-Juliet-

"Juliet!" James burst in my room.

I sat up in my bed and rubbed my eyes, "What?" I groaned and squinted at him through sleepy eyes.

"There's an ambulance next door."

My eyes were opened now. I scrambled out of bed and ran, bumping into James in the process, "What's wrong?" I flung the door open and I heard James behind me.

"It's Jack."

And everything fell and crashed all at once.

No.

The ambulance was loading the gurney into the back of the van and Jack's parent's stood behind it. His mom was in tears and his dad also. My chest tightened with fear and anxiety as I neared his parent's. "What happened?" I rushed, putting a hand to my chest to calm my breathing, but that wasn't going to work.

Marie turned her face into Jack Sr.'s chest and sobbed.

Jack Sr. sniffled and spoke, "We don't know. Marie came out here and found him unconscious surrounded by his own blood." He choked on the last part.

My hand flew to my mouth and I choked on a sob. James was behind me with a hand on my shoulder. I dropped my hand so I could talk, "Is he...okay?"

"He was barely breathing when she found him." He took a deep breath, "We're heading to the hospital now, and you can meet us there."

I nodded and they walked away. They quickly got into their car and took off after the ambulance. I could still hear the sirens echoing through the neighborhood as they drove farther and farther away.

I shrugged James's hand from my shoulder and ran to my house. I ran back upstairs and I could still hear James following behind. I pulled open one of my drawers and plucked out a pair of sweatpants and went to my closet for a t-shirt.

My hands were shaking so bad and a sob escaped my throat.

"Juliet." James was standing in my doorway now.

I covered my mouth before another sob could come out and my knees collapsed. James's arm was around my waist before I could fall to the ground. "It's going to be okay." James assured in a fragile whisper.

I clutched his shirt and let out a cry.

Everything was hurting. It felt like a bad dream. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to go back to school in the fall and live the rest of his life how he wanted. He was on the right path and now it's being taken away from him. "I can't lose him." I sobbed, "I can't...lose...him." I repeated and hiccuped.

"I'll take you to the hospital." James continued using a soft tone, "It's going to be fine, okay? He's going to get out of this and...you guys can be together."

I squeezed my eyes closed, thinking maybe this will tear me away from this nightmare that seemed to follow me when I opened my eyes. But when I opened my eyes, James was staring at me. His eyes were dark and full of worry, "Could you?"

He nodded and lifted me up from the floor. He sat my feet on the ground but kept an arm around my waist, "Are you okay?"

"No." I answered honestly. "I'll get dressed and meet you downstairs."

He didn't say anything and left.

I quickly changed out of my pajamas and into the clothes I had picked out. I threw my hair into a ponytail as I ran down the stairs and found James standing next to the front door. He opened it the second he saw me and I ran out. We decided to take his car instead of my grandparents' car.

James drove quietly, and almost too fast to the hospital. I would've yelled at him if he went over the speed limit. Out of all the things to worry about, I worry about the damn speed limit. Someone I love is in the hospital, I'll tell James to run every red light if I have to. But that would definitely be a problem if we were pulled over.

We made it to the hospital and Jack Sr. and Marie were waiting in the emergency waiting room. They were sitting together, Marie's head on his shoulder while he held onto her. I rushed to them and Marie lifted her head when she noticed me coming towards her, "Have you heard anything yet?" I asked as I took the seat next to her and James sat next to me.

She shook her head and rested it back against Jack Sr.'s shoulder. "He's still in surgery." She murmured.

I looked down at my hands and fumbled with my fingers nervously. Everything was moving slowly and I needed to know if he was going to be okay. I had no idea what I would do if I lost him right now.

Lose my mind.

But I'm not going to. He's going to be as good as new in just a couple of weeks. He's Jack, he has to...

I leaned forward and pressed the heels of my palms to my eyes. I don't want to cry in front of his parents. I don't want to make anything worse for Marie or Jack Sr. I sucked in a shaky breath until I gained a steady rhythm. I felt James's hand on my back, rubbing around in soothing circles.

