The Fall Of The Guardians

Chapter 5

"I'm sorry."

Azazel almost sounded like she meant it.

Jack hadn't expected her to stay after they had gone back to his room, but there she was, standing in the doorway with an apologetic look on her face. Well, nearly apologetic. For the most part she looked intrigued. 

"I'm not brainwashed," Jack said, his voice shaking with rage.

"Chill. I'm not going to have this conversation with you right now."

"I'm not brainwashed!" He shouted at her.

Azazel sighed, looking at him with pity. She actually believed that the Guardians had been influencing him. She believed that her and her evil family were the good guys. She believed that Jack was a victim. 

"I'm sorry, okay? Seth shouldn't have brought it up. It's too early to dig back into your past."

Jack felt his whole body seize up and a strangled version of his voice roared, "I'm not brainwashed!" 

The next thing he knew, he crumpled to the floor, sobbing with his head in his hands.

Azazel was at his side in an instant. "Jesus fucking Christ," she muttered. She put her arm around his shoulders and held him tight, moving her body back and forth slowly. Jack realized she was rocking him. He tried to push her away, but he was still weak from being sick and she held his arms down. 

"Come on, suck it up." Azazel ordered, though her voice didn't sound as harsh as it had when he first met her. "You're okay."

No, Jack wasn't okay. The Guardians, his family, had been murdered. He had watched  them die. And now he was living under their killer's roof, being comforted by their killer's ally. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life here. It was wrong.

"I want to go home," he forced out before dissolving into more sobs.

"You are home," Azazel reminded him.

"I mean home  home. I hate it here," Jack said in between shuddering breaths, "I hate  it. "

She apparently decided to ignore that. "Easy, easy. C'mon, man, calm down. You'll get yourself sick again."

Good. He wanted to be sick again; let them see how messed up this place really was, let them see how it took things that were once happy and made them twisted. 

"G-get off," he whispered, trying to pull away.

"Not until you calm down," Azazel said firmly, and tightened her hold on his body.

Jack screamed through his teeth in frustration, angry tears sliding down his cheeks. He hated her. In fact, in that moment, he would have liked to kill her. 

"Hey, what did I just say, huh? Do I really need to walk you through this?" Azazel asked with a raised eyebrow. "Fine... Deep breaths, right? Inhale for four seconds, exhale for seven seconds, and hold your breath for eight; like this. You'd better do it with me. Don't make me look like an idiot."

She demonstrated. Jack refused to do it at first, didn't want to listen, even though the rapid beating of his own heart was starting to make him lightheaded. However, as she went through the breathing process, Jack felt the rise and fall of his chest, and couldn't help but follow it. He was leaning against her so the steady movement captured him.

His body started to untense, and he slowly regained control of his breathing.

"See, easy." Azazel said, "You good?"

Jack drew in another shaky breath. "N-no." He muttered.

"I didn't ask if you were good emotionally."