A Thin Line between Love and Hate

Chapter 28

Jasmine's POV

The past month had me in a whirlwind of emotions. As I stood in my bathroom staring at my image in the mirror, my mind flashed back to the event that would forever change my perspective on life. I don't remember being rushed immediately into emergency surgery to remove the bullet from my collar. But later on I was told that it took several hours for the surgeons to patch me up. I thanked God everyday that I was miraculously alive.

I did, however, remember the moment I began to wake up. Confusion clouded my mind. Why did the most minute movements shoot pain coursing through my chest and shoulder?  I remembered how my vision felt blurry at first. But after a few minutes, it eventually began to clear the more I blinked my eyes open. 

I could hear the sound of the medical machines beeping in the background. And the smell of antiseptic completely overwhelmed my senses. When my vision finally cleared, I peered down at my arms and saw the IV slowly dripping pain medication into my veins. That's when the memory of what truly happened came crashing back into my consciousness and a panic attack quickly clouded my mind, causing me to gasp for air.

As a result, the machines that were hooked up to my chest began to go crazy. I didn't even notice Megan was in the room until she jumped up and began to reassure me that everything  was going to be alright. Next, my mother was by my side while nurses began to filter into the room; they began to check on my well-being. But when I looked over to my parents for comfort, the sight of them being there truly gave me a sense of peace and I began to simmer down. I couldn't believe they flew back so quickly but I was genuinely grateful for that level of love.

 After calming down, the nurses resettled the machines and left. I gulped hard before trying to speak. My throat was drier than ever.

"Hey." I said weakly. Everyone stood over me smiling. Tears were in my mothers eyes, threatening to spill over.

"Oh my baby, I'm so glad you're finally awake." She grabbed a hold of my hands. 

"How long have I been out?" I asked in a low whisper. 

"Almost 4 days now. I was beginning to worry baby." My dad answered. He got up and walked over to me in order to hold my hand as well. I was weak but I latched my hands onto the comfort of my parents. I was more than glad they were with me during this time.

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A week later, I was finally discharged. My parents drove me home from the hospital and assisted me to my room. My dad sat on a lounger in my room while my mom sat on the bed next to me, patting my thigh.

"Megan told us everything that happened." She said sadly. My heart skipped a beat. Did she tell them about my relationship with Jaxon? Or how Darnell was abusive?  But the moment I looked into my mother's eyes, I knew without a doubt that she knew everything.

"You should have told us he was putting his hands on you baby." She said dolefully.  This time she couldn't keep the tears at bay, they spilled freely down her cheeks. My heart ached.

"If I ever see that man, I'll kill him myself." My dad said from behind my mom. I didn't know what to say. I thought they wouldn't have understood me wanting to leave him. I thought I would break their hearts if I left someone like Darnell; he was such an established man on paper. The way my mom was pushing me to be with him, I thought she would be devastated if I ever left him. I guess I thought wrong. I should've trusted that, if she knew the full story of his abuse, she wouldn't have wanted me with that man. It still didn't justify the fact that she knew he was mentally draining me. But could I blame her? My mom had an old school mentality. She believed in taking care of your man wholeheartedly. And if your man wasn't satisfied than that was a reflection that you weren't doing your job properly as a woman. I knew this is what she believed and that's exactly why I was lacking so much trust in her.

My moms voice was barely over a whisper. "I'm so sorry baby, I pushed you into that monsters arms. You trusted me and I failed you." She said while shaking her head regretfully. I grabbed on to her hand.

"I was hoping he would change." I said sadly. I was also regretful because I allowed things to get this bad. 

"He nearly kille-" My moms voice cracked. She couldn't even finish her sentence. We sat in silence for a moment while we let that last statement marinate. After a few minutes, I spoke up.

"What happened to him?" I asked curiously. My dad answered for my mom since she still couldn't speak.

"He's been charged with criminal negligence. Right now he's still in jail." I shook my head in understanding as we sat, once more, in silence. 

At that moment, Jaxon crossed my mind and I wanted to bring him up. How did they feel about him? Heck, I didn't know how I felt about him. I knew they loved him as a son, but as a potential spouse for their daughter? I doubted it. Especially after the recent events. But then again, I have been wrong before. 

But in the end, I decided to not bring him up. I think my mom was saving that conversation for another day. I could tell that she was doing her best not to upset me. And having a full on conversation about Jaxon right now would probably trigger me.

For right now, I thought that maybe it was good that I hadn't seen or spoken to him. Since he's been back in Florida, my life has been too full with the unexpected. And at this point in time, I needed space. 

"I love you Jasmine." His words echoed in the back of my mind but I shook them away as quick as they entered. Yeah, I wasn't going to put much weight into his words. I highly doubted that he actually meant it. This whole thing was too fast; he probably said it in the moment.

I shook my head to clear it. Out of sight, out of mind. This was going to be my newest motto. I didn't need anymore negativity in my life and Jaxon's presence was sure to bring it. Right now all I needed to do was focus on my healing.

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S/N: This moment with her parents needed to be had. The story is about to pick back up :)