My heart ached for him. “Hey,” I said softly, leaning closer. “It’s okay. Let’s go.”
I turned to Beck and Bae, trying to keep my voice calm. “Wyn’s not feeling great. We’re going to head out.”
“Wait, what’s wrong?” Beck asked immediately, her eyes narrowing as she studied him.
“Well, I can’t swallow anything and keep it down so I figured I need to rest,” Wynter said, his voice faint. “Stay and enjoy your day.”
Bae frowned, already grabbing her coat. “No, we’re coming with you.”
“You don’t have to—” Wynter started, but Beck cut him off.
“Don’t argue, Jesus,” she said firmly, sliding out of the booth. “We’re not leaving you like this.”
Wynter sighed, clearly too exhausted to fight them.
On the way out, Beck kept a steadying hand on his back, and Bae wrapped her scarf around his neck even though he protested weakly. By the time we got into the car, Wynter was leaning heavily against me, his head resting on my shoulder as the city lights blurred past the window.
The rest of the ride was quiet, and I kept a protective arm around him, letting him rest. Beck and Bae exchanged worriedglances in the backseat, their earlier liveliness replaced by a quiet determination.
When we got home, Wynter went straight to the couch, sinking into it with a sigh. I sat beside him, pulling a blanket over his lap as Beck disappeared into the kitchen to get him a painkiller, and Bae busied herself fussing over him like a mother hen.
“Let us take care of you for once,” Beck said as she handed him a mug, her tone leaving no room for argument.
And for once, in turn Wynter didn’t argue, letting himself lean into their care as the evening carried on, quieter but full of love.
“Do you think we could ever go back?” Wynter asked, looking up at me with hopeful eyes.
“Go back where?” I wondered,
“To Waverly,” he said, his eyes pleading. “I know we all sold our houses there and they’re kind of run down now but…sometimes I feel like I need to go back someday. To make peace with it all, to accept it. The memory it’s…making me sick, I think that if I could go back just once I could find closure.”
“Maybe someday.” I nodded, kissing his forehead. “We had good memories.”
“We did.” He smiled weakly with his eyes closed. “Remember when we helped Jax ask Syd to be his girlfriend?”
“Do I?” I chuckled. “Of course.”
35
All Your Deepest Darkests
Flashback summer ‘17
THIRD PERSON POV
Jax paced back-and-forth in the living room, his sneakers scuffing against the oak flooring in anticipation. “This is a bad, bad idea. I’m so doomed,” he mumbled for the hundredth time in minutes.
“Yes, it is actually glad we’re being honest,” Beck deadpanned, lounging on the couch. “Oh, that’s why we’re here to make sure you don’t ruin your life with that idea and actually go in with a game plan.”
“Beck,” Yesoh warned before glancing back at the younger boy with a soft gaze. “She’s just kidding, everything is going to go well!”
“You don’t even know that.” Jax paced faster. “What if she rejects me and laughs in my face and I question all my life choices?”
“Or maybe, and hear me out because this might come as a shock,she doesn’t do any of that and she says yes because she’s clearly incredibly interested in you,” Wynter interjected from his seat on the floor with his back against the coffee table. He twirled a pen in his hands with a smirk. “She likes you, Jax. Everyone can see it.”
Yesoh couldn’t help but scoff, because what on earth did Wynter Andy Kwon know about what everyone could clearly see?
“Exactly,” Jiwon chimed in, wearing a yellow raincoat that made her look like Coraline. “She’s going to say yes, but you need to stop pacing because it’s stressing us all out .”
