School Shenanigans [cw]

Looking around until Jeremy pointed him out he was rather surprised. But that was perhaps just because he felt the nephilim's surprise as well and it only helped to amplify that feeling. Watching from a distance he made sure not to intervene, at least until Kurtis grabbed Finn. Then he sort of had to step up to the plate, pushing the two guys apart, but feeling Finn's emotions were like getting hit in the face by a ball. It took him some time to gather himself before he too looked at the guy. "I-I-" he stammered but Damiano shook his head nodding away from the guy. "The search is starting ... C'mon," he said, placing a hand on Kurtis' shoulders, but not trying to manipulate his emotions.
They headed out from the school, everyone spreading in to the forest that surrounded it. "Wow, Trevino, you have seen better days; Who hit you this time cause it wasn't Vanessa," Jamie said as he walked up on the side of the guys. Damiano remained quiet, taking in the feelings around him, but also trying to search. He had a pretty good vision during night, but it wasn't as good as if he had been born a pureblood lycan. A yell went through the forest, dogs barking as they had picked up a scent. Jamie hurried off in that direction, but Damiano held both Kurtis and Jeremy back. "Kurtis, you know her scent well, right?" he whispered, not risking getting caught as he looked around. He didn't trust his instincts on this one. If Kurtis agreed, the hybrid would urge him to use the memory of her scent to guide them.
They headed further in to the forest, the trees stretching far up in the air, but in front of them were now something rather recognizable to both Kurtis and Jeremy; Her school bag. "I fucking knew it, she can't be far from here," he muttered as if he was sure of it. They went a few steps further and he was brought to his knees by indescribably pain, grunting as he was shaking a little. He could feel her now. And sure enough, a few feet from where they stood, her hair could be seen sticking out of a pile of leaves.
If they got closer they would see her lay unconscious, blue in the face from cold and she was beaten up pretty badly, her lip swollen and ripped, her hair dirty.

Jeremy was a little taken aback from Kurtis' aggressive approach to Finn, but it was good that Damiano got between them. He just fumbled a bit with the map, just wanting to find Zaira before they could bother with all that was going on. If she wasnt fine, he wasnt sure how he would be when or if they even found her. If? He didnt even want to think that way, feeling his eyes turn a little fluid at the thought. He had grown pretty close to her. Once the search commenced, he wasnt too comfortable with wandering in the dark, because he for one didnt have an enhanced vision like the others. He stumbled and fumbled over his own feet or half loose roots that stuck out, but every time he'd get up and say he was fine. At some point he got tired of falling so he grabbed onto Damiano for some sort of support at least in being led in the right direction.
When they finally found her, he hadnt really realized until the others were checking up on her. He looked around, realizing they were pretty much alone in this part, like no one had thought to come here. Was that on purpose? He held her bag in his hands. "What happened?" he asked, blinking a few times as to not cry. His parents had raised him better, but they hadnt prepared him for something like this.

Kurtis was full on ready to just beat up Finn, not even for what he had done but everything it had turned into. Maybe he wanted a little too bad to see Finn as the issue rather than confronting himself. Damiano split them apart and Kurtis just eyed the blonde. "You stay the fuck away from her, or I'll kick your fucking teeth in." he warned him. He wasnt playing around.
They went on their way and of course of everyone that decided to catch up to them it was Jamie. The remark made him draw in a deep breath as he looked at the football guy. "I'll tell you the day you've had a real fight yourself. Till then, go fuck yourself as you do so well, fucking wuss." he hissed back, shoving him with his shoulder before he just continued the search with the others. The dogs barked but Kurtis didnt think it felt right. It seemed that Damiano did too and he just hummed at his whisper before he took the lead. As if he would just forget her scent.
They found her schoolbag and Kurtis only seemed to tense up more, either from anger or anguish, maybe both. When they finally found her, Kurtis quickly just slid to her side and pulled her up from the ground, not caring whether she was dirty or not. He listened to her breath and held her close, his shoulders slightly shaking but seemingly there was no other reaction, though Damiano could probably feel just how much this was hurting him. "She needs to go to the hospital." he just said in a quiet tone, holding her close like she was everything to him.

