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In the rush to get out of the hotel, Awsten barely notices anything around him. His legs carry him to the place he needs to get to. To the person he needs to see.

Hibiscus.

He needs to get to her. With no regard for his safety, Awsten runs around the crowded streets of New York City. He feels a nudge, pushing him to the side, but he doesn't stick around long enough to know what it was. All that mattered was getting to Hibiscus as fast as he could.

Awsten arrives to see AJ, Bea, and Marigold about to enter the cafe.

"Hey! Guys!" Awsten calls out, picking up the pace into a sprint to the shop.

"Hey," AJ replies, clenching his fists together. Their eyebrows are furrowed as they hold the door open.

"I'm gonna fucking murder Colleen. I hope she still lives at her old place that way I can pay her a visit and knock her fucking teeth out," Marigold seethes.

"Goldie, you know Hibiscus would hate you for that. And anyways, there's no point in wasting time on Colleen," Bea says softly, rubbing her girlfriend's back gently.

"I'm with Marigold on this one," Awsten frowns. "I hate that anyone fucking hurt her like that. Colleen deserves to be kicked or something."

"He gets it."

"Let's just go up to see her. We're not killing anyone," AJ says. They wait for Bea to walk up the stairs before turning to Marigold and Awsten, "Yet."

The three rush up to the apartment. They see Hibiscus sat on the couch just staring at the wall as Aster stands in the kitchen.

"She recorded a song and hasn't spoken since," Aster explains, looking at the four of them. "She's been thrown off real bad."

"She hasn't been like this since April," Bea mutters, covering her mouth with her hand at the sight. "Have you tried talking to her?"

"No. I think we shouldn't overwhlem her anymore."

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Awsten agrees. "I know that's the last thing I want anytime this happens to me."

"Is that Awsten?" Hibiscus asks quietly, not turning around.

Everyone looks at him shocked. Awsten gulps, looking at the back of Hibiscus' head.

"Uh, yeah, it is," he replies. "Do you want anything?"

"Come here, please."

Her voice is shaky as she speaks even though her voice is barely above a whisper. Awsten looks between Hibiscus and everyone else. AJ places his hand on Awsten's shoulder.

"She asked. Go over."

Awsten nods, walking slowly to Hibiscus. He stands next to her. She looks up at him with glazed eyes. Reaching out to him, her fingertips graze against his hand. He lets her take it as he sits next to her. She wraps her arms around him tight. So tight Awsten almost can't breathe. Almost. He feels pain shoot up from his side, deeming it as unimportant and due to the tight hug.

"I'm sorry. I probably ruined your whole trip," she mutters against his chest.

He runs his fingers through her hair to calm her down, "Hey, no, not at all. You didn't ruin anything."

Feeling her tears soak his hoodie, Awsten kisses the top of her head. His head rests atop hers. As she relaxes, Awsten winces at the touch on his side. Immediately, she's scooching away.

"What's wrong?" she asks, wiping her tears before pointing to his side.

"Uh... I think I got hit by a car when I was rushing to get here," he mutters nonchalantly in an attempt not to scare her.

"You what?!" she exclaims.

"It was only a bump, it's alright," he assures as he notices her tears returning. "Hey. Hey. It's okay. I didn't even realize until now. I'm fine. It's only a little bruise."

"You could've died because of me," she sniffles, pouting as her tears fall rapidly.

Awsten moves closer to her, carefully lifting his hand to wipe her tears with his thumb. "I'm okay, Hibiscus. I promise it's fine. I don't care anyways. All that matters is that I'm here with you." He doesn't realize what he said until he notices her eyes widen a bit. "For you. Here for you."

"I hate you so damn much. Don't ever get hurt or I will hurt you," she jokes even though she's sobbing.

At this point, everyone else stopped listening in on the conversation. After all, Hibiscus and Awsten were close enough to the point that she wanted to be with him after today's fiasco.

AJ, as much as he didn't want to admit it, was feeling a little upset. They're glad Hibiscus was able to reach out to someone, but deep down, AJ wished it was them she reached out to. They'd been best friends for two years. He's usually the person she goes to. It just makes him feel disheartened. Then again, Awsten seems to bring out something in Hibiscus that's rarely shown.

Hibiscus doesn't tend to be real with people. She'll lie at their espense. She creates this facade that people believe. The walls she built hid everything genuine about her away. From what AJ can see though, she's not hiding her vulnerability with Awsten. That's extremely rare, only meant for special people.

So when Hibiscus sits there with Awsten, opening up and trusting him, AJ couldn't be more proud of their best friend.

༺❀༻

a/n : it was only a bump y'all

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