Always Him (Always #1)

Chapter Thirty-Four

                                                                                        Jasper

Sadie's eyes had been screwed shut since we began the drive home from the hospital. She didn't talk though she'd clung to me the entire time. Her breathing rotated between calm and rapid; there had been no medium.

It hurt me to see her so uncomfortable. I knew she was going through hell on this ride. Going through the memories of the crash and what had led up to it probably tormented her brain. There was nothing I could do but watch her go through it, nothing I said would ease that pain from her. All I could do was hold her, offer her comforting words if she wanted them. It wasn't enough, never enough.

Ant drove carefully back to our apartment. It had been a little discussion where she'd be going once she got discharged. Her parents wanted her at their house; I had disagreed. It was for the best that she be in her own apartment once she was released, I had argued; it would be best for her to adjust to the changes she was experiencing in the place where she'd be staying the most, which of course, was the apartment, best to let her get accommodated to what she knew instead of having her get used to one thing and then throw her in blindly to another.

Ant and Nora had finally agreed, but only after Brittany had helped me convince them. I knew they wanted the best care for Sadie, knew they had wanted to be the ones to watch her get readjusted, help when necessary. That was their parenting instincts kicking in again. I didn't blame them. If I'd been in their position, I would've argued for the same reasons.

The snow outside had lightened to little fluffs, making the scenery beautiful. It was something Sadie would want to see.

I leaned close to her ear; she was still awake, little huffed breaths leaving her. "Would you like to see the snow outside? It's beautiful."

She lifted her head slowly, cracking one eye open and then the other. They snapped back closed before carefully opening again. They closed next in a blink, and it took quite a few before her eyes adjusted to the world passing by us.

Awe filled her eyes. She'd always loved the snow, seeing it and playing in it. It was beautiful to her. She had loved everything about it, minus the fact that it was cold. That was the only part she didn't like. The warmth was her best friend in the winter months.

"Beautiful." She looked as if she wanted to reach out and grab a snowflake, thinking better of it and snuggling into my side. "Innocent."

Sadie had made a point not to look out in front of her. Having her look out the window and not be repulsed by it was a huge first step. But, having her actually take a look outside and see the road? That would be too much. When she was ready to see the road, she'd tell us. It'd be a while until she was comfortable being on the road and longer after that until she was totally at ease inside a car again.

There was no rush for her to be okay with it all again. We'd be patient with her.

"Are we almost there?" she asked. When I glanced down, I saw that she was eyeing me, observing me; the scenery had so transfixed me; I hadn't realized she'd looked away. "Are we almost home?"

My heart skipped a beat. I still wasn't used to knowing I shared an apartment with Sadie. To have her call it a home, our home, made my heart beat loud and proud. I cleared my throat before answering her. "Yeah," I looked out the windshield to get a better idea of where we were. "About five minutes."

"Good. I just want to relax in bed." She was quiet a moment. "Yours, not mine." Her words were soft; she didn't want her parents to overhear. I didn't want them to overhear either; it was one thing to be in a relationship with Sadie after all this time and have her parents know about it, and then it was another to be in a relationship with her and have her parents know too much of what was happening inside said relationship. "Yours is comfier." She concluded.