𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞

23 | Aurora

This morning's incidents with Jade and Christian had been playing in my mind on repeat. I just cannot push my thoughts away about both of them—Jade being insecure and his own brother Christian being a major reason for it. After everything that took place and I managed to calm Jade down a bit, I told him to wait for me downstairs so I could get dressed and come for his session. But even after an hour had passed, the uneasiness inside me and in the air of this house remained the thick and may have gotten a bit heightened with every passing minute, making me think about 'What' and 'How' again and again.

Coming downstairs, I could smell toast and vanilla pancakes. I see Jade in the kitchen leaning on a counter with his back facing me and his elbows propped on the counter. There's another person in the kitchen, a woman who seems to be in her late thirties. She is busy cooking. They both must have felt me coming as Jade turned around with a coffee mug in his hand and the lady glanced at me before smiling widely.

"Good morning." I reach the kitchen and greet them, sitting on the chair beside the counter. Jade gives me a nod and averts his gaze. He's acting different, almost nervous. It's like he's trying to avoid me.

"Good morning, dear." The lady greets me while tossing the pancake and smiling. "You must be the therapist lady I have been told about." She adds.

"Her name is Dorothy Madison." Jade glances at me for a second and then looks everywhere but at me. "She worked for about a year with one of Christian's employees when her wife was pregnant." He cleared his throat.

"Just call me Dorothy, dear." The woman places a plate of pancakes with toast and a glass of juice in front of me. "I hope you like it." She smiles and returns to doing her work.

"Did you eat?" I asked Jade, and he just gave me a nod. Before I could ask anything further, he walked away with the same uneasy expression on his face. My eyes followed him as he went inside Christian's study.

Sighing, I started eating my breakfast while Dorothy excused herself, saying that she needed to buy some groceries. Jade being uncomfortable is understood. He became so vulnerable in front of me this morning that he knows he must have given me a hint of the tension between him and Christian when he tries so hard to avoid that from happening. But I need to talk to Jade about this. I need to tell him that he can trust me with anything that he wants to say or tell.

After eating, I went towards the study and saw Jade sitting on a couch with his head hung upwards as he blankly stared at the ceiling. I cleared my throat to let him know that I was here, and he immediately sat straight, still avoiding looking at me. I sat on the chair opposite him while my eyes remained on him.

"I know it's difficult for you." I decided to end the awkward silence between us, and he looked at me. "But you can talk to me about anything." I spoke.

He stared at me for a moment with so many emotions in his eyes: sadness, vulnerability, and mostly fear. I couldn't decipher what his fear was for, but you should never push someone based on their emotions, as that can always lead to misunderstandings and violent decisions. So, I decided to give him as much time as he needed.

"What do you want to know, Ocean?" His jaws tightened, and his eyes held the same rage that I had witnessed this morning.

"Everything." I replied.

This was me playing with fire, with all the possibility that I might get myself hurt. But whenever I looked at the man who was sitting in front of me right now, I knew that I could trust him and that he would never let me get even a scratch.

If my eyes were his ocean, then his were the fire. If he was meant to be calmed down and stopped from being trapped in his own flames, I would give it to all of me if that's what it would take.