Red closed the clinic door softly behind him, the muffled sound of Alexanders breathing fading behind the wooden frame. He stepped into the crisp evening air, jaw tight.
Jennie stood a few feet away, arms crossed, her back to the pale gray sky. The wind was sharp, dragging flurries of snow across the empty road. Her breath misted in the air at, but she looked untouched, cold and composed like winter herself.
He walked up to her, not stopping until they were face to face.
"you need to apologize", Red said flatly.
Jennie tilted her head with a mocking smile. " Excuse me?"
"I don't usually get involved in your drama," he said. "you and I don't even talk unless we have to. But what you did in there.... you crossed a line"
Jennie's smile faded.
Red's eyes narrowed. "you insulted someone who kept your brother alive. Someone who treated his wounds, cleaned his blood, changed his bandages, all without knowing who he was".
Jennie scoffed. "oh please, Red. Don't paint her like a saint, she probably saw an opportunity and took it".
Red took a slow, measured breath. "This isn't about what you think she's doing. This is about what you did. The way you talked down on her, like she was trash. that's not okay ".
Jennie looked away, biting back something bitter.
"I don't care if we never speak again after this ", Red added. "But today, you were out of line. And you owe her an apology "
Jennie's eyes narrowed. "I'm not apologizing "
Red didn't flinch. "Jennie -"
"No," she snapped, stepping closer, her voice rising with every word. "why should I? you think you're the only one who cares about him? you don't know what it's like being a Whitson. you don't know what kind of pressure he's under. what we're under."
The cold wind blew between them, sharp and bitter, but she did stop.
"you think you're the hero?. Bringing him to this....this rundown clinic?" Her voice cracked now, not from the guilt, but from anger. "you almost killed him, Red. you risked his life by dumbing him in the middle of nowhere with some unlicensed village doctor"
"watch your mouth", Red warned, jaw tightening.
Jennie pointed at the building. "She's not a doctor. She's a nobody. you don't even know her! for all we know, she saw a rich man on death's door and thought"jackpot". you think this is kindness? it strategy"
"She didn't ask for a thing"
" she will. just wait"
Her voice echoed off from the frozen road, breath rising in visible clouds between them.
Red took a step back, disappointment flooding his expression.
"she treated him better than any of us did", he said quietly. "And if he hadn't crashed in this village, he'd be dead by now ".
Jennie opened her mouth, but he cut her off.
"And you're not mad she helped him. you're mad that she matters. That he might remember her kindness more than your name."
Silence. A long, sharp silence.
For once Jennie didn't have anything to say.
" you want to talk about who almost got him killed?" he said, his voice low and controlled. "it was you. This whole thing started because of you, Jennie ".
Jennie froze , her mouth still slightly open, breath catching in cold.
"you went behind your family back ", Red continued. "broke the rules, dated someone from the Cubs, knowing damn well what that meant ".
Her lips parted in a soft grasp, eyes darting around like someone had over heard.
"oh, now you're quite?" he snapped. " Alexander didn't crash out of no where. He came here because of you. Because he heard what happened and wanted to protect you. wanted to fight for you ".
His voice grew heavier, colder.
"And now look where that landed him"
The wind howled between them, a cruel echo of the truth.
Jennie blinked, suddenly not so put together. Her fingers tightened around her designer coat, eyes wide.
Red took one step closer.
"You think i don't care about him?" hr said. "you think I brought him here because am reckless! no, Jennie, I brought him here because he didn't want your parents to know what really happened"
He left the words hang there like a blade."One phone call," Red said slowly. "and you'd be thrown into the street. you know it. I know it. And he knows it "
Jennie swallowed hard. Her voice was barely a whisper now. "you wouldn't -"
"I'm not the enemy," Red cut in. "But if anyone should be yelling, it's me. Because I'm the only one who's been trying to protect the both of you "!
He stepped back
"you don't have to like her", he added. "But next time think twice before you insult the only person who helped your brother ".
Jennie's face was pale now, her breath shallow.
She looked at Red, eyes flickering with something unspoken, pride? fear? guilt?. She scoffed, a bitter sound trying to cover the shaking in her throat.
Without another word, she spun on her heels, the sound of her boots crunching through the snow, echoing into the cold.
Red didn't call after her. He just watched her go, jaw clenched, fists buried in his coat pockets.
Jennie matched past the old fence line, past the rusting sign that once marked the clinic's entrance. Her walk was fast, sharp, like she was trying to stomp the shame out of herself.
But the farther she got from Red, the more her composure began to crack.
Her steps slowed
Her chest tightened
She stopped near a tree at the bend in the road, far from the clinic lights. Her shoulders trembled.
Jennie wrapped her arms around herself, not because of the cold but because she finally realized Red was right.
She wasn't mad at Debby
She was terrified of her
Terrified that Alexander might look at Debby the way no one had ever looked at her. with gratitude, with something real.
And worse
She was terrified of her parents finding out what she did.
One phone call. one whisper, and she be done.
Her eyes burned, but she didn't let the tears fall.
Not here
Not yet