Fragile Hearts [DANGEROUS FELLOWS]

⚠️TWELVE: HOSTAGE FOR A HOSTAGE⚠️

"Jason?" you exclaimed, so much in shock that you didn't even know what to say. You got to your feet, muscles burning, staring at him like he wasn't real. With a groan Lawrence stood up as well, readjusting his glasses.

It happened so quickly you couldn't even process it. Suddenly Zion was there, his fist connecting with Jason's jaw and knocking him into a pile of crates. Zion grabbed the smaller boy by his jacket, pinning him against them.

"W-wait! Zion, stop!" you cried, running forward.

"He just tried to kill us!" Zion seethed, shaking Jason, who's face was pale and eyes filled with terror. A bruise was already beginning to bloom on his cheek.

"He's my friend!" you begged, trying to push Zion off of him. "Let him go!"

"Zion's right," Lawrence spoke up, moving past you. "That shelf definitely would've crushed us to death."

You took a step away from them, not knowing what to do. "Please, just-" you began, but suddenly the wind was knocked out of you as two arms wrapped around you stomach, yanking you back. You gasped, a hand going to your neck, tense but not squeezing.

"Let go of him," the man said, and you finally recognized his voice to be Jason's dad. "I'm warning you."

Terror flooded your thoughts and you started to struggle, trying to free yourself. Lawrence took a step forward but Jason's dad gripped your neck, making you wheeze.

"Let go. Of. My son," he repeated, his voice firm and cold.

Zion's grip on Jason loosened, looking between you and Lawrence uncertainly.

"Don't let him go," Lawrence ordered.

"But-" Zion began.

"Do not let him go," he repeated.

You whimpered, tears beginning to fall down your face.

"Let (Y/n) go, you get to take your son and leave," Lawrence said, "but if you want to be more complicated, your son dies."

"Lawrence!" Zion exclaimed. "Don't you think that's-"

"He's going to choke (Y/n). Don't you see that?" Lawrence asked. "He's a disgusting man, Zion."

Jason's dad's grip on your throat tightened and your hand flew up to his fingers, clawing at them. "Please, d-don't," you gasped.

"I haven't been there for my son in the past," Jason's dad said. "I haven't been able to take care of him either. Now I finally found somewhere safe, somewhere I can care for and protect him, and you're going to ruin it all."

"Dad, just let her go," Jason said. "We can find somewhere else, somewhere further away-"

"Let her go!" Lawrence shouted, at the end of his rope. He shoved Zion off of Jason, grabbing your friend by the hair and copying the chokehold his dad had you in.

Jason's dad's grip faltered, and Lawrence must have noticed. "Doesn't feel so good, does it?" he asked. "Seeing someone you care about being held in a chokehold."

"Just let her go," Jason said again. "Please, dad. If you ever, in your life, wanted to do something for me, let her go."

Air flooded into your lungs as his dad removed his arms. You staggered away from him, coughing, and Zion hurried forward, holding out his arms to keep your from falling.

"Now leave. And if I ever see either of your faces again, it won't be good," Lawrence ordered darkly, letting go of Jason and lifting his foot, kicking him in the back to send him flying forward. Jason's dad caught him, looking at all three of you with hatred in his eyes before turning away towards the door. Jason looked back, glancing at you with a face that was both sadness and relief.

"Are you okay?" Zion asked when they left, the door slam echoing through the building.

"Yeah," you said in a raspy voice, throat sore from Jason's dad's grip. You took a deep breath, wiping at your tears.

"I'm sorry, (Y/n)," Lawrence said sympathetically, his voice and composure back to normal, eyebrows raised in concern. "I wanted to do the right thing and just leave, but seeing that man choke you..."

He broke off, looking away into the storage building, eyes searching around at the different supplies. "We should hurry," he spoke up. "It's probably getting late."

Zion nodded in agreement, opening his backpack and moving to the closest shelf. Lawrence did the same for the opposite one, and you picked a shelf further back to inspect.

There were all sorts of different supplies, like packs of batteries, flashlights, and knives. There were army-grade food rations, and you grabbed a few just in case.

You were still in shock. You finally found Jason, and his dad had nearly killed you. Your world just kept turning more and more upside down. You flashed back to Madelyn, her eyes closing as the life left her, then to struggling against your best friend's father.

Not knowing had definitely been better.

You squatted down to rifle through a cardboard box of random equipment, just trying not to think. You could feel pain on your throat and knew that bruises were gonna be left there.

For some reason you wondered what Harry's face would when he saw. Surprise? Sadness? Or maybe something else? You didn't know, but the thought worried you. You just kept making everyone worry, especially Harry. Maybe there would be something you could cover them with until they healed.

"Hey, (Y/n), look at this," Zion said, calling you over. You grabbed onto the shelf, using it to pull yourself up before walking to where Zion was. He'd kicked a box from the bottom of a pile to the center of the aisle, and in it you saw a bunch of articles of clothing.

"Arms out," he said, and in confusion you obeyed. He slid them into the arms of a warm hoodie line with faux fur and then pulled a pom pom hat over your head.

"You're gonna need it. It's probably getting dark by now," he said with a grin.

"Thank you," you replied, enjoying the warmth, and Zion scoffed in embarrassment, pulling the  hat down over your eyes. "Hey!" you cried, but when you pushed it up again he had already gone over to where Lawrence was.

"I think we should get going," Lawrence decided. "It's probably freezing outside."

You nodded, zipping up your jacket. Lawrence glanced at you, but then did a double take when he noticed your new outfit.

"Courtesy of the world renowned fashion designer himself," Zion joked, pointing to himself. Lawrence just shook his head, a slight smile on his face. He seemed really shaken up.

The three of you headed out into the cold, and it was already turning night. You thought about how worried Harry must be that you all were out so long. You readjusted your jacket, wondering if you could hide your bruises with it.

The walk home seemed much shorter than it had taken to get there. Home, had you really called it that? You'd only been there for a couple days, and yet you already felt like it was.

You thought about Jason, his father, Madelyn, your teachers, family members, neighbors, even your landlord. They were all a part of the life before now, and you promised to never forget them, no matter what.

"(Y/n), you coming or what?" Zion asked, holding the gate open for you.

"What," you teased, passing back into the yard, back to the school, where Harry, Eugene, Ethan, Jay, Sue, and Hailey were.

Back home.