It wasn't easy adjusting to the loss of someone you loved.
They say absence helps the heart grow fonder, but in reality, it made you feel like shit.
Justin hadn't slept in weeks, the bags under his eyes apparent, but with the business deals following suit and the plan coming up to par, he didn't have much time to do anything.
Although they all knew the real reason why, especially with the wedding just around the corner.
It was hard to wish his best friend away with happiness when he was miserable, but he knew, there was no one else to blame but himself.
However, ask him if he would change the circumstances, and he wouldn't. Regardless of his decisions, he would never take away her right to safety. Just knowing she's alive and breathing, smiling and laughing, was enough for him.
She was still here. She just wasn't his.
"Hey, you up?"
Snapping away from his thoughts, Justin quickly puts away the picture in his hand before sitting up. "Yeah."
He had been staring at the same picture of Jazzy for years, more so on days, he felt like he needed advice, like he could feel her telling him what was right or wrong.
Even if she was younger, she always told him when he was being an idiot, and right now, he knew she would be doing the same thing. She would force him to get up, man up, and do more with himself instead of sulking about things he couldn't change.
Opening the door, Bruce stepped inside, "Prince said the shipments intact, he's just waiting on Morgan to send him the rest of the list."
Nodding, Justin stretched his arms up towards the ceiling before leaning over and checking his phone to see that Prince had texted him too. Responding, he stood to retrieve his pants before pulling them up and fixing his belt.
"You good?"
Snapping his head up, Justin nodded once he realized Bruce was talking to him. "Yeah," pulling on a shirt, he patted his back as he began to walk past him, "I'm good."
Stopping him from going any further, Bruce looked Justin in the eye. "You know I'm here if you need anything, right?"
Shrugging, he smiled with ease though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Thank you."
There was a silent communication as Bruce looked at Justin before he walked out of the room.
It hadn't been the same in the house, ever since a doe-eyed girl came stumbling behind Justin five years ago.
And part of him was thankful for it.
While the other part of him wished it never happened.
Having come from a family of crime, Bruce knew the risks it came with. Love wasn't an option; it was a distraction; it was poison – it was death. It made matters worse, it made things trickier. How could you save yourself when you can't even save the one you love?
Bruce didn't understand it, no one did until they all lost someone close to them.
Having a younger sister was something he never pictured, especially since all he was surrounded by was men – with the exception of his mother, so when he had to get used to another female, it wasn't something he was exactly prone to.
He had no idea how to handle the situation, how to take care of her and worry about her safety as well as his own and the others.
She proved, however, that she didn't need any saving. She was perfectly capable on her own, without any of their help. He didn't know how it was possible, given her background and the life they lived, but she persevered.
