Complete and Utter Opposites (Katie)

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine settled onto her back, unable to keep on her side for too long. she listened to Walter describe the... book to her. The story didn't sound all that appealing but she wasn't about to say so when he had admitted that it was his favorite one. It wasn't like she could read in the first place, but maybe he could teach her since he hadn't looked down on her for not being able to. It wouldn't surprise her if he had sneered and called her stupid. It wouldn't have been the first time.

She had to look up at him to see his face since he was sitting with his back against the headboard and she had been nestled down into the blankets. She thought about him reading to her. She hated to admit it but his stutter might make the process unnecessarily difficult, even so it might be what she needed to actually get some sleep. He hadn't stuttered too much while describing the book, so he might be able to get through it without becoming too frustrated with it. 

Jasmine nodded. "Yeah.. yeah that sounds good." She leaned her head against his warm side, wishing she could roll over onto her side and face towards him more. Actually she wished she could curl up into him and drape an arm across his body, but she doubted that he would be okay if she did that. She might just kill him if she did. 

[Lotus]

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Walter smiled softly, liking the fact she was willing to listen to him ramble on as he read. He knew he would still stutter, that was a given, but he knew it would be a lot better than when he tried to speak in general conversation. He couldn't help his cheeks glowing when Jasmine rested her head against his side, and despite it sending a shiver of fear straight through his body to begin with, his heart rate slowly calmed and he realised she did, in fact, create a calming air around her. Reaching out slowly, he took her hand in his, squeezing softly in a form of comfort because he somehow knew she was in pain and uncomfortable with the way in which she was laying.

As he opened his book to the first chapter, his switched from holding her hand to holding her little finger, in order for him to be able to hold and turn the pages of the book with little disturbance to Jasmine. "Wh-en Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her un-cle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. I-It was true, too. She-"

Walter carried on reading, getting lost in the words before him but still being anchored by holding Jasmine's little finger. He was aware of her relaxing and in turn, that allowed his own shoulders to become less tense. He managed to stutter only once or twice during every sentence, and he couldn't help but feel proud of himself. He'd never read to anyone other than his parents before, so being able to read to Jasmine was a rather big step for him. After reading two chapters nearly perfectly, Walter slowly came back from his fictional world to see Jasmine on the brink of sleep.

"Wh-y do-don't y-you sl-eep?"

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine kinda thought the book was a bit boring, but she didn't say anything about it. Walter was clearly enjoying himself, and his speech was remarkably clean, free from stutters for the majority of the time it took him to read two chapters out loud. He was so focused on the book in front of him that she didn't want to disturb him, instead she fought against her heavy eyelids as they drooped lower and lower. Relief flooded through her as he finished the second chapter and told her to get some sleep.

With a nod, she rolled onto her other side, facing the wall and giving her aching side a break. She relaxed into the mattress, her back pressed against is warm side as she pulled the blankets up to her chin. "Are you going to bed too?", she asked quietly. 

Jazz hoped that he would lay down with her, but he had been asleep all day and it was possible that he wasn't really that tired. She wondered if he was comfortable being in close proximity to her yet. She couldn't be that bad to be around right? She quickly dismissed the thought as she was pulled into a deep sleep.

[Lotus]

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Walter's attention was drawn away from his book momentarily as Jasmine turned over to get into a more comfortable position. He couldn't help but watch her with a tender expression on his face, wanting more than anything to reach out and make her feel more comfortable in some way but unsure as to whether he could actually make himself do such a thing.

Upon hearing her soft words, he shook his head slightly, looking back at his book. He cleared his throat slightly, unsure as to whether he was tired or if he could even manage sleep. "I-I will d-do even-eventually. I-I'll r-read a l-little lon-ger." Slowly, Walter reached out a slightly shaking hand and brushed it through the loose tangles of Jasmine's hair in a comforting and tender manner, "Y-You g-get so-me sl-eep n-now th-ough. D-Don't worry ab-out me."

Pulling his hand away and realising the deep, even breaths Jasmine was taking, Walter somewhat relaxed a little knowing she was more than fast asleep. Looking towards the clock he realised it wasn't even eight o'clock in the evening and he'd napped most of the day, so he wasn't all that tired even though his nap wasn't the most relaxing and he hadn't slept a wink the night before. There was only one way he was going to pass the time without panicking so he stuck his head back in his book, getting lost in the words.

Eventually, Walter started yawning and his eyes watering slightly in the dim light his bedside lamp provided. Jasmine was still fast asleep and he glanced at his clock, slightly shocked when the time read it was nearly the next day. Sighing and yawning once more, he ran a hand down his face placing his half read book down on the bedside table. With still being in his fictional state of mind and finally feeling the effects of his tiredness, Walter shifted under his covers and turned onto his side so his front was facing Jasmine's back. In this state he somewhat craved the comfort of her touch, and without thinking he reached out, taking a hold of the hand that was wrapped back around her waist and even snuggling into his back a little more, but still leaving a gap between them. With that, he found himself falling into a sleep that was probably the calmest he'd had in forever.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine woke up to the feeling of something warm and wet underneath her. She groaned sleepily and rolled back into Walter before jolting into an upright position. She was startled for a moment to find his arm wrapped around her waist, but the more shocking thing was the blood pouring down her side. She looked down the front of her stained white dress, trying to figure out what had happened. Her stitches must have popped or torn or whatever the hell it was called. She couldn't be bothered with the name of her condition, but she was bleeding and she needed to do something about it. 

