Sorry guys, I've been busy with college exams! Enjoy🤍!

"People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life." – Elizabeth Gilbert

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Chapter 79
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I nearly leaped with joy as Kade placed the greasy fast food bag in front of me.

I looked up at him with a grin. "Thank you. I couldn't take anymore of those potatoes without throwing up." I groaned at the thought of the mystery lunches from the hospital.

"Your dad would kill me." Kade carefully lifted my legs, sitting down beside me. My smile grew as he leaned forward to kiss my cheek. "I was never even here, okay?"

I laughed with a nod, pulling my fries out the bag. I offered him some, but he shook his head then said, "They're all yours."

I began to unwrap my burger before I heard him ask, "How are you feeling, sweetheart?"

"Fantastic now that this is here." I nearly drooled at the taste of actual food. For the past week and a half, I'd been in the hospital, with this absolutely inhumane food. But, I was feeling better. Not completely, but enough to be discharged.

Apparently, my attackers were rookies. One of them attempted to stab me, but the knife didn't hit anything major, just my shoulder. I was stuck with a cast on my arm for the rest of the month, as well as a couple of scars. The black eye no longer hurt with every move, but it was still there. There were bruises and swelling still embedded in my skin from where they beat me. My body continued to ache if I pushed it too far, but I could get around with crutches. I wasn't at my best, but I was alive. I considered that enough.

But, Kade on the other hand. I could see the blame, the anger, everything. I could see how badly he wanted to beg for forgiveness that I didn't seek, how badly he wanted to go after them himself, how much he blamed himself. He tried to hide it, but I knew what was brewing underneath. No matter how much I tried to convince him that I was here, I was okay, we were okay, he still felt liable to what happened.

I didn't blame anyone except those three. Daniel, Amber, and Natasha were responsible for their own actions. It did stem from Kade, but I knew of the dangers. I was aware of everything that could happen, and it did happen.

We couldn't turn back time, though. We learned our lesson, and had to move on. That was the only thing we could do. I would heal, Kade wins the match, we leave for college and never look back.

Kade was rubbing at his bruised knuckles, his brows furrowed in concentration as he stared down at them. A smile crossed my lips as I brushed my toes against his arm. "Hey, idiot."

His eyes raised to mine, his expression relaxing. His lips lifted before he wrapped a hand around my foot, gently yanking me closer. I laughed, despite the fast food bag falling to the ground.

His face leaned in closer to mine, minty breath fanning against my lips. "Ready to go?" I nodded before I raised my head for a kiss. He shook his head, immediately.

I groaned, rolling my eyes. "I told you my lip doesn't hurt anymore. I'm fine." It did, but not that much.

I saw the guilt crack through before he erased it with a shake of the head. "I'm gonna start packing your things." With another eye roll, I nodded. He turned away, then began on my things.

Every day, my friends visited, as well as my family. Raven was a sobbing mess and Levi held her back from smothering me to death, Jax had to stop Maggie from going after Natasha and Amber herself. Celeste, uncle Dylan, Griff, and Shay were all a series of hugs. Ryland attempted to hit Kade, Kade slapped the shit out of Ryland, and Dad had to leave with Ryland for a bit. I told Kade to either leave the room for a second, or to sit still and be quiet. as well as Ryland. Kade agreed since he didn't want to stress me out. Ryland was difficult, but I managed to get a hug from him.

It was an eventful recovery, for sure.

"What do you want to do with these?" Kade motioned toward all of the balloons. Every single day I was here, those as well as the cards and gifts multiplied. Even though I appreciated everything, I wasn't too sure of what to do with them.

Slowly, I lowered my legs to the floor. Even through the socks, I could feel the icy cold tiles.

My leg ached but I continued on. "I'll pop
some of them right now, but I'll keep the rest in my room." Kade rushed over to me quickly, his fingers gently grazing my skin to help me up. I smiled at his effort.

There was more than enough of it. The entire time I was here, Kade was with me. He had his mom bring a change of clothes, but he showered here. He helped me bathe, he helped me around, as well as my physical therapy. As much as I argued, he even helped feed me at the beginning of my recovery. If he left the room for even a second, Levi or Luke was here to take his place. He held my hand through it all.

I grimaced as Kade lifted my shirt. His lips lightly brushed my cheek in apology before I lifted my arms for him. He helped me change then went back to the balloons.

