Mᴏʀᴇ Tʜᴀɴ Jᴜsᴛ Fʀɪᴇɴᴅs

𝐶ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑟♧︎︎︎𝑆𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛

"He's okay now. Just a little feverish. He needs to drink plenty of water and he should be fine after some rest."

Janette breathed a sigh of relief, thanking the doctor. She went to see Shawn who was awake but the white in his eyes looked yellowish and dazed, he seemed out of it.

"Damy." He turned to her, no expression on his face. "Come on, let's go home."

She helped him up on his feet and gently guided him back to her car. As she started driving, Shawn closed his eyes and rested, not uttering a single word.

Janette had several questions burning in her chest but she knew it wasn't the time. Once in a while, she glanced at the boy, none of them said a word.

She called Aaron on the way and informed him that Shawn was a bit unwell and she had taken him to her house since they were all at the hospital. Aaron didn't pry further because he trusted the girl to take care of his son.

Upon reaching home, Janette decided to carry Shawn since he seemed to be asleep, but just as she opened his side of the door, Shawn's eyes fluttered open. Janette's heart clenched, she had never seen Shawn so quiet and dimmed. The air between them had never been this thick with unspoken tension.

Shawn got out of the car and swayed a little, Janette was quick to jump in and wrap an arm around his hips to steady him. She led him inside the house and hoped her parents weren't awake or else they'd have million of questions she wasn't ready to answer yet.

She took him to her room and helped him sit on the bed while she fetched clothes for him since his shirt was ruined from his vomit.

"Change into them, I'll get some water for you." She said.

She had a few of Shawn's clothes over since they had many sleepovers. Shawn took the shirt and sweatpants, his eyes still heavy with haze.

Biting her lip, Janette stared at him for a few seconds then left him alone in the room to change. Unfortunately when she stepped into the kitchen to get water for Shawn, Jayden was there.

Caught off guard, she couldn't think of anything else and ended up spilling everything out.

Jayden's face displayed shock and worry, he wanted to see Shawn right away but Janette stopped him saying the younger needed rest and could be overwhelmed from all the sudden attention. But Jayden was adamant about letting his parents know right now. Janette couldn't argue to that.

She watched as Jayden talked with Aaron over the phone, assuring him that the boy was okay and safe and they shouldn't come right away from the hospital.

"Go and take care of him. Call me or mom if anything happens." Jayden advised sternly after the call was over. "You should also get some sleep, you look tired." He softly patted her head.

Janette nodded, "Good night, dad."

"Night."

She went upstairs and found Shawn sitting on the bed with his back leaning against the head board, hands clasped on his lap and eyes staring ahead blankly, lost in thought.

"Hey." Janette called softly, not wanting to startle him.

Shawn looked dejected and lost as he stared at the red head, the blankness in his eyes caused a twist of pain to echo in the girl's chest as she sat on the bed next to the boy, offering him a glass of water.

"You need to drink a lot of water."

Without a word, Shawn took the glass and finished it in one go, putting the glass away afterwards.

They sat like that for a couple minutes, no one saying anything and Janette was dying to ask the questions that clawed at her skin. Very gently, she took his hands in hers, giving them a small squeeze as an indication to gain the boy's focus back to the reality.

"Can you tell me what happened? How did you end up in that room locked?"

She didn't miss the way Shawn shivered at the reminder, intaking a shaky breath and how his lips quivered. She held his hands firmly, assuring him that she was here with him. No matter what.

"I- she-"

He struggled a lot but managed to explain the whole scenario to Janette, also hinting on how he thinks it was Jonathan's doing. He broke down by the end while explaining how scared he was, how he thought he'd have to spend the night like this and how he felt so utterly helpless.

Tears cascaded down his cheeks and Janette couldn't bear the heartbreak, she pulled him in her arms and hugged him tight, buring her face in his hair as the boy shoved his face in the crook of her neck, clinging onto the back of her shirt while Janette stroked his hair and rubbed his back.

"It's okay, Damy. You're safe now. You're okay, no one can hurt you anymore. I'm so sorry I took so long to find you, I'm sorry." Her voice cracked, but she held her resolve to not break in front of him.

Parting from the hug, Shawn tilted his head up to look in her eyes, shaking his head firmly.

"It's not your fault. You didn't know what happened to me. You saved me, Jane."

Janette's heart broke even more as she stared into the hazel irises that were now dull but sincere about his words. This boy was so innocent and sweet for this world, how could anyone even dare to think about hurting him? Didn't they have any heart at all?

Without uttering another word, Janette pulled him back in her embrace, her eyes hardening as she held him tightly, promising herself to get revenge. She'd never let anyone get away with hurting her Shawn, not when she's still alive.

Silence fell upon them like a cozy blanket, gradually lulling the boy to fall asleep-both from exhaustion after the day's events and the warmth of Janette's arms.

Janette didn't disturb him as she carefully laid him down on a pillow properly so he could be comfortable. Pulling the blanket up to his chest, she turned the lights off and climbed on the bed from the other side.

Her gaze lingered on his peaceful face for a good few minutes as she couldn't help the ache in her heart everytime his tear streaked face came into her mind. Reaching a hand out, she brushed some hair away from his eyes, then ran her thumb across the skin just below his eye, a deep sigh escaping her lips as she retreated her hand and decided to sleep.

Tomorrow would bring many things for many, but for Jonathan and Nayla, tomorrow would be a piece of hell. With such determination sealed in her mind, Janette fell into a restless slumber.

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