What had happened was definitely the question of the hour, but as Damiano got back on his legs he called the number that the police had been handing out. Giving the rough coordinates he decided to stay on the line as he let Kurtis and Jeremy be with their friend. Or there was definitely something more from Kurtis, but he wouldn't be one to out others feelings. "Be careful not to move her neck, she might risk breaking it," Damiano said, but he wouldn't really know for sure.
Paramedics were at the scene within minutes, their fellow students standing from afar as they watched them wrap Zaira in foil blankets to keep her warm before carrying her on a stretcher until they reached an ambulance. Carla was there, running to her daughter's side as she had tears in her eyes, touching her cold cheek and whispering something soothing to her. Damiano looked around, and he saw Jamie talk with Vanessa, and the football guy clearly looked a bit surprised at how the night had turned out. "Niño," Carla called for Kurtis, wanting him to come with her to the hospital with Zaira.

Kurtis was almost reluctant to let the paramedics take her away, but he knew it was just his protective lycan side getting to him. As they took her away he was just staring through his hair that was mostly covering his eyes. Once Carla called for him, he nodded and lifted a hand to rub his eyes before he went to join her and Zaira in the ambulance.

Jeremy heard Damiano and just made sure to make Kurtis move so she wouldnt get any pressure on her neck. He hadnt really seen the lycan this protective either, but he guessed that it was just something he would do for all of his friends... Right? The paramedics came and took her away, Kurtis following as Carla called for him. Jeremy stood behind, feeling a pit in his stomach. Jamie seemed almost surprised, but Vanessa had a vile smile on her lips, even chuckling as she told Jamie to compose himself. Jeremy frowned before he just walked up to them. "Why are you smiling? Whats so funny about all this?" he asked. Vanessa looked at him before she just scoffed and shrugged. "Who knows. I'm just happy that Zaira was found." she answered before she looked at Damiano and smiled bright, waving at him. "Heyyy Damiano!" she diverted her attention rather than paying any to Jeremy.

Damiano was reluctant to come closer, but seeing as Jeremy was there, he better had to go check up on them. He just had a bad feeling whenever he looked at the siblings. "Vanessa," he said, nodding to her and then at her brother. Taking a deep breath he looked out at the crowd of people who were now heading home. "I always find it fascinating when the culprits return to the scene of the crime, don't you?" he said rather calmly, not directly accusing them, but they had been his gut feeling since they got here. Jamie scoffed, Did you watch too many movies again De Angelis?" he mocked, but Damiano just nodded, not giving away really what he had to say further. It was best to confront the police and testify. "You know, the bruise on her neck, yeah it looked like whoever tried to strangle her wore a certain type of ring ... Isn't your family known to have rings with your insignias on them?" he asked, before he looked down at Jamie's hand, scoffing, "but where's your ring, Jamie?"

"What crime?" Vanessa just asked with a sweet smile on her lips. Jeremy was also a little confused, but he wasnt stupid. He furrowed his brows angrily as he looked at the siblings while Damiano seemed to explain what he knew. Vanessa however stepped in, knowing that her meathead brother wouldnt have a good word. "He has been wearing it for a week now. It's has been sent to adjustment as it never would sit properly." she said, almost looking challenging in her eyes as she looked at the hybrid. "Screw this. We're going to the police with this.." Jeremy said but Vanessa tilted her head. "Are you?" she asked, before looking at Jamie with a smirk on her lips.

Of course Vanessa had some bullshit cover, but that cover would be blown fast if she wasn't careful. "It's such a good thing," he said, pondering as he looked towards the police chuckling a bit, "that you never had to have that child, at least it wouldn't have to live with such a cold hearted bitch," he said before he just walked towards the police. He had nothing to hide anyways, and whatever Vanessa made up would be rumors, not facts.

Jeremy really wanted to just punch Vanessa which was the first time he had ever felt an urge to punch a girl. She was so annoying. Damiano's words made her pout as she nodded a few times. "Thinking back, it was a good decision." she agreed, but then she made a deep sigh. Jeremy still stood for a bit, Vanessa tilting her head at him. Then a soft smile spread on her lips and she grabbed him, even if he was unwilling and leaned up to whisper something in his ear. Leaning away she saw the surprise in his eyes, chuckling as she waved him off. "No one will believe ever you with Kurtis' reputation. Go join your new friend." she said. Jeremy had a look of disgust in his eyes before he walked off to catch up to Damiano, not even paying attention to her mockery. "She... said that it wasnt even his." he just said as soon as he had caught up, thinking that shit was too messed up for his brain.

