Always There

Chapter Twenty-Three

Songs for this chapter:
• Stay With Me - Sam Smith

Chapter Twenty-Three:

Bryce's POV

She doesn't say a single word to me.

She just crouches down on the floor beside me, keeping her arms firmly wrapped around my body as I cry.

She begins to stroke my hair. It gives me an absurd amount of comfort, enough so that I'm able to sob, "I'm so sorry."

She doesn't respond to me at first. Instead, she unwraps her arms from my body and I suddenly feel so cold and alone all over again.

It's sort of scary how she has enough power over me to alter my emotions as simply as that.

Her hand in my hair slowly moves down my face, and she reaches for my chin to tilt my face up towards her. I try to fight her touch for a moment before I eventually just give in, lifting my head to make eye contact with her.

"Why are you sorry, Bryce? You shouldn't be sorry. I'm the one who's sorry," Blossom whispers, her gaze suddenly becoming too intense for me to hold.

I look away, tilting my chin down, but Blossom still has a hand on my face and so she forces me to look at her once more. She has this look in her eye that's absolutely heartbreaking, and it feels as if she's looking into the deepest fucking depths of my soul.

"Are you having a panic attack, Bryce?" she then asks me softly, and a whimper falls from my lips.

I nod my head at her and watch as her eyebrows furrow. I can tell that she's disappointed in me by the way all of the light has faded from her eyes. Now all I see is sorrow, and the fact that this is all my fault makes my heart ache.

"What can I do to make it better, baby?" Blossom asks softly, both of her hands gently cupping my face now.

She brushes some of my tears away with the pads of her thumbs, but it doesn't seem to do much as tears are still falling from my eyes like a goddamn waterfall. Blossom doesn't seem to care. She just stares at me with a sad smile, holding me close as she remains kneeling beside me.

"I need you to talk to me, Bryce. What can I do? Do you want me to go and get your medication?" she then questions.

My sweet angel. She can't ever leave me. I won't be able to survive without her in my life.

"I need a hug," I sniffle.

Blossom's eyebrows fly up, as if that wasn't at all the answer that she had anticipated.

I don't know what else she thinks would make me feel any better than a hug from her, though. Nothing makes me happier than her arms around me, her soft lips pressed against mine.

There's nothing in the entire fucking world that I want more than her love.

Blossom watches as I straighten my legs, my arms falling to my sides. I lean my head back against the wall, staring up at the ceiling. I feel her sit down beside me, and it's as though she's watching my chest rise and fall as I continue my controlled breathing.

Deep breath in. Hold. Exhale. Deep breath in. Hold. Exhale. Deep breath in. Hold. Exhale.

She wraps her arms around me as best she can, pulling me into an awkward side-hug. It's adorable how much she cares and so I don't laugh at her no matter how ridiculous we must look right now.

I almost hug her back but I stop myself, instead gripping her hips and then pulling me into her lap. She lets out a squeal of surprise and delight, hooking her legs around my waist. This position allows us to actually embrace each other now, and so I cling to her just as she always holds on to me as we sit here together in silence.