Chapter 14

Author Note: Have a great holiday season! This will likely be the only chapter posted in December, as I am on vacation. I will return in early January.

Jeremy was the first off the plane after they landed. Kylie and his parents quickly followed. Unaware of the conversation between Jeremy and his mother earlier that week, Kylie was surprised when an SUV arrived and three men exited.

“Who are they?” Kylie asked Jeremy as they walked toward the SUV.

“My parents decided to step up their security now that they will be more public in the community,” he replied. The security team had always been there, but worked in the background across the street from where Jeremy lived. His parents had bought the house for the team to make their headquarters.

The group entered the SUV and quickly set off toward the hospital. Kylie got a few updates from Skyler during the flight, but they still did not know how bad Bob’s head injuries were. His parents had arrived and were waiting with Skyler as they did CT scans and MRIs. They were expecting an update by the end of the day.

“We reached out to the top neurologist in the country, Dr. Davy,” Cassidy stated. “He’s ready to consult if we need him.”

Jeremy just nodded his head and continued staring out the window. All Kylie could do was hold his hand and hope that Bob would be okay. Jeremy was much closer to Bob than she was; they had been friends for years. It would kill him mentally if Bob got permanently injured, especially in a random act of violence.

It wasn’t long before they arrived at the hospital. Jeremy took a deep breath before exiting the car and headed toward the entrance.

“Give him a second,” Cassidy told Kylie as they followed. “If he lashes out today, it’s not something you did.”

Kylie was confused by the statement but just nodded. Cassidy quickly noticed her confusion.

“Has he told you about what happened to his friend in elementary school?” Cassidy asked quietly.

“No,” Kylie replied.

“He will when he’s ready. Just be there to listen,” Cassidy told Kylie before they all entered the building. Cassidy was unsure if telling Kylie about Jeremy’s friend was a good idea; it may have opened an emotional wound.

Skyler was the first to notice them as they entered the waiting room and jumped up from her seat to hug Kylie. She quickly turned and hugged Jeremy too, catching him slightly off guard. He was not used to having Skyler hug him, but he recovered quickly.

“Any news?” he asked as she moved back from the hug.

“They said they were getting the scans back soon,” Skyler told them.

Skyler, Kylie, and Jeremy sat down while Jeremy’s parents talked with Bob’s parents.

“What happened, Skyler?” Jeremy asked.

“We were walking to the car downtown. We noticed some guys around the car, and Bob had me wait around the corner while he figured out what was happening. Next thing I know, he’s being attacked, and I was calling for help,” Skyler explained.

“Did he say anything to you after?” Jeremy asked. He wanted to see if he could get information on why he was attacked.

“He was ... out cold by that point,” Skyler said, trying to avoid crying again. Kylie noticed and took her into a hug.

They all waited for the next two hours before the doctors finally had an update.

“We see no evidence of any brain damage. We’re going to keep him sedated for the next few hours to allow his swelling to decrease, but we believe he will be fine,” the doctor explained. The whole group let out a deep sigh and finally started to relax.

“Kylie, please take our car and take Jeremy home to get changed and grab some food,” Cassidy instructed. Jeremy didn’t want to leave, but his mother’s look told him it was not a request. He decided nodding was the correct course of action.

“Will do. Skyler, do you want us to bring you anything?” Kylie asked.

“I am going to head home and do the same. I will meet you back here in a few hours,” Skyler replied.

“Sounds good,” Kylie said, giving Skyler another hug. Jeremy did the same before they headed out to the car.

“You doing okay?” Kylie asked as they got into the car.

“Yep,” Jeremy replied, but his voice had no sincerity.

“I saw you were uncomfortable with Skyler hugging you,” Kylie stated.

“It’s not that. I wasn’t expecting it, given how she had never done that before,” Jeremy clarified.

“She trusts you a lot now,” Kylie admitted. “She’s not a physical person until she knows you can be trusted.”

Jeremy nodded. He was glad that Kylie’s best friend trusted him. It was a good feeling in the middle of a horrible end to a great week.

“What happened in elementary school?” Kylie asked. She could not hold back the question.

Jeremy just closed his eyes before turning to look out the window.

“Sorry. Your mom brought it up but didn’t tell me what happened,” Kylie began after seeing Jeremy’s reaction.

“We can talk about it once we’re back at the house,” Jeremy said. Kylie nodded, and they silently drove the rest of the way to Jeremy’s house.

As they walked in, Jeremy motioned for Kylie to sit on the couch.

Jeremy took a deep breath before speaking.

“When I was in elementary school, my friend was attacked. It was partly my fault. He never recovered fully. They never caught the person either,” Jeremy stated. It was not a detailed explanation, but Kylie understood this must have been hard to talk about. She had wondered how Jeremy thought he was responsible, but decided that was a discussion for another time.

“I’m sorry,” Kylie stated.

“This just reminds me of what happened then,” Jeremy admitted. “I just feel like it’s my fault somehow.”

“This is NOT your fault,” Kylie told him. “Stop thinking like that, because it will not help Bob.”

She was using a very stern voice, and Jeremy understood why. He took her words to heart and pulled her into a hug. “Thank you,” he whispered, wiping away some tears from his eyes.