The Guarded One ✔

Chapter Twenty

"Jason?" Tyler starts in fear.

"Hayden's in the hospital" I struggle to say. "We've gotta go"

"What happened?" Jess cries.

"We don't know," I admit while my shaking hands grab my jacket and car keys.

"I'll come with you" Jess declares.

"No way" Tyler shakes his head.

"She's one of my best friends" Jess argues with clenched fists.

"You know what the doctors said" Tyler reinforces.

Jess is in isolation, if she leave the house she'll risk catching an infection.

"Jess you need to stay here," I say firmly, "I'll call you as soon as I hear anything"

She looks away and nods slowly. Tyler and I exchange fearful looks before leaving the house.

***

"Duncan" I call when Tyler and I walk down the hallway to find him in Ayla's arms. "What's going on?"

"She was in a car accident" Ayla meets our gaze while Duncan sobs like a little boy.

"What?" I raise a brow.

"She had a seizure behind the wheel" a deep voice explains from behind us.

We turn around to find Hayden's parents talking to a doctor a few feet behind us.

"What?" I widen my eyes in confusion. "Why would she have a seizure?"

"Because that's what epileptics do" Hayden's father sighs.

Epileptic?

"I told her not to drive" her mother sobs.

"How bad is it?" Her father asks the doctor.

"It's hard to say" the doctor admits. "Just prepare yourself...." with that he leaves our sight.

I shake my head violently, redirecting my gaze to Tyler. "Epilepsy?" Tyler furrows his brows.

Since when has Hayden had epilsepy?

"You all didn't know?" Her mother raises a brow.

I look down "can I see her?"

Her parents nodded, allowing me to enter the room that they guarded. I enter slowly, holding my breath in fear.

I stood there, perfectly still. She laid in that bed, eyes closed, body all bruised up. She had a brain hemorrhage, internal bleeding, concussion, broken ribs, broken toes, and broken arms.

"How did we not know?" I sigh as Tyler stands beside me. "Why didn't she tell us?"

"I guess for the same reason Jess doesn't want anyone knowing about her cancer" Tyler suggests. "Police found a suitcase in the car...Seems like she was going to run away"

I nod before releasing a sigh. I take a step back to find Ayla.

"She never told you?" She asks.

I shake my head slowly before Ayla walks towards Tyler.

Why didn't she tell me?

My mind then goes back to when we met.

"Are you okay?" I raised a brow while she sat on the pavement.

She nodded slightly "I just have a lot of crap going on right now with my parents"

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked.

She laughed "not with anyone..."

"Yeah I feel that" I admit.

"I asked around...there's rumors about why you transferred here, but no one seems to know for sure" Hayden explained.

"And no one will" I clench my jaw, "how bout we make a deal...I won't ask you anything about your life if you do the same with me"

Uh, of course, the pact. A deal Hayden and I made years ago that prohibited us from telling one another about all the personal stuff that neither of us ever wanted the other to know.

I take her hand and hold it gently.

What's going on in that head of yours? You and I have known each other for so long, how is it possible that I had no idea? But then again, you have no idea about my father in prison, my sister's suicide, my other sister and her husband's time in jail, my father abusing me, or my mother's death.

"I will never leave your side" I whisper.

"Jason" a new voice greets. I look over my shoulder to find Aunt Laura standing by the door fearfully. Immediately, I jump from the chair and wrap my arms around her when tears roll down my cheeks. "Shh, I know...it's okay...she'll be okay..."