*CRASH*
*SMASH*
*BANG*
Drake leaned against a tree as he watched the raging nurse take an old baseball bat to a bunch of trashed glass objects and things that were easily breakable.
He didn't interfere as she took her anger out on the trash like no tomorrow. Where did she find the bat? He didn't know.
One second Drake was following her into the forest, calling her name but she wouldn't stop. The next she picked up the bat from somewhere once they reached what he assumes is a dumping site and started wailing on whatever was in sight.
That was mainly the reason why he chose to just let her release whatever pent-up aggression she had first before approaching her.
He didn't want to be next.
(Y/N) swung the old bat into an already broken vase that was now even more broken. She grunted loudly as she used the butt of it to ram into the vase's edges before dropping the bat on the ground with heavy breaths. Her body crouched down to the ground and buried her head in her knees.
She couldn't believe Kelly. She couldn't believe that he was her first love. She couldn't believe that he would say such a thing about cheating on her.
Did he ever care for her? Did he ever love her the way she used to love him?
(Y/N)'s tears had already since dried in amidst her rage. But yet, she could feel them start to return.
It wasn't just Kelly she was angry at, but also herself.
Drake took her momentary break from destroying everything in sight to approach her. He stepped around shards of glass and parts of a TV. It was actually quite impressive how much damage the nurse did.
"Quite the swing you got there. Had me a little frightened." He says as he studies her body language.
(Y/N) didn't respond, of course as her mind was in other places. Once her breath was stable enough, she moved to sit fully on the ground and crossed her legs together. A defeated look was plastered on her face.
This had to be about Kelly. The way the rocker stormed off before she did indicated some dispute between them.
Just like at the market, he needed to know if Kelly was going to be a problem as a part of his bodyguard duties. Even if she said her ex wasn't, Drake knew he was just from her display of anger alone. He found a spot that was clear enough and took his own seat in front of her. (Y/N) watched him sit on the ground with her before she let her eyes fall.
"Alright, what'd he do?" He sighed, going straight to the point.
(Y/N)'s mind went off of her ex and straight to him. She didn't feel like questioning the sergeant on why he was there or why he cared enough to ask. She has already argued enough with Kelly.
"What didn't he do..." She muttered.
"You want me to punch him?" Drake suggested. Wouldn't be the first man he's punched for making a woman upset. He didn't like Kelly anyway so he was going to punch him eventually regardless.
But that seemed to bring a small smile to her face. It was brief but he saw it. She shook her head at the suggestion even though she would love to see Kelly get his due justice.
(Y/N) took in a deep breath and buried her head into her hands. Coming back to this station hasn't gone well for her yet. All the regrets and memories she had and was able to put aside had all resurfaced once she set foot back into Browford. The town surely wasn't letting her live her guilt and grief down and she couldn't keep it in any longer.
Not even Dell knows the full story. (Y/N) was too afraid to tell her best friend everything without facing the music herself.
But the only person here right now was Drake. The asshole who was ordered to protect her. Yet he was still here willing to hear her out.
(Y/N) sighed as her fingers fumbled with a dead leaf. "Do you ever wish you could just... go back in time? Change what you did in the past?"
Drake let her words sink in before he found a way to respond. "Sometimes."
"Like what?" She asked, not really expecting him to answer. She just needed someone to talk to.
The sergeant fell silent as he looked away from her. There were many things he wished to change in his past. But one event in particular that he wasn't comfortable enough to say.
His silence didn't surprise her. She was expecting it after all. "I wish I could just... When my grandpa died, it... it broke me."
Her heart grew heavy again and she wished it wouldn't. But even the mere thought of her grandfather just turned up so many negative emotions in her. Drake chose to remain silent and let her speak. This was clearly something she needed to get out.
"He was all I had. Both of my parents were gone. My mom died in labor and my dad drank himself to death after. All I ever knew was grandpa..." Her voice was small and shaky but she did her best to keep her emotions in. The heavyweight she kept on her shoulders was slowly tipping off.