"Hey," he called from his spot. I finished buttoning my jeans before I looked at him. "I was thinking about something."

I nearly cried with relief as I sank back onto the bed. "Shoot."

He popped another balloon before turning to face me. "I don't want to leave you alone, not again. Even if you were at your dads, I don't want to risk it..." he trailed off to eye me for a reaction. Mine remained curious. "I'm not forcing you, but I really want you with me. You know, at my house. I want to take care of you." His eyes fell before meeting mine again with a plea in them.

I nibbled on my lip as I considered it. I didn't want to burden him with my recovery, but I knew that he was the best qualified to protect me. I would never admit it aloud, but a part of me was afraid from the attack. I knew a lot of people hated me, all for different reasons. I didn't know whether or not they were willing to go as far as attempted murder, but I didn't want to find out either.

I released my lip to respond, "Are you sure? I'm not completely healed, but—"

Before I could finish, he was in my space. Slowly, he learned toward until his lips lightly grazed mine. My hands clasped down on his arms as I leaned in for more, but he pulled away before I could get it.

His eyes warmed as they met my gaze. "Hell yeah I'm sure. I'm going to help with anything you need, no question about it." I smiled with a nod. "You're so stubborn, it makes it funny."

A scowl fell upon my lips at that. "If you try to feed me again, I'm going home."

A mischievous smile danced across his lips as his finger lightly grazed the fading scar in my eyebrow. "Not my fault your medication made you numb, sweetheart. I couldn't let you starve."

I rolled my eyes, deepening my scowl, "You enjoyed it."

Before he could offer a retort, the door to my room clicked open. We both glanced up to see Luke.

His usual blank stare was intact, but I couldn't focus on that when I saw what he had. In his hands was a stuffed animal, as well as a bag of candy and a pack of cigarettes.

He tossed the cigarettes to Kade, then focused on me. I was frozen in shock as he thrust the bear and candy into my arms. Without another word, he flicked his head at us, then turned to walk away.

Okay.

I glanced down at the bear carefully then to Kade. "What was that about?"

I thanked Luke a couple of days ago, but other than that, we hadn't spoken. When he or Levi took Kades place, they'd usually play a cards game with me, but he usually didn't say much. When he was in my room, he only talked to Kade or Levi, but that was it. I didn't know what to make of this.

Kade shrugged, eyeing the bear as well. "Hell if I know. I told him to go get cigarettes."

Even though my uneasiness was still evident, it settled slightly. This was a nice gesture, at least I think.

"Thank him for me," I said, handing the gifts to Kade to put in my bags.

Kade nodded, then continued on with packing my things. I waited impatiently. I couldn't stand the sight, or anything remotely similar to this hospital any longer.

Once he finished, his phone beeped. Luke texted him that he pulled the car around to the front of the hospital.

To stop him from carrying me, I forced myself into the wheelchair. After thanking the staff for their care and generosity, I quickly fled toward the exit. I didn't want to be here any longer. I'd been prodded, stuck with needles, and every other thing there was enough to last a lifetime.

I breathed in the fresh air as soon as we were outside. I'd only been out a handful of times for my physical therapy, but that was it. It was around noon now, so I welcomed the wind gratefully. If Luke hadn't of been there, I might have never been able to, again.

Luke was true on his word. He stepped out of the car, nodding toward Kade who rubbed at my back, gently. Like before, he began to walk away toward the lot of cars.

"Thank you," I called out before he got too far. "You know...for your gift." I thought there was more to say, but feared he would disappear before I could.

He didn't turn around. For a second, I consisted he didn't even hear me before I got a response. With a middle finger raised to the sky, he disappeared into the lot without another word.

"Trust me, sweetheart," Kade mumbled into my ear before chuckling. "That's his version of liking someone."

I followed up with a nod. The guy was still an ass, but there was at least some type of mutual coexisting there with one another.

Kade backed the chair into the perfect position before he lowered himself to lift me. "Hold on to my neck for me, sweetheart." I did just that, my heart fluttering as our chests pressed against one anothers.

Once I was settled in, Kade leaned in until our breaths mingled, his hand falling to the seatbelt. His eyes flickered down to my chest, following back up to me with a look of humor. "Nice tits, baby." He dangled a grin my way, pecking my cheeks before shutting the door. I muttered a curse at him, despite the laughter bubbling in my chest.

