I moved past him, heart hammering in my chest, and then I saw Ocean. My stomach dropped. His clothes were stained with blood, his usually composed posture broken, shoulders slumpedlike the weight of the world was on him. And then his eyes found mine, and it was like the air left the room.
“Skye…” His voice cracked, low and broken.
I was moving before I even thought about it, my arms wrapping around him, holding him as if I could keep him together. His body shook against mine, and I felt the tears start to run down my own face as he buried his face in my shoulder.
“He’s…he’s gone,” he whispered. “Ol’ School’s…dead.”
The words hit me like a physical blow. I felt my knees threaten to give out, but I held him tighter, desperate to be the anchor he needed. “Shh…Ocean. Breathe. It’s okay. I’m here. You’re not alone,” I whispered, rubbing his back, willing him to feel my presence, willing him to find some grounding in my arms.
His hands gripped my hair, pulling me closer, and I could feel every ounce of his pain radiating through him. “I should’ve?—”
“Stop,” I said firmly, holding his face so I could see him. “None of this is your fault.”
He shook his head, tears spilling freely, hands pressing against mine as if I could stop him from falling apart. “He was like family, Skye. Like my damn father sometimes. And now…now he’s gone.”
My own throat tightened, and I wanted to break, wanted to let all the tears go, but I couldn’t. Not now. Not when he needed me.
“I know,” I whispered, pressing my lips to his temple. “I know. And it hurts. But you’re not alone. Not ever. I’m right here, Ocean. I’ve got you.”
He let out a shuddering breath, leaning completely into me, and for a moment, the hospital lights, the antiseptic smell, the beeping machines in the distance...it all faded. It was just us, and the heartbreak, and the unbearable weight of loss that neither of us could do anything about.
He let out a shaky laugh, wet and broken. “I always try to protect people. But I couldn’t protect him.”
“You did everything you could,” I whispered again.
His hands tightened around me, and I felt him start to crumble even more. “I just?—”
I pulled him even closer, whispering over and over, “I’m here. I’m right here. You’re not alone. You’re not alone.”
Minutes passed like that. Just me holding him, whispering into his ear, letting him sob and shake and finally start to let go of some of the weight pressing down on him. He was broken, battered by grief and guilt, and yet somehow still breathing. Still here. And I clung to the fact that he was still here.
50
OCEAN
The water ran heavy over my head, hot enough to feel like it was trying to wash away the weight pressing down on me. I let my eyes close, just trying to breathe.
Ol’ School. God, Ol’ School. I couldn’t get the image of him off my brain. The way I found him, motionless on the ground, the blood, the bite marks…his pulse faint, and that goddamn feeling of helplessness clutching at my chest. My stomach still turned thinking about it. I’d been through some serious shit, handled my share of chaos, but this? This wasn’t something you prepared for.
I let the water pound my shoulders, trying to shake it off. I’d gotten him to the ambulance. I’d tried to keep him alive. But when I saw that pulse dip and fade, the reality slammed into me. I wasn’t fast enough. And I felt it. Every ounce of my pride, every bit of my control, slipping through my fingers like sand.
I finally shut off the water and stepped out, muscles sore from tension, mind still spinning. Skye was already in the kitchen when I strolled in, dressed in a simple white tee and joggers. The smell hit me before I saw her. Bacon, eggs, pancakes…orange juice. My stomach growled despiteeverything, and I realized I hadn’t even been able to eat since yesterday.
She was humming softly as she flipped a pancake, and I paused in the doorway for a moment, just watching her. Hair pulled back, oversized hoodie hanging off her shoulders, tiny shorts barely peeking out. She looked like she belonged in my condo, in my life. She was taking care of me without me having to ask. And man…she was beautiful. Every little movement, every soft hum, it hit me in a way that had nothing to do with breakfast.
“Morning,” I said quietly, finally moving forward.
She glanced up, giving me that small smile that melted my chest. “Glad to see you’re up and moving around,” she said, flipping the pancake onto a plate.
“Yeah,” I whispered, eyes on her as I walked closer, still shaking off the last bits of the morning’s haze. “You really didn’t have to do all this.”
“I know,” she said, sliding a plate toward me. “But I wanted to. You needed to eat.”
I took a seat at the table, but before I even picked up a fork, I reached over, tugging her to my lap without warning. She giggled softly, then wrapped her arms lightly around my neck.
“Thanks for staying up with me last night,” I said. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”
She tilted her head to look at me, her eyes soft. “You don’t have to thank me, Ocean. You were in a lot of pain, and I wanted to be there for you.”
