CHAPTER 9.1

Jayla waited, her heart starting to pound in the quiet between them. The air felt thick in the hallways, hanging suspended like it would take just one wrong word and this fragile moment would shatter. She could see it in the way Jasmine's face seemed even more drawn in the morning light, the way bruises stood in vivid relief against her pale skin. It wasn't just the physical marks. It was in the hunch of her shoulders, in the quiver of her lips, that she tried to speak words that she did not want to.

Jasmine crossed her arms tightly hugging herself as if to hold on. For a moment, Jayla thought that she would wheel back, slam the door shut, and withdraw once more. Instead, Jasmine exhaled abruptly, as if forcing herself to let go of something she had held in too long.

Jayla gestured with her head to the little chair at the end of the hall. "Let's sit," she whispered low and soft, though inside her, she was terrified-terrified of what Jasmine might say, terrified of what it may mean.

They sat down, palpable silence between them, though nothing was said. Jasmine rubbed her arms, staring down into her lap, fingers clasped onto the sleeves of her shirt as though she was scared to let go. Jayla leaned forward slightly, close enough to show she was there, yet not too close. Not too fast.

"I…," Jasmine said, her voice breaking. She cleared her throat. Again she tried, and the words fought down her throat inchoate and thick.

Jayla didn't say more; she just waited, watching her sister. Jade hovered in the doorway of her room, her arms crossed, her face tight with concern and frustration. She shifted weight but didn't step forward. Not yet. She knew enough to let Jayla handle the delicate part, but she was ready to catch Jasmine when she crumbled.

The silence stretched until, for a second, Jayla thought Jasmine might give up and retreat into herself like she had the night before. But then, slowly, haltingly, Jasmine spoke.

"I was walking to my car," she said, her voice so soft Jayla had to lean in to catch it. "It was late. Later than I should've been out… I know that.

Jayla wanted to say something to stop her from blaming herself. The look on Jasmine's face stopped her cold. This wasn't the time to interrupt.

"I didn't see them at first." Her hands folded into fists in her lap. Her nails dug into her palms, small half-moons of tension carved into her skin. "They came out of nowhere. I was just unlocking my door, and then. They were there."

Her breath caught, and she stopped, her eyes screwing shut as if blocking out a memory that just simply wouldn't leave her be if she just wished hard enough. Jayla saw the way her sister's hands shook, the slight rocking in her shoulders as if the weight of the moment pressed down into her, making it hard to stay upright.

Jasmine opened her eyes but kept them fixed on the floor. "I tried to fight them off," she said, continuing in that hoarse voice like it had been rubbed raw. "But they were. So much stronger. And I couldn't. I couldn't." She swallowed hard, her throat working painfully against the tumult of rising emotions in her chest.

She leaned forward, extending her hand, hovering it over Jasmine's closed fists. She wasn't touching her-didn't want to overwhelm her. She let her hand stay there, a silent offer of support, reminding her that she wasn't alone.

Jasmine caught it. Her gaze darted onto Jayla's hand, and for just a beat, something softened in the tautness of her face before the steel-strong glint that had been keeping her upright so far overrode it once more.

They grabbed me," Jasmine whispered. She fell silent, eyes large and far away, living it again. The hands wouldn't let her go. "One of them held me down, and I-" Her breath hung again, and she stopped, her chest moving in a dissymmetrical rhythm. "I thought. I thought they were going to

She could not say it, words that melted in the air into a weight too heavy to handle, too real. Jayla's chest constricted painfully, her breath catching in her throat. She could almost see it now in that flash of the horror her sister faced, the terror still clinging to her skin, unseen but suffocating.

"And then." Jasmine's voice shook, her fingers uncurling slowly as she wiped at her eyes. "Then *he* came. Alexander."

Her voice went soft, almost as if the name alone could rout some of the fear, but it didn't-not fully.

"He ran them off," she said, her voice catching on her unsteady breath. "They just. Ran. And I-" Again, she fell silent, her eyes glassy from unresolved tears. "I don't know what I would have done if he hadn't shown up.

There was a thick and heavy moment of silence and it felt like it sat right on her chest. She wanted to hold Jasmine-to wrap arms around her, pull her close-but she didn't. Laid her hand on her sister's instead, gently, barely touching. Silent anchor, something steady in a world that seemed upside down.

"You're safe now," Jayla whispered low, barely louder than a breath. "You're home, Jasmine. You're safe."

But even as she spoke, she knew how fragile safety was, not just the fact of being enclosed in some place called home, for it had to be felt as something which took its time to return when it had been shattered.

Jasmine nodded, but it was a short, jerky motion, and Jayla knew her sister didn't quite believe it yet. Maybe she wasn't even sure she ever would.

Across the hall, Jade inched closer. She didn't say a word not even move, still crossed-but something in her face softened. The flash of anger from last night was now replaced with something far more delicate: sorrow and protectiveness tangled into a messy knot she didn't quite seem to know how to express.

Jayla turned to her and nodded once. Jade came forward, dropping to a crouch in front of Jasmine so that her face was on the same level as her sister's.

"We're here, Jas," Jade said, keeping her tone low but firm. "You're not alone in this. You hear me?

Jasmine's eyes flickered between Jayla and Jade; she almost seemed to show a break in her strength at the words, at her pain.

Then she took a deep, shaking breath, squared her shoulders that little bit, and whispered, "I know." Soft but clear.

The silence stretched, the air between them thick but no longer suffocating. There was still so much not said, so much tangled within the silence, but for now, they just sat there together.

Jayla spoke again finally, softly; her voice carefully loud. "Do you want to talk more about it?

Jasmine shook her head, fast, hands tightening in her lap. "No," she said, too fast, tight. "Not now. I just… can't."

Jayla nodded, sorta understanding. "S'okay. You don't gotta. Whenever you are ready."

Jasmine didn't say anything, but she relaxed, just a bit. Her shoulders weren't quite as hunched, her breath coming a bit more evenly, now.

Jayla gave her sister's hand a light squeeze and released it. "Why don't we go downstairs?" she suggested, "We can just sit together. You know, put on a movie or something."

Jasmine still looked dubious but nodded now. "Yeah," she said, barely above a whisper. "Okay.

They stood together, mute comprehension passing between them. There were no quick fixes here, no easy answers. But there was something else far stronger: the quiet promise that they would be facing it together, one step at a time, in careful progression.

But as they made their way downstairs from upstairs to the warmth of the living room, the sun coming in through the windows, Jayla couldn't help but feel that maybe, just maybe, this was a first step toward healing. It would be long.

For all of them.