Title: How It Happens

Pairing(s): Lily/Wes

Rating: K+

Summary: I wouldn't regret falling in love with Wes. Wouldn't regret the time we had together, wouldn't even regret the time I had wasted because I hadn't realized I loved him. I would cherish it all, the good, the bad, and the wasted. [Lily/Wes]

Requested By: Mediate89. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I just realized how long it's been since I put one of these in my stories. Bad me! /slaps hand/ Anyways, The Host is the soul property of Stephenie Meyer. And wow, that was a bad pun.

How It Happens

By: ForeverSam

"Need a hand?"

I looked up from the carrot I was trying to wrestle out of the ground. Standing over me was…a boy, really. He looked like he was sixteen, maybe seventeen years old. He had dark eyes, olive-colored skin, and a brilliant smile. "I'm Wes." He added in response to my puzzled look.

"Ah. Nice to meet you. I'm Lily." Wes knelt down next to me, taking the carrot stem in his hands.

"You liked like you were having fun fighting with this thing." He said as he yanked. The carrot resisted, as it had with me. But to my surprise, he got it out.

"Nice."

"All in the wrist." He flexed his wrist jokingly. I laughed, rolling my eyes. "Actually, I'm from Montana. Grew up on a farm. Guess all those killer farming skills of mine will finally be put to good use."

I smiled despite myself.

"Lily?"

I recognized the voice, but I didn't look i[. It wasn't the voice I wanted to hear. "Lily." Ian rested a hand on my shoulder. "You can't stay here. Let's go to your room."

"Go away." I muttered, my voice muffled. Ian didn't listen. He wrapped a gentle arm around my shoulders, pulling me up.

"Come on…"

He half led, half-dragged me down the hall. I didn't resist, but I didn't help either. I didn't see the faces of the people we walked past, didn't see the pitying looks. I didn't want to see them…

"Goal!" Wes cheered, pumping his arms in a victory dance.

"You haven't won yet." I informed him, giving him a mock glare. "We're only tied, big guy."

"I might as well have won." He shot back. It was easy to hear the joking tone in his voice. "One more goal Lily…"

I went to receive the ball, giving him a quick smirk. "One more goal." I agreed, picking up the ball and dropping it on the ground in front of me, putting my foot on top of it. "But you have to catch me first!"

I took off, dribbling the ball between my feet, darting past Wes. "Hey!" He protested, running after me. I heard him pounding behind me, and tuned out the sound of his foot falls so they wouldn't distract me. The goal was so close…I pulled my foot back to kick the ball…

"Gotcha!" And Wes tackled me from behind. I don't think he actually meant to hurt me, but the force of the collision was strong; we both ended up going down. Wes wrapped his arms around me and twisted so I landed on top of him.

"Nice." I moaned sarcastically, pulling my head off his chest and gazing into his face. He was laughing. No surprise. "This isn't football Wes."

He gave me a grin. "Yeah, but that was fun."

His happiness was contagious. I gave way to a grin of my own, and soon we were both laughing at our small predicament.

"Um…are we interrupting something?"

We looked up. Ian and Kyle were standing a few feet away from us, similar looks of shock on their identical faces. "We were going to ask if you wanted to play two-on-two." Ian gave us an apologetic smile. "But you look busy…"

I realized quickly how easy it was to interpret the position Wes and I were in. I rolled off him quickly, saying, "No, no, two-on-two sounds good. We're in."

Wes stumbled up, holding a helping hand out for me. I took it, and he pulled me up. He held my hand just a second longer than he had to.

Ian sat me down on my mattress, putting a blanket over my shoulders. He sat down next to me, tucking a loose strand of hair back behind me ear. "Why?" I asked, my voice hollow. "Why did this happen, why to him?"

Ian didn't answer. "It's not fair Ian." I continued, not caring how stupid I sounded. "He never didn't anything wrong. Why did he have to die?"

"I don't know, Lily. I don't know. Wes was—"

As childish as it was, I covered my ears. I didn't want to hear his name. I didn't even want to think it.

Ian carefully pulled my hands away. "Sorry." He said in a low voice. "I'm sorry Lily. You're right. It's not fair."

I wrapped my arms around my legs, resting my chin on my knees. Tears slipped down my cheeks. Ian reached out, wiping them away.

"It's okay Lily. It's okay."

No. It wasn't. It would never be okay again.

"Did you see it?"

"What's Jeb thinking?"

"Looney old man…"

The mutters traveled around the dining area. I poked my spoon into my bowl of soup. Jeb had brought the soul back hours ago, but it was still causing a stir.

"You can tell we don't get much action down here." Wes chuckled, sipping his soup. I gave him a disbelieving look.

"Don't tell me you aren't disgusted my that…thing." I demanded. Wes shrugged.

"Of course I am. But listen to them—" He waved a hand at the people around us, "they sound like gossiping old ladies. I think Jeb is out of his mind, of course, but we knew that already. Might as well just roll with it and see where it goes, right?"

