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Bronwyn winces, trying to sit up. “Okay, okay. I’m okay. I just need to get - ” She falls back, the pain in her leg too much to bear any weight.
“Oh my God. Bronwyn!”
Nate rushes to her side, Cooper and Janae on his heels. He crouches down next to her and grabs her hands to help her sit up. “What happened?”
“I - me and Addy, we were trying to get away from Jake and -” Bronwyn gasps as a shock of pain hits her. “And I hurt my leg jumping out of the window.”
Cooper’s eyes go wide. “You two jumped out of a window?”
“We didn't really have a choice, Cooper!”
“Where’s Addy?” Janae asks, her eyes flitting around the yard, panic growing when she doesn’t see the blonde.
“She ran that way. Towards the woods,” Bronwyn says, pointing in the direction.
Nate looks at Cooper and Janae. “You two get the car. I’m coming.”
Cooper nods at Nate and then he and Janae run off to Cooper’s Jeep.
Nate’s eyes roam over Bronwyn’s body, seeing if there are any other injuries. “Are you bleeding anywhere?”
She shakes her head. “No. I scraped my knee, but it’s not bleeding.”
“Okay, okay. You need ice. I’ll be right back.”
Bronwyn grabs Nate’s hand as he starts to stand up. “Nate. We don’t have time for ice. We need to go.”
“Bronwyn. You are not facing Jake and his gun. You can’t even walk.”
“I’m fine! Just help me get up.”
Nate looks at her, but he knows he’s not going to win the argument. “Fine. But I’m getting you ice.”
He looks around and grabs the cup from the first kid he sees.
“Hey!”
“Go get another one.”
Nate pours the drink into the bushes, careful to not let the ice fall out, then dumps the ice cubes onto the random bandana he had in his pocket. He ties up the ends of the bandana so it pockets the ice and then places it on Bronwyn’s ankle.
“This isn’t going to do anything, Nate,” Bronwyn says. “The ice will melt in, like, 5 minutes.”
“It’ll make me feel a little better,” Nate says quietly, looking at her pleadingly. “Please?”
A shadow of a smile crosses Bronwyn’s face. “Okay.” She takes the makeshift ice pack from him, keeping it pressed against her ankle.
The beep of a car horn breaks their little moment. Nate and Bronwyn turn towards the car, their eyes blinding by the headlights.
Cooper sticks his head out of the side.
“Nate! Hurry up!”
Turning back to Bronwyn, he asks, “You’re sure you wouldn’t rather stay back?” Bronwyn narrows her eyes at him. “Yeah, didn’t think so.”
One of Nate’s arms goes under her knees and the other wraps around her back, scooping her into his arms. Bronwyn arm slings around his neck, holding him tightly, while her other hand remains on the ice pack.
“Good?”
Bronwyn nods. “Yeah. Now, hurry!”
He jogs to the Jeep, quickly but carefully to make sure he doesn’t hurt Bronwyn more.
Janae opens the door for them, sliding in to make room for Bronwyn. Nate sets her down, then climbs in after. He’s only half-sitting as he shuts the door behind him and yells at Cooper to drive.
Cooper steps on the gas. He looks back at Bronwyn through the rearview mirror. “You okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be fine.” She starts to nestle into Nate’s side, but he brings her into his lap.
“Here. Stretch your legs out. You have to keep it elevated,” Janae says, patting her lap. She brings her foot up onto the seat, raising and bending her knee to let Bronwyn’s foot rest on it. She takes the ice pack from Bronwyn’s hand and holds it to her ankle.
Nate brushes the hair out of Bronwyn’s eyes. “How bad is it?” he asks gently.
“It hurts,” she admits. “A lot.”
He squeezes her hand and presses his lips to the side of her head.
He doesn’t tell her she’ll be okay and oddly, it brings her comfort. At least she can trust him to not give her empty promises.
