Luke.
I smiled as I watched Kara reunite with her parents- everyone crying from happiness and relief.
I looked to Alexis, seeing her crying.
"What's wrong?" I whispered to her quickly.
"I won't be able to do that." She cried quietly.
"How about we go to your room-" "mom, dad, I want you to meet someone special." Kara spoke, looking to Alexis.
"This angel was my saving grace." Kara spoke, motioning for Alexis to move closer.
Alexis moved to the bed, holding Kara's hand.
"Alexis is the bravest kid in the fucking world, she is a fighter and when I was first kidnapped, she was the only person who kept me calm and helped me through the rape and such." He spoke quietly.
"Alexis is the main reason I'm alive." She finished with a smile.
"It's very nice to meet you, Alexis- thank you for helping our baby." The mom spoke calmly.
"Come on- you're family now!" The dad announced- moving to hug her- and in unison, both Kara and Alexis was triggered.
Alexis almost fell to the floor trying to avoid his hug and Kara was panicking- almost shoving her dad away from Alexis.
Alexis was instantly sobbing on the floor.
"I'm so sorry- I didn't know." The dad spoke as I almost scooped Alexis off of the floor, holding her bridal style.
"We should've warned you- she's just been abused for years now." Is the last thing I heard Kara say as I carried Alexis out.
I got Alexis to her room, laying her in her bed.
"It's okay- deep breaths." I whispered to her.
"I just thought he'd hurt me- I don't know why it triggered me, I'm so sorry" she cried out to me as I carefully got an oxygen mask over her face.
"Alexis- it's okay sunshine, this isn't your fault." I told her calmly.
"Luke- I don't have a mom and dad anymore" she cried to me, and I could hear her heartbreak in her voice, it even almost brought tears to my eyes.
I stroked her hair gently, holding the mask to her face, letting her cry.
She was in so much emotional pain.
"I just want my mom- I can barely even remember her- I just want her." She cried, pulling her shirt away from her skin, squeezing it into her hands.
"I know, angel" I told her calmly, listening to her cry.
"Alexis" I asked her calmly.
She looked up to me, not pausing her crying.
"Can I hug you?" I asked her.
"I don't know" she cried out.
"I'm not going to do anything you don't want, but I want to hold you and hug you right now." I told her.
"It won't hurt?" She asked me quickly.
"No my angel, it's comforting." I told her calmly.
"Just don't hurt me." She cried out- almost coughing through her tears.
So I slowly and carefully brought her into a hug.
She instantly stopped sobbing.
I felt her arms wrap around me, her hands holding my scrubs.
And soon, I felt her body relax- it was no longer tense, she just let me hold her.
Her crying had reduced to just hiccups and she was calm.
I wasn't letting go until she pulled away.
But her grip told me she wasn't letting go anytime soon.
I rubbed her back gently as I held her, humming lightly, feeling her eyes blinking into my neck.
Ashton.
I went into Alexis' room, knowing I needed to check in with her again to be sure she wasn't experiencing pain or anything.
She was the youngest in the house the entire time, from when she was five until the day the cops found them when she was sixteen- everyone else was in their twenties to mid twenties.
She had connected to Luke, which didn't surprise me- most of the girls connected to the first person who helped them a relieved their pain.
But yet she was still distant, in our progress meetings Luke would tell us that she was eating good- but still not to where he wanted, but he could convince her to eat more some nights. He told us that she didn't want any form of affection, that she didn't even like him holding her hands when it came to medical treatments.
But I was shocked when I walked into her room and saw Luke sitting in her bed, herself sleeping in his arms, her arms wrapped around him firmly as her body relaxed against him.
"She let me hug her" Luke whispered, a genuine smile on his face as he did.
"Apparently she learned that she likes hugs, too."