I felt his breath on my ear when he leaned in and spoke, "Do you want me to leave and come back?"

"No, I would like you to stay." I mumbled. "If you want." I added quickly.

"I'm going to go get you some coffee. It's going to be a long night."

I did my best to nod and then his warmth was gone.

I couldn't think straight right now. I've never felt so...hollow. I wanted to help, but there's nothing I can do. I want to make sure he's okay and that he'll be okay. I felt useless in that moment.

James came back shortly with coffee. He handed one each to Jack's parents and one to me. I took the first sip, the liquid burning my throat slightly. James sat next to me again.

He was right about it being a long night. I couldn't sit still and James was falling asleep next to me. Soft snores sounded from Marie, saying she finally fell asleep. She needed the rest more than anything. I wanted to help ease her mind, but I was scared if I mentioned Jack's name, she would start crying again. So I snapped my mouth shut and finished my second coffee.

I didn't remember falling asleep until I felt James shift under me. I lifted my head from his shoulder and blinked the sleep from my eyes. I looked around and took in my surroundings again. It was early morning now and Marie and Jack Sr. were talking quietly beside me.

A doctor emerged into the waiting room and we all stood quickly. I stood a foot behind Jack Sr. and Marie, "How is he?" Marie asked, her voice still hoarse from crying all night.

"He made it through the surgery with no complications. The person that did this missed anything major going in through right above his hip. He did lose a lot of blood so we had to do a blood transfusion. We're going to keep a close on him for a few days and make sure everything is healing properly."

Marie smiled and twisted her hands together, "Can we see him?"

He nodded, "Family only until he wakes up. With the amount of blood he's lost, he could be asleep for a couple of days."

Just knowing he's going to be okay makes me feel lighter.

Marie turned to me when the doctor went back through the double doors, "We'll let you know how he is, okay?"

I nodded, tears threatening to spill out, "Thank you."

She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me close. I didn't hesitate to hug her back. I hugged her like I would've hugged my mother if she were here. How I always hug my grandma, "Thank you for being here, Juliet."

"Anything for you guys." I took a step back, "If he wakes up, please call me."

She smiled, "Of course. Go home and get some rest."

Jack Sr. smiled at me before taking Marie and leading her through the doors the doctor just went through. I turned around and found James standing close behind with his hands stuck in his pockets. I walked up to him and nudged my head in the direction of the exit, "I'll buy you breakfast."

A smile easily slid on his lips and he threw an arm across my shoulders, "Sounds like a plan."

My grandparents came home Sunday afternoon. I've been thinking of a way to tell them everything all weekend while waiting to get the phone call that he's awake now. I have been getting updates from Marie a few times a day. The doctors say he's healing nicely and should be able to come home a few days after he wakes up.

James has been great when it came to keeping me company. He hasn't left me alone all weekend and I was grateful for that. Now I know what Jack meant by distractions being nice. Every time I was left alone, I'd start crying. Or wanting to cry. I started sleeping on the floor in James's room because of this. Sounds childish.

I planned to tell my grandparents at dinner tonight.

I spent hours on tonight's dinner just to ease them into it, even though I know they're going to know something's up because I never cook by myself.

I set the table and put all the food out. I called my grandparents in from the living room and we gathered around the table. James left a little earlier because I gave him a fair warning. And it would be easier if he weren't here to witness what could turn into world war three.

They both had smiles on their faces when they sat down and started filling their plates. I wanted to wait until they got a little bit of food in their system before I unleash the kraken.

After a few minutes, my grandpa sat her fork down and eyed me, "You're quiet tonight." She stated.

"Yeah, sorry." I looked up from my plate to meet her gaze, "There's something I wanted to talk to you guys about."

They exchanged a look before their gaze fell on me again, "What is it?" Grandpa asked.

"Um, well...I don't know how to put this, I've been trying to think of a way all weekend but I couldn't think of the right words." Their stares were heavy but I continued, "I...I fell in love this summer." Wow, cheesy. But it was the truth. And I think it's probably the best way I could've thought to ease them into it.