Moments later, Cooper slams on the breaks, the Jeep skidding to a halt outside the woods. He and Janae jump out of the car and rush into the trees. Nate jumps out the back of the Jeep, but he doesn’t follow Janae and Cooper. Instead, he rounds the car, opens the door for Bronwyn, and helps her out of the car.
“Go on without me,” Bronwyn says urgently, scooting out of the car.
Nate slings his arm around her waist, the other holding hers over his shoulder, supporting her weight as he helps her stand. His voice is firm, decisive, when he responds.
“You’re hurt. I’m staying with you.”
The Jeep rolls to a stop outside of Nate’s house.
It’s the dead of night, that time when everyone is asleep and only secrets are alive.
One would be surprised at how much time it takes to hide a body, get rid of a vehicle, and cover your tracks, but the Murder Club wasn’t named in vain.
After dealing with Jake, Cooper had continued his designated driver duties, dropping off Addy and Janae at Janae’s house, and now Nate and Bronwyn.
“Thanks, bro,” Nate says, climbing out of the Jeep. He rests a hand on the driver’s side door frame and looks at Cooper. “Are you sure you’re fine driving home alone? You can still stay over. You shouldn’t be alone.”
Cooper shakes his head. “Nah. I’ll be fine. I’m gonna go to Kris’s.” He gives Nate a little smile. “Don’t feel so sad, though. I promise we can have a sleepover some other day, Boy Scout.”
Nate rolls his eyes. “This was a once in a lifetime offer. No second chances.”
Behind them, the door on the other side of the car opens and immediately Nate rushes over.
He stands in between the open car door and Bronwyn, blocking her path from getting out.
"No. You need to stop putting weight on your ankle."
"Nate," Bronwyn whines. "I can walk."
Nate studies her, her furrowed brows and her tightly pressed lips. He takes a step back.
"Fine."
Bronwyn grins and scoots over the edge of the seat, but then bites her lip.
"Actually, could you…"
Nate raises a brow.
Bronwyn sighs. "Couldyoucarryme?" she says in a rush.
"If Your Highness insists."
Cooper groans from the front seat. "You two are going to be even more insufferable now that you're dating, aren't y'all?"
Both Nate and Bronwyn freeze. Bronwyn tightens her hands on Nate’s neck so he doesn't drop her.
"We're not - "
"We just - "
"Yeah, I really don't have time for one of y'all's messes, so if you two could figure this out somewhere out of my car, that'd be great," Cooper says, flashing them a sarcastic smile.
"You kill one guy and suddenly crabby becomes a personality trait," Nate mutters, as he slams the door shut with his leg.
"Nate!" Bronwyn hisses.
"Everyone here is dead asleep - hah. That was a good one." He rolls his eyes at Bronwyn’s unimpressed stare. "No one heard me, it's fine."
He carries her up the driveway, while Cooper waits for them to get inside.
"Could you get my keys? They're in the right pocket of my jeans."
"Front one?"
"Yeah. You think I'd sit on my keys? I'm not an idiot, Bronwyn."
"Could've fooled me," Bronwyn mutters, slipping her hand into Nate's pocket.
"Didn't you just say you liked me because I'm smart like 5 hours ago?"
Bronwyn slams the keys into the palm that's under her legs. "Shut up."
Nate manages to unlock his door without dropping Bronwyn and she has to admit - it’s very impressive. And hot.
Bronwyn waves to Cooper to let him know they’re okay and he can leave. He responds with a little wave of his own and then drives away.
Nudging the door with his foot, he walks inside and lets the door close gently behind them. Noticing Bronwyn’s gaze on his father passed out on the couch in the living room, he says, "Sometimes he makes it to his bed. A lot of times he doesn't."
Nate carries her into the house, towards his bedroom.
"Um, Nate. I need to use the restroom."
"Oh, right. Right."
He turns towards the bathroom and sets her down in front of the door.
"Uh, do you need help?"
