Neverland [Lost Boy Series #3]

✶Jonah✶

It was an absolute miracle my body could operate under such little sleep and such an immense amount of stress. I was awaiting a complete shutdown at any second and yet to my surprise, my body somehow kept pushing forward- the exact opposite of what I could say about my brain. As much as every portion of my being wanted to do nothing more than indulge itself in slumber, my brain's racing thoughts had a way of stimulating an untapped surge of energy.

With Peter still fast asleep in the car, my feet rushed their way back up to Room 323 to see if Jenna was anywhere in sight. With all these significant events occurring in such a short time span, a giant relief was lifted off my chest when my eyes encountered those familiar blazing red curls bouncing around with each of her steps. Pacing the hospital hallway with bloodshot eyes, her head perked up when she heard me approaching.

There was a moment of silence that lingered between us, but that expressed so much. The silence was intense enough to fill a room, to wash over the entire hospital with its power. It was enough to make me overlook the unfamiliar silhouette that sat on a bench behind her, enough to drown out the cries of a wailing baby a few doors down, and enough to make the entire world stop its orbit for a few nanoseconds.

"Jenna," I squeaked before the tears poured down from my face.

"Laney," she whispered, hardly able to get the words past the lump in her throat. And then was when the entire situation hit us both like a rushing ocean wave. My body jerked against a strong force that had unexpectedly hovered over and wrapped itself against my body. Whatever energy I had earlier was slowly being sucked out by the tight grip Jenna's embrace had. Her body gripped to mine as if she was desperately searching for something in this world to hold on to. It was full of fear, anxiety, and laced with the deepest sadness a pure soul could feel. Yet there was something so calming, so peaceful about being in the familiar embrace of her arms. It was a much needed gesture for both of us.

Caressing the dry ends of her hair, her body shook from the sobs attempting to escape her lips. There was such a sadness trying to express itself as she wailed in absolute silence. Her sobs weren't audible but the tiniest of whimpers that seemed to be that much louder. Jenna's tiny frame continued to shake as she sniffled and wiped her nose with her sleeve. Caressing her bright lion's mane, she wept over my shoulder. "I miss him," she whimpered in between sobs. And with that being said, emotion exploded from both of us. There was no way to stop the tears, to stop the pain that each of our bodies seemed to radiate off each other. The knot in my stomach contorted so tightly, I was shocked that my other organs didn't get tangled in its web of sadness. My trembling was no longer controllable as my thoughts mushed into one giant blur of unexplainable emotion. The whole situation was born of darkness, something that took away one of the most precious things from our lives.

Jenna's slender frame continued to shake from the core, but her weeps had become too much for her body to even bare. Her wails finally became audible for just a second and her usual smiling face was almost unrecognizable as it mirrored all the emotions she was experiencing.

Stepping back to take in her figure, the bags beneath her eyes were nearly purple. Matter of fact, her eyes were so swollen that I had to take a second glance. Never once had I seen her in this state and it was something that seemed to startle every single one of my senses.

Jenna grasped onto my hand, taking a lighter outlook on the whole situation. Her jagged breathing leveled out as realization and worriedness floated around her green irises. "Did you find Peter?"

Shaking my head and releasing her grip, I placed both of my hands on her shoulders. "No, no, no," I shook my head, avoiding her question. "How are you?"

"Please," she begged as she sniffled to clear her airway. "Just let me know if you found him. I can't bear to lose anyone else." The octave of her voice cracked toward the end of her sentence, her plump lips quivering in order to hold her state of composure.