She looked back at Walter, feeling a slight twinge of hesitation. He looked so calm and stress free. She'd hate having to ruin the peaceful sleep he seemed to be in, and he was participating in physical contact without panicking. She knew that if he were to wake up then he'd freak out for sure. She pressed her hand against her ribs, trying to keep pressure on the gash to try and stop the bleeding but it just kept pouring between her fingertips. 

That was when the pain hit. She gritted her teeth against the gnawing sensation on her side, gripping the skirt of her dress in one hand to keep herself quiet. Her breath came in short gasps for air. She leaned into her legs, squishing her hand between her torso and her thigh to keep it pressed hard into her ribs. After several minutes, the blood hadn't been staunched.

Jazz bit back a curse and shook Walter by the shoulder. "Hey... Hey, I need some help.

[Lotus]

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Walter was calm, and he couldn't exactly remember the last time he actually felt so at ease with himself. Normally, his sleep was the most peaceful, but he never went to be with a peaceful mind, until last night. He didn't know why and he couldn't understand why, but Jasmine was slowly doing something to him; changing him, and whilst it was absolutely terrifying, if it meant he could feel like this, he would change in a heartbeat. Slowly, he was brought out of his calm state to be aware of the voice and a shake rising him from his slumber. At first he felt a soft smile spread across his face as he realised it was Jasmine's voice, but when the words registered in his groggy mind his eyes flew wide open as his whole body moved into a sitting position.

Red. Red absolutely everywhere.

Walter squeezed his eyes shut and prayed that what he'd just seen was his mind playing tricks on him. But when he slowly opened them again, there was Jasmine and his bed covered in blood. "J-J-Jasmine...?" His voice cracking and as soft as can be. He didn't know what to do, he didn't know what was happening. He couldn't handle the situation in front of him. His calm had been ripped from him and instead he was faced with a nightmare situation.

His legs shook as he stood from thee bed, leaning down over Jasmine and as he reached out he realised his hands were shaking just as bad. His placed his hand on her shoulder gently, "J-Jasmine...?" That's when he saw the cause of all the red. Her stomach. Walter berated himself in his head, knowing it was most likely his doing from the way he'd slept last night. He knew it was a stupid idea to get comfortable around someone; nothing good ever happened. "H-Hold o-o-on." His stuttering worsening by the minute. He knew he couldn't break down. The only thing holding him together was the fact he knew he had to help Jasmine, just like that time when she'd first fallen out of the tree. He wasn't thinking; he was in automatic mode, his eyes losing their sparkle and his hands shaking profusely.

Walter walked swiftly in to the kitchen, retrieving all the medical supplies they had in the house. Luckily, his mother seemed to like keeping medical supplies to a hospital kind of standard, not that he knew why, but some of them had always come in handy during his breakdowns. With his arms full and trying his hardest to hold on to all of them, he walked back to his room, placing them all on the bed. Slowly reaching out, he pushed Jasmine by the shoulders so she was lying down and without thinking, lifted up her dress just to see more and more red. His hands started shaking more, but he wasn't really there to notice it, so instead he just focused on the task at hand.

He couldn't let things go wrong now. Not because of him.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine felt her hear shatter when Walter woke up and began to panic. It was the last thing she'd wanted to do after she'd seen him sleeping so peacefully. The quiet fear in his voice made her want to lie back down and pretend like nothing was wrong. It wasn't fair to him to put him through this kind of thing since she'd finally made progress with him. he'd slept the whole night holding her to him and now he probably wasn't going to touch her with a ten foot pole. 

Sh wanted to offer some comfort to Walter, but he seemed to be distant at the moment. She reached out to grab his hand when he turned and left the room. She lowered it slowly and watched him disappear into the kitchen as she gathered the blankets around her waist. She didn't want him having a stroke, although he was probably already having one. If he saw her completely undressed at that point in time, he'd probably drop dead from shock. 

When Walter came back in, he had a first aid kit with him. He set it down and lifted her dress up, bunching the fabric underneath her arms so that her stomach and chest was exposed necessarily for Walter to actually work on the open wound underneath her left breast. If the situation had been different, she wouldn't have minded the dress being someplace other than on her frame properly, but given the circumstances, she wanted to cover herself and hide. Instead, she reached out and gave his hand a squeeze before letting go and closing her eyes with her cheeks pink form embarrassment.

[Lotus]

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Walter didn't notice anything. Not the comforting squeeze to his hand that Jasmine gave. Not the fact that Jasmine was probably more embarrassed than she'd ever been in her life. Not how badly his hands were actually shaking or the sheen of sweat that coated his forehead. Nothing, other than the red in front of him. There was so much of it and he didn't know how to handle it. He knew he had to do something, but he didn't know if what he was doing was beneficial or not.

