, the fire in her chest starting to die with resignation. "He's got great lawyers. He's been taken to court before over some stuff with his business and company. Always gets off-"
"You'd be a compelling witness, Jess…and I got friends-."
"No. He's too slimy. I'll…I'll just file a restraining order, against them both. Maybe that'll be enough to make them back off." Jess couldn't lift her face, setting her jaw as she shoved her arm back into her burgundy jacket. She stuffed her hands in her pockets and said quietly, "Could…could you help with that? I don't know the first thing about getting one of those."
"Of course I'll help…just," She could see the way Trevor's feet shifted restlessly and she detected a frustrated, unhappy note in his voice, "Are you sure you don't want to press charges?"
"I'm sure," Jess murmured. "It's too complicated. I just want them out of my life. That's all."
Trevor shifted his feet again, then went still and said firmly, "If you change your mind…just let me know. I'll make it happen."
All Jess could do was nod.
From there she got lost in her body, walking as if in a dream as she went through the process of getting the restraining order. Even with Harold and Ellen long gone, ordered to leave and served the order, she was tense. There was a numbness inside that she hadn't experienced in a while. No feeling meant survival. If she didn't feel, she wouldn't hurt or be afraid.
It wasn't until Bailey was walking her to her car that her emotions caught up and she was on the verge of breaking down.
"Are you sure you're gonna be ok? Can we call someone for you?" Trevor asked again as she got into her car. "We can even give you a ride home or escort you, if you want."
Jess shook her head and fought back another round of tears, forcing a smile.
"I'm ok. Just took me by surprise is all. Not like I haven't had to deal with them before. I'll be fine."
That steady, unwavering regard and compassion from Trevor nearly undid her a second time when she made eye contact. She knew he didn't like her decision not to press charges, and yet he respected it in a way she wasn't sure Scott or Bravo would. The mere thought of them and their reaction to her choice made her want to sob. They'd be so pissed off.
"Thank you for all your help. I really appreciate it," Jess said quietly, hands gripping her steering wheel.
"Jess, is Scott home right now?" Trevor asked quietly.
"He could be back now. I don't know. Probably not. They got spun up. I'll be fine."
"Please consider calling someone when you get home?"
"Ok." Jess was crumbling quickly again and she didn't want to fall apart on him, so she started her car and put the windows down before closing her door. "Thanks again."
"Wait." Trevor jammed a hand into a pocket and pulled out a card. "Got a pen?"
"Uh…yeah, here- why?"
"Call me if you need anything, ok? I don't care if it's just to drive past in the squad car a few times during my shift or to talk for a bit. Give me a call if you want to. Any time."
Lower lip trembling now, Jess accepted the card from him and drew a shuddering breath in.
All she could manage was a tight, "Thank you, Trevor."
She followed it with a weak smile that she knew didn't reach her eyes.
Trevor seemed to hesitate before stepping back from the car door, reaching up to grip either side of his vest with his hands and standing with his feet apart.
He was serious when he said, "Take care of yourself, Jess. I'll see ya around."
When Jess got home, she locked the door the second she got in. Then she checked the small house three times, including the tiny crawl space attic that housed a few of Scott's and her own overflow items.
Then she checked the doors again. Then the windows. And the doors once more.
After that, just for good measure she closed all the drapes because she couldn't stop pacing around, looking out them and kept getting this paranoid feeling someone was watching.
She tried giving Pauline a call, but there wasn't any answer and she didn't leave a message.
Hours ticked on and Jess sat, curled on the couch wearing one of Scott's hoodies, watching some dumb show to try keeping her mind off things.
When she muted it a fifth time because she thought she heard something, Jess broke down and finally had a good cry. She'd been holding it in for hours.
They'd found her. Again. And they knew about the trip.
Harold threatened her. Hurt her.
And she was too weak to press charges.
Fuck. What the hell was she going to say to Scott?!
The carousel of thoughts went round and round until she'd exhausted herself and she dragged herself to her computer to play some games.
No lunch or dinner, eight hours of movies and computer games later, Jess tried to crawl into her bed.
That was disastrous. She couldn't fall asleep. Every creak of the house, every sound of a car driving past outside, it all wormed into her head. She found herself just waiting for the front door to open and Harold or her mother to waltz in.
Raging inside and crying aloud with frustration, Jess stomped out of her room, dragging a blanket with her and into Scott's room.
At first she was just going to lay on top of the blankets and use her own, just like she did every time she did this, but for whatever reason she needed to be under them all this time.
It wasn't until she was burrowed down, nose tucked into the heavy musk that hinted maybe it was almost time for Scott to wash his sheets again, that Jess somewhat relaxed.
She didn't fall asleep though.