Bronwyn blushes, the heat in her cheeks matching the flush in Nate's. "No, um, I can manage. Could I borrow some clothes, though?"
"Yes, yes. I'll go get you something. Yell if you need something. My dad won't wake up."
"And your mom?"
"I told my mom good riddance."
Bronwyn's eyes widen. "You what? And she actually left? After everything?"
A humorless laugh escapes Nate's mouth. "It's what she's good at." He pushes Bronwyn into the bathroom. "Take your time. I'll be right back with the clothes."
Bronwyn closes the door of the bathroom behind her and Nate rushes into his room to find something for Bronwyn to wear.
He returns to the bathroom with a shirt and a pair of his old sweatpants. He opens the door a smidge to place the clothes on the sink.
"Here are the clothes. Need anything else?"
"No, I'm good. Thank you."
Bronwyn comes out of the bathroom a few minutes later and sees Nate sprawled out on the floor outside. She looks at him, amused.
"You didn't have to wait for me, Nate."
Nate's eyes linger on her for a second longer than usual. On her in his shirt that's swallowing her up whole and in his sweatpants that she's rolled up at the cuffs but even so, are still too big for her.
She should wear my clothes more often.
He clears his throat, standing up. "Yes, I did."
"We need to wash our clothes," Bronwyn says, gesturing to her costume bunched in her hands and Nate, who's still wearing his. "We need to make sure all the blood is off."
"We can do it in the morning."
"Dried blood is near impossible to get out."
"It's already dried, Bronwyn. If the blood doesn't get out then we'll just burn them. No one knows it was us wearing these anyway."
Bronwyn bites her lip, thinking it through, then nods. "Yeah, okay. You're right."
Nate guides her to his room and helps her settle into his bed. He takes the clothes out of Bronwyn’s hands, dumps them into his closet, and then gets two cushions from his couch.
“Lift your leg,” he tells her, coming back to the bed.
Bronwyn does as he says. He places the cushions onto the mattress and she lets her foot fall onto them.
“I’m gonna go get you an ice pack. Don’t move. Talk to Stan. He’s good company.” Nate turns to his lizard in the glass cage. “Stan, this is Bronwyn. She’s pretty cool.”
Bronwyn smiles. “We’ve met. I hung out with him while you were in jail.”
“Yeah. My mom told me you’d come over everyday to take care of him. I just didn’t believe her.”
Bronwyn looks at Nate. “Why not?”
Nate shrugs, eyes still fixed on Stan. “It seemed too good to be true. One of her overcompensating lies. Why would you come here just to take care of a lizard?”
Bronwyn reaches for his head, forcing his eyes to meet hers. “Hey. Stan is important to you and you’re important to me. Therefore, he’s important to me, too.”
Nate looks at her like he wants to say something. He opens his mouth once, twice, three times, but no words come out. He just gives her a little smile, pointing his thumb to the door.
“Ice.”
With that, he exits the room, leaving Bronwyn with Stan and feeling disappointed.
She really thought he was going to say something. The thing, even.
Nate comes back hands full with an actual ice pack, a towel, an elastic bandage, and a glass of water.
“Here.” He approaches the bed and hands her the water. She takes a sip as he wraps the ice pack in the towel and places it on her ankle. “Hold this here. Just gonna go change my clothes. I’ll be right back.”
Bronwyn sets the glass down on the nightstand and takes hold of the ice pack.
And in a second, his lips are on her forehead. In another second, they’re off.
She blinks. He blinks.
“Um. I’m gonna - I’ll be back.”
Nate turns around and disappears into his closet in a flash.
Bronwyn smiles to herself.
I could get used to forehead kisses.
Nate emerges from the closet a few minutes later, his skeleton hoodie and black jeans replaced with a white t-shirt and gray sweatpants.
“Do you wanna watch a movie?” he asks Bronwyn. “We can watch Divergent. Or anything else you want.”
She shakes her head. “No. Can you, can you just - Can you be with me?”
His gaze softens. Turning off his lights, he walks over to the bed and onto the foot of the bed.
He takes the ice pack off of her ankle, setting it onto the nightstand, then picks up the elastic bandage from the side of the bed. Bronwyn watches as he lifts her foot gently and begins to wrap her foot with the bandage.
“How are you so good at this? You've sprained your ankle before?”
“No, but my dad has. Even broke it once or twice. You learn when you don’t have any other choice,” Nate says dryly.
Bronwyn’s heart squeezes thinking of Nate having to take care of his parents more than they’ve ever taken care of him.
And now he’s here, taking care of her.
“You’re a good guy, you know.”
Nate lets out a half-laugh. “Only you would think so, Bronwyn.”
She’s about to say something, but Nate finishes wrapping her ankle and scoots up to settle in next to her. Bronwyn leans into him as he wraps an arm around her shoulder, letting her head fall into the spot between his shoulder and neck. She trails a finger over the neckline of his shirt.
Nate looks down at her, but her eyes are fixed on his chest.
“Want to talk about it?”
She shakes her head again, this time with more force than before. “No. Tell me something good instead.”
“Hmm.” Nate trails his own fingers up and down Bronwyn’s arm. “Oh, I owe you an earring, you know.”
Bronwyn’s finger pauses and she looks up at him. “What?”
The corner of Nate’s lips quirks up a fraction of an inch. He flicks the metal ring on his ear. “This. It’s not mine. I stole it from you in first grade.”
Bronwyn opens her mouth to reply but Nate doesn’t let her. “But, you stole my heart from me first so we’re even.”
Bronwyn’s stunned into silence. She’s gathered that he likes her. That much has become obvious with how much he touches her and the way he kisses like he needs her to breathe and his desperate desire for her to see him for him. But he’s never explicitly stated his feelings. He didn’t even respond to her confession with one of his own.
Neither of them have said “I love you” to each other, but -
This feels like an “I love you.” A secret little “I love you” that’s just theirs.
Her lips curve into a small smile. “Do you want it back?”
“No. It’s always been yours and it’s yours to keep forever.” Nate pauses, then asks, “Do you want it back?”
Bronwyn doesn’t even have to ask if he’s talking about the earring or her heart. She knows it’s both, one more than the other.
“No. It’s rightfully yours. Both of them are.”
The smile on Nate’s face could end wars, Bronwyn’s certain.
“I’ll take care of them,” he promises.
It’s silent for a while, until Bronwyn asks, her voice a hushed whisper, “What do you think is gonna happen?”
Nate doesn’t hesitate. “We’re going to get away with it.”
“But - ”
Nate shakes his head. “No. I know your brain is in overdrive right now, but nothing good is going to come from you obsessing over this right now,” he says, his hand smoothing her hair back. “The five of us will figure it out together tomorrow, okay? Let’s just let us have this moment, right now.”
“Okay.” Her finger rises upward, drawing lines on his throat, jaw, cheek. “Promise me one thing, though?”
Nate hums, closing his eyes. “Anything, Rojas.”
“Promise that no matter what happens this - us - won’t change.”
He opens his eyes and looks at her, nothing but seriousness in his gaze. “I just got you back after so many years. I swear I’m not letting us change.”
Bronwyn smiles in relief, because she knows he’s not one for empty promises.
“Good.” She nuzzles closer into him, pressing a little kiss on his collarbone. She smirks into his skin as she feels him swallow under her. “Thank you for letting me stay here. And for taking care of me.”
“Always.”
She falls asleep soon after, her smile pressed into his chest.
His arms stay wrapped around her, holding her as close to him as they can, afraid that if he’s not careful, she’ll be taken from him again.
In the silence of the dead night, five words of nothing but life are spoken for no one but the ghosts to hear.
“I love you, Bronwyn Rojas.”