A Different Path

Chapter 15 - Romeo

Criticism spot! :)

Crutchie's POV

As the bell rang I immediately sighed, shifting as close to Jack as I could. He chuckled as I did so, holding me tight.

"You really hate mornings, huh?" He asked, and I nodded. "C'mon, let's get up," he moved a little, but I just kept close to him, making him laugh some more. 

"No," I mumbled. "You don't want me to be upset, do you?" I asked, hearing him jokingly sigh.

"Of course not," he said.

"Well, then don't get up yet," I felt him laugh once again, and he settled back down. 

"Five more minutes is all, alright?" I nodded once again, trying to get a bit more sleep.

Before I knew it, though, Jack nudged me. I finally opened my eyes and looked up at him, smiling. He smiled back, pushing my hair back. 

"Can we get up now?" He asked, and I rolled my eyes, making him laugh some more.

"I guess," I whined, sitting up. As we got ready I hoped Jack would forget about the wrap that was on my foot, but he eventually looked at it before he knelt beside me after I had changed.

"You know we gotta do this," he said, clearly upset that I'd be in pain.

"Mhm," was all I said, looking down. 

"Here, I have some of the stuff already, but do you need me to get Race so you can hold my hand?" I shook my head, taking a deep breath.

"No, I'll be alright." I said.

"Okay, I'll try to be fast." Jack then got ready, looking at me once more. "Ready?" I nodded, pain shooting through me the moment he touched my foot. I grabbed at my thigh, acting as though it would help me. I closed my eyes tightly and clenched my jaw, not wanting Jack to feel bad. "I'm wrappin' it now, I know this is usually worse," I took a moment to breathe before bracing again, worse pain soon following. "Done," was all he said, coming to my side. I then laid in his arms, resting my head on his chest as I let the pain subside. "How bad does it hurt?" 

"It's worse today," I said, feeling sick. "I'm lightheaded," I mumbled, feeling Jack's hold tighten on me. 

"From pain, or somethin' else?" He spoke quietly, trying to look at me.

"Pain," was all I said back, rubbing my eyes.

"Tell me when you're feeling ready, okay?" I settled down a bit in his arms as I tried to take deep breaths, hoping it'd pass soon. Thankfully, and to my surprise, I only needed just a few seconds before I was mostly over it. I sat up and looked at Jack, smiling. "You okay?" Jack asked, and I nodded.

"Mhm, let's go," Jack stood and I followed, heading to the square.

I remained quiet while I tried to ignore the constant pain that was going through my entire leg, but since I was always pretty quiet, nobody questioned it. Jack eventually noticed, though,  looking at me with a worried expression. 

"Do you need to go home?" He asked, and I shook my head.

"No, no. My foot just hurts, I'm fine otherwise," I smiled at him, and it was clear that what I had said made himless concerned. 

"Let me know if you need to go home, though, okay?" I nodded, continuing to smile.

Besides the pain in my foot, the day went by just like any other. By the time I got home, I was completely exhausted due to it, feeling sick just as I had in the morning. Jack showed up after a bit, smiling as he did so.