Lockjaw (Joshler)

22. Fortress

***Trigger warnings for mentions of abuse, mentions of pedophilia, and mentions of violence.***

Start the song. It's Honeybee by Seahaven.

Tyler woke up when the blankets on the other side of the bed lifted. Anxiety shot through him at the thought that Jenna might have followed him here. He let out a breath of relief when Tatum simply tucked his sleeping niece into bed beside him and offered him a smile.

"Will you watch her while I make dinner?" She whispered. "She'll probably just sleep."

He nodded tiredly, his migraine having dissipated and been replaced by exhaustion. Still, Tatum reached over to press her hand to his forehead, making sure he didn't have a fever. It wasn't uncommon for him to stop at their house instead of going home when he got migraines at work. Zack and Tatum lived closer to his office than he did, so they generally didn't question it when he stopped by with a prescription bottle in his hand and a need for rest.

"How are you feeling?" Tatum asked softly, pushing his hair back off of his forehead.

"Lots better," Tyler replied, not really wanting to address the emotional pain searing throughout his entire body.

Tatum smiled, her hand leaving his hair to tuck a pillow on the other side of baby Pepper so she wouldn't fall off the bed if she rolled over. "I texted Jenna to let her know you came by with a migraine, but I haven't heard back from her yet."

"You probably won't," Tyler replied regrettably, his chest feeling like it was full of cement.

Tatum looked confused. "No? Is everything okay?"

Tyler took a deep breath to steady himself before climbing out of bed and picking up his pants from earlier in the day. He pulled Jenna's engagement ring out of the pocket and handed it to Tatum before climbing back into bed beside his niece.

His sister-in-law stared at the ring in her hand for a moment before she seemed to even be able to comprehend what she was holding. As soon as it clicked, she was climbing onto the bed beside him and P, looking like she was going to cry.

"Are you okay? Did this happen today? Oh my gosh, Ty. I'm so sorry," Tatum told him instantly, looking incredibly apologetic as she grabbed his hand.

"Just before I came here," Tyler told her, mumbling the words slightly. He drew in a few breaths before adding, "I came home from work early because of my migraine, and she had another guy there. I sort of lost it. I took back the ring and told her she has to move out by tomorrow."

"Good!" Tatum encouraged. "She doesn't deserve you if she's going to pull crap like that. I'm proud of you for getting out of there. I'm sorry I texted her. I swear that if she shows up here, I'll make her leave. You made the right choice getting out of there."

Tyler hated knowing that she was probably only this supportive because she'd known him while he was with Kennedy. She'd seen him stay in a situation like this before and have to be yanked out of the relationship by his family after already having been cheated on over a dozen times. Tatum was one of the people who'd had to sit down with him and spend hours convincing him it wasn't his fault Kennedy kept bringing home other guys. Tatum had seen this go horribly wrong before. Of course she was supportive of him getting the hell out of there.

"I'm gonna have to burn my bed," Tyler told Tatum, making her jaw clench. "I had to walk through our room to get my medicine, and they were just...." He trailed off. "She tried to convince me it was my fault because I work all the time, but that's not fair."

"If she wants you to be home more often or needs something to do while you're gone, she can get a job. That's not fair at all. She's part of the reason you have to work so hard. That's definitely not your fault," Tatum reassured him. "Besides, you love your job. She should support you doing what you love."