Jezebel loved her husband, she truly did. She had been in love with him for so many years, but the man she had been faced with for the past few weeks, the man who had given her divorce papers hours earlier, that was a different story. A man who didn’t trust her, who acted unlike the person she married. His memory was gone, and there was so much left missing, but even when the truth was in front of him he didn’t accept it, he didn’t accept her, or their children. He had been like a stranger, making her feel worthless.
How was she supposed to handle that and be there for 3 newborns? How was she even supposed to handle having 3 newborns like this to begin with? Her girls were with her, but her son… Her son wasn’t here with her, with his sisters, where he was supposed to be. Her baby boy was in critical condition and that made everything hurt more. When the nurse told her that later on she could be brought to see her son she nodded slightly. She wanted to see him right then, to know how he was doing, but she also wanted to see her girls, who needed her to be present for them too. ”I just… I want to be alone with them for now.”
The nurse left the room, but Jordan stayed, and his words… his words were like she had begun to think she’d never hear again. The way he spoke, it was like the Jordan she had known since she was a child, the Jordan she loved. Though, it only made her more unsure. The part that caught her attention the most however, was when he referred to their girls and their son. Not just her kids, but theirs, together. For weeks he refused to believe they were his, to treat them like his own flesh and blood. Now, here he was saying all the words she wanted to hear. She could see the way he looked at the girls, with love and admiration, the way she knew he felt towards the babies from the moment he first knew she was pregnant.
His words, his apology, it was everything she had wished for, but as much as she wanted to forgive him and forget everything that happened, she couldn’t. She loved him, but she couldn’t just forget the way he treated her. She spent her entire childhood treated like she was worthless, like she was only a problem in their lives, by the people she wanted to love her the most. Without his memory, that’s how he had made her feel, like she was still the same girl who would never be worth it, never good enough and always the problem. He knew how he treated her, he knew her well enough to know how it made her feel.
She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know how to feel. She wanted to tell him how much she loved him, but even looking at him was still painful. ”I thought I knew you…” was all she could say to start. She didn’t know what to do. Everything was a mess. Her mind was a complete mess, and she was being pulled in every different direction. She just knew she didn’t feel like she knew him like she thought she did. ”You gave me divorce papers… You thought I was lying about them.” she added, referring to their girls in her arms, and their son she had yet to meet. ”I thought we lost you when you were in the hospital, but then you woke up… and we still lost you… you didn’t want anything to do with me, us… like I meant nothing to you…” How was she supposed to be sure this was real? How was she supposed to know he really wanted this life with her, that he wouldn’t go back to the life he had years ago, the life his lack of memory had taken him back to. How could she be sure that she wouldn’t have the rug pulled out from under her again? She married the love of her life, the father of her children, but then she lost him, what would stop it from happening again?
She loved him so much, but she was still hurting. Only 2 other people in her life had ever made her feel the way he had made her feel over the past few weeks. One being Daniel, when he first found out they were related, and her mother. Maybe if her mind was clearer, she would have known what to say, how to feel, but she was too torn. She wanted to forgive him, but she was too scared that everything was about to be ripped away from her.
She didn’t know what to say next, but Jordan didn’t have much chance to respond either, as Annie came into the room soon after. ”Annie…” she said, surprised by her showing up. Annie may have been the one who caused the accident in the first place, but Jezebel didn’t hold it against her. Accidents happen. If anything, Jezebel thought Annie hated her. There was just so much going on with the dynamic. Annie was a Pierce, making her family even without taking Jordan into account, and she was Jordan’s daughter, making her Jezebel’s step-daughter. Jezebel didn’t expect to ever be viewed as a mother figure by Jordan’s kids with Sadie, but she wanted to look out for them, to be there for them as if they were her own. ”We’re holding up. These are your sisters, and their brother, your brother, we’re waiting to find out how he’s doing.” Jezebel answered, then looked to both Annie and Jordan. ”If you want to, you can come meet them.” she added, but paused before saying, ”But I think you want to talk to your dad.”
In a way, both Annie and Jezebel knew how the other felt to an extent. Their relationships with Jordan were what he had forgotten. Jordan remembering makes such a difference in their lives, and for Annie, perhaps it was simpler. For her, she just needed her dad back. While for Jezebel, there was so much more. Years of heartache, long buried pain, trauma from their youth, the babies and what they need, it all played a factor. Jezebel just needed to sort out how she felt, and maybe it would be easier with a little less on her mind, less worry about her son, and less fear.
@benitz786 - Jordan 
@novella - Annie