Riptide /GxG/(Completed)

FORTY-EIGHT

B R I T T A N Y

I continued to lay on the bed with Aria in my arms while the noise from the television continued to slowly fade away as I drowned deeper into my thoughts.

Jazmine shifted beside me and I turned towards her sensing the discomfort she was in.

"You okay baby?" I asked softly as she began sitting up and she nodded. "Going for a walk?"

"Yeah," She replied exiting the room and I sighed knowing just how frustrated she was. She had regained the ability to walk again, not well but enough to move around at a slow pace, and because of that she had started physical therapy two days ago, which only left her in pain the majority of the time.

She was also battling with the strain of what had left her in this current situation, but she would never admit it or even take the time to vent about how getting shot was affecting her no matter how many nightmares or breakdowns she had.

She held all her emotions hostage even though I provided my own shoulder as a shelf for her heavy heart, at times it felt as if I was walking on eggshells around her since I had to pretend as if I didn't notice her internal struggle.

I was also growing tired of asking her to talk to me since it would just lead to an argument, one I didn't want to have but it seemed inevitable.

The deeper she went into recovery, the deeper she went into herself.

My phone began ringing and I reached over answering it quickly not wanting to wake Aria.

"Did Jazmine buy you a car?" The voice questioned and I quickly recognized it as Nia's.

"Yes she did," I answered, still not completely comfortable with the gift.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You said not to call or text you because you were busy with renovations at your law firm," I reminded as Aria stirred in my arms, and I removed myself from the bed not wanting to wake her knowing it would be hell to get her back to sleep.

"You could've bothered me with this," She replied, earning a small laugh from me as I pulled open the bedroom door walking out. "What kind of car is it?"

"A Kia Telluride," I answered as I moved down the stairs.

"What year?"

"2021,"

"You must give some good ass head cause," Nia announced earning a small laugh from me as her presence eased my worrisome mind.

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J A Z M I N E

I began moving towards the entrance of the house since the current pain in my leg had forced me to cut my walk short, which I was fine with either way since it wasn't really helping to clear my head.

I closed the door behind me as my gaze immediately moved over to Britt who was sitting on the couch, and I quickly suppressed my frown that wanted to be shown.

It's not that I didn't want her around me, it's just that I could feel the unspoken words every time I was in her presence.

"You okay?" I asked, walking over to her and she nodded while the look on her face revealed to me that she wanted to speak on it. "Why are you downstairs?"

"I was talking to Nia on the phone, I didn't want to wake Aria so I came down," She explained as I sat beside her, leaving her to immediately snuggle into my side before pulling away in that same instant, and her actions left confusion to sit on my face.

I was about to question it when she lifted my shirt removing my pistol allowing realisation to settle.

"I forgot to put it back in my car," I told her as she placed it on the coffee table since I usually kept my firearms out of the house in fear of Aria finding them.

She moved back into me and uncomfortable silence settled around us since we were currently leaving everything unsaid. The tension between us seemingly suffocated my ability to ignore the topic at hand.

"Wanna watch a movie?" I asked softly.

"No,"

"Do you want me to make you something to eat?"

"I'm not hungry,"

"Wanna have sex?" I questioned in hopes of earning a smile from her but my efforts were quickly crushed when she replied with a small no. "Okay,"

Silence echoed once more each second felt like hours.

"Why can't you just talk to me?" She asked softly and I could practically feel her frustration.

"About what?" I questioned not really wanting to.

"Okay Jazmine," She mumbled getting up.

"Britt,"

"I'm going to bed," She replied as she continued to walk away and I sat there watching as she walked upstairs.

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