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RAFE

RAFE TORE INTO the driveway. An equal measure of terror and blind rage flowing through him. He was going to kill Chandler Groff if it was the last thing he ever did.

When Kiara had called him in tears, Rafe was thankful he had already been on his way to the Pogues' property. Charlotte had hung up too quickly with him earlier and hadn't responded to any of his texts. He'd known something was wrong. But he never would have imagined it was this wrong.

He felt like he was going to throw up as he ran into the house, throwing the door open without any regard, "Lottie!" He scanned the house, looking for any sign of her.

"We're in here!" Came a voice that sounded like Charlotte's but wasn't hers. It was Kiara's, and it was thick with tears.

Rafe swore he'd never moved so fast in his life as he rounded the corner to the living room. His eyes instantly found her, and a mixture of emotions flowed through him, so strong he swore he was dizzy.

Charlotte was awake and seated on the couch, Kiara and Sarah both stuck to her side, each of them wore tear stained, anxiety ridden faces. The other Pogues watched on, they too bubbling with worry. Relief, that Charlotte was okay, was Rafe's first emotion.

But then he saw them—the bruises in the shape on fingers on her neck, the split of her lip, blood pooling. Blinding hot anger overtook him at the thought of what Groff did it her.

"Rafe?" Charlotte questioned, her tired eyes raking up to meet his. The voice sounded nothing like her own, it was gravelly and hoarse as if she hadn't spoken in days.

Rafe ignored the others in the room, pushing past them so he could kneel in front of Charlotte. "I'm here, baby," he promised, not at all caring that he shouldn't be calling her that right now. He placed once hand on her knee, the other hand reaching up to gently wipe the tears from her cheeks. "I've got you."

Kiara, who was still clutching one of her sister's hands, spoke. "She needs to be taken to the hospital."

"No," Charlotte instantly argued, wincing in pain at her assertion. "We need to go get JJ."

Rafe took a moment to survey the room. Huh, guess the Maybank kid wasn't here.

"You need to be seen by a doctor, Char." Sarah said softly, her eyes meeting her brother's for a moment. "We'll get JJ."

Charlotte looked around the room at her friends, biting down on her bottom lip. Rafe really hoped she was going to make the decision on her own, because otherwise he'd be dragging her to the hospital whether she wanted to go or not. "Okay," she finally croaked out. "Go. Now. Text Rafe when you find him...my phone is toast."

That was all Kiara needed to hear. Rafe glared at her for a moment, wondering how she could leave her sister, who'd just almost been killed, so easily. But then again, he'd do it for Charlotte if he were in Kiara's shoes.

"I will," Kiara promised her sister, leaning over to press a kiss to the top of her head. Her eyes then swivelled to Rafe. "Text me when she sees a doctor," she ordered, less than pleased that she had to elicit his help. Rafe fought the urge to smirk at her displeasure, it really wasn't the time. Instead, he gave her a small nod, instantly taking her seat on the couch next to Charlotte. 

The other Pogues said goodbye to their injured friend, prepared to set off to find their missing one. Rafe figured it must be exhausting to be a bunch of law-breaking Pogues. They never seemed to be whole. As they all filed out of the house, silence fell for a moment. 

Rafe couldn't take his eyes on Charlotte for even a moment. He studied the bruises, his heart literally breaking in his chest at even the mere thought of this being worse than it actually was. He wouldn't have survived if Charlotte had been taken from him. He knew he wouldn't. 

Hesitantly, Charlotte turned slightly and met his eyes. Tears welled up in hers as her lip wobbled. "I'm okay," she promised him, trying to ease his concerns. "I'm alright."

A defeated breath fell from Rafe's lips as he gently pulled him toward her in an embrace, burying his head in her hair. "You don't have to be," he assured, not at all wanting her to feel like she had to be strong for him. "But I'm not going to let anyone hurt you again, alright?" He hated himself for allowing this to happen in the first place. Maybe if he hadn't been such a dick the night before she would have still been at his place, not at the Pogues' place where she clearly wasn't safe. 

Sobs racked Charlotte's body as she leaned into him, the noises coming from her so heartbreaking that they brought tears to Rafe's eyes. 

After what felt like forever of the two holding each other, Rafe spoke. "Come on, Lottie. Let's get you to the doctor."

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CHARLOTTE

She didn't mean to flinch when the nurse lightly touched her shoulder, but Charlotte couldn't help it. She'd been reliving the events that put her here, and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't shake that feeling...the feeling of death. 

She'd been admitted quickly upon her and Rafe's arrival to the emergency room. She'd been sent for tests and scans and poked and prodded. Rafe had stayed by her side the entire time, only letting go of her hand when he was forced to. 

Until now. 

The nurses had come in saying they needed to run some more tests. They'd tried to send Rafe for coffee, claiming the tests were invasive, and then had subsequently argued with him for five minutes when he refused to go. It was only when Charlotte finally convinced him to go take a break and try to call Kie for an update that he relinquished. She'd known he would have done anything she asked.  

Despite the claim that tests needed to be done, not a single test had been done in the five minutes Rafe had been gone. 

"Sorry," the nurse said softly upon Charlotte's reaction. She studied the young girl's face for a moment. "You know, I'm not supposed to say anything but if you're worried about the results of your CT scan, don't be."