At 3am, when the sound of a vehicle pulling up and turning off reached her ears, Jess tensed. Her heart hammered in her chest and tears leaked out again.
The front lock clicked, then the door opened.
This was real this time. There was someone else here with her.
Jess couldn't make herself move as she listened to the footsteps in the hall approach. They were quiet, steady and measured.
Deep down she knew it was Scott, but all the same, she couldn't relax until he entered the room and paused in the doorway without speaking.
Jess listened to her own thundering heart in the darkness until she couldn't stand in anymore. She kept her back turned to the hall, eyes clenched shut and let out one terrified whisper.
"Scott?"
"Yup." He answered instantly, moving into the room and putting his bag in the closet almost noisily.
Feeling guilty and not wanting him to see her blotchy face from all the crying if he turned on a light, Jess slowly started to uncurl herself.
"I should give you back your bed."
"No. If it makes you feel safer, stay there."
Pausing mid curl, Jess debated with herself.
Giving in quickly, she lay back down again. Then she tucked back in on herself and whispered her confession into the dark room.
"Mom and Harold showed up at school today."
"I know. Bailey contacted Brock. He was pretty worried about you and wanted to make sure you weren't alone tonight. Came as soon as I heard." Scott opened his dresser drawers and closed them again. Then his feet circled round to the far side of the bed where she was and he crouched next to her. "You ok, pips?"
A dry sob worked its way up. She kept her face down, unexplainably ashamed.
"No."
"Ok." A hand touched the top of her head, palming hair back from her forehead. "I'm going to shower, then I am coming back and you are going to get some sleep. Got it? No one's getting past me."
Nodding as she gulped back another whining sob, Jess reached blindly for his hand and squeezed it when the rough palm found hers.
"You should probably also know that Jason's prowling around outside right now, Clay's up the street with Sonny, parked in his car, fully prepared to camp out watching the house all night. Trent's grabbing a bag of stuff then coming here, and Brock's grabbing stuff for Cerberus before bringing him." Scott's hand squeezed back and his other came round to rub her back when she burst out with a deeper round of sobs.
"T-they don't n-need to!" Jess wept.
"Yeah, they do. You're family, Jess. We take care of our family," Scott patted her on the back and said, "I'll be back in a minute. I'd hug you right now, but I didn't have time to shower before coming home, and trust me…you do not want me near you right now."
Even with the state her nose was in, Jess could smell him now that he mentioned it and she wasn't sure she wanted to know what it was she could smell. Sulfur. Copper. Dirt. Rank swamp water. Sweat. Lots of sweat. And…pickles?
"Close your eyes, kid. You're ok. Got the best guarding you."
Accepting the box of tissues Scott handed her, Jess whispered, "They shouldn't have to be outside and not sleeping-"
"Knock it off. We aren't the most affectionate or sensitive people, Jess. Let them show their love the only way they know how. Now, close your eyes."
Exhausted, Jess didn't put up much more of a fuss and her tears ebbed into quiet streams down her cheeks until Scott came back.
"Alright, pipsqueak," he growled as he tossed his dirty clothes in the laundry. "How is this playing out? Do you want me to stay or am I sleepin somewhere else. I don't care which it is. You want me to stay, I will."
Jess stayed still, thinking and considering. She trusted Scott more than anyone in the world, and she couldn't deny she wanted someone close, but still. Wasn't it…not proper or whatever?
"Are you sure it's ok?" As all Jess could think of to express herself.
She could hear the shrug in his voice and his words confirmed he already knew what she was worried about.
"You seriously worried people will get the wrong idea? Really?" Scott's gruff tone was shaded with amusement. "Kid, we both know this is purely platonic and so does everyone else. And I mean, everyone. Even if they didn't, I don't give a fuck what anyone thinks. You need me here, I'm here. You don't. That's fine too."
Conflicted, Jess lifted her nose from where she'd been hiding it in the mix of her blanket and his.
"Can I stay with you? Even just for a little? I'll go back to my room after." She asked in a small voice.
"Yup." Scott was about to cross the distance when a loud noise entered the space between them. "Hold up. Was that your stomach?!"
Jess winced because oddly enough she hadn't been hungry all day and now suddenly she was, which was inconvenient because it meant telling Scott she hadn't eaten all day.
"Jess."
"Yes, it was."
"When's the last time you ate something?" Scott growled in a low, patient tone.
"This morning. A muffin. And tea."
"You are going to be the death of me. Get your ass out of bed. You're coming to eat something before you sleep."
Scott was already stalking out of the room and she could see him shaking his head.
Knowing he'd be back to drag her to the kitchen if she didn't follow, Jess slipped out and wrapped the blanket around her. It wasn't that cold, but she was wearing her typical attire of a sports bra, tank top and pj bottoms and the blanket made her feel less vulnerable to the world around her.
