Paper in a File {Brollins}

With the group of five, time flew by for Rebecca, and before she knew it, she and Colby were on their way back to the safe house with Chase.

Seeing Riki again had set her back a few steps, and she didn't want to close herself off again, but Rebecca was finding herself wishing she could curl up into a ball and shut the world out. Colby didn't deserve that though, which is what made her try harder than ever to believe she could trust him.

During their drive home, the sound of the car on the road filled most of the silence. Progress was very rarely a liner thing, and Colby knew that, but it was still disheartening to experience it secondhand. He couldn't even imagine how Rebecca felt dealing with it all firsthand.

He didn't want to cause Rebecca more stress, so he didn't bother trying to get answers of some sort that could help the case or discuss it with her further. Instead, he noticed her hands gripping her thighs, seeing she was obviously still stressed.

He hoped her hanging out with the group would help her out, and it seemed to for a while, but even he was being overly optimistic for believing she'd drop it so quickly. Colby slowly moved one of his hands from the steering wheel over to hers, touching her ever so slightly, so she wasn't caught off guard.

He heard her breath hitch and assumed she was still slightly startled. Colby lowered his hand fully and gave hers a small squeeze, feeling her turn her palm upwards and wrap her fingers around his warm hand. No words were exchanged, and no comments were made, but none needed to be.

When they got home, and Rebecca watched Colby lock the door and turn on the alarm, she let out a breath of relief. Yet she found an unsettling feeling staying in her chest. Even the bottom step that always creaked caught her off guard when they walked up.

Colby just slowly guided her upstairs, his hand on her lower back for an additional sense of support. Instead of getting himself ready for bed, he stayed near Rebecca while she went through her routine so she felt safe. Just as he moved to shut the door behind her as she went to change, she stopped him.

She looked at him, and he could see the tears in her eyes. "You don't have to if you don't want to... but could you, maybe..."

He patiently gave her time to finish her thought as a tear rolled down her cheek, and she wiped it swiftly. "Can you just come in and like sit and stay... while I change."

"Of course." Colby nodded and followed her in, sitting on the edge of her bed and gazing at the wall in front of him while he heard Rebecca rustle around.

"Thank you." She spoke quietly as she moved where she'd be in the corner of his eyesight, letting him know she was done.

He stood and smiled warmly. "It's what I'm here for."

"To baby me? You keep saying that but..." Her laugh reeked of self-deprivation as she put Chase in his crib and slowly shuffled to the bathroom.

Colby shook his head as he looked at her through the mirror. "To help you."

Rebecca nodded with a forced side smile and shakily patted her hair before reaching for her brush, still completely unable to get herself to calm down. She still felt her heart pounding as if Riki was right in front of her, and nothing seemed to be helping.

"You know I didn't use to like asking for help." She spoke, and Colby could see her hands trembling as she tried to make it through the first brush stroke. "I still don't."

He took the brush from her cold hands and gave her a nod, gently beginning to brush her curls for her as she continued. "I guess now I'm just more desperate."

Rebecca exhaled, and her breath was unsteady. "Or maybe I just don't know who I am anymore..."

Colby listened to what she was saying and knew she wanted someone to rant to rather than someone to come up with solutions for her. He continued to softly brush through her hair, determined to do a good job. "What gives you that impression?"

"Well... I thought I was strong, thick-skinned, capable, but today speaks for itself." She picked at her fingernails. "And I thought I was good at dealing with things on my own, but at the cafe, Pamela and Mercedes could read me like a book. I just know it. Even if they were nice enough to ignore it."

"Maybe you're just at a time in your life where you're discovering who the real you is." He replied softly, and she turned to face him as he carried on. "Maybe you're finally getting a chance to accept who you are. On your own terms, without being forced to."

Colby didn't want her to read into it too much, so as he untangled her final strands of hair, he smiled. "They do say kids change people."

He felt her breath against his neck as she laughed quietly, saying their good nights shortly after. When Rebecca lay down, she closed her eyes and tried to push the thoughts away, hoping to get some sleep. After some tossing and turning, she let out a frustrated sigh, her mind chastising itself.

However, her eyes opened out of instinct when she heard a car door close outside, and suddenly all her thoughts came to a halt. The neighbourhood they were in was typically empty, and at this time of night, it was almost eerily silent.

Rebecca was almost exhausted enough to stay laying down, but she slowly rose and peered out the window, and when she saw an all too familiar black truck outside, her blood ran cold.