Now that I think about it, I don't think there really is an easy way to tell them I love Jack.

Grandma's eyebrows rose, "You fell in love? With who?" She asked slowly.

I opened my mouth to talk, but Grandpa beat me to it with a grin on his face, "I already know whom." He nudged Grandma with his elbow, "I told you it was going to happen eventually."

"You know?" I asked.

They both looked at me, "We both saw it coming."

"How? I didn't even see it coming."

"You have been hanging out quite a bit this summer. He's a good kid, just a little misunderstood because of his parents' divorce—"

"Wait." I interrupted, "Who are we talking about?"

"James, obviously. Who do you think?"

This just went from worse, to just a disaster, "I'm talking about Jack."

Now they were both confused. I looked to my grandma to see her expression, "Jack McKinnon?" She asked. "I don't understand how that could happen, Juliet. I told you to stay away from him—"

"I know." I answered quickly, "I started tutoring him at the beginning of the summer and one thing led to another. Believe me, I had no intentions on having anything with Jack, Grandma. It just...happened."

"How can it just happen? Nothing just happens. And it's not going to happen anymore. I don't want you near that house anymore."

I was losing what little patience I had left, "I respect you and Grandpa both. But this is a decision I'm making on my own."

I hated the way she was looking at me now. Her face softened, her lips fell into a frown, "I can't let you see him, Juliet. He's on house arrest—"

"Not anymore." I pushed my plate to the side, the sight of it making me sick, "He's innocent, Grandma. It's all over the news. Right now he's in the hospital and it's killing me. I can't stand the thought of losing him."

My grandpa didn't say anything and my grandma just stared at me like I had two heads, "I didn't know he was in the hospital." She sighed, "I can't approve of this relationship without talking to Jack." She reached across the table and grabbed my hand, "I'm here to protect you, Juliet."

"He'd never hurt me. He loves me, too."

She smiled weakly, "I want to know everything."

I went into the full story, starting from me getting locked out of the house. I mentioned our tutoring sessions and how we grew closer. I obviously left out some details, but I gave her what I knew. I told her about Jack's current situation and how absolutely none of this is his fault. She nodded along as I talked and I waited for her to respond when I finished telling her everything.

I was afraid of what she was going to say.

"That's good for Jack. But I still want to talk to have him and his parent's over for dinner one evening when Jack is feeling better. Until then, be careful please."

"I'm always careful."

"I know that." She gave my hand a pat and pulled back. "Have you hear anything from his parents?"

"Not yet."

And that was all we talked about Jack.

We were in the middle of cleaning up the kitchen when my phone buzzed in my pocket. I dropped the dishtowel and pulled my phone from my pocket. I didn't even bother checking the name of the person who was calling and answered it. "Hello?"

"Juliet." Marie spoke, "I wanted to let you know he woke up about an hour ago."

I closed my eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, "How is he?"

"He's okay. He's asking for you."

"Can I come visit?"

"Of course. I'll see you in a few."

I mumbled a thank you and hung up. I told my grandma I was going to the hospital to visit Jack and left. I pulled out of the driveway and headed towards the hospital. I was a little nervous and excited. He was okay and he's going to be okay even after this.

I parked the car and jogged up to the hospital entrance. I asked the lady at the front desk which room he was in and she pointed me to the third floor, room 312. I took the elevator up to the third floor and tried to slow down while searching for the room number.

I turned two more corners and his room was at the end of the hall. His mom was leaning over the nurse's station and Jack Sr. was standing next to her while they talked to the nurse. Marie was the first one to see me and she wrapped her arms around me before I could get a word out, "Thank you for coming."

I couldn't help but smile as I stepped back, "Is it okay to go in?"

"It'll get him to smile at least." She teased.

It wasn't really hard to get Jack to smile.

I walked across the small hall and touched the handle to Jack's room. I pushed down, pushed the door open, and slid inside.

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Did y'all really think I would kill Jack?!?! I could NEVER!!!! lol.

I'll get the next chapter up hopefully tomorrow! :)

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