𝑀𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑇𝑜𝑔𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 • 𝐵𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑊𝑖𝑛 (𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗱)

𝙴𝚙𝚒𝚜𝚘𝚍𝚎 𝟺𝟶|𝚄𝚗𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝙵𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛

My emotions flooded my whole being and the tears that I tried to suppress now just kept falling and I can't stop it anymore no matter how much I try. They seem to have a mind of their own and I let them slip through my lashes. What's the point of holding it back?

"It should have been me who is in there, not him. This is all my fault, I allowed these things to happen to him. I'm sorry..." I tugged her shirt. Rose pulled me closer and I nuzzled in between her neck and her shoulders - sobbing like a little child.

"Son, it is not your fault please don't blame yourself," Clayton reminded. I contemplated what he said until I found myself caged in his arms as he rubbed my back.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry..." I repeated those words while they held me closer.

Will my sorry be enough to save Win?

Finally, we pulled away from each other and Rose pulled her mate closer to her and continued to shed her tears while Clayton gave me a slow nod. My heart ached from the sight of them and how much I hated this feeling. Why did it get this far?

"Bright..."

Drake, Man, Boss, Fenris, Chase, Sky, Earn, and Pear gathered around me. We rounded and held each other closely while we bawled our eyes out. We were all hurting from what happened. We didn't want to lose him like this. We definitely don't want to lose him at all.

•••••

It was already five hours since Win entered the operating room. Everyone was waiting outside just feeling each other not knowing what to do or what to say. Each one of us was in extreme agony of what just unfolded before our very eyes. I threw my head back and looked at the ceiling without thinking about anything at all - just the mere idea of staring into nothingness as we wait. Wait? How long do we still have to wait now?

"Bright."

I turned my head in the direction of the voice, Pear. She handed me bottled water which I accepted without the intention of drinking it anyway. She sat beside me and leaned her head on my shoulder while giving me gentle pats on my back.

"Thank you for the water."

"Remember that we are always here for you, Bright."

I gave her a pat on her head to let her know that I am okay even if I was not. She gave me a peck on my cheeks before she stood up and sat right next to Fenris who embraced her right away. Earn was with Drake, leaning her head on his shoulder, and Drake gently stroked her hair to calm her down. Chase entwined his fingers with my sister's and his other hand wrapped her shoulders firmly. Man and Boss sat next to each other without talking, just there.

My head turned in the opposite direction and saw Maeve with Rose talking or more like comforting each other. Aegon and Clayton were by the nurses' station with their cups of coffee, talking about something that doesn't concern me. And here I was, sitting and breathing while my mate was still inside fighting for his life.

Finally, after a long wait, the Doctor got out of the room and he scanned his eyes until they landed on me. And like in sync, we all stood up and walked over to the Doctor. I stood in front of him while Win's parents stood on my side and my own parents on the opposite side. The others gathered behind just far enough from us and we all waited in anticipation of whatever he was about to say.

"The dagger that they used was laced with Wolfsbane but we were able to extract it before it reached his heart. It was a good thing that you were able to bring him back here quickly. If it took a little bit later, he could have died from aconitine poisoning."

"Oh." Oh.

"He has a concussion which is the least of my concern right now since it is not as severe as it seems and it isn't life-threatening. Though it would still cause some headaches and problems with concentration, memory, balance, and coordination when he wakes up. But other than that, his brain didn't bleed nor bruise."