"Doesn't surprise me," Damiano said looking around for a bit. "Hey, I need to go tell out story to the police; Would you wait for me? I feel like we gotta talk some shit out," he said and if Jeremy agreed he would approach the officers. Giving an eyewitness account was hard, but he had a feeling that he was doing the right thing.
Afterwards he went and grabbed his bike that he had discarded so carelessly, looking around and if Jeremy had stuck around, he would just gesture for him to follow. People were too caught up in what had happened tonight to even bat an eye as the two guys walked down the road and away from the school. Damiano's hands were shaking a little bit, but he was keeping it together so far. "Okay, so what I'm about to tell you stays between us, alright?" he said, looking around as he made sure no-one was within hearing range as they walked. "I sorta ... I don't know, were friends with Jamie a long time ago," he said, shaking his head. It was all a mess. "It was Vanessa's idea, I trusted her and all that," he said. Okay, this was a bit weird, but he needed to say this to someone. "I know they just used me because that's what rich people do; But I swear the whole story about the abortion and shit blowing up again got me thinking." Taking a deep breath he looked at Jeremy rather seriously, "I think Vanessa fucked Jamie," wild story, but yeah it was weird. "And her confirming that the baby wasn't Kurtis' kinda made me think it even more."

He let Damiano go handle the storytelling, waiting outside, rubbing the tip of his shoe against some loose gravel on the pavement while he was just thinking. It had been one hell of an evening, that was for sure. When the hybrid gestured for him, he walked up to him and walked beside him. He did notice the shaking, but probably thought it was all the weirdness tonight. Until Damiano spoke and he looked at him a little surprised. Frankly he wasnt up for any more surprises, but it seemed to be something that Damiano needed off his chest.
But what he was hearing made him scrunch his nose, thinking it through for a bit in silence before he finally spoke. "So she watched you...?" he asked, then feeling a sudden tightness in his shoulders at the thought of Vanessa and Jamie having done something. "Yikes. Fucking gross, if they've really..." he mumbled, before he scoffed and looked to Damiano. "That's some fucked up shit. I'm sorry you had to go through that." he said a little sincerely, smiling a bit. He wasnt really judging him, more thinking what he might be feeling about it.

"Yeah, she's a fucking sicko," he said, rolling his eyes shaking his head a little. "Anyways, that explains why she's afraid to go up against me; And why she constantly try and weasel her way back in to my life." it was still weird to think about, but it was just a part of the life he had lived. "I know that family, and if they feel like they can get the upper hand over you, they will - even if it takes beating someone half to dead in a forest," he explained. He had met their mother, how ruthless she truly was when talking about some enemy she had. It was despicable, and she encouraged her kids to be just as vile. Vanessa took a lot after her mother and Jamie was whipped and followed every order.
"There's no doubt in my mind that the two of them are behind this shit ... But we need some real evidence before we can just turn them in and get taken seriously," he sighed, his hands gripping a bit more tightly around his handles on the bike, his knuckles turning white. "Okay, I don't feel too good," he chuckled, having to stop to take a few deep breaths.

He quickly realized that Damiano had been tangled up in some weird shit with Vanessa and Jamie, but he didnt really feel like it was something that he was right to think about. The notion that they needed real evidence made him nod as he sighed. "Well, if they really did that to Zaira, she'll be fine as long as Kurtis stay with her. Maybe we have to wait for her to wake up to hear what she has to say before we can really do anything?" he said, just as Damiano was gripping the handles and he looked at him with a worried expression. He stopped with him and carefully reached out to touch his shoulder. "Is there something I can do to make you feel better?" he asked, looking at the hybrid. He had been so helpful and now he was spilling all this shit that seemed to bring up bad memories.

Humming at the notion to wait for Zaira he couldn't help but agree. But perhaps it was best to keep their eyes and ears open. Only right about now he felt so overwhelmed, the reaction from all of the emotion that had been there tonight finally getting to him, and it felt like he could barely breathe without feeling something to the likes of an after wave of all of the feelings he had felt. But then, Jeremy touched his shoulder, and he felt like he could breathe just for a second. The calming aura of the nephilim just doing him good and he swallowed, closing his eyes as he just took in that warm feeling. "Just ... Just keep doing that," he said, trying to find his way back to the surface. He didn't want to talk about his weird ability nor his hybrid status. People thought it was enough for him to just be gay.
After a bit of time he seemed to have calmed down more, opening his eyes to look at Jeremy, lifting his hand up to remove the nephilim's. He didn't want him to feel obligated to touch him when he clearly still had his worries. "Thank you, Jeremy," he said, feeling like he could gather himself from then on out. "Tonight was just ... A lot," breathing out heavily at the last notion. A lot was an understatement, but alas here they were regardless. "You should probably get home; Do you want a ride?" he asked, although all he had was his bike, you could still stand behind while he wheeled.

