Care For Me ✔️

S I X T Y - F O U R

— trigger warning—
Court day — ya'll know what's gonna be mentioned. *cries*

— btw this is probably not how it's actually done in court, I've tried my best to make it as accurate as I can, but my only court experience is legally blonde or htgawm so don't expect it to be overly realistic—

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t h i r d — p e r s o n — p o v

Lily stood outside the tall building, her eyes travelling around the old grey brickwork of the legal building. Her hands clutched tightly to the ends of her smart black dress, Grey had made sure each of them had dressed smartly for the occasion. Lily wasn't so sure why she had to dress nicely, how did it matter what she wore? To be honest, she couldn't care less about her attire for the day — it was the last thing on her mind.

The New York wind was chilly, causing Lily to pull her jacket tightly around her torso, trying to shield herself from the brittle morning sir. The sidewalk leading towards the court was busy, people — men, woman, teenagers; rushing by — most likely making their commute to work, or school, after all it was only eight am.

"C'mon guys, let's head in side." Grey ushered them with a wave of his hand, heading towards the ten brick steps that led towards the entrance.

Lily stared at the steps, her legs feeling as though they were made of jelly, not skin and bones. She couldn't will herself to make a move, her ocean blue gaze set solely on the first old grey brick. Just one step; she thought, begging for her body to listen. Everything felt to real, she felt like she was in a confided space, the walls slowly closing in — she knew it wasn't true; she was outside, there was nothing blocking her way what-so-ever. But in that moment; she'd never felt more claustrophobic.

"Lil?" Jack said, staring at his little sister. He knew exactly how she felt; he felt it too, his feet were glued to the gravel beneath.

Lily turned to her brother, her blue eyes filled with unshed tears, "I don't know if I can do this." She all but whimpered.

Jack placed his arms around the small girl, pulling her to his shirt covered chest — the white material making his fair skin itch, he internally cussed Grey for his wardrobe choice. He was old enough to dress himself; but no, the twenty one year old was admit that Jack wear the outfit he'd picked out for him the night before. He removed the thoughts of his attire from his mind, relishing in the warmth of his sister. "I don't know if I can either Lil, but we need to try, okay?" He said, looking down at her with a sad smile.

"Try," she repeated, nodding her head to his words, "I can try."

"That's the spirit kiddo," Jack lifted his hand to her curls, ruffling them affectionately. "After this, it'll be over Lil. They'll be gone for good." Not from our minds, from our nightmares— he thought bitterly, almost scoffing at his own words. But, he didn't, he wouldn't, he couldn't. He had to reassure Lily, he had to comfort her, he had to comfort himself. They'll be gone, in jail, they can't hurt us physically, only mentally. He could deal with that, he knew he'd never rid of the mental scars they left, but he could wish, he could dream.

"Okay, okay." She exhaled, taking Jack's hand in her own. "Let's do this." Determination filling her orbs. "Together." She breathed.