It just had to be today. The day everyone had off and his parents left at dawn to watch the sunrise before spending the whole day together. They had to be out of the house. It had to be Walter dealing with this on his own. And he wasn't dealing with this. At all. If anything he was in shock now more than his automatic mode, knowing he still had to do something but not really processing what he was doing. There was his wall back up, separating him from the reality he could see but keeping him locked away with the anxiety driven voices in the recesses of his mind.

Eventually Walter and his shaking form managed to stem the blood; it starting to clot back up again. Cleaning away the blood covering her skin as gently as possible was a nightmare task; his hands never stopping in their shaking and the amount of disinfectant wipes piling up by his feet, but slowly he finished and turned to the first aid box to get the bandages and gauze. Placing them as gently as he could over the wound, and securing them down before checking it over and pulling Jasmine's dress back down. He knew he should find her some other clothes, but she was a girl and he didn't know what would be best. Instead he cleared away all the bloodied bandages and stood shakily to his feet.

He knew he was looking at Jasmine, but nothing other than the blood could be seen in his vision despite the majority of it being cleaned up. Walter tried to rack his brain for words but nothing came to him, he was mute. There was nothing he could say in his state that would make the situation any better. Looking down at his hands, caked in drying blood, made his stomach churn and strange images flash through his memory, making his blood run cold and his shaking to increase ten fold. But, he knew he wasn't finished. Somewhere in the part of his mind that was still functioning correctly, he knew he had to get her pain killers so he walked out of his room into the kitchen, discarding the bloodied wipes in the bin.

Walter managed to make it to the kitchen, reaching for a glass to fill with water but as he took it over to the sink his trembling hands lost all hold on the glass and it fell to the floor, smashing. His knees gave out, falling into the shards and clasping his hands to his ears, rocking back and forth. Too many things were running through his head, images he didn't remember, thoughts he didn't want to think. It was all too much, but through the haze, that one part of his brain made him function.

"N-N-Not. Y-Yet." He mumbled to himself without realising, as he stood back to his feet, reached for another glass and held it tighter. After filling it, he grabbed the pain killers and made his way back to his bedroom. Kneeling down on the floor he passed Jasmine the pain killers and held her head while she drank before placing the glass on the side. With that, Walter sat back and just stared; losing himself more as each minute passed.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine gripped the sheets tightly in her hands, leaving bloody hand prints all over the fabric as she clutched it in an attempt to block out the pain. His hands were calloused and rough from work and not as gentle as he usually was with her. They shook and handled her uneasily, which made things hurt more until he was finally about to stop the blood that had been pouring out of her side. She kept her head turned towards the wall with her eyes pinched closed and her teeth gritted.

Walter managed to patch her up well enough, but she figured she needed to have her stitches redone. That would have to wait until his parents came home, until then there was nothing she could do but sit tight and try to keep Walter together. She reached out again but he was just out of reach. "Walter.." Her voice came out hoarse and almost unintelligible. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Walter." It was better, but still very rough.

Jazz let her hand dangle over the side since he was out of reach, but her fingers came into contact with his foot. She settled for holding onto his ankle, trying feebly to calm him. "Hey.. do you want to read some? You did okay last night... You can tell me about the snotty girl and her dead uncle or whatever it was."

She turned her head to look at him. His eyes were wide and his body shook. Blood coated his hands and his left side, her blood. She wanted to sit up and hold her to him, but the pain kept her restrained to the bloody mattress. She'd lost kind of a lot, and she was left weak and shaking just as badly as Walter. She needed to get up, to change out of her sticky clothes and get off the stained sheets before it festered into the cloth and gave her an infection. Nothing was worse than sitting in a pool of old blood. She shook his ankle weakly. "Walter, please. we need to clean up the blood.

[Lotus]

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Walter couldn't think of anything other than the blood. All he could see was a red haze covering his vision, as he stared blankly at the floor in front of him. Vaguely, in the recesses of his mind, some part of his conscious tried to remind him to stay with it. It trying to jolt him back to the present by flashing images of what he'd seen. Jasmine. Without clothes. His body shuddered involuntarily from a little fear and embarrassment, but as soon as the memory flashes passed it was gone, only to be replaced with more and more red. He knew the sight of Jasmine would come back to him whenever he got out of this state, and he knew he would be more than just slightly embarrassed for having handled her in that way and for having seen what he had done.

Vaguely, he was aware of Jasmine trying to get his attention, but it was falling on somewhat deaf ears. There was a strange tingling around his ankle and his eyes quickly glanced to see her hand resting there, before he withdrew again; hating the fact she was trying to comfort him when it should be the other way around. In his lap, his hands lay, covered in blood and he could feel it crusting on his shirt but it wasn't until Jasmine's voice filtered through his hazy mind about cleaning it all up that the part of his mind still functioning made him realise his job was not over.