He returned the wheelchair at record speed, and was back to me even quicker.

His eyes raked over me for any discontent. "Are you comfortable, sweetheart?"

As cute as his worry was, I liked to tease him. With a groan, I motioned toward my shoulder. "I think you might have dislocated it."

His eyes squinted in worry, immediately peering closer to me until he got it. His glare doubled up my laughter until he muttered something indecipherable, and put the car in drive.

I watched the hospital disappear from my sight. I nearly cheered. A part of me wanted to curse its existence since it nearly became my death location, but didn't.

As soon as we were on the road, his fingers danced across my thigh until he got to my hand. "Do you want to stop by your dads first?" I grinned once his lips grazed the skin of my hand.

I nodded. "That's a good idea, yeah." I wasn't sure how long I would be at Kades, but it was better safe than sorry.

I watched the trees flash by as we drove before looking back to him. "Do you think your mom will mind?"

It was nice to see that there was no longer distaste in his words when I mentioned her. Instead, his expression remained the same as he shook his head. "You know she won't. She's leaving town for business for a while, anyway."

The rest of the ride was full of compromises and offers. I didn't know how everything would work from here, but we'd figure it out.

"I have to go see my friends soon," I voiced before shaking my head at him. "And, I'm going so don't start. Jax and Maggie are both black belts." I didn't know if it that was exactly true, but I heard them mention it before.

Kades' lips twitched with humor as he shrugged. "I'm not your boss, sweetheart. I was going to say that I'm going with you, or they can come to my place. But, you're not going alone until after the fight."

I thought that over quickly before nodding. "I can work with that." I paused. "Wait, did you just say they could actually come over?" I emphasized by grasping my chest in disbelief.

Kade rolled his eyes at my reaction. "I did. They annoy the shit out of me, but you deal with mine. They mean a lot to you so I can suck it up and be quiet."

My lips stretched into a large grin as I wrapped my fingers around his arm. "Thank you."

He pretended to scowl, but I knew better. "I'll be in the house, but I'll leave you alone whenever they do come. Not for long, though." The suggestive glint in his expression said everything. I grinned, nodding in agreement.

Once he pulled into my driveway, he hurried to my side. "Do you want me to go in and get your things or—"

I rolled my eyes, leaning into his grasp. "Help me out. Please." He did, and I held onto him for support. I didn't want to waste time with my crutches, and I could hop just fine.

I unlocked the door, silently thanking Kade as he supported most if not all of my weight. My dad and Teresa were already at the table. I wanted to surprise them since they weren't sure of my discharge date. By their expressions, my mission definitely succeeded.

Several chairs screeched as they rushed toward me. "Oh my god." My dad was the first to reach me, his arms tightening around me. "What are you doing here?" I patted at his hands as it dug into my wound. He released me quickly, rushing out his apologies.

I smiled as Teresa embraced me. "What he means to say is that we're so glad you're home. We would have thrown a party if we knew."

I shook my head with a laugh. "No need, the gifts were just fine, trust me. I wanted to surprise you guys."

My dad yelled Ryland's name to get his attention. My stomach fell, immediately. I glanced toward Kade, whose expression was blank, arms crossed over his chest. The man truly did not give a fuck.

Dad's warm gaze turned to me. "We're going to move some things around to make it easier for you to get around—"

I smiled. "Actually, I was wondering if I could stay with Kade while I recover. I mean, I wouldn't be moving in, but..." I paused for his reaction. Dad frowned, his eyes falling to Kade.

Kade's hand rubbed comforting circles along my back before he nodded at my dad. "I want to take care of her while she recovers. Only if that's okay with you, sir." I smiled. It was cute to see the way he softened around my father.

Teresa grasped at my dad's arm. He glanced down at her with scrunched brows full of conflict. "Jackson, she is an adult now." I smiled appreciatively at her.

Dad nodded in agreement, I hoped. Then turned toward Kade. He stepped closer until his hand fell to his shoulder. "I trust you, son. She's still my baby, but she is an adult now. I know that you have the skills to protect her, if needed." He chuckled, eyes falling. "But don't forget who taught you everything you know."

Kade cast a smirk at him. "I wouldn't think of it, sir. And, thank you. She'll be just fine, I promise."