He really wanted to repay the kindness somehow and as Damiano said that he just had to stay as he did, he blinked a few times but kept his hand on his shoulder, clearly seeing it do something. He wasnt too sure how, but everyone was different so he wasnt going to question it. When he removed his hand he shook his head at the gratitude. "No none of that. I should be thanking you." he corrected him. He agreed on the fact that tonight really had been something else, and not really for the better. Well in a sense because he had gotten to see more of the hybrid, but that was something he wasnt confronting in his mind at all. "Uhhh. Yeah, sure, thanks." he said a little unsure of how well that would go, but it was worth a try. He got up on the bike with the hybrid, wrapping his arms around his stomach to not fall off before he chuckled a little. "I swear to god, you better drive safe. My knees have finally healed." he warned him but obviously didnt mean it as something serious. He tried not to lean too much onto the hybrid but as they went he had to admit that he was a little unsure and unconsciously clung onto Damiano. He didnt really realize that he was taking in his scent and finding it rather pleasant.

"I'm the best biker at all of Saint Jules," he proudly proclaimed, ringing with his little bell before setting off. He felt a shift in Jeremy as the nephilim clung to him. Damiano was smiling a bit to himself, but he did manage to take some directions as to where they had to go; He didn't really know where Jeremy lived after all. Once they reached the street he lived on, he whistled as he looked around at the nice neighborhood. "Damn, this really is some nice houses, huh?" he muttered, but he stopped a few houses from where they had to be. "This way your parents won't have to spot me," he said with a slight shrug. He was still very mindful of Jeremy's worries, so to him this was only natural.
He looked at the nephilim for a while, "you should go get your rest; I bet Zaira wants to see you as soon as she wakes up, right?" he chuckled before bidding him goodbye and taking off on his bike towards his home that was much further away from here.

Kurtis sat by her bedside, holding onto her hand as he was slightly leaned onto the bed, his eyes closed as he was quite tired. It had been a long day for him but he was refusing to leave her side. The doctors said that it would be a while for her to wake, but he didnt care. His thumb was lazily caressing the back of her hand, though he felt his body go a little heavy.

IVs, tubes and pulse measuring devices were all hooked up to Zaira as she was still getting warm. They had to warm her up carefully but as she had gotten to a normal temperature they had let Carla and Kurtis in. "Niño," Carla said, coming in with a cup of coffee for him. "Is going to be a rough night," she said, moving over to sit down in a chair by the window. You could see that she had clearly spent the last few nights not really sleeping either. She was quiet for a while, drinking the coffee that tasted horrible, but at least there was caffeine in it. "I won't ask you to leave, but I will ask you to get some rest," she said taking another sip of her coffee as she nodded towards a couch that was up against the wall. It wasn't much, but it was better than a chair. "She's gonna be muy malhumorado when she wakes up here, but until then we should prepare ourselves," spoken like a true mother. Carla was a proud woman, not many things in this world could drive fear in her. But her daughter having been gone for almost three days now were enough to scare her to not sleep for a while. "I promise I'll wake you as soon as she does," she promised. It was clear to her that the young lycan saw something in her daughter, but now was not the time to dig in to the whats and hows.

He was slowly drifting off but Carla's voice brought him back along with the smell of coffee. He took the cup, thanking her before he took a sip. He wasnt really a coffee person at all, but he felt like he needed to be awake, at least for a little while longer. "I want to be there if she wakes up." he protested, but got up as she was right. There was no point in being completely sleep deprived. He just didnt like not feeling her hand in his and feeling how she felt, if she was getting better or not. He went to lie on the couch, wrapping his arms a little around himself as he drew in a deep breath. He sat for a while, the coffee cup not far as he had put it on a table next to the couch. "Carla..." he said, frowning a little to himself as he thought it through once more before he spoke, looking at Zaira's mother. ".. I'm in love with your daughter." he confessed, but it didnt feel as sweet to say as he wanted. He looked up towards the ceiling and wrapped his arms a little closer around himself. "But I'm bad news. There's no way around it. I will only end up hurting her and I wish it wasnt like that but it is."