Charlotte gave her a small smile, trying to pretend that that's what had been eating up her mind. She should have been worried about her health, but truthfully that was the last thing on her mind, despite the pain she was in. The meds they gave her when she'd arrived had kicked in, but it didn't fully take away the aching in her throat or the pounding in her head. Groff had done a number on her, she was just thankful he had enough resolve to stop before he actually killed her. 

But she feared that he wouldn't have the same mindset when it came to JJ. Lord only knows what he had planned for the lost son, and with every second that Rafe and Charlotte didn't hear from Kiara, she grew more and more concerned. At that point, hearing that JJ was okay was far more important to her than her stupid CT scan results. 

The nurse, her name tag read Morgan, glanced over her shoulder for a moment, an almost nervous expression covering her features. "Look, Charlotte, I want you to know that you have options. We can help you. You're safe here."

Only then did Charlotte's thoughts truly break away from JJ and his safety. Her eyes swivelled toward Morgan, confusion sweeping across her features. "What are you talking about?"

Morgan placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "There are supports for people who are suffering domestic violence. We can get you somewhere safe. All you have to do is say the word."

Charlotte knew feeling angry at this nurse's words were irrational, but that's exactly how she felt. "Rafe didn't do this," she snapped, defensiveness coating her every word. "He would never do this to me."

"Charlotte..."

The sympathetic look on Morgan's face almost made Charlotte more angry. Maybe it made her the most angry because if she had stayed around a year ago when Rafe was in his darkest place, this could have been their reality. She never wanted to think that Rafe was capable of hurting her, and she knew the Rafe she knew now could never even dream of it. But a year ago had been a whole other story. 

"I'm telling you he didn't do this!" She argued, voice louder than she intended. "It wasn't him."

Morgan nodded, but Charlotte could tell by the look on her face that she didn't believe her. "I'm going to leave these in the bathroom under the sink," she said, holding up a pile of pamphlets. "They're there for you to grab if you want them before you go."

She should have thanked her for caring that much, that's what she should have done, but Charlotte was too distraught with the suggestion that Rafe could have done that to her. So instead, she simply stared past Morgan, a blank expression on her face. 

The nurse had barely left the room by the time Charlotte was pulling out her IV and rushing to change out of the hospital gown and into the clothes she'd come in. She knew it was only a matter of time before another nurse walked in and the last thing she needed was to be caught. 

She was in the process of buttoning up her shorts when the door opened and Rafe walked back in, two cups of coffee in hand. "Woah, what are you doing?" He questioned, a look of both worry and confusion mixing on his features. 

"We have to go," Charlotte demanded, moving toward him to take the cups of coffee out of his hands. She set them on the table by her bed before reaching down to retrieve her shoes. "Now."

Rafe still looked utterly confused. "Did the doctor come in to talk to you? Do they have your results back?"

"They think you did this to me," Charlotte explained, pausing her frantic dressing to look her ex-boyfriend in the eyes. She hated the way she could see his heart break at her words. 

"I would never do that to you," Rafe whispered, as if part of him thought he needed to convince Charlotte of that. 

Charlotte let out a quick breath, taking his face into her hands. "Rafe, I know that. God, don't think for a second that I don't know that. But they don't, and if I know anything, it's that they probably already have Shoupe on his way over here to question you. So we have to go, now."

She tried to pull him toward the door. "So let him," Rafe argued. "I'll tell him who the piece of shit is who actually did this to you."

"No!" Charlotte shot back vehemently. "That will lead him right to JJ and that's the last thing we need right now."

"What you need right now is to talk to the doctor," Rafe argued. "What if you have some sort of brain injury or something?"

Charlotte shook her head. "I'm fine, the nurse basically told me so herself."

Rafe stayed frozen in place for a moment as he stared back at her,  the two of them in a silent battle. It was he who finally gave in. Again, he'd give her anything she wanted. 

"Okay," he agreed, nodding toward the door. "Let me go first."

A grateful smile came to Charlotte lips as she watched him move toward the door. He opened it slowly, peeking out into the hall. He was quiet for a moment as he looked both ways. Finally, he opened the door all of the way and stepped out. "Come on," he muttered, reaching back for Charlotte to take his hand. She did so happily, the two of them silently moving into the hallway and toward the exit. 

Charlotte kept her head down, knowing if they got caught they had a lot more explaining to do. 

As they neared the registration desk, voices could be heard carrying down the hallway. "I'm lookin' for Charlotte Carrera."

That was Shoupe, Charlotte recognized his voice instantly. 

After a moment, the nurse at the desk responded. "Room 221."

Ice ran through Charlotte's veins, he was about to be headed right toward them.

"This way," Rafe whispered, pulling the two of them through a doorway. Charlotte was thankful for his quick thinking, as it landed them in one of the stairwells. 

The perfect escape. 

"Hey," Charlotte said softly once they were safely in his truck and pulling out of the parking lot. 

Rafe paused, turning to look at her. It was evident he still wasn't entirely pleased with this whole plan. 

"Thank you," Charlotte said, sincerity coating her words. "I mean it, Rafe. Thank you."

He gave a small nod, eyes flickering from the road toward her. "I'd do anything for you, Lottie. You know that."

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