I heard him before I saw him. "No fucking way." I mustered a frown once Ryland stepped into the kitchen.

I shot a glance toward Kade to stay quiet even though Ryland was usually the one to instigate everything. It was tiring.

Kade held my eyes before he nodded in understanding. He started to head toward my room to prevent the conflict from happening.

Before he could pass the barrier, Ryland slammed a hand against his shoulder. Kade didn't move an inch, but I noticed the muscles in his back tightening.

Dad was here this time, though. He turned to face the boys, casting a glare to his son. "Ryland, unless your name is on the lease, I don't want to hear it. Your sister's capable of her own decisions."

My brother kept his attention on Kade. "Like I'm letting my little sister go with the person who put her in this position in the first place."

My heart picked up with nerves as he shoved Kade, again. His eyes sized him up, but it was more than obvious that Kade could take Ryland with ease. But, he didn't out of respect for me. I could feel that respect growing thinner by the minute, though.

Teresa stepped away as my dad marched up to his son. Without trouble, he grasped Ryland by the shirt then shoved him to the other side of the kitchen like he weighed a feather.

Ryland made another move toward Kade, before my father's glare stilled him in his place. "Swing if you want to, boy but that will be your last time ever swinging. I'm not the one to try this with, you understand me?" Ryland shot daggers back at our dad, but remained in place, nonetheless.

The tension in the room thickened by every passing second. I grimaced at the pounding at the back of my head. I needed to get out of here.

With a sigh, I hobbled forward. I cast a look of appreciation at Teresa as she rushed toward me, supporting my weight.

I motioned to Kade. "Come on. I need your help." His glare followed Rylands, but he snapped into action, anyway.

Once we were in my room, I shut the door. I leaned against it to support my weight, my eyes squeezing shut at the headache. I was sick of the arguing.

I wasn't sure what Ryland wanted to accomplish. It was a tasteless battle. Starting a fight with someone who didn't want to fight was ignorant. If anything, he could just at least try to coexist without any violence.

My eyes parted. "I'm sorry," I sighed out, watching Kade grab my suitcase. I made it to the bed before gladly falling into its comfort.

I gazed up at him. "I'm proud of you for not letting him get to you, you know."

Kade snorted as he packed. "He does, but you matter way more than my ego. I don't want to disrespect you like that." I nodded when he lifted a shirt to question if I wanted it.

His eyes fell over to me. "How are you feeling though, baby?" he asked. "Your meds should be wearing off by now."

"Not so good anymore," I mumbled, running a palm along my face. "All I want is to sleep and sleep even more. I can't wait to go home, honestly." I paused once I realized what I was implying. Kade's home was mine.

He caught it ,immediately. A smile grew across his lips before he stepped closer to me. Craning his body, he didn't stop until he was on his knees in front of me.

Leaning forward, he balanced a searing kiss to my knee, and on up until he got to my lips. "Me too, sweetheart."

***

My head rose from Kade's chest in question. "Is that a tear I see, Kade Ryder?"

His face scrunched at my claim. Quickly, he swiped at his eyes. "Fuck no. Who in the hell cries over movies?"

I rolled my eyes. "You can't tell me that her death didn't hurt you, fictional or not."

He would never admit to it, but I definitely broke him into the movie. I noticed the way he perked up at my favorite parts, and it was understandable. A Walk To Remember was one of my favorites.

I patted his warm chest with a knowing smile. "It's okay, you can admit it. Nicholas Sparks is an emotional trigger for everyone."

As soon as we got home, I went to sleep. Once I woke up, he was here with my medication, food, and tea. I couldn't fall back to sleep, though, so he stayed up with me.

Ever since midnight, we had started to watch every Nicholas Sparks movie ever released. I watched them all before, but he hadn't. He hadn't even seen The Notebook until tonight.

My head raised to him. I knew his sleep schedule was all over the place, so I asked, "Are you tired? We don't have to watch another one right now, if you are."

His brow perked up, his fingers tucking the stands away from my face. "Are you tired, sweetheart?" I shook my head. I was wide awake now.

His hands grasped at either ass cheek as he hauled me closer to his chest. Laughter burst from me at the sensation.

Either arm tightened around my figure in the most secure hold. He nodded toward the television. "Then let's start the next one."