Instead, Walter shakily got to his feet again and walked out of the room. He couldn't process where he was going, his body on auto-pilot, as his brain told him the things he needed to get done before he was allowed his breakdown. He didn't want his breakdown, but at this point it was inevitable with the flashes of memory still slicing him to pieces. Walking into the bathroom he turned the tap on and scrubbed at his hands until the majority of blood was gone, watching it swirl down the drain with no emotion playing on his features at all, before going to the wardrobe in his parent's room to get out another nightdress for Jasmine to wear in place of the blood covered one she was currently in. So, taking it he went back to his room, knelt down by the bed and helped Jasmine change.

It wasn't an easy task with Walter's shaking hands, but he knew he was being as gentle as was allowed in the current situation. His brain once again processed that Jasmine was baring her top half for all to see, but it made him feel nothing. He couldn't feel anything apart from the panic and the turmoil that was soon to set in after his job was done. Eventually Walter had managed to change Jasmine, picked her up in his arms bridal style and took her out to the living room to lay on the couch before heading back to his room and stripping the sheets to the floor. In the midst of all that, Walter didn't realise he had forgotten to change his own blood covered clothes as he walked back to the living room and sank to the floor by Jasmine, leaving a gap in which she couldn't reach out to him.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine watched as Walter left the room without a word. She could hear him shuffling around for a minute before he returned with a soft blue night gown. He pulled her dress free from her body without emotion, leaving her feeling cheap and exposed as she laid back on the mattress. She kept her head turned to the side, facing the wall so she couldn't see how empty his eyes were. His hands were cold as they touched her skin, leaving goosebumps as he pulled the night gown, probably his mothers, over her head and around her body. She probably should have been sitting up so the blood wouldn't press into the dress, but she didn't have the strength to keep upright. 

When Walter lifted her off the bed and carried her to the couch, he held her as far away from him as possible as though she were sick and contagious. Tears filled her eyes suddenly, but she blinked them away. She didn't want to cry in that moment, not in front of Walter and not when she was so useless, but the urge strengthened when he sat down on the floor where she couldn't get to him. A single tear escaped from her lashes but was quickly wiped away onto her shoulder, leaving a slightly darker spot there. 

Jazz leaned her head against the cushions and curled her legs underneath her and closed her eyes, resigned to the silence that stretched between them. When she tried to open them again, she found it too difficult. Damn, why was she always so tired? She'd slept so much over the past few days. In that moment, she couldn't keep herself awake. Maybe she needed rest to recover, maybe her body was exhausted, or maybe she'd lost too much blood. Her mind told her to stay awake, but her body wouldn't listen as she lost consciousness completely.

[Lotus]

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It hadn't been too long since Walter had set Jasmine down on the couch, but when he finally forced his eyes over to her to make sure she was okay, she was out cold. There was part of Walter that panicked a little, knowing she probably shouldn't be sleeping, but another part told him to leave her be and recover. He didn't have the energy or the brain power to try and find a way to keep her awake. Anything he did would send her to sleep.

As he sat on the floor away from Jasmine, his mind swirled with images he could never remember happening, and what was worse, that was so much red involved. He couldn't make sense of it. It sent terror shooting through him at the same that he felt numb. The way he was feeling wasn't good, not in the slightest. His mind was wrecking havoc over any logical thought he could muster, sending his emotions and common sense into a frenzy.

He needed to get away. He needed to leave. He needed out. But that wasn't possible with the Jasmine situation. His parents weren't home and they wouldn't be for couple more hours. So instead, Walter sat, his eyes glazed over, his hands shaking and tremors shooting through his body until his parents came home.

As soon as he heard the door go, he was up shakily on his feet, still in his blood caked shirt and went to the door. His parents eyes grew wide, fear ripping through the both of them, but Walter didn't give them the chance to fuss over him. Instead he pointed a shaking hand to the front room, "J-J-Ja-sm-ine." Both his parents faltered slightly, not wanting to rush past and ignore the state of their son, but the pleading look in his eyes didn't go unnoticed. As his parents brushed past him, Walter slipped through the front door, it slamming behind him and as he started running.

Running and running, until he tripped and fell in a heap on the floor in an unoccupied part of the district. There, and only there, did his break down hit. And boy, did it hit.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine barely registered that someone was hoisting her off the couch. Her head lolled as though it were barely connected to her body as the night gown was pulled free again to assess the damage. She heard a gasp then a shuffling about. A stinging pain made her forehead scrunch and a small noise of pain escaped her throat. She wanted to roll away from whoever was hurting her. Damn them for disturbing her sleep, but her body wouldn't move as commanded so instead she sat in silence as a soothing voice spoke to her. A constant pinging sensation in her side kept her from slipping into her subconscious completely, but still she couldn't move as Walter's parents restitched the wound on her ribs.

She felt horrible, and guilty for burdening these people so much. They didn't deserve the trouble she was causing them. She had to find away to repay them for their kindness or she was going to go ballistic. It would have to wait until she recovered unfortunately. Someone poured something that was sickly sweet and burned like fire into her mouth, but she managed to swallow before drifting off completely.

It would be a long while before she woke up again.

