Jude’s Broken Heart #3
The moment the door to the pharmacy slid open, the bell chimed, and Toni and Gem froze.
Then they converged. Dex released Jude’s hand and stepped aside, not wanting to get caught in the fray.
Gem practically tackled Rusty, mouth running a mile a minute, words blurring from Hellia to Arakni to English and back again.
Somehow, Rusty was able to understand him, and he did his best to calm the frantic Araknis. When that didn’t work, he grabbed Gem’s face in his hands and kissed him soundly, effectively shutting him up.
“I’m okay, caryd,” he said, kissing him a second time, gentler, sweeter. “I promise. I’m sorry I worried you.”
With a wounded noise, Gem scooped him up into his many arms and cradled him close. “Don’t you ever do that to me again. I thought something horrible had happened.”
“Your mom had to stay with your sister,” Hemersyn said to Dex, a taloned hand coming to rest on his shoulder. “I told her I would bring you back in one piece.”
“Thanks,” Dex said.
Toni had been fretting over Jude, running his hands over his head and neck and sides, like he was searching for injuries. He didn’t say much beyond, “What’s wrong? Are you hurt? Jude, where are you hurt, baby?”
“Toni,” Jude said, and something in his voice froze the Elas instantly. “I want to go home now.”
If anything, that seemed to scare Toni more. “O-okay. We can do that. But, baby, you’re shaking, and your heart, it’s—it’s racing so fast. What’s wrong?”
“Please, take me home,” Jude said.
Blue hands cupped the human’s face. “Jude, you’re scaring me.”
“I’m scared too,” Jude tried for a smile, but it broke halfway through. “But I’m here, and I’m with you. So please, Toni, take me home.”
“Okay.” Toni swiped his thumbs over Jude’s cheeks and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Okay, baby. Let’s go home.”
Without acknowledging any of them again, Jude took Toni’s hand and led him away. Gem opened his mouth, like he was going to call after them, but Rusty stopped him, three fingers on his bottom lip. He shook his head, just once, and Gem closed his mouth.
“I gotta drive the car back,” Rusty said, and Gem nodded, lowering him back to his feet. “Come with me?”
“Of course, ashari,” he said.
As Gem followed Rusty to one car, Dex trailed Hemersyn to the other. He took the front seat and buckled in as Hemersyn settled behind the wheel. The engine purred to life, and a few seconds later, they were following Rusty into traffic.
“I won’t pry,” Hemersyn said, “but is everyone okay? Is there a need for medical attention or, gods forbid, the authorities?”
“No, nothing like that,” Dex said.
Like he was accustomed to being kept in the dark, Hemersyn dipped his chin and accepted Dex’s answer. The rest of the drive passed in silence.
After Rusty had parked in the garage, he tossed Hemersyn the keys, waved at Dex, then immediately led Gem down the driveway and out through the gated entrance. The Araknis went without a fight.
“Come, I know your mother is worried.” Hemersyn patted Dex’s shoulder and guided him toward the door connecting the garage to the house.
“Do you ever worry that you did the wrong thing?” Dex asked as Hemersyn hung the two sets of car keys on the hooks by the door. “Like, maybe you didn’t say the right thing when your friends needed you? Or you were quiet when you shouldn’t have been, or you talked when you should have been quiet?”
The Avia cocked his head, studying Dex closely. “I think, sometimes, being there for your friends is enough. It’s not always about what is or isn’t said. It’s about being seen and accepted and supported, especially in our time of need.”
“I’m not that good with words,” Dex admitted, and Hemersyn smiled.
“Perhaps not always, but you are exceptionally good at being there when people need you most. At least, that’s what I’ve witnessed between you and Cya.
” He squeezed Dex’s arm. “And when it comes to them, it’s less about what you say, and so much more about what you do.
They’ve been given empty words their whole life. It’s actions they trust.”
“I wasn’t talking about them.”
“I know,” Hemersyn said with an almost cheeky smile. “Consider it some fatherly advice.”
Dex chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. “Oh, okay. I don’t get much of that, so thanks.”
“Anytime.”
As they walked through the kitchen, Dex wanted to give something back, so he said, “Cya really loves you, you know.”
Hemersyn stopped, a warbling trill vibrating in his throat, but he didn’t speak.
“Knowing them,” Dex continued, “they probably don’t tell you as often as they should, but they do. Whenever they talk about you, they get this… look. That’s how I know that you mean a lot to them.”
Hemersyn crest rose as he released a gentle cooing sound, then his mouth curved up in a smile. “Thank you for sharing that with me. Cya is… Well, I care about them a great deal.”
“I know,” Dex said, patting the Avia’s back before he left the kitchen.
Before he got too far, Hemersyn said, “Dex?”
“Yeah?” he asked over his shoulder.
“I’m not the only one.”
“The only one what?”
“The only one Cya cares about. That look they get?” Hemersyn’s smile was rather mischievous as he said, “They get that look when they talk about you too.”