Forbidden Miss Foster

Chapter 25

I find myself almost running closer to her ; the darkness imposed by the evening sky meant that she was still too far for me to descifre whether she was okay or not. Despite this , I felt a strong urge to be there for her no matter how she was. It didn't matter , I didn't care.

I waited at the bottom of the concrete steps and watched anxiously as she sped up towards me , as if she was running away from whatever she'd just seen.

Eventually she got close enough that I could  properly see and analyse her ; it was clear from her body language alone that she was visibly upset , but she wasn't crying. I can't decide what kind of a sign that is , good or bad I don't know.

Upon reaching the bottom of the steps , her gaze settling relievedly on mine , she began almost gasping for air , her chest noticeably heaving as if she was unable to take in enough oxygen.

Shit , she's panicking.

In was in that moment that my instincts took over , I couldn't stand and just watch ; my arms subconsciously opened themselves for her , guiding her to me before pulling her into my embrace.

Unsurprisingly it took her a second before she let herself relax into me , as if she was actively restraining herself or preparing for something to haul her away in the opposite direction.

I don't know what to do ; the only action that feels right in this moment is to hold her and let her know I'm here, I can't allow her to feel all of this alone.

It was then that she began to cry , clutching onto me tightly and almost clinging to the fabric of my clothes. I looked around , seeing nobody even remotely near us , and so allowed myself to comfort her. I placed my hand gently on the back of her head as she sobbed into my shoulder.

Her sobs quickly became more intense , i could hear the hurt in her voice and I knew that if i didn't calm her down soon it would only get worse.

"Hey hey. I know Kenn , I know." I looked down at her , "You'll be okay." I said softly. "You'll be okay." I pulled away from the hug ever so slightly to wipe away her tears with my thumb. My heart ached for her.

We stood in that same spot for a matter of minutes , I was doing my best to console her whilst she actively tried her hardest to calm herself down.

My hand rubbed her back in repeated circular motions , something Chris always used to do for me when we were younger.

"I'm here , you'll be okay" , are the words I kept repeating , time and time again.

———

The series of events that took place over the last 30 minutes are blurred to say the least.

Kennedy stood wrapped in my arms in that hospital carpark for about 10 minutes , before I eventually decided how I should navigate the situation further. It felt as though I had a responsibility to do everything I could for her.

I told myself to only let go of her whenever she decided to step away , and not to break it off before she was ready. I understand the inevitable feelings of shame and embarrassment that come alongside breaking down in front of another person ; I didn't want to bring on any additional burden on top of that by making her feel discarded.

We eventually made our way back to my car, escaping the bitter cold lingering in the evening air. Kennedy had calmed down significantly by then , and apart from a few sniffles and other hiccups here and there , she's been more or less okay ever since , at least better than she was before.

Seeing her breakdown like that , her emotions completely collapsing in on her , I couldn't let her go straight home in the knowledge that the house would be empty when she got back.