What's Said in Silence

Vessel-XXXXXXV

I opened the door and let Jessie in. He'd called relentlessly over the past few days wanting to check in on Sera. Out of caution, I hadn't let anyone in the house besides the doctor since I brought her home. It wasn't a choice she had made nor was she aware of it, but I had wanted her to get acclimated before bringing the rest of the world to her. The final piece to that decision was that I simply wanted her to myself for a while. I had almost lost her and now I wanted every waking moment with her.

"It's about damn time you let me see her." Jessie chuckled, half-joking. I didn't give much of a reaction to it. He cared for her and he was distraught over her disappearance. While they weren't biologically related, she was the closest thing to a sister that he had. I knew that my keeping him away was hurting him, but in the end I still felt justified in my decision.

"You act as if it were my choice." I muttered. Sera had asked about him this morning, which had led to me telling her some of his involvement in finding her. He had played a major role and for that I will be forever grateful. Once she'd heard how many times he had called, it was a demand that he be allowed to the house. 

We stepped into the living room where Sera was sitting on the couch, flipping through some older ritual pictures and making edits to them- more for practice than anything else. Jessie crossed the room slowly, as if any sudden movements would startle her like a doe in the woods. If only he could see the underlying fight in her as I did. She wouldn't startle easily by a person, not when she'd had a date with death and told him he wasn't her type.

Aside from the nightmares that become more prevalent with each passing night, she didn't show any residual trauma from what happened. I had refrained from asking too many prying questions regarding the past, but by all technicality I didn't need to. I had gotten the bulk of the information from Jessie about the past and I feared what I might do if she told me what that bastard had put her through during those hellish eight days.

Jessie stopped a few feet in front of her and they stared at each other for a long moment. She closed the laptop and set it to the side before standing up. She took a step towards him almost as if she were just as scared of startling him. 

There was a revamped appreciation towards the people in her life, that much was obvious. It was like watching her being reincarnated into the person she was truly meant to be and now she was meeting everyone for the first time all over again.

"Hi." She said. Instantly, Jessie enveloped her into a tight embrace, tucking her into his chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist, squeezing him just as tight. Jessie's relaxed demeanor gave way to one of pure relief. I had to wonder just how much of a role he played in her life back in america, given their present relationship.

"Hi?" He asked, releasing her from the hug and gripping her shoulders. "You don't talk to me for five years and all you got is hi?" He feigned hurt and it really was like watching siblings reunite after far too long apart.

"It's a standard greeting, Whiskers." She grinned, a playful gleam in her eyes at the use of the nickname.

"I see I still haven't lived that down." He sighed, fighting a grin. 

"Whiskers?" I finally chimed in, breaking their attention away from some joke I wasn't privy to, yet. Sera went to open her mouth, ready to spill the meaning behind the name but Jessie spoke up and cut her off.

"That goes to the grave. Honestly, it was the one benefit to you not talking." He said as pink spread across his cheeks. I caught Sera's gaze, amusement still evident in her features. She gave me a grin, silently communicating with me in the way only she could.

I'll tell you later.

I decided to drop the subject for now. However, I had a feeling that this back story will serve me well if I ever need to pull a favor card from him. A little blackmail never hurt anyone, right?