[Lotus]

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It had been hours since Walter had tripped and fell in a heap at the unoccupied end of the district. He'd scuffed up his knees, palms and cheek in the fall, the skin raw, but he hadn't felt any of it. He hadn't felt anything other than the storm that brewed and shouted in his mind. His hands had been squeezed against his ears as tightly as possible the whole time, trying to quieten the noise, with his nails digging into the scabs behind his ears; deepening the wounds and letting blood cake under his finger nails once more.

The images were too vivid. He didn't understand them, but as they flashed through his memory over and over again he couldn't help but think they were true. Couldn't help but hate himself for getting into such a situation that allowed him to hate human touch, to be scared of any kind of interaction with another person. He hated himself for being such a weak child that he couldn't stand up for himself then, and now, and so he became this broken version which was even worse.

The thing that made his whole break down worse, was the fact in some of these memories there seemed to be a little girl that closely resembled Jasmine. She was at the start of the memories, and then, once he'd been too scared to say no to her and had given her his pocket money and anything he'd had on him, he was caught again. This time by a group of boys much larger than himself who had seen his 'kind' act. Apparently Walter had tried to walk away, even apologising that he didn't have anything else on him, but they wouldn't have that. Cornering the young Walter, they'd proceeded to 'look' for anything of value on him; their 'looking' involving multiple hits and kicks to all parts of his body. By the time they were finished, little Walter was left in ripped clothes with multiple bruises and oozing cuts all over his young frame, but somehow he'd managed to make it home and that's where the images stopped; until they started all over again.

Walter couldn't handle it. His panic attack wasn't dying down. His breathing was still laboured, so much so his whole body shook as it tried to get enough oxygen into him. His hands still gripped his ears, the pressure he was exerting turning his knuckles white. His eyes were squeezed shut, but still tears streamed down his cheeks, stinging the graze on his cheek. There was no way of getting out of it. He didn't know how. There was too much going on.

Too much red.

Too many things going wrong caused by him.

If he had only been more careful around Jasmine, then she wouldn't have woken up in the excruciating pain he knew she probably experience. She wouldn't have been bleeding out in front of his eyes. And he wouldn't be dealing with these images. He was quite happy being a nervous wreck, Jasmine was helping him, but now she probably wouldn't come near him even if he was the first to try and talk to her. He'd royally messed everything up.

Something suddenly spooked Walter, whether it was a disturbing image in his mind or a sound from the reality around him he couldn't quite make sense of, but his hands dropped to his lap and his eyes grew wide, looking everywhere. His hazy mind somewhat registered how dark it had gotten, and he wasn't entirely sure where he was in relation to home, but with how long he'd been he couldn't put his parents through more stress; but hopefully they weren't worrying about him, but instead about the person that most needed it. Jasmine.

Eventually, he found his way home, opening the front door and collapsing to the floor as it shut behind him. He finally felt like his break down was leaving him, the stinging from his cuts slowly set in; always a good sign he was coming back to reality. His mind made him register the fact that he wanted to check on Jasmine, but he couldn't move; too exhausted, but mainly too terrified of what he'll see. For now, the disturbing images, or memories, his mind tried to show him was pushed behind a door. He knew it would plague him, but right now he wasn't the priority.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Two weeks and three days had passed before Jasmine opened her eyes. Two weeks and three days of Walter and his family worrying over her, of words like "she'll wake when she's ready, just give her time", of her hand being held tightly in someones shaky palm, of her hair being smoothed back over her face. Two weeks and three days of her wounds being checked, of her skin being sponged clean, of sweet, fiery liquid being poured down her throat. Two weeks and three days of slipping in and out of consciousness but never being able to open her eyes or move. She wasn't aware of everything that went on around her, but she could tell some of it. 

Walter had been in a panic most of the time, fussing over her sleeping body and trying to make sure she was comfortable at all times. She could hear him every once in a while as he read out loud to her from his books. Those moments made her feel the worst. She wanted to reach out to him and tell him that none of this had been his fault. She had been weak and injured before her stitches had torn open. She didn't even think that he'd been the one that caused the wound to tear. She'd exerted herself too much the night before, having carried him into his bedroom. She'd done all of it voluntarily and if she could choose, she'd do it again if it meant helping him. 

She heaved a sigh, wanting to wake up. If only she could wake up. She became semiconscious again after one really long and satisfyingly deep lapse of oblivion. She felt rested and her body was lighter than it had been. She no longer felt as though something was pressing down on her at every single part of her body, and it was almost as though she was a few seconds away from regaining consciousness. Her lashes fluttered against her cheeks, her fingers curling slowly until they were able to grip the sheets beneath her. 

Finally. Finally, Jazz opened her eyes to find herself in Walter's room. She stretched her arms over her head, arching her back off the mattress, and causing it to creak beneath her. She sat up, feeling just as she had before her fall out of the tree, well almost. Her ankle and wrist were still badly sprained, but her side seemed to be healed. She scratched at the matted hair on the back of her head and yawned, stretching again to force her muscles and bones to work after being out of use for so long. She looked down at herself, noticing that she no longer wore the blue night gown, but her own soft white linen dress. All the blood had been cleaned from its woven fabric, and it rested on her skin much lighter than it had before. She pulled the dress up until her chest was exposed, observing the jagged pink scar that took the place of where her stitches had been. 

