Loyalty

Chapter 25: Spectacular?

Jessica's POV

The last few weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster. When I first got the call that Brian had been injured, I was obviously concerned for his well-being. Since then, my main priority has been making sure he gets better. But underneath that, there was some anger towards the producers for creating something like this and putting Brian in a situation where he would get hurt. And maybe calling Brian's mother went a little too far, but I felt like I needed to protect him. I still had that underlying fear that something else would go wrong, either with Brian or with one of the other guys. The other guys were like brothers to me, and I didn't want any of them to get hurt like Brian did. I knew that it would be very difficult for me to watch this episode.

With everything going on, I was super emotional during this time. I had been constantly worrying about Brian, and trying to protect him. It was only a few months ago that he was forced to retire from the fire department, and I knew that was weighing heavily on him. Now, he felt extremely disappointed in himself by not being able to compete at Nitro Circus. Maybe I was acting overly protective by telling him that he shouldn't go through with the obstacle course, but it was only because I care about him. And I thought that his recent struggles were clouding his judgment.

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Brian and I drove to the Prudential Center together. I would be there to support him, even though he wasn't competing. Despite my protests about this whole event, there was nothing I could do to stop it. So, I just accepted it and hoped that nothing else would go wrong.

When we arrived at the venue, we were greeted by the other Jokers and some of the producers. I saw Simmy briefly but didn't have much of an interaction with him other than a basic hello. I was still angry at him for putting this whole thing together. But I knew that this wasn't the time or place to voice my concerns. I just tried to avoid Simmy, so that I wouldn't get into a confrontation with him.

Bessy was there as well, supporting her husband. I was glad to see her, because she was always such a lovely person to be around. But we hadn't seen each other much since Brian and I started dating, and I was looking forward to talking with her. We both related to each other, because of our significant others. I knew that we could vent to each other because nobody else understood what it was like to be with a Joker.

"How are you feeling, Brian?" Bessy asked him.

"I'm feeling a lot better since I had my nurse to take care of me," Brian smiled at me.

After chatting with the guys for a bit, the producers called the guys away, so they could go over some things before the show started. Brian kissed me goodbye before going off to work.

"You'll be alright?" he asked me.

"I'll be fine. I have Bessy. Go do what you have to do," I told him. It's not like I expected him to be with me the whole time. I knew he had work to do.

"I'll see you later, babe. Love you," he said, leaning in to kiss me on the cheek.

"Love you too," I told him, returning the kiss.

"So, tell me. How's Brian REALLY feeling?" Bessy asked me, once Brian left. I guess even she could tell that Brian was hiding how he felt.

"Ehhh...He's trying to act tough, but I know he's in pain. But it seems like he's gotten a lot better," I told her.

"And what about you? How are YOU feeling?" she asked me.

"Oh me? I'm okay, just a little tired," I told her.

"As your friend, I have to be honest with you. You don't look good. I'm worried about you. You need to take care of yourself too," Bessy told me.

After Bessy mentioned it, I realized that I was feeling a little out of it for the past few weeks. But I simply attributed it to everything that had been going on with Brian. I have been too focused on him to even worry about myself. Brian had been through a lot recently, and I was right there, by his side when he needed me.