I just stared. Sure, Wes was young, but I'd thought he had good sense — now he just sounded foolish. "Don't give me that look. I wish Jeb would get rid of it too. But you know he won't. Why cause trouble?"

I shook my head, not wanting to admit that Wes' words made sense.

"I hate her." I whispered, staring blankly at the floor.

"Hate who?" Ian asked. "The Seeker?"

"The Seeker, Wanda, both of them, all of them!" My voice rose with each word I spoke. "The Seeker for kill him, Wanda for coming here, the souls…for existing! I hate them all!"

Ian's arms were around me in a second, holding me, trying to calm me down. "You don't mean that." He murmured in my ear. "Wanda is your friend, Wes' friend." I flinched at the sound of his name. "He wouldn't want you to hate her, would he?"

No. He wouldn't. But it just hurt…so much…and I wanted to hate somebody…wanted to make the pain go away, somehow…

Wes bounced the ball back and forth on his knees, his eyes following carelessly. I was lounging on the a rock, sipping a water bottle. "Jared's angry." I said after a minute. "Did you see his face? I think he would have been less shocked if Jeb had put a knife in his back."

"No kidding. He'll get over it though. I think he's just shocked, you know? Didn't expect to come home and find us coddling the 'enemy.'" It was easy to hear the quotation marks in his voice. I smiled. "It was kind of rotten of Jeb to drag Jamie into this though. Kid's just gonna get hurt in the end."

"I think we're out of happy endings here." I informed Wes, capping my water bottle. "For all existing parties."

"I dunno." Wes grinned a bit. "I like to think there's still the possibility of the 'guy getting the girl' happy ending."

I raised an eyebrow at Wes. "Got your eye on someone?"

He didn't answer.

I don't remember falling asleep. But I must have, because I dreamed. I dreamed I was in the desert. IT was light out. Daytime. The sun beat down on me, but I absorbed none of it's heat.

And then Wes was there. Just there. Grinning his trademark, light-up-a-room-grin, his olive skin glowing in the bright light that surrounded us. My heart swelled when I saw him. My feet moved automatically, striding towards him.

But something was wrong. I moved and I moved, but I never seemed to get any closer. I tried to reach out, to touch him, but my arms wouldn't move. I tried to call to him, but my voice was gone. All I could was run towards him as he moved away…

My eyes snapped open. My pillow and blanket were both drenched in sweat. I felt cold, though it was warm in the room. I sat up slowly, tucking a damp lock of hair behind my ear.

The sun was up. It shined through my window, beating down on me. "Lily?" I looked at the door. Jamie was sitting against the wall, watching me with worry in his large, dark eyes. "Are you okay? You were muttering in your sleep."

Was I okay? That seemed like such a stupid question. I had to remind myself that Jamie was just a kid, no matter what he had suffered through. He didn't need me snapping on him.

"Boom." Kyle gave us a cocky grin as the echoes of the ball hitting the wall reverberated around the room. Wes fell to the ground, feigning unconsciousness. I doubled over, resting my hands on my knees, breathing hard.

"O…kay." I managed to choke out. "You win. You don't need Ian to beat us."

"Damn straight." Kyle was still grinning as he left. Wes, still sprawled across the floor, moaned.

"He's not a man, he's a machine." I giggled as I collapsed as well, sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"Maybe next time we shouldn't tease him. I think we made him mad." Wes muttered something of an agreement. I got up on my knees and crawled over to him, leaning over and looking into his face. He opened his eyes, grinning when he saw me.

"What's up?" I laughed, laying down next to him. We stared at the blackness above us in silence.

"You know—" I looked over at Wes, my words catching in my throat when I saw he was watching me intently. His olive skin burned red when he saw I'd caught him, and he looked away quickly.

"Sorry. What were you saying?"

I didn't remember. So instead I decided to make a joke. "Hey." He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "See something you like?"

He half-smiled. "Yes. Very much."

My heart started pounding. Wes and I had been friends since he'd come here. He was young, but mature. I'd seen that in his reaction to Wanda. I'd been at him different recently. It wasn't a bad thing.

"Lily—"

"Wes—"

We spoke at the same time. Our mouths snapped shut, our lips twisting into embarrassed smiles. After a minute Wes pushed himself up, holding a hand out for me to take. I took it, and he pulled me up. He didn't let go.

"Life and love go on." He said quietly, smiling. "Even past the end of the world."

I tried to form a coherent thought. He was a lot younger than me. Only a year over eighteen. Young. And jeez, it was the end of the world. What right did love have to exist?

The longer he held my hand, the harder it became to thing, to remember what was so wrong with this. "You're cute when you blush." Wes teased. I hadn't realized how red I had become.

"Wes, I—"

And then his lips were on mine, and I forgot what I had wanted to say.

"C'mon Ian, let me hold her!"