As the door suddenly creaked open, she quickly dropped her dress, smoothing it back over her stomach before whoever was walking in could see.

[Lotus]

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Walter thought his mind had been hell before meeting Jasmine, but even after all the stress he'd gone through trying to talk and be around her didn't even compare to how he'd felt over the two weeks and three days she'd been unconscious to the world. He entirely blamed himself, how could he not? He blamed himself for making Jasmine worry over him when she had been needing to concentrate on getting better, he blamed himself for getting too close and more than anything, he blamed himself for not acting fast enough.

After Walter had made it home that evening, the images that had been thrown about his mind had been pushed away as much as he could and still, two weeks later, he still wasn't addressing them. He didn't know how to. Once he'd made it off the floor he'd noticed his parents had cleaned up the mess and tended to Jasmine as best as they could, but they all knew she needed professional help, so they took some of their wages and called the doctor in. He was the one to finalise everything for Jasmine; the first person to tell Walter that she'd wake up when she was ready. He'd given them a form to take into work the next day expressing the fact someone needed to be with her at all times, and it wasn't too much of problem to sort out surprisingly.

The majority of the time it was his mother staying at home to look after Jasmine while Walter and his father went to work; Walter mainly for the fact his wages were higher and it would make more sense for the most stable person to stay with her. So, that's how it went for two weeks and three days.

In that time Walter hardly slept and hardly ate, turning into the walking dead. He couldn't sleep, he couldn't let his mind rest, not with the guilt weighing him down and definitely not when ever he ended up closing his eyes he was bombarded with the memories he didn't want to remember and didn't understand. His parents noticed the change in him and they tried to broach it with him, saying he needed to try to rest and relax, but Walter just walked off. Luckily his work never slipped and his wages kept coming in steadily, and Walter himself didn't really realise what he was doing to himself.

He knew he should get better, for the sake of his parents and for Jasmine whenever she woke up, but he couldn't bring himself to. His talking was at a minimum to anyone other than when he was reading to Jasmine, hoping that it would calm him and somehow bring her back so she could tell him how boring she thought his books were; because he knew the first time he read, she wasn't all that interested. But anything other than the sleeping state she was in now would be better.

It was on the seventeenth day that Jasmine finally woke up. He'd been at work since the crack of dawn, working on around three hours sleep as he'd slumped in the chair by Jasmine's bed and an empty stomach. He'd just arrived back from his shift with his father, and as his father had gone to greet his mother lovingly Walter had slipped off to his room to check on Jasmine, not expecting anything different. But as he'd opened his door and he saw the movement from his bed, he stood rooted to his spot, his eyes wide as he looked at the piercing eyes staring back at him. He knew those eyes were taking in how he looked, but Walter couldn't process that when he had eyes looking at him, eyes he'd hoped would open for two weeks.

Then it hit him. He couldn't face Jasmine, not after everything he'd done to her. Dropping his head down low he backtracked out of the room, heading to where his mother and father were in the living room. Walter was shaking all over, the shock from seeing her awake, the guilt barring down on him and the memories that accompanied the last time he saw her awake were all too much for him to handle. "S-She's. Aw-A-Awake." He managed to stumble out before he sunk into the corner of the room, his parents both rushing to Jasmine's aid knowing they could do nothing to help their son.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine felt relief flood through her at the sight of Walter in the door way, but her smile fell as he ducked out of the room without a word. "Walter, wait!" 

She scrambled off the bed to follow him and promptly fell to the floor. Her legs were shaky and weak from lack of use. Her body trembled as she gripped the edge of the dresser and pulled herself up into a semi-standing position as a light sheen of sweat broke out across her forehead. Finally, Walter's parents walked in and lifted her up off her unsupported feet before setting her back down on the bed. She shied away from their hands, not wanting to be touched by the people she still didn't know quite well enough. They didn't do much, just asked her questions and got food into her system. She couldn't walk quiet yet, having been told to take things slow. 

When they were done, Jazz asked for Walter, but they were reluctant to let him in. He seemed to be in a state, they said. "Will you tell him that I'm sorry for scaring him? I had been pushing myself too much then my stitches popped and I couldn't stop the bleeding. He probably thinks he made it happen, but it's not his fault. It wasn't his fault... And thank you. For everything..."

Her voice trailed off as it grew hoarse and her throat ached from two weeks without talking. Her body was stiff and her movements jerky, but she managed to roll over and face the wall as they nodded and left the room. She seemed to be fit enough to be left alone. However, she felt guilty. She would have to repay Walter's parents for their kindness. She would give them all of her wages for a year if she had to.

[Lotus]

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Walter couldn't move from his spot. His body wouldn't stop shaking, his hands once more clamped against his ears, nails digging into his raw skin. He knew his parents were taking care of Jasmine, but he couldn't help more guilt building within him that he should be the one in there to make up for what he did, he should be the one helping rather than breaking down in his own prison. This time he wasn't crying, his eyes bone dry, and he didn't understand why; he was freaking out after all.

