S H A R E

C h a p t e r 1 7

Callum and Adam held me in a warm embrace.

"We were worried about you." Callum told me, caressing my face softly. I  leaned into his hand.

"How are you feeling? You were hurt pretty bad." Adam told me.

I was hurt? Pain. It hurt all throughout my body. Callum and Adams face began to fade away like sand blown by the wind.

"Wait don't go!" I called out to them.

Avery felt nothing but pain as her eyes fluttered open. Her head pulsed and her body ached. Her mind was still too hazy to put everything together and she closed her eyes once again.

"That was quite a fall Avery. What the heck were you doing out there?" A strange voice lured her to open her eyes. When she did Jax, her old neighbor when she lived with her father, was there. Confused she forced herself to remember what happened. Taking a moment to let everything process.

"He's injured I need to see if he's okay." Avery began to sit up with only the thought of Greyson on her mind.

"Woah woah, hold on. You are also injured and you need plenty of rest. That mud was freezing, it infected your cut, and you already have a concussion on top of it. Stay here for now." Jax gently pushed her back down onto the bed.

"I appreciate your worry Jax but there is really somewhere I need to be." Avery then took the time to take in her surroundings.

"Where are we?" She questioned him.

"We are at my family's cabin. I didn't expect to find you anywhere near here. Given where I found you was about 6 miles away I was on my way to the store to get things to fix the leaks in the roof, the storm was really intense, when I heard gunshots. I looked to help and there you were smack in the mud death looking you right in the face. God I was terrified when I recognized it was you Avery." Jax scooted the chair he sat on closer to her.

"W-why didn't you take me to the hospital?" Avery was very suspicious of him. Her stomach had the familiar uneasy feeling.

"I didn't even realize you were injured on your head until I examined you in the light here. I had just thought you had fallen which is no cause to take you to the hospital. After cleaning you up though I saw it wasn't too bad anyways and I stitched your head myself." Jax's explanation was reasonable and she had to admit to herself she wouldn't take someone to the hospital if she just thought they fell.

"Wait you stitched me up?!" Avery shot up from the bed and made her way to the vanity.

"Woah Avery be careful you shouldn't be running around like that!" Jax called out to her.

Avery audibly gasped when she saw her reflection. She looked dreadful. Right at her hairline and was small stitches. They were barely noticeable. Her hair was still caked with mud and dirt covered almost every inch of her body.

"C-can I take a shower?" She shyly looked at him, embarrassed to be seen by anyone when she looked so dirty.

Jax gave her a warm smile, his eyes softened.

"Of course Avery." Jax scoped her up in his arms.

"W-what are you doing!" She squirmed uncomfortable being in that position.

"Relax you really should be resting let me carry you to the bathroom" he said nonchalantly.

"I can walk myself Jax, please put me down." Avery broke free from his hold and leapt from his arms.