Leilani.
For the nth time this week, I found myself waking up to the familiar walls of a hospital room, and as usual, when the doors opened moments after I sat up, Jarek strode in holding a large tray containing a bowl of fruits, some vegetables and a glass of water.
I wasn't surprised.
I smiled. "You again."
But today, he wasn't smiling like he usually would, he didn't even seem to be in a good mood.
I watched him quietly as he placed the tray onto the table close to my bed, and after that, he went to sit on a chair furthest away from me, his eyes scanning my face as he did so.
The sudden change in his attitude made me quite flustered. I frowned. "What is it?"
"What happened to you?" He instantly asked, whilst avoiding my question. His voice was cold, so cold it sent shivers running up my spine.
For a very brief moment, I was stunned into silence. My eyes widened as I regarded him silently, then shrugged. "What do you mean?"
"What I mean is the fact that I let you go back to your pack for some hours— six hours at most, and now, you come back like this? Completely battered, and… Leilani do you know you almost lost your arm?"
At his words, I looked down at my left arm which was wrapped in a white breathable gauze and sighed. The arm looked swollen and sore, but I couldn't feel a single sensation on it. It was numb.
"I was in an accident." I muttered, "…that's what happened to my arm—"
"Do you want to press charges?" His question stunned me, and I noticed with discomfort that there was now a sharp edge to his voice. Hell, he could no longer even bring himself to look at me.
I frowned. "What?"
"Do you want to press charges against your parents? And those dickheaded Alphas?" He continued, but before the words could fully leave his mouth, I found myself shaking my head at him.
"No. No. There's no need for that." I said quickly, "I just want to be as far away from them as possible."
My response made him go quiet, and for a full minute, he didn't say a word to me. He didn't even move as he kept staring at the space between my bed and the bedside table. But then he shrugged.
"I won't say I am not disappointed, but it's your choice. You shouldn't let them keep walking all over you like this."
The sharpness in his voice made me flinch, but I wasn't scared. No. If anything, I was sad. And it was due to that sadness that tears streamed down my face so silently… so slowly… I didn't even bother to wipe them off.
No one's ever been this worried about me… no one's ever cared about me like this.
One look at Jarek's stormy eyes had my breath hitching. He dragged in a ragged breath, set the book in his hands on the floor and sighed. "Leilani, what happened to you?"
"It's a long story…" I sniffled, not bothering to stop the whimper escaping my lips.
Jarek didn't seem to mind. He simply stared at me apologetically. "Tell me."
Something about his cool voice made some of my built up walls crumble slightly. His presence in my life felt like a balm to my years worth of scars. The corners of my eyes burned as I recounted the events leading up to this moment, and the more I spoke, the darker his expression grew.
And by the time I finished talking, I was surprised to see that he was now sitting on the bed with me. I hadn't even realised that I was crying until he wiped away the tears on my face. And I didn't stop even when he pulled me into a tight hug, his warm breath fanning the tip of my ear as he murmured;
"I'm so sorry, sweetcakes, I'm really sorry. I should never have allowed you to go with him."
But it wasn't his fault. And I knew that.
"It was not your fault but theirs. Moreover, they're my pack members and you didn't have the right to stop me from going with my Alpha."
"Still, I should never have let you go with him, knowing how terrible they all are."
My sobs grew louder as I buried my face into his shirt, and while I cried out the contents of my heart, Jarek didn't pull away. He didn't even seem to mind that my tears were ruining his crisp white shirt. In fact, nothing seemed to matter to him at the moment.
I do not know for how long we stayed there, his arms wrapped around my body while I cried so much my chest hurt, but by the time I felt sated and pulled away, the tray of fruits had been taken away, and in its place was a bowl containing the creamiest most aromatic porridge I've ever seen in my life.
I moaned. "That smells—"
"You really should stop moaning around me." Jarek cut in, interrupting me, and I smiled through my tears as I looked up at him.
For a very brief moment, time seemed to still when he looked down at me, his eyes soft. His smile even softer. He tucked a stray strand of my hair behind my ear and grinned at me— so wide that his dimple returned.
"Leilani," he drawled in that deep husky voice that made my stomach dip.
"Huh?"
"Let me take you away from here. Let me help you. Let me give you a new identity. Let me give you that thing you want so badly."
His words were sweet, but the meaning behind it melted my heart. Now, the tears that slipped out of my eyes wasn't one of pain or betrayal, it was one of… I do not even know.
Content? Joy? A sense of loss?
"What do you want?" His voice came again, and I blinked back my tears as I looked up at him through teary eyes.
I wasn't sure I was in the right state to make any demands right now, but something about his warm gaze dared me to try.
I shrugged; "That job I asked you for… I'd like to further my education too."
Jarek whistled loudly as soon as I said that, and then he hugged me. "Consider it done!"
"What?!"
"You now work for me, don't you? And in case you didn't know, the document I made you sign before you left with Zevran was an employment letter, and signing it gives you right to all the benefits Frostclaw. Inc employees enjoy."
"And what are these benefits?" I asked with a grin, whilst moving to pick up the porridge bowl.
"Uhm…" Jarek scratched his neck nervously, "you know, work, salaries, a corporate bank account fully at your disposal… and every other thing you might need like setting up a new ID, moving to another state… furthering your education. You just name it!"
"Does everybody get to enjoy these benefits? I'd like to ask someone else to apply too—"
"No." Jarek scoffed playfully, quickly too, and I chuckled. "It's reserved for only people like you."
'People like me' is a term that has only been used negatively around me before.
I wasn't used to hearing it being used in this kind of context…
When the tears slipped down my face this time, I didn't wipe it off. I simply smiled through it and muttered; "thank you, Jay."
Jarek nodded and then smiled. "Maybe I should not have to fly you to another state when I can fly you to another country or continent altogether."
I blanched. "No way."
"Yes way," he teased, his eyes glinting with mischief. "Maybe that way, your family will never be able to find you again."
As he spoke, I found some sort of allure in his words, and I found myself subconsciously agreeing to it, nodding as I brought another spoonful of porridge to my mouth.
"Knowing them, I don't think they'll let you go easily. They'll come looking for you here, and I don't want that."
"So you'd rather send me off to somewhere with a different time zone than allow me run into them?" I teased with a smile, my heart swelling with excitement when I noticed the worry creasing his forehead.
"Of course!"
I nodded. "Then that's just great."