He didn't know how long he'd been sat in the corner trembling excessively curled in a ball, but his parents eventually came back out of the his room and he glanced up. That was a big mistake. He saw the pity in his parents eyes but he also saw the sadness and the hope. He also heard the words he didn't want to be hearing, that Jasmine wanted to see him. If he didn't go in and see her she'd probably make every effort to find him somehow, and his guilt would only weigh him down further. If he did go in and see her, he wouldn't have any idea how to handle the situation.

She'd see him. Really see him for who he was. Pathetic really. She'd see how much thinner he'd become. She'd see how tired he actually was. And more than anything she'd probably know that he was hiding something from them all. He knew his parents knew something was wrong, but he couldn't bring it up. He didn't want to remember something like that. It made no sense to him. It scared him.

Looking back up again, both his parents kept glancing back over to him and he knew the looks in their eyes. They wanted him to go in there and they wanted to comfort him at the same time. Slowly, Walter's hands fell from his ears, rubbing away the blood caked around his fingernails, before standing on shaking legs and heading to his room; holding on to the wall for support. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and saw Jasmine laying there before she started turning over at the sound of the door. He couldn't look at her properly though. He didn't know what to do so he stood awkwardly in the doorway.

Then, his eyes accidentally flicked up, catching Jasmine's gaze, and like that his shaking form had moved across his room and dropped down by the side of his bed. He slumped over, resting his head against the mattress being too scared of touching her but still needing to be near her, and that's when his tears started streaking down his face. He wanted to apologise, he wanted to say so much, but he couldn't speak. All he could do was break down once again, but in a slightly different way.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine felt the shock on her face when Walter collapsed halfway onto the bed, his body racked with sobs. He looked thin, and she noticed the gauntness in his cheeks and the soft bruises beneath his eyes. She felt as though someone had seized her heart in a fist and began squeezing it, unable to help but feel as though she'd done this to him. She reached out, feeling the soft wheat colored hair in between her fingers. There had to be something she could do to assuage his pain.

There was only one thing she could think of as she played with his hair and rubbed his back gently. It could work, or it could backfire horribly. He had made it clear that an invasion of his personal space would send him into a panic, but she just couldn't come up with anything else so she decided she had to try it. Her stomach knotted at the thought, and her hands started to shake as she propped herself up on one elbow, her body coiled to the side facing him. She noticed the door was partly open, meaning that if his parents were to walk past then they could clearly see into the room, which made her more nervous. She really didn't want to piss off his parents, they were probably wondering what the hell she was doing to their son.

"Walter..." Jazz slid her hands underneath his chin and lifted his face up off the mattress so she could look at him. Her thumbs smoothly wiped the tears from underneath his eyes before she pulled his face to hers. His cheek was warm and damp as it pressed into hers and her fingers slid into his hair. His scent filled her nose, like that of earth and lumber and books. Her nose was flushed with his as she looked into his green eyes before she closed her own plain brown ones and tilted her head, just enough for her nose to slide off his and for her lips to softly collide with his. 

The only thing she could think in that moment was please let this work...

[Lotus]

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Walter froze. As soon as Jasmine spoke his name, as soon as he hands were touching him, his whole body went rigid. Tears still streaked down his face, but he was silent. The only noise to be made was the sound of his breathing and erratic heartbeat. He didn't deserve her comfort, he should be the one comforting her. But then it got worse. She was too close. Much too close, and getting closer. He didn't know what to do, so he held his breath, staring at her as her nose pressed to his before she seemed to slip and her lips were pressed against his own.

His eyes flew wide, his shoulders tensing further and his hands forming fists. Jasmine knew he had problems with people and yet she as being this close and not moving, but in the back of his mind he wasn't panicking as much as he knew he should've been. Somewhere in the back of his mind, something was telling him to relax, and Jasmine was trying her best to get him to do that. But still, he pulled away fairly roughly, staring at her with saucer-like eyes and his trembling set back in again as he tried to think of something to say.

It was too much. What had just happened. A haze had flooded his mind, but then his cheeks started flushing a deep red and he dropped his head when the haze started to clear. That had been a kiss. His first kiss. It sent his stomach into knots and suddenly his body was no longer rigid, suddenly his trembling wasn't just because he was terrified, but rather because the kiss had somehow calmed him enough to feel some form of excitement.

"I...I..." Walter tried to speak as he lifted his head back up to meet Jasmine's worried gaze, but when he failed with speaking a small smile slipped onto his lips as he reached out with shaking hands to cup Jasmine's cheeks. Then, mimicking exactly what Jasmine had down, he lent forward and pressed his lips to hers.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine had thought she had given him an aneurysm. Walter had froze in her hands not counting the constant shaking, and when he pulled back from her, his eyes were massive. But then he smiled and pulled her face up towards his. His lips trembled as they softly pressed into hers.She tilted her head to the side, deepening the kiss and seriously messing up his hair with her calloused fingers. 