"He raised me and taught me so many things. Even when my grandma passed, he stayed strong just for me."
A tear trailed down her face as the emotions she held back soon rushed forward. She was so grateful for her grandfather and everything he had done her for. He lost both his son and his wife but that didn't stop him from helping her be the woman she is today. Which only made her heart hurt worse.
"Then I just fucking abandon him..." She whimpered as her sobs soon filled her throat.
It was tough to watch the nurse who he saw as a bother suddenly look so small and helpless. He wouldn't wish this type of grief even on his worst enemy.
But... she abandoned her grandfather? How can you abandon someone if you love them this much?
"What did you do?" He carefully asked, seeing the guilt clear in her face.
(Y/N) wiped her tears and hesitated to speak. But if she was being this vulnerable in front of someone she... hates.
"I..." She started, taking a deep breath so that her voice was clearer. "Grandpa always had this vision in mind. He wanted the radio station to stay in our families. His and Rockman's."
'A will?' Drake thought to himself.
"All my life he taught me how to use the radios. He showed me how they worked, what to do when they didn't work, how to broadcast, how to have a radio persona when on air. They were... special moments to me." She sighed, her fingers twirling the ends of the leaf in between her fingers. "But I always wanted to be a nurse. I didn't want to do radio."
The sergeant had a sense of where this was leading to. Her grandfather taught her everything about the station and wanted to keep it in the family. But she had different wants for her future.
"We almost never argued but when we did, it was always about that. He wanted me to take over for him after he retired like Kelly was to do with Rockman. But I didn't want that." She glanced back over her shoulder in the direction of the station, seeing the tips of the radio tower poking through the treetops. "As much as I love the station, it's not where I was supposed to be."
She remembers the day that finally put a strain on her relationship with her grandfather. The day she revealed to him that she was accepted into a top medical school in the city.
The opened letter was in her hand, her excitement was huge, and she wanted her grandfather to be the first to know.
But he didn't share her excitement. He never even smiled. He was disappointed.
Her excitement turned to anger, words were thrown between them, some that she... regrets saying now.
That very memory was forever burned into her mind and was the moment she packed her things and left in a fury. She remembers looking back to see her grandfather's expression full of hurt.
He lost his son, his wife, and in that moment, he lost his granddaughter.
Her feet kept going toward Kelly's car, her arms tossed her things into his backseat, and her eyes watched her home disappear in the distance.
They barely talked since that fight. Both were too stubborn to admit their faults. But maybe if she would've put her shame aside and reached out to him, he would've told her about his failing heart. Maybe if she hadn't run away into Kelly's manipulative arms, her grandfather would've told her that he only had so much time left to live.
Maybe if she hadn't chosen her wants over his, she would've had the chance to say goodbye...
Instead, she got to learn about his passing over the phone in the middle of her class.
He was all she had... and she abandoned him.
Drake listened to every word she spoke. Every sob and choke she held back. There was a massive blame that she placed on herself and has carried for many years. Having a fallout being the last thing you've done with a loved one before they died and not getting to reconnect or settle things before it was too late.
Not even getting to say that final goodbye...
Hearing her story made him think of his own. While not identical, but similar.
He didn't get that chance to say goodbye either.
As (Y/N) sobbed into her hands and mentally beat herself up over this, she felt a hand move to rest on her shoulder. Soon the hand turned into arms that encased her and pulled her into a comforting hold. She felt herself get pulled into a muscular chest and held with so much care that it made her tears dwindle. Her arms moved to hold onto Drake tightly, almost as if letting him go would put her back in that dark void she'd kept herself in.
Drake's hand rubbed her back instinctively. He hasn't held someone like this in years. The last person was the one he couldn't say goodbye to.
"You didn't abandon him." He spoke, his voice low and filling her ear.
