Page 9 of Bliss: Part 2
And we were going to help her heal.
Whatever it took.
She had us. All of us.
Now and forever.
Thirty-Four
Owen
We gave her all the time she needed.
Every minute of it. We didn’t rush her or expect anything from her. We expected her to just breathe. But even in the silence, even while she cried into my arms, we knew she needed more than time. She needed to be held. She needed to feel us, reminding her that she was back with us now. That she was safe.
Bliss had been trembling the entire time, and even though it shattered something in me to feel her like that, I knew this was helping her. I knew she needed to let it out, to let someone else carry the weight with her, even if just for a little while. The room was quiet except for her sobs, and not one of us said a word. We just sat with her.
It was almost an hour before she stopped.
Eventually, the guys backed away a bit, giving her space while still staying close enough to let her know she wasn’t alone. I looked down at her, still cradled against me, her small frame tucked under my arm.
I didn’t move too fast. I didn’t want to startle her. I didn’t want her to flinch. She needed to feel that nothing around her was a threat now.
“You need anything, baby? Water? Food? You gotta be hungry...”
She didn’t answer. Just kept her eyes on my shirt, her cheek still pressed to my chest. Her breathing was shallow and uneven. I could feel her trying to pull herself together.
She wiped her nose with the back of her hand and finally looked up at me. Her eyes scanned my face. She looked tired, confused, and full of something I couldn’t name.
It took a second before she asked, quiet and unsure, “Who found me?”
I paused. Her voice was so small that it broke my heart into a million more pieces.
“Do you remember anything?” I asked gently, afraid to push too hard.
She nodded slowly. “The forest.”
I nodded back, my throat tightening.“Yeah...it was Gunpowder. Kenneth Burch.You remember him? From the shop.”
She frowned, processing it. “The biker?”
“Yeah. Exactly.” I smiled, trying to offer something comforting. I reached up, carefully cupping her cheek, my thumb brushing just below the dark bruise there. I avoided touching it. “He found you and called an ambulance.”
Her face changed, probably thinking about whatever happened to her because the tears came back. She broke again, her body curling up in my arms.
“Shh,” I whispered, pulling her close. “It’s okay, baby. I got you.”
I looked around the room at the guys, and they looked back at me. We were all worn down, but we were all thinking the same. We were gonna get through this together. We had to.
About ten minutes later, Dr. Hansen came in.
He stepped inside the room and paused. He could see the way she was clinging to me, and I appreciated that he didn’t rush. He just looked down at the clipboard in his hand, then at me.
“Tripp, can you...?” I nodded toward her.
“Yeah, of course, Dad.” He stood up slowly, careful not to startle her, and slid into my place. She didn’t resist when he held her, and I gave her hand one last squeeze before I followed the doctor outside.
He shut the door gently behind us.
