Broken Connection✔️

{33} Understanding

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I'm woken from a brief minute of sleep by Evelyn's soft cry. I look up to find her sitting up against the headboard of our bed, her legs pulled up to her chest, her head tucked down, arms wrapped around herself. Evelyn's shoulders shake in the light only from the moonlight shining through the open blinds of the room.

"Ev," Every muscle in my body aches as I pull myself up to sit with her. "Hey, come here." She finally looks up from her lap and when I see her face I die another time inside. It's been like this for the past week. Us weeping around my- our- apartment, ignoring contact with everyone besides each other. No one could've prepared me for the pain of trying to watch the woman you love break into a million little pieces and blame herself for something she had no control over. Or the pain that comes with having to comfort her when you're dying the same way inside at every single mention, and thought of your dead first child.

In any other world if it hadn't been for Evelyn saving me from my own cold stoned heart I could've been less affected just thinking of it as a lost heir to my company but it's not that way. Evelyn did save me. Now we both suffer from this pain.

"I-" As soon as she opens her mouth I know it's an apology but I don't want it. I don't need it. "Dont. None of this is your fault Ev," She lets out a soft whimper before she engulfs me in a hug, I hold her tightly. Her cries start quiet, soft, and infrequent. But slowly as I rub her back and pull her into my lap that changes. Her cries become louder, painful, and overwhelmingly unstoppable.

"It hurts Grayson.." She whispers in between a sob. My eyes shut, and a stinging sensation builds in my chest and behind my eyes. "I know," I turn my head and plant a long kiss on the side of her head. "Trust me. I know..." Moments later a warm tear falls down my own cheek.

That one tear becomes ten. Ten becomes fifty. Eventually, we're holding each other like it's the last time we may ever hug as our tears soak each other.

•••••••••••••••

The doorbell wakes me up. I peel my eyes open and realize Evelyn and I fell asleep with her in my lap, my arms around her. The doorbell goes off again and I carefully set a sleeping Evelyn on the bed and cover her in the covers. This time instead of the doorbell someone is now knocking on the door.

I pull a white tee on and make my way downstairs. As I approach the door the knocks become more frequent. "Jesus, give me a second," I growl as I pull the door open. "You bastard where is she?" Jason grits forcing his way through the door. His hands fist the collar of my shirt. Jessica steps in behind him. "Get off you asshole." I shove him off and glare at both of them.

"Her apartment is empty and last time I checked you broke things off with her. So what the hell did you do?" Jason continues, stepping forward. "You're fucking crazy I haven't done anything. I would never hurt her. I wouldn't even dare pluck a hair from her head you jackass." Jason laughs.

"Then care to explain why when I had her assistant check her bank account history she was admitted to the hospital for two days? That doesn't seem to show her unharmed." Jessica finally speaks up. Accusingly.

"Don't you dare come in here and accuse me? As much as both of you want to put up this image of me being a heartless monster I care about Evelyn. More than I'll ever care for anyone else." I reason trying a calmer tone. "I mean fuck! How come I'm here comforting her and the both of you hadn't realized she was gone till now? She was gone a week ago. Evelyn saved herself. Then she came to me."

"Me." I repeat sternly. "not you two. I've shown her more love in the past three months than you've shown her in the past five years." This earns me a blank stare from both of them. They know I'm right and they can't fight it. "Look, I care about Evelyn more than yall could ever fucking fathom. You have to understand I would never hurt your sister. Ever." My eyes meet Jason's. He studies me. Looks for honesty.

"Why was she in the hospital?" I go still. Grow uncomfortable. Suddenly I feel like a child being scolded and questioned. They haven't even said anything but I feel like fucking crying. I know I look like I want to cry. And I know they notice it.

"What is it?" Jessica prys. I look down at her. Swallow. "Trevors alive and he took her. She escaped and came here in the middle of the night before she passed out in my arms. That's when I took her to the hospital." That's the easy part of it all. "What?-" Jason gasps out. "He... He touched her. Assaulted her. That's all he did. She had a rape kit test." Jason looks away, his jaw tense, his fists tight.

"And uhm-" I look down at the floor. "...She was pregnant. Trevor shoved her into a table." It goes silent. "What the fuck do you mean 'was' Grayson..." Jessica whispers. "She had a miscarige. We didnt know we were expecting unitl they informed us about the miscarrige at the hospital."

There it is again. The silence that's eats it's way at your self conscious. "...It's true." Everyone turns and looks at Evelyn down the hall in my shirt with her hair up in a ponytail. Her eye bags dark and puffy, her aura radiating painfull sadness.

"None of this would of happened if you just stayed away from him." Jessica spits. Evelyn flinches at her words and looks at me like she wants to cry again. And I notice the moment she tenses what she's going to say.

"It's-"

"Shh. Stop it..." I make my way to her and cradle her. Embracing her. She's trembling. Shaking with pain. "Please stop saying that. You have to understand it wasn't your fault." I whisper only for her to hear.

Even though Jessica and Jason were Evelyn's blood it felt as if our only comfort was each other. Each other alone in our apartment which she had moved into once relaxed from the hospital. Not only because it was safe but because we needed each other more than anything in the world.

That itself was enough to make us officially get back together. We both promised no more lies. No more secrets.

"Grayson." Jason's thick voice makes me pull back enough to look him in the eye. "Give me your word that she'll be safe with you. I can't let anything else hurt her. Physically or mentally."

We give each other a look. A knowing one. A look of 'We both love her'.

"You have my word. If not that then my life. I swear on my own life." Jason nods looks at Evelyn and then back up at me, like he's looking for permission. I unravel my arms from Evelyn and she meets Jason and Jessicas eyes.

"Im so sorry evi" Jason whispers as he engulfs Evelyn in a hug, Jessica joining them soon after.

After so many years of hatred between our families it's like we've Finnaly found a way to bring peace. It pains me to know that the very thing to bring us together is Evelyn's own pain but it's what it is. We all collectively have cared about Evelyn more than ourselves.

She was the one to break the first smile at dinners. The first one to actually form a friendship with a Valor kid. Evelyn was the first one to bring us in a room for the start of family game night. She was the light of all our lives.

Until it fell apart. But now I'm determined to fix that. Not her, but the energy in her. The shits she's been through Is unimaginable. But she dealt with it like no other could.

That's exactly why I love her.

And I pray to god that when I tell her she feels the same way.