"I did..." (Y/N) sobbed, burying her head against his shoulder as her tears soaked his shirt.
"You knew what you wanted and went for it. You said so yourself, the radio station isn't where you're supposed to be."
The nurse fell silent as she clung to his words. There was still doubt and regret in her, but she listened.
"Your relationship with your grandfather was strong. Not that many people can say the same." He muttered, his eyes staring off into the blades of grass beneath them. "Something as trivial as the station wouldn't take his love for you away. I'm sure if you two had more time... things would've been different."
She sniffed back her tears and rested her head against his chest. She and her grandfather did have a strong bond. They were the only relatives they had left. She saw his ups and downs and he saw hers. A bond like theirs wouldn't have broken so easily.
But her mind can't help but think that she's disappointing him even now.
While she loved being a nurse and getting the chance to help people, she couldn't fully enjoy it thanks to her lingering guilt. On the worst of days, she'll think that her grandfather deserved a better granddaughter than her...
But he loved her and sacrificed so much for her. That hurt look that'll forever be burned into her brain was maybe the moment he realized he pushed her too far. Seeing his only grandchild walk out the doors thanks to his wants must've affected him too.
Maybe he experienced the same guilt and grief that she was experiencing now before he died...
(Y/N) took in a shaky breath and started to feel that weight on her shoulder grow just a little lighter. It was still there, but easier to hold.
Silence filled the air between them as they each held the other in their arms. (Y/N) found herself feeling more at ease being held in such a way. His arms felt like shields that kept her self-loathing and guilt away. It almost made her completely forget that Drake was the same man whom she detested.
It was strange... being comforted by the same person who shot you.
Her eyes moved on their own as she gazed up at his face, seeing that he himself was lost in his own thoughts while holding her close to him. His long dark curly hair fell freely around his face and flowed softly in the wind. His jaw would clench and then relax every so often as a reaction to what he must've been thinking. Even his hazel eyes stared into the grass below but held something that she had a hard time deciphering what. But as she leaned closer to him and let herself get lost in her gaze, she felt something different in her chest. Something she hasn't felt since Kelly.
Her heart skipping a beat.
A long exhale left Drake's nostrils as he finally pulled himself out of his thoughts. Maybe he should follow her lead and vent his frustrations to someone he wouldn't expect to be venting to.
But unlike her, he wasn't ready to.
His eyes fell as he looked down at her, soon meeting her (e/c) eyes that gazed up into him deeply.
This... took him off guard. That look was enough to make him flustered.
"I- uh... You ok now?" He quickly straightened his voice.
Hearing him speak made (Y/N) snap back to reality. She realized what she was doing and the way that her heart was beating which made being this close in his arms start to feel more awkward than it should.
Her body pulled away from his, the warmth between them soon being filled by the cool autumn air. She sat back on the ground leaving only a couple inches of space between them.
"Y-Yea... I'm cool now." Her eyes were still puffy and red, her hands still shaky, but she felt... relief. Finally able to voice her thoughts after so many years of suppressing them.
Seeing that she was more composed now, Drake nodded and move to get to his feet. Still feeling her warmth on his chest.
"We should head back then." He spoke, his eyes avoiding hers suddenly. "We shouldn't be out here when it's dark."
(Y/N) sighed and looked around the forest which was now darker than earlier. The night sky above showed stars that weren't hidden by light pollution and the cold chill of the air made her shudder a bit. She was still in her scrubs after all that was beyond saving at this point. She hoped there were some spare clothes she could find in the station:
She moved herself to her feet as well and also seemed to be avoiding Drake's eyes. "Yea, let's... head back."
The sergeant nodded and took the lead back to the station. He kept his eyes focused on the forest in case anything jumped out but deep down he knew that they were fine. A fiend would've been showed itself.
But one thing was for sure. After today, the two's feelings for each other became even more complicated than before.
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Author's note:
Nobody:
Me throwing some form of trauma on every character I make: 🥲