WhiteScratch

Disaster Before Peace

"I guess this is what happens when you wander around and aren't prepared for anything." I say with a small laugh which ultimately brings the pain back into my wounds. I wince and Jake sighs as he lays me down gently. He looks through his bag and pulls cotton, bandages, and stitching material out. He slowly and carefully stitches up the holes in my arms, making me wince every time the needle passes in and out of my skin. He then puts a huge amount of cotton onto my neck and wraps the bandages around it to keep it in place. I moan softly as the cotton feels like fire on my neck.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I know it hurts but this is the only way to help it heal." He says as he lays a hand on my cheek. I press my face into it and notice Grayson staring me down. Jake picks me up again, holding me close, and I stare back at Grayson. 
"What do you want?" I ask him, annoyed. He looks away and ignores me but I can hear his voice in my head, like a whisper saying, "You." more than once. I lean into Jake a little more as this gives me an uneasy feeling. There is silence for a few moments before Jake breaks it giving Grayson the death stare.
"Sooo- How did you know where to go to get out of there? Why didn't you tell us before Rachel got seriously injured?" I suddenly remember how Jake hit his head on that rock pretty severely. 
"Oh!! How is your head? Do you remember anything?" I ask him. He gets distracted and looks down at me. 
"I'm fine. I remember everything, I just got a headache, that's all."
"Do you have any medicine or something that would help?"
"No, I didn't think about that. I'll be fine, Rache." He kisses the top of my head before he turns back to Grayson.
"Well?" Grayson turns to look at Jake, clearly irritated. 
"I didn't know. I was just uh- a feeling." He bites his lip and looks me up and down again. I try to move closer to Jake and I can feel his grip tighten around me. 
'And you didn't have that feeling before Rachel almost got killed? I'm sorry but I'm not buying it. Tell me what's really going on." Jake says angrily. Grayson stops studying me and points his gaze toward Jake. 
"I told you what was going on."
"No, no you didn't. "A feeling" isn't gonna cut it. You knew where you were going the entire time. That's why you were being oddly quiet in there. How did you know where to go and why didn't you tell us?!" The corners of Grayson's mouth curl up into an inhuman smile as he gets up and walks toward us. He squats back down centimetres from me and puts a hand on my face as he rubs his thumb back and forth on my lips. I bite him so hard he has to shake his hand before Jake picks me up and backs away from him. 
"Stupid girl!" He shouts angrily at me. 
"She wouldn't of had to do that if you would stay away from her!" Jake shouts back at him in the same tone. Grayson takes a step forward as Jake whispers to me, "Can I put you down for a second?" I nod my head and he gently sets me down before he stands in front of me. 
"I would suggest that you don't take another step forward. For your own good." Jake says in his protective, authoritative voice. Grayson pauses in his tracks. 
"She's not yours to protect!! You can't even manage to do that! I can keep her safe. More than you can!" My blood starts to boil and I struggle to stand up. Jake helps me and once I'm on my feet, I take a couple steps toward him.
"Shut up Grayson! I am his to protect and quite honestly, I need him! I need his help. I wouldn't have gotten this far without him! And don't even get me started on you! You haven't done jack! You hurt me worse when we were in that place! You didn't care if I got hurt or not! You can't protect me more than Jake can! You haven't done anything to help me! Instead, you walk around like a creeper, trying to be close to me and seduce me! What is going on in your twisted little mind?! Just shut up and stay the heck away from me!" His expression shows even more anger than before. I can see the pure hatred for me; for Jake, building up behind his eyes. He turns around with a grunt and walks maybe ten feet, maybe more, away from us. I turn back towards Jake with a sign as I rub my face with my hands. He comes up to me and hugs me tightly. 
"That was incredible. I didn't know that was in you." 
"Yeah well, I've had it with him. He didn't used to be like this. Or, I never noticed it. It's so annoying and he's so awkward and uncomfortable. Sends shivers down my spine. Bad ones."
"I know. I'm here for you. To protect you. To support you. To love you. Always will be." I open my eyes wide as the adrenaline hits me, realizing what he just said as I look up at him. 
"Did you just say what I think you said?" 
He smiles, "Which part?"
"The part about- about, when you said- "To love you." Are you saying what I think you're saying?!" 
He laughs and says, "Yes. Rachel Amana, I love you. Very much." 
The world seems to slow down and everything is blocked out of my mind. Just me and him in the moment. 
"Excuse me, please." I say as I start to walk away from him. Once I'm at least five feet away, I cover my face with my hands and jump around excitedly as I scream to myself. Once I have gathered myself together, I walk back over to him and he pulls me close once more. 
"So?" He says as he smiles down at me. I smile even wider and say, "I was wondering how long it'd take for me to realize the same thing. Jake Hart, I love you too. Very very much." His eyes brighten as he picks me up and twirls me around gently. He sets me down again and I press my forehead against his.
"This is definitely the happiest I've been in what seems like forever."
"I'd have to agree with that."