Chapter 1

Lena. Ethan's voice whispered in the back of my mind. I smiled and climbed off my bed. My notepad was left abandoned on the dresser. I climbed down the stairs in a hurry. I grabbed one of the deep red curtains and peeked my head out. Ethan was sitting off in the distance. I threw the door open and ran a hand through my curly hair. I ran out to him. He has been coming by everyday since he came back from the Otherworld. Well, everyday when his father was working at the university. Ethan was leaning against a large oak tree in Greenbrier. Our place. We've shared so many memories in this place. Ethan looked up at me when I approached. His dark brown eyes looked at me with all the love in the world. But, I could see the sadness that lurked behind the love.

"Hey." He whispered as I sat on the grass next to him. The grass brushed my palms lightly as I leaned to lay on his shoulder.

"You seem sad." I looked up at him. I couldn't help but be concerned about him. He never spoke about what happened in the Otherworld. Or the events after he came back. He never let on but I knew Amma's death affected him deeply. But he never cried or complained. I felt his hands caress my hair.

"You think she's happy with the Greats?" I nodded slowly. This is the first time he'd mentioned anything about her since the accident. Well, since she fell off the water tower to save Ethan and let him live.

"Yeah. I think shes happy. Probably gossiping with Prudence and playing cards with Uncle Abner." He smiled sadly. He hasn't smiled right since then either. Normally, his smiles are so bright and wide enough that you could see the dimples in his cheeks. This smile was different. Full of grief and darkness.

"Ethan." I sat up and looked at him. He was staring off into space while picking blades of grass and shredding them slowly. I touched his cheek and I felt a tear slide down. I leaned over and kissed where the tear had fallen. Ethan stood up suddenly, almost knocking me over in the process. He shoved his hands in his pockets roughly and began stalking off. I sighed and got up to follow him. His shoulders were hunched over as he paced.

"Ethan." He stopped and turned to look at me. Tears were flowing freely now. I ran to him and threw my arms around his neck. He leaned into me and I felt his tears on my shoulder.

"I miss her so much, L. It's so hard living without her. I'm not getting woken up by her banging pots around in the kitchen no more. Or having mountains of scrambled eggs for breakfast. Hell, I don't even know how Dad and I are surviving. We can barely cook anything other than toast and even that comes out burnt most the time. There's no salt lining the windows or bottles hanging on the tree. There's no pies baking in the oven. It just doesn't feel like home without her." He sobbed into my shoulder and I caressed his hair.

"It'll be okay." I tried my best to soothe him. But, I knew better than anyone how hard it was to help someone get over death. When uncle Macon died, I went off the rails and left Ethan behind. Even though Amma is gone, Ethan hasn't left or let the grief overwhelm him. He was so strong even in his weakest moments. Much stronger than me. He stopped crying and leaned away from me. I brushed his shaggy hair out of his face. He hasn't had a haircut sine then either. I kissed the tears off his face and he pulled me into him.

"I love you, Lena." He whispered in my ear before pulling back and kissing me gently. My arms wrapped around him and I pulled him closer to me. I tangled my fingers in his hair and his hands settled on my hips. We haven't been this close since he came back from the Otherworld. His kissed were sweet but firm. He turned me and pressed my back against the closest tree. I smiled against his lips. His arms wrapped around my waist as is kisses got more urgent and passionate. His tongue flicked across my lower lip. I slowly opened my mouth and our tongues began to dance together through the kiss. His hands moved farther up my back as he attempted to draw me closer. I shivered at his touch. We couldn't seem to get close enough. A shock went through my body when Ethan bit my lower lip gently. I tugged on his hair rather hard and he smiled against my lips. Then, it was as if we had been ripped apart by an invisible force. I was leaning against the tree still but Ethan was on his knees panting.

"Ethan, are you alright?" I leaned down and touched his shoulders. He was shivering and I realized what was going on. My touch still affected him. Before, we could only afford to have small chaste kisses. We have never kissed like that. I could still kill him! Ethan's breath slowed until he was breathing normally again.

"I'm so sorry. I thought this was over. God, I'm so stupid." I kicked at the grass and I felt Ethan grab my wrist.

"It's okay Lena. We're getting better. We've never kissed like that. I can withstand more now. Which means all we need to do is give it time." I listened to his words without really listening to him. I thought this was all over. That we could be together without the threat of me killing him. A single tear fell out of my eye and I swiped it away before Ethan could notice it.

"We should get back. Uncle Macon will want me at dinner. Do you wanna join us?" Ethan nodded and I helped him to his feet. He swayed a little when he stood up and it was difficult for me to help him stand. His tall stature made it hard for me to keep him steady. Ethan took a deep breath and smiled at me.

"I'm okay." He said before grabbing my hand and pulling me against him. It wasn't easy to walk in this position but I didn't say anything to him.

"So, what do ya think Kitchens making tonight?" He chuckled softly and kissed my head. I sighed. He was so perfect. Every breath, every movement, every word, and every sound was amazing.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see."