Trent, Brock and Cerberus appeared as she came into the kitchen. They all sort of stood, frozen in time, staring at each other. Then Cerberus trotted up and nuzzled her hand and Jess had to fight back more tears as she gave the dog all her love.
Brock was next, pulling her into a hug gently and murmuring, "Hey, kid. You ok? Trev said he drove by a few times during his shift to make sure nothing looked off, but he wasn't sure how you were doing."
"H-he did?!"
"Yeah." Brock gave her a final, tender squeeze and pulled back. "Don't be upset with him for telling us what happened. He just didn't want us going out drinking as soon as we got home or something and leaving you alone for longer than necessary."
Blinking and swallowing down the painful lump in her throat, Jess managed a weak smile and said, "He's really taken good care of me. I'll have to remember to say thank you."
Trent was hovering off to the side and he moved in when Brock gave him room.
"You ok?" He asked, also hugging her tightly.
Jess nodded.
"You sure? Trevor said something about that bastard grabbing your arm."
"I'm fine." Jess answered quickly, guilt and shame boiling up again. "Just a little bruised."
Trent exchanged a look with Brock and then asked gently, "Could I see, please?"
There was a long, silent debate between Jess and Trent as she argued with him without words that it wasn't important.
In the end, she relented and let the blanket slip off her right shoulder to show the fresh marks on her arm.
"Can I touch?" Trent asked, his tone giving nothing away, controlled and focused.
"Sure."
Trent took her elbow carefully and poked at the bruises, turning her arm so he could see them all. Then Brock flicked out his phone and they took a picture of it.
"What are you-"
"Don't worry about it." Trent said quietly. "Just documenting."
"For what?! I didn't press charges."
The words slipped out without her meaning to and Jess went utterly still after saying them.
Guiltily, she peeked up at Trent from under her fringe, bracing herself for judgment.
The thin line that Trent's mouth pulled into told a lot without saying anything.
"We know, Jess." Brock said gently. "Just…let us do this. Please. Just in case you change your mind."
"Are you mad at me?" Jess asked, not taking her eyes off Trent who'd walked away in the kitchen.
"Come eat," Scott replied, skirting around the question without missing a beat.
That sinking feeling re-entered her stomach and Jess nearly said she wasn't hungry anymore.
Instead she accepted the bagel with cream cheese, the yogurt and the bowl of mixed berries.
She ate them in silence, automatically shutting down because she couldn't handle her family being mad at her.
About the fourth time she looked away from Trent when he caught her dark eyes following him around the room the man sighed and made his way over, sinking down on a bar stool next to her at the counter.
"Not mad, Jess. Just not thrilled that the monster isn't getting what he deserves."
"What was I supposed to do?" Jess asked desperately, feeling nauseous now that her stomach wasn't empty anymore. "He's got good lawyers! They'd get the charges dropped in no time and then he'd be more pissed than if I just got the restraining order! I don't have a lot of options, Trent and- and I know what you must think but-"
"What do I think, Jess?" Trent asked, digging in with that solid, serious mask.
"That I'm weak!" Jess snapped, a sudden anger overflowing as she burned a hole in the quiet medic. "And pathetic b-because I couldn't- I couldn't- I can't- I tried . I did the best I could and-"
Trent reached out suddenly and pulled her into his shoulder, making her little speech die out.
"That's not at all what I think, or what any of us do." Trent said with more emotion than she expected from him. "You are not weak, or pathetic. I meant what I said. Not mad at you. I'm just not thrilled the bastard isn't getting what he deserves. That's not a reflection on you, Jess."
"The decision is yours, Jess," Scott's voice was surprisingly growlless. "No one is going to give you grief for doing what you needed to do in the situation. Just know we're here to see you through whatever choice you make."
Melting into Trent, Jess burst into tears again and said, "I just want to forget the whole thing, and to hell with the fact Harold knew about the Amazon trip. I want to go anyway, and find cool shit and make a difference because he's stolen so much from me already, I'm not letting him have this too!"
No one answered right away, and Jess took that as permission to have a good cry again. As she did so, her brothers had yet another soundless conversation.
After a bit, Scott growled that she needed sleep and ushered her to bed. With an unneeded word from Brock, Cerberus followed, hoping into her bed and curling up in the crook of her legs as she settled.
"Want me to stay a bit?" Scott asked,
Eyes heavy, Jess nodded. She was only just finally starting to feel like she could sleep and it was 4am.
Scott sat next to her, leaning with his back against the headboard and stretching his long legs out. He dropped a hand on the top of her head, steady contact. Jess meant to speak, to say something and explain more in order to further justify herself, but instead she dropped off into a deep sleep. Instead of nightmares, she dreamt of wolves all around her, keeping watch.