Mended

42

Izzy's POV

I kept my gaze glued to my phone as I rushed towards my car, which was parked in the garage of Elijah's building. My fingers worked frantically across my screen as I typed a message to my siblings—a message I'd send once I left this place.

I was in the middle of writing it when I heard her.

"Izzy?"

My head whipped up and my feet came to a halt as I came face to face with Rose.

But it wasn't just her alone.

Chase, Damien and Aiden surrounded her, all of their eyes on me.

They stood a few feet away from me, and all it took was one scan for me to confirm that they were here because they knew. I didn't know who'd reached out to tell them about Ethan, but the devastation was visible in all of them.

Rose appeared to have more of a difficult time hiding her heartbreak because it was written all over her. Her bloodshot gaze, her disheveled hair, her oversized hoodie that I knew must've belonged to Ethan, and most prominent of all—the utter despair in her glassy eyes.

Damien was silent, but there was a grave expression in his eyes. Everything about him seemed dull and faraway. Aiden's brows were pulled together with worry, the anxiety of the unknown visible in his body language.

And Chase—

I'd never seen him this pale.

His usual lighthearted and relaxed aura was nowhere to be seen—all hints of the grin he usually wore absent. His face was sunken in and hollow; the fear that he didn't voice visible on his face.

Fear for their friend. Fear for their brother by choice.

My heart broke a little more, the lump in my throat growing.

So many people loved him; how could Ethan not see?

All of us would do anything for him, and he'd just....

I swallowed past the thoughts that burned my chest and instead, focused on his friends. Nothing mattered right now aside from Ethan, so any awkwardness I'd feared I'd face with Chase now was nonexistent.

"Any updates?" Aiden spoke first, stepping towards me. The rest followed.

I shook my head, hugging my arms across my chest. "No," I croaked. "I mean, nothing aside from—"

I broke off, my voice cracking.

Nothing aside from the images of Ethan suffering.

"Aside from what?" Damien questioned, his voice low with trepidation as he searched my gaze.

I couldn't bring myself to say it. "If you go up, Elijah and Kaiden will be able to...explain everything better," I whispered.

"He's— " Rose's voice broke, her words coming out hoarse and strained. Her throat shifted as she swallowed hard. "He's alive though? He's alive, right, Izzy?"

I nodded, but the anguish in her expression never wavered. "He's alive."

Damien and Aiden exchanged a glance. Chase remained utterly silent.

Rose exhaled shakily, crossing her arms over her body. "Okay," she breathed. "Okay, he's alive. He's alive."

She seemed to be talking to herself, most likely in an effort to stay composed. Her red-rimmed eyes found mine again.

"Sophia called us," she rasped. "I drove over to their place right away so we could come here. I...I just don't understand," she croaked, her eyes welling. My chest constricted. "Why would he..."