Jay & Mel | Aftermath
Jul. 5th, 2024 04:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsMel finally lets herself break into pieces.
As soon as she could, Mel was booking it towards her brothers’ suite, not caring that she looked an utter mess and probably smelled like eggs. Her tears had been temporarily withheld whilst trying to escape, but now there was nothing to distract from the tidal wave of emotion welling up in her chest. She needed Jay.
Mel let herself in and knocked on his bedroom door with an urgency. “Jay?”
Jay opened the door and his face just crumpled when he saw Mel such a mess. He hadn't seen her sob like this in... He wasn't sure how long. He didn't ask any questions, just took his little sister into his arms and ignored the rotten egg smell, petting her hair and rubbing her back.
"Oh, Mellie, I'm right here, what happened?" He asked in a soothing voice, having put aside his own worry.
“The hike- it-“ She could barely get a sentence out, body shaking as she cried into his shoulder. The song kept ringing in her ears, and the gun, and she didn’t know how to make it stop.
He ushered her inside the suite, to come sit up on the couch with him. Jay hummed to her and waited until it became clear that she wasn't going to start talking. "Yer okay, yer safe," he reassured her as he tried to think what could have possibly happened.
Mel clung onto him like he would somehow disappear if she didn’t, wracked by the kind of full body sobs that made it hard to breathe. The fact that Jay was alive and well did nothing to soothe the tear in her heart that her nightmare had caused.
Jay hadn't sung in months, but he knew one surefire way to make Mel smile, even if it was in embarrassment, and he just wanted to see her calm down after whatever happened. "There's a story in our town, of the prettiest girl around," He started softly, mostly singing into her hair. "Long brown hair and eyes of blue, how those eyes could flash at you," he sang, changing the lyrics to describe Mel as he always had to tease her.
Slowly but surely, Mel managed to quiet down enough to take a few deep breaths, Jay’s singing replacing the haunted lullaby that kept replaying in her mind. She sniffled a little, not quite smiling but not so distraught anymore.
He kept singing, pitching his voice to harmonize with himself at the chorus, the secret little trick he had only ever done so obviously for Mel and Julia. "Dream on, dream on, teenage queen, prettiest girl we've ever seen," he sang before pressing a kiss on Mel's head.
Tears were still flowing, albeit much less, and she cuddled up against Jay further, just listening and clutching his shirt. Jay was fine, and Sam…
Jay finished the song, trying to tease her to make her smile, but he hadn't seen her like this since... Since Sam left them. "It's okay, Mellie, it's okay."
“Thank you,” she said in a shaky voice, burrowing her face in his shoulder.
"What happened?" He asked now that she had calmed her tears a little bit.
This was apparently the wrong move, as Mel started up again as she recounted the day. “It-it was fine at first but then we were bein’ followed an’ we got taken away to somewhere and they put things in my head that weren’t real and he was chasin’ me and tryin’ t’kill me and- and you were there but you wouldn’t run when he was comin’ and you just let… I knew it weren’t real but I had to go I didn’t wanna leave you! I swear I wouldn’t’a if it was real! An’ I finally got out but not before he- he-“ She dissolved into hysterics, not able to look at Jay through watery vision.
Jay tried to parse what Mel was possibly talking about, but was completely lost. "...You got kidnapped again?" Jay said after a while, rubbing her back more. How the hell did that happen twice in two months? Maybe Mel should go back home... "And you didn't leave me for real, I'm right here, I'm alright, I promise."
But she did. Mel had left to go hiking even when Jay was having a bad day and and maybe she should’ve stayed and maybe Sam had been right and she was a terrible sister. She couldn’t help but squeeze him tighter at the thought. What if Sam actually hated her? What if they all hated her for all the trouble she caused?
"It's okay Mel, we're all okay. Are you okay?" He asked, concerned and ready to raise hell about the fact that the kids got kidnapped twice.
“Jus’ a bit bruised,” Mel hiccuped. Physically she was just peachy. Mentally…
"Lissen, I can see you ain't alright. Who hurt you in that dream?"
She shook her head vehemently, not wanting to put that on him, not wanting to maybe find a glimmer of truth in it by speaking it aloud.
"I won't let no one hurt you ever again," Jay swore even though he knew he couldn't keep his promise.
Mel just cried. Cried and cried until she had a headache and no more tears would come. She was so tired, but so scared to go to sleep and see that all over again. Instead she clung onto Jay like that would keep the Cabots and the Arcades and the Slender-men of the world away from them both.