Jamie's pleas reached my ears long before I reached the hospital wing.

"No way Jamie." Ian's voice was firm. I almost managed a smile.

Ian was sitting on Doc's desk, a cryo-tank clutched tight in his arms. Jamie was sitting on the ground in front of him, pouting. Doc and Jeb were leaning against the far way. Jared and Melanie were sitting on a cot; the former had his arms around the latter's waist.

I'd heard, of course, what was going on in the hospital wing. Wanda had taught Doc how to take souls out of humans without hurting either one. She'd give up the secret, and had tried to give up her life right along with it. But Jared and Ian had stopped Doc, rather violently, from what I'd heard.

My eyes locked on the beautiful soul in the tank in Ian's arms. "Pretty." I murmured, unable to think of anything else. I hadn't known what to expect when Trudy had told me what was going on.

But I knew one thing; I hadn't expected the soul to be so breathing-taking. "She's beautiful." Ian corrected with a small smile.

"Everyone's treating her like a sideshow." Melanie grumbled, looking a bit upset. I flushed, realizing I probably wasn't the first to come down to see Wanda.

"So you're heading for Seattle then." Jen spoke up, continuing an earlier conversation. Jared nodded, his face careful, calculating. He was already planning the trip in his mind.

"Where we're talking kidnapping…the further away we get, the better." I looked between them, confused.

"Who are you kidnapping?"

Jared gestured to the cryo-tank. "We want to find another body for her. She deserves it."

My eyes drifted over the soul — Wanda. Except you wouldn't have known it was Wanda unless someone told you. It could have been any soul…it could have been the Seeker…

I didn't realize I was moving until I was halfway down the south hall, walking away from the hospital wing.

"She's getting too close." Aaron argued, his voice rising. "She's going to find us, we have to stop her!"

"The entrance his hidden." Heidi argued. "If we go out and reveal ourselves, it's over. Give it time. She'll move on, just like the others did."

"She's not moving on." Brandt inserted. "We need to put an end to her, before she puts an end to us."

Wes and I were sitting on the edges of the game room, listening to everyone shout their opinions as to what we should do about the Seeker — Wanda's Seeker. She was getting too close. She was going to find us.

She had to be stopped.

All eyes turned to Jen, who had been amazingly silent the entire time. He sighed heavily.

"We have no choice. We'll wait until she sets up camp for the night and go in. Who's going?"

Aaron and Brandt stood at once. Andy stood as well, though Paige tried to hold him back. I felt Wes move beside me, but didn't realize he was standing until it was too late. "No!" I hissed, grabbing his hand. He squeezed my fingers, but didn't sit again. A few more people followed suit, and finally, I stood too. Wes looked appalled.

"What are you—"

"Jamie sit down." Jeb sighed. The boy pouted as Trudy pulled him down again. "Let's get ready then…"

Wes pulled me aside as we left the game room. "What are you doing?" He demanded. "You can't go!"

"I won't if you won't." I said simply. Wes looked very unhappy.

"Lily…"

He couldn't say he wouldn't go. And he couldn't stop me.

We spent the time until sunset getting our assorted weapons together. Trudy and Heidi watched the Seeker, waiting for her to make camp.

"We'll surround her tent." Jeb said morosely, explaining the plan. "Aaron, Brandt, the two of you go in with me. Disarm her, finish her off. It'll be easy."

Easy. Right.

Trudy and Heidi announced that the Seeker had made camp. She started fire, ate…and finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she retreated into her tent. We waited awhile longer to make sure she was asleep.

"Let's go." Jeb murmured at last. We made out way up, out of the entrance, into the cool night air. "Surround the tent." Jeb ordered quietly. We did as we were told, readying our weapons, though they wouldn't be necessary. Jeb led Aaron and Brandt into the tent.

It should have been easy.

Gunshots suddenly rented the silent night, surprising us all. We jerked to attention as a shout of pain echoed through the air. "Brandt!" Aaron shouted, panic clear in his voice. At the same time a small figure darted out of the tent. The Seeker. Jeb ran out after her, raising his gun and shooting. He missed by half an inch. The Seeker raised her gun and fired, then fired again, and again, forcing us all to scatter. Jeb dove for the ground to avoid being shot as well, trying to get a clear shot at the Seeker.

"Damn—"

I'm not exactly sure when it happened. All I know is one second Wes was next to me, readying the club he was clutching, and the next he went down. I never saw the bullet hit him.

"No!" I screamed, abandoning my own weapon and diving for him. "Wes, Wes!"

Finally the firing stopped. I think the Seeker might have run out of bullets. Aaron darted out of the tent, grabbing the Seeker, holding her back. She thrashed in his grip, shouting. I didn't spare them any attention.

"Wes, Wes, Wes…"

There was a circular hole in his forehead. His blood stained the ground beneath his head. His eyes were still open, staring, unseeing, at the starry night sky.

"Wