Prevail

Chapter 15

Henrietta didn't feel like she had time. She felt so far behind. She felt exhausted and scared. The only time she felt okay was when Haze and Nico were close, and depending on them so heavily was scary too. She didn't want to burden them.

Haze went to class with her, and then he had a call to get on with Nico. They were trying to get some investors for a company they were starting up.

She had sat down to complete some of her own work, but nothing was making sense. How much material could be learned in the week or so that she was gone? How was she even going to catch up?

She felt a hopelessness surfacing, something she had never experienced before.

Most of her professors were understanding, but majority of her work was independent and she was relying on that time to finish up this semester.

It would've been okay to take the spring semester to give her some more time, but that would mean more money, something else she was worried about.

She could feel the unevenness of her breath as she glanced at the mess of papers and books she had splayed out, trying to make sense of everything.

"Dumb little bitch."

"I should just keep you for myself."

Henrietta muffled her sob with her hand, shoving the books off of her desk with one push of her good arm. She just wanted it all to stop.

"What's going on?" Nico asked, startling her a bit.

She smeared her tears with her palm, keeping her back towards him. "Nothing. I just dropped some books."

She didn't even hear him walking closer because everything started ringing. She struggled to draw in a breath.

"Henrietta," he said firmly, reaching for her. She brushed away his hand.

"Stop," she said firmly. "I'm fine, Nico. Go back to work."

Snapping at him didn't make her feel any better. She didn't actually want him to leave. Didn't he know that?

She used the end of her t-shirt to dry her gathering tears. She dropped to the floor to gather her books and crumpled papers, but instead of actually doing anything, she just sat there.

She wished she could forget the whole kidnapping thing had ever happened. She wanted to forget the feel of Crow's grimy hands, of being beat up. She wanted to forget the dusty, black room that she stayed in for what felt like a lifetime.

But how could she be a therapist if she had problems that she was too afraid to face?

Haze and Nico both came into her room. This time, neither one of them said anything. They just crowded in close. Haze sat behind her, stretching out his legs so he was between them. Nico started gathering her mess.

Haze gathered the hair that was sticking to her sweaty neck. She sniffled pitifully, peeking up at him.

"I need help," she whispered.

"I know," he responded. "And that's okay. There's nothing wrong with that."

Nico set her things back on her desk.

"I didn't mean to get mad at you," she told Nico, feeling the tears again.

"You just wanted some space. There's nothing wrong with that, either. I know Haze and I have been up in all of your business. We're sorry if we overstepped in anyway."

"We will back off," Haze added. "Let you go back to normal."

Henrietta cried. "Nothing will ever be normal. I don't want you to back off. I don't want to be alone. What if Crow comes here? What am I going to do?"

"Crow's in jail, Henrietta. He's got a slew of charges. He's not coming out anytime soon."

She nodded, and Haze leaned up close, wrapping his arms around her front. She appreciated the support as she slumped into him.

Nico moved closer. She dropped her head onto his chest.

"I'm scared," she admitted. "Everytime I close my eyes, I'm back there. I can't get it to leave. I can't focus, and I'm running out of time."

"You can't make yourself heal on a deadline," Haze said, leaning his head down on top of hers. "But it would be better to talk to someone."

"Are you guys okay?" Henrietta asked after a moment of soaking in their touch. "You didn't sign up for this, and-"

"And neither did you," Nico said. "We're still so sorry that we dragged you into our mess, but we aren't hanging around just because of our guilt."

"We're here to take care if you," Haze finished, kissing her on her cheek. "Whatever you need."

"You're going to get back on track, you'll see. You just need to take it one step at a time. There's no rush."

Henrietta took a deep, shaky breath, finally relaxing. She calmed, focusing on their touch and kind words. She could get better.