As soon as she could, Mel was booking it towards her brothers’ suite, not caring that she looked an utter mess and probably smelled like eggs. Her tears had been temporarily withheld whilst trying to escape, but now there was nothing to distract from the tidal wave of emotion welling up in her chest. She needed Jay.
Mel let herself in and knocked on his bedroom door with an urgency. “Jay?”
Jay opened the door and his face just crumpled when he saw Mel such a mess. He hadn't seen her sob like this in... He wasn't sure how long. He didn't ask any questions, just took his little sister into his arms and ignored the rotten egg smell, petting her hair and rubbing her back.
"Oh, Mellie, I'm right here, what happened?" He asked in a soothing voice, having put aside his own worry.
“The hike- it-“ She could barely get a sentence out, body shaking as she cried into his shoulder. The song kept ringing in her ears, and the gun, and she didn’t know how to make it stop.
He ushered her inside the suite, to come sit up on the couch with him. Jay hummed to her and waited until it became clear that she wasn't going to start talking. "Yer okay, yer safe," he reassured her as he tried to think what could have possibly happened.
Mel clung onto him like he would somehow disappear if she didn’t, wracked by the kind of full body sobs that made it hard to breathe. The fact that Jay was alive and well did nothing to soothe the tear in her heart that her nightmare had caused.
Jay hadn't sung in months, but he knew one surefire way to make Mel smile, even if it was in embarrassment, and he just wanted to see her calm down after whatever happened. "There's a story in our town, of the prettiest girl around," He started softly, mostly singing into her hair. "Long brown hair and eyes of blue, how those eyes could flash at you," he sang, changing the lyrics to describe Mel as he always had to tease her.
Slowly but surely, Mel managed to quiet down enough to take a few deep breaths, Jay’s singing replacing the haunted lullaby that kept replaying in her mind. She sniffled a little, not quite smiling but not so distraught anymore.
He kept singing, pitching his voice to harmonize with himself at the chorus, the secret little trick he had only ever done so obviously for Mel and Julia. "Dream on, dream on, teenage queen, prettiest girl we've ever seen," he sang before pressing a kiss on Mel's head.
Tears were still flowing, albeit much less, and she cuddled up against Jay further, just listening and clutching his shirt. Jay was fine, and Sam…
Jay finished the song, trying to tease her to make her smile, but he hadn't seen her like this since... Since Sam left them. "It's okay, Mellie, it's okay."
“Thank you,” she said in a shaky voice, burrowing her face in his shoulder.
"What happened?" He asked now that she had calmed her tears a little bit.
This was apparently the wrong move, as Mel started up again as she recounted the day. “It-it was fine at first but then we were bein’ followed an’ we got taken away to somewhere and they put things in my head that weren’t real and he was chasin’ me and tryin’ t’kill me and- and you were there but you wouldn’t run when he was comin’ and you just let… I knew it weren’t real but I had to go I didn’t wanna leave you! I swear I wouldn’t’a if it was real! An’ I finally got out but not before he- he-“ She dissolved into hysterics, not able to look at Jay through watery vision.
Jay tried to parse what Mel was possibly talking about, but was completely lost. "...You got kidnapped again?" Jay said after a while, rubbing her back more. How the hell did that happen twice in two months? Maybe Mel should go back home... "And you didn't leave me for real, I'm right here, I'm alright, I promise."
But she did. Mel had left to go hiking even when Jay was having a bad day and and maybe she should’ve stayed and maybe Sam had been right and she was a terrible sister. She couldn’t help but squeeze him tighter at the thought. What if Sam actually hated her? What if they all hated her for all the trouble she caused?
"It's okay Mel, we're all okay. Are you okay?" He asked, concerned and ready to raise hell about the fact that the kids got kidnapped twice.
“Jus’ a bit bruised,” Mel hiccuped. Physically she was just peachy. Mentally…
"Lissen, I can see you ain't alright. Who hurt you in that dream?"
She shook her head vehemently, not wanting to put that on him, not wanting to maybe find a glimmer of truth in it by speaking it aloud.
"I won't let no one hurt you ever again," Jay swore even though he knew he couldn't keep his promise.
Mel just cried. Cried and cried until she had a headache and no more tears would come. She was so tired, but so scared to go to sleep and see that all over again. Instead she clung onto Jay like that would keep the Cabots and the Arcades and the Slender-men of the world away from them both.
