Chapter 77 Hold Together

Chapter 77 Hold Together
For one suspended, unbearable second, Elowen could only stare.
Laura stood just inside the restroom doorway, one hand still curled around the handle, her expression stripped off of all its usual brightness.
And beside her, Lucian had gone unnervingly still and his gray eyes were locked onto her face, taking in the tears, tge trembling shoulders and the obvious evidence of a breakdown she had desperately wanted no one to witness even her own brother..
Humiliation hit first as she had a fierce instinct to turn away, to shove past them, to lock herself into one of the bathroom stalls until she could pull herself together enough to pretend none of this had happened.
Instead, she froze because there was honestly nowhere to hide.
Not with Laura’s quiet concern softening her features and not with Lucian looking at her like seeing her hurt was somehow physically painful for him.
“Elowen.” Laura’s voice was gentle.. Nothing like her usual teasing and the sheer softness of it nearly undid her all over again.
“I’m fine,” Elowen said automatically. The lie came out broken but no one called her out  on it.
Laura moved first, crossing the space between them without hesitation and before Elowen could protest, her friend wrapped both arms around her.
“I know you’re fine my love.. I know” Laura whispered aaaaa sge hugged her and the sudden warmth shattered what little composure remained in Elowens body as another set of  fresh sob broke loose.
Laura simply held her tighter. “It’s okay,” she murmured softly against Elowen’s hair and that somehow made it worse because kindness always did.
Elowen gripped Laura’s sleeves with shaking hands and cried harder.
The fear of the morning, the mounting bills, the terror of losing Kieron after everything they had gone through, the  crushing and painful exhaustion of holding everything together for so long.
It all came pouring out in hot, humiliating waves and Laura never once let go.
Through her blurred vision, Elowen became dimly aware of Lucian stepping closer.
He stopped a few feet away from the restroom door as he knew he couldn’t enter and his restraint struck her with painful force.
He simply stood there, silent and solid, as though making himself available without forcing her to take anything she wasn’t ready to accept and that quiet consideration made her chest ache.
When the worst of the tears finally subsided, Laura pulled back just enough to brush damp strands of hair from Elowen’s face.
“Breathe my love.”
Elowen let out a shaky laugh that sounded suspiciously like another sob.
“This is mortifying.”
“No,” Laura said firmly. “This is human.”
The simple truth of it lodged painfully in her throat but before she could respond, Lucian spoke.
“How is Kieron?”
The question was so carefully neutral that it almost undid her again.
She swallowed hard. “They want more testing.”
Lucian’s jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. “But he’s stable?”
She nodded. “Yes..For now.”
A heavy silence followed after she spoke and then softly...
“We’ll figure it out.”
The words came from Lucian as though there had never been any question.
Something twisted painfully in her chest. She should have bristled, she should have rejected the implication that this somehow involved him.
Instead, she found herself nodding before she could stop herself because for one terrifying moment, she wanted to believe him, she wanted to lean into that impossible certainty and let someone else carry the weight for just a second.
And that frightened her more than anything.
The rest of the afternoon passed in exhausted fragments.
Kieron was discharged. Laura insisted on helping them get home while Lucian drove.
No one spoke much.
Elowen sat rigidly in the passenger seat, staring out the window while the city blurred past in streaks of gray and gold.
Every now and then, she felt Lucian glance at her and each time, she pretended not to notice because acknowledging it felt too dangerous.
When they reached the apartment, Laura hugged her tightly before leaving.
Lucian stayed just long enough to help Kieron upstairs despite Kieron not acknowledging him then he was gone without any dramatic promises or intrusive questions.. Just a quiet nod and a low, “Text me if anything changes.”
The simplicity of it affected her more than grand gestures ever could.
.
.
The next morning, Elowen was reviewing discharge instructions at the kitchen table when the hospital billing portal notification arrived.
Her stomach dropped instantly.
Bracing herself, she opened the statement and immediately frowned because the balance due read..
‘Paid in full.’
She stared at the screen in confusion because that had to be wrong.
She refreshed the page over and over again but the same result appeared.
Every preliminary test, every consultation fee, every observation charge.. Everything.. 
Cleared.
There was only one person who could have done it. Fury surged so fast it made her hands shake. 
She wasn’t supposed to go, she wasn’t supposed to do anything aside watching over Kieron but she went anyway.
By the time she reached the gym that afternoon, she was already vibrating with barely controlled anger and glory be to the heavens, Lucian was already there, wrapping his hands.
He looked up when she entered and immediately knew.
“Elowen I can ex..”
“How dare you.”
The words cracked through the room like glass and his shoulders instantly stiffened especially as she crossed the space between them in furious strides.
“You paid the hospital.”
His silence confirmed it and rage as well as humiliation twisted violently together.
“What is wrong with you?”
His expression remained infuriatingly calm.
“He needed care.”
“That was not your decision to make.”
“He needed..”
“That is not the point!”
Her voice echoed through the empty gym and Lucian set his wraps down slowly.
“Elowen.”
“No.”
She was too angry to let him soften this.
“You don’t get to keep doing this.”
“Doing what?”
“Acting like you can just fix everything with money.”
Something sharp flickered across his face.
“That isn’t what this is.”
“Then what is it?”
For the first time, frustration cracked visibly through his composure.
“It’s me trying to help.”
“I didn’t ask for help.”
“You shouldn’t have to ask for it.”
The force of his response stunned her and for half a heartbeat, silence dropped between them then the humiliation returned with full force.
Without thinking, she shoved him.. Hard.
The movement was fueled by pure frustration but Lucian barely budged instead, his hands shot out instantly catching both her wrists and holding them in place, not painfully or aggressively though...
Just firmly enough to stop her and that sudden contact sent a violent jolt through her making her breathing hitch.
His fingers tightened around her wrists and suddenly they were standing impossibly close.
“Elowen.”
Her name came out low and rough.
She should have pulled away and should have demanded he let her go but instead, she stayed exactly where she was.. And so did he.