When the kiss broke, her forehead rested against his, her thumb gently tracing his bottom lip.She gave him a warm smile that may have hinted at the idea of continuing such activities later that night. She was glad that kissing him hadn't backfired, but had actually calmed him down enough to want another one. She wondered if it had been his first, it wouldn't surprise her if it had, but it did make her think about how he'd become so shy.

She scooted back towards the wall and tugged on his arm to try to pull him onto the bed. "How long have I been out?"

[Lotus]

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Walter couldn't quite believe what had just happened. It didn't seem real, and why would it? He was terrified of touching people, so why would someone willingly go that close to him? It didn't make sense and he didn't really know why Jasmine had done it, but he knew he felt something when kissing her. It may have been his first, but he somehow knew it could never be, and would never be, someone else that would ever be able to get that close to him again.

When they pulled away, he knew his breathing was slightly more laboured, but for once it wasn't from a panic attack. His break down was still with him, but slowly his shoulders were lessening in their shaking as he perched on the edge of the bed; his hands clasped tightly in his lap. He knew he hair was fused, and he could feel the heat in his cheeks. Somehow Jasmine's smile had made him want to kiss her again, but she'd been the one to move away from so he assumed that it was over now and there would be no more. It left an ache in his chest.

After she asked the question, Walter didn't know whether it would be a good thing to answer her, but he knew his parents would tell her even if he didn't. Glancing at her briefly before looking away he finally found his voice. "T-Two, we-eks and-d th-three d-days." His stutter was still there, despite him hoping that it wouldn't show. Sighing he ran a hand through his hair before rubbing at the dried blood behind his ears and bringing it back to clasp in his lap. "Y-You n-need-ed it th-though."

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

"Two weeks and three days, huh?" 

Jasmine fell back against the headboard with a thud as Walter rubbed some of the blood off from behind his ears. His face was flushed and his hair even messier since he'd ran his fingers through it. She couldn't help but smile, it was kind of cute but she knew that he was probably freaking out inside. If only she knew how to soothe him. She dug hr fingers into her curls and scratched at the back of her head, having to untangle her fingers afterwards. 

After a moment, she got an idea. It was something she'd been wondering about before she lost consciousness, and she knew he would enjoy it. She looked over at the bookshelf, hoping that maybe there would be something that was a little more entertaining that a story about a garden. Maybe he'd be up for the task she had in mind.

She pitched forward suddenly and leaned into Walter from behind, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and placing her chin on the top of his head. He would probably flip at the contact, but she hadn't had any in so long that she just wanted to be closer to him. "Hey Walter? Do you think you could teach me how to read?"

[Lotus]

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Walter knew Jasmine had settled back against the wall, so he'd gotten a little lost in his head as soon as any contact with her had gone. His mind was reeling, but for once, it wasn't only in a bad way. There was that part of is brain that still kept him going, that was shining sparks of light through all his dark thoughts and feelings. Once again, his so-called memories came back to him and he tried his best to shake them off when a weight was suddenly upon him.

His body froze up, rigid before it relaxed the slightest amount once his brain had processed that it was only Jasmine. And if it was Jasmine, then touching was okay. He just hadn't been prepared for the sudden contact, and even if he had been, he'd still have probably frozen up.

Walter couldn't dwell on that fact for too long though because Jasmine's question threw him. She wanted to learn how to read? That was something he'd never imagined her saying. Ever. Slowly, he turned his head to peek up at her from where she rested her chin against his head, letting a small smile spread across his lips before bobbing his head up and down; causing Jasmine's, in turn, to bob with his. Fidgeting, he made his way off the bed, being careful to set Jasmine carefully back on the bed before he made his way to his book shelf. Scanning over all the titles scattered on the various worn spines of his collection.

Something easy. Something that would interest her.

He kept mulling the idea over and over in his head before he realised he had absolutely no clue what she would want to learn too read first. So instead, he walked back to the bed and held out his slightly less shaking hand for her to take. Taking a deep breath, he spoke, trying his hardest to reduce his stutter. "W-Why don't you come point at the ones th-at c-catch your eye. I-I can tell you about them, a-and y-you can decide."

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine faltered when Walter offered her his hand to help her off the bed. He must not of known that she wasn't able to stand by herself. His parents had had to pretty much carry her back to the bed after she'd jumped out of it to try to catch up with Walter. Still, she reached out and gripped his hand tightly, placing her feet beneath her on the cold wooden floors. She had to put most of her weight on him, leaning heavily into his side as she made her way across the room. Her legs ached as they shook beneath her so badly that she pretty much collapsed when she tried to kneel in front of the books. 

Her fingers traced the leather bindings, taking in their colors and embossed titles. She pulled one out, feeling the smooth cover with gold lettering. She didn't know what it said, but maybe he could tell her what it was about. Hopefully, it would be something she might find interesting. 

Jasmine twisted to look up at him, holding the book out with a trembling hand. She wished she had her strength back, that way she could at least walk on her own. She didn't even know how she was going to get off the floor, but still she gave Walter a small smile. "What's this one about?"