4 Consoling

(A/N: Additional chapters are on patreon.com/TheGreatestHunter)

"Do you want to eat something? Maybe take a shower, you smell. Where were you all night, Elena hasn't even left her room since she got home from the funeral yesterday, unless she has to use the bathroom and now you're disappearing too. I don't know what to do Jeremy!" She rambled. Allowing her worries to be voiced and vented for probably the first time.

He could feel she needed it and he understood her perfectly. After all, he used his own pain filled walk as a form of venting himself...he could only imagine the stress the cute brunette was under with no way to get a release. If she weren't his aunt, he reasoned they could help each other relieve a little stress...but he knew it would not be so.

Despite that, he knew he had to find some way to allow her to refocus her energy. Her and Elena...but how?

"I'm sorry, Jenna," he consoled her as he placed his hand on her cheek and brought her eyes level with his own as he employed his Gilbert smolder, which is what he was now calling it. "I needed to get my head on straight," he told her, allowing Jeremy's natural puppy eyes to show. "But I'm better now. After all," he allowed a little sadness to show, "I'm now the man of the house."

And with that, the waterworks were off and Jenna was, as Elsa likes to put it, letting go.

He did not know how long they stood there. Him holding her. Head snug against his neck, and nor did he care.

At that moment, he simply wanted to give her what she needed...so he did.

It took a while for her to come back to herself, only to discover that they had moved to the sofa and she was snuggled in his lap.

He would have found her embarrassed face adorable...if she did not look oh so very tired.

She needed to rest.

"Jeremy, what are you doing?!" She shouted as he lifted himself, along with her in a princess carry off the sofa and began to walk toward the stairs.

"Putting you to bed, Jenna. You need to get some sleep and I need to take a shower and catch a nap, myself. We can talk more later. Everyone needs an afternoon nap every now and then." He told her, moving steadily, blocking out the aches and pains coursing through his system.

"I'm fine, Jeremy. I slept here last night, unlike you." She commented. Clearly not letting the matter rest. However, he swerved right past it and kept on walking.

He opened the door to what used to be his parent's room and laid her down on the bed.

"Get some rest, Jenna." He told her as he placed a palm on her arm. "We have busy days ahead of us and we're going to need our rest if we want to be able to function without the use of a whole lot of alcohol." His crooked smile let her know that he was joking, despite the lack of change in his volume when he spoke.

He patted her arm like he was consoling a child.

"Get some rest. You're tired. I'm tired. Let's sleep."

And with that, he laid himself down right beside her and let her snuggle up on his chest once again.

He knew he made a good body pillow.

(Line Break)

It didn't take long before he could hear her steady breathes going in and out as she caught a much needed nap.

However, despite his words, he would not be joining her in the land of slumbers.

He had something far more important to do.

And do it, he did.

The shower was glorious and exactly what he needed. No matter how much the water stung his skin.

He really needed to take some time to heal himself up.

A drug overdose is no joke and no matter how much he wanted to be fine, as long as he could not move the way he wanted to, needed to...then he was not fine.

(First Person P.O.V.)

I looked at myself in the foggy reflection of the mirror fresh out of the shower.

The condensation was minimal because I have always preferred cold showers...which say nothing about my mental health. However, the cold was doing far more harm than the soothing warm to my fragile nerves...so, I went with the better option. Since I'm not a masochist...unless Katherine is holding the whip...then....well who knows.

As I took in my reflection, I couldn't help but note the handsome looks that led to Jeremy, the previous version, getting women that he had no right getting...despite his garbage personality. And unless I was mistaken...I definitely looked older than what I was supposed to...perhaps a result of my body's premature death? No matter, I looked good, felt bad, but at least I was alive, no matter the circumstances...After all, as long as I'm alive, anything is possible.

I could do better. Be better. Jeremy better.

But first...before all of that...I had a "sister" to console.

And a diary to burn.

Don't nobody need that shit!