Carla knew that look that Kurtis had. She knew what he was going to say before he even said it, and she got up, pulling the chair with her and sitting down in front on him. She could see his bruised eye, see how hurt he was, and she knew why her daughter had gravitated towards a guy like him. She hadn't expected him to confess, but she just listened, letting him speak his mind. Smiling a bit she looked over her shoulder, her daughter's heart monitor just beeping at nice intervals that made her know that she was going to be alright. "You do not give my daughter enough credit, niño," she said before looking back at the lycan. "And bad news? No, no, no, I have seen bad news," she said, and on this she was probably right. She had a feeling that Zaira might've spilled the beans to Kurtis, but Carla was never one to just assume. Instead she focused back on her daughter as she looked at the lycan. "You love her, and even if you end up hurting her it is not going to take away that love," she said, placing a hand over Kurtis' looking at him rather seriously. "She is strong, and I doubt she'll have you stay away because you might do something in the future," Carla smiled, patting his hand a bit before moving her chair back to give him some space to sleep.

When Kurtis eventually fell asleep, Carla just sat looking at her daughter. Closing her eyes for a little while, she just listened to the heart monitor, because it seemed to give her a calm feeling inside. As long as it beeped, then Zaira was alive. Although that peace lasted shortly, as during the night she suddenly flatlined. Doctors and nurses rushed in, CPR and a defibrillator having to be used as the nurses helped Kurtis and Carla out of the room. Carla stood outside, her arms wrapped around herself as she felt her tears press on, looking at the staff at work on her daughter.

He was a little surprised as Carla sat down next to him, but her words were quite comforting. She may be right, he wasnt really thinking it all through, but on the other hand he just felt so certain that he was going to break her heart and he didnt want that. But he just listened, looking shortly at their hands as she reached out. She was a good mother who really cared, he could tell that. "I think you underestimate how much of a fuck-up I am." he just muttered before she left him. He closed his eyes and fell asleep pretty quick. It wasnt a deep sleep but it was enough that he was resting. When the heart monitor flatlined, his eyes opened rather fast and he was ready to jump on his feet, only that he didnt as it would just send him straight onto the floor. They were sent outside the room and he paced around a little impatiently. "They said she was stable..." he mumbled, looking towards the door before he gritted his teeth and covered his eyes for a second. "Fuck..." he whispered, rubbing his eyes a little.

Carla just welled up, she wasn't pacing like Kurtis was, but she couldn't give up hope yet. Instead of saying much she just went to the lycan, wrapping her arms around the guy and holding him close. They both seemed to need that right now, even if it was just because they both loved the girl in the room. The doctors and nurses went quiet of a while, but then slow and calming beats from the heart monitor was heard through the half open door and that was when Carla finally shed some tears. "Tan fuerte," she muttered as she let go of Kurtis as a doctor came out, asking to see Carla. A nurse came out as well, looking at Kurtis telling him he could come in to see her now.
Zaira was still laying in the bed, but she was stable from that point on. It wasn't until the second night that her eyes started moving beneath her eyelids. Carla was sleeping on the couch, snoring slightly as her airways were a bit constricted on the small furniture, but it was alright. If Kurtis was by her side, holding her hand, he would soon feel her squeeze his rather carefully.

As a kid Kurtis had cried many times. He was practically crying all the time back then, because it seemed to be the only way he would get some attention. But once his cries were ignored, he slowly stopped. And he hadnt cried since. But as he stood there outside and waiting, he felt the tears press on. It made him feel like he was a kid again, so filled with a sadness that he couldnt really stop or handle on his own. So as Carla wrapped her arms around him, he leaned into it and hid his face away, his shoulders shaking as he cried silently. When the doors finally opened, he turned his head and feared the worst. It was just conditioned to be that way when he cried.
But then the nurse told him he could see Zaira and he went in, sitting down by her side to hold her hand again. He didnt really sleep till late morning where he finally had to give in and get some rest. He just feared not holding her hand and the monitor flatlining again. He was the one that had gone out to get them some lunch, because he knew Zaira was in good hands with her mother. Jeremy had also come by with some dinner and to hear how things were.
Once night hit, Kurtis was holding her hand and checking his phone, texting Jeremy and Abel. He was still exhausted but he guessed that it would be that way until they left this place. He felt her squeeze and hadnt realized at first until he looked up and noticed how her eyes were moving. "Thank god." he whispered, leaning a little back into his chair with a deep sigh. Quietly he called for Carla, not wanting to leave Zaira's side now that he had felt her squeeze his hand. If her mother woke and came over, he would take her hand and carefully move his out of Zaira's to replace with her mothers, telling her to notice her daughter's eyes. He moved away, letting Carla sit with her in peace while he went to smoke. He was thankful that Jeremy had brought a pack on the way, because he was smoking quite a lot in the time they had been here to deal with all the emotions inside of him.