Three Days After
It had been three days since the attack.
Three days of sleepless nights, of weak hospital coffee, of Jamie sitting in that narrow chair by Jace's bedside, waiting for him to wake up and prove that the world wasn't as cruel as it had looked that night.
Now, finally, Jace was sitting up in bed, pale, bandaged, but breathing. That was all that mattered.
Jamie cut a small piece of apple and offered it to him with a mock stern look.
"Eat. Doctor said fruits."
Jace groaned, taking it reluctantly. 'Doctor said hospital food too, but you saw what that tasted like."
Jamie snorted. "Fair point. I wouldn't feed that to a raccoon."
"I'd feed it to you though." Jace teased.
Jamie's eyes snapped up. "Don't start."
Jace chuckled weakly, then winced. "Okay, okay-sorry. Just saying. But damn you looked so beautiful while crying over me, I was really moved sugar."
Jamie froze, his eyes dimmed as he didn't find that funny. "You were dying, Jace. Forgive me for not posing for a photo."
That earned him a smile, a small one, real, soft. It settled something heavy in Jamie's chest.
He looked at his brother, thinner now, with tired eyes and an IV taped to his wrist.
"You scared the hell out of me." Jamie said quietly. "Don't do that again."
Jace's lips curved faintly. "No promises."
Before Jamie could answer, the door swung open, and suddenly the quiet room filled with noise.
"Look who's alive!" Charles grinned, striding in first, followed by four others, Malik, Rowan, Theo, and Andy. They carried gift bags and chips and an energy drink that definitely wasn't on the approved list.
"Pretty sure it isn't appropriate to talk that loud, we're gonna get kicked out idiot." The blonde one, Theo snapped.
"It's okay guys, just tone it down a little bit." Jamie said with a smile.
"Right, guys this is Jamie, Jace's elder brother." Charles introduce.
"It's nice to meet you." They all said.
"Wow, he's so pretty." One of them whispered but everyone heard.
"Shut the hell up." Jace snapped at the boy before turning to glare at Charles. "And he's my brother, why are you the one introducing him." Jace scoffed, wincing after.
"Serves you right. Don't mind him boys, he's just bitter he can't practice with you. Thank you all for coming though." Jamie's smile reassuring.
"Man, you look terrible." Andy said cheerfully.
"Wow, thanks." Jace replied. "You guys sure know how to boost morale."
"Seriously though." Malik said, pulling up a chair, "we thought we'd lost our best player. Coach almost cried."
Rowan leaned against the window sill. "He didn't cry. He just cursed a lot."
Jamie found himself smiling for the first time in days, watching as Jace's friends filled the sterile space with laughter.
They teased him about the bandages, argued about whether Jace would milk the injury to skip practice, and promised him all the class notes he'd missed.
Jace rolled his eyes, grinning. "You're making this sound like a funeral."
"Hey, don't be dramatic." Andy said. "We just came to make fun of you in person."
They all laughed, even Jamie.
For a fleeting moment, everything felt normal.
And as Jamie leaned back in his chair, watching Jace joke with the boys, he felt something loosen in his chest. Relief. Gratitude. His brother wasn't alone.
After an hour, the group finally filed out with loud goodbyes and half-serious promises to sneak in burgers next time.
Charles lingered last, giving Jamie a reassuring nod and some weird handshake before leaving too.
The silence that followed was soft, but it didn't last long.
There was a knock, then the door opened again, this time, two police officers stepped in.
Jamie stiffened instantly.
"Good afternoon." said the taller one, a man with graying hair and a faintly patronizing tone. "We're here to follow up on the incident."
Jace blinked. "The pizza guy thing?"
"Yes." the officer replied. "Mind if we ask a few questions?"
They were polite enough, at first. They spoke to Jace briefly, jotting notes, then turned to Jamie.
"Mr. Hale, we'd like to speak with you privately, if that's all right."
Jamie hesitated but nodded, stepping into the hallway with them.
The shorter officer leaned against the wall, looking tired but kind. The taller one, the one who did most of the talking, had the air of someone who thought he'd already solved the case.
"Tell us again what happened that night." he said.
Jamie went over it, every detail, every sound, every heartbeat of panic. How the man in the fake delivery uniform pushed into the apartment. How Jace tried to stop him. How there was shouting, then blood.
The officer hummed thoughtfully. "So your brother engaged with the assailant?"
Jamie frowned. "He tried to protect us, yeah."
"I see. And you're certain it wasn't a disagreement that turned violent?"
"A what?"
"Young boys sometimes get mixed up in the wrong circles." the man said carefully. "It's not uncommon for fights like these to-"
"He's not some thug!" Jamie's voice cracked, anger flashing through exhaustion. "He's sixteen."
The short one finally sighed and stepped forward. "Look, we understand you. But youngsters these days can't be trusted, he might just be going through a rebellious phase, so you need to ask him to be honest with you. Has he been coming home straight from school?"
"No, he has practices time to time. And if that's the case, I trust my brother, his friends came to visit him today and confirmed it."
"Alright, we might have to bring in his friends for questioning too."
"No. Why?. They're just kids. Why can't you just find the criminal who stabbed my brother instead of making my brother the bad guy?" Jamie was beginning to get frustrated.
"Mr. Hale, we need you to understand that there's been various incidents of gang fights around, and this kind of case happening in the moment isn't something that should be overlooked. It's already suspicious as it is, you said you didn't recognize the guy, but you're not sure if your brother does and is just hiding it. We have to bring his friends in for questioning, and don't worry. Nothing will happen without their parents knowing." The taller one explained.
"My brother doesn't know him, I am very sure of it. Find the person who stabbed my brother first, and then we'll talk about something else." Jamie stood his ground.
"Look boy, your brother is a suspect. He's only being temporarily permitted because he's injured. The moment he's discharged, he needs to be interrogated." The tall officer sneered.
But Jamie raised his chin, defiant as ever. "If you don't find that guy, you're not allowed anywhere near my brother and his friends. Jace is not in a gang, I will stand on that with my life."
The hallway went still. The other officer shifted uncomfortably, but the taller one didn't say anything. He just closed his notebook.
"We'll be in touch." With that, the two officers left.
Jamie stood there shaking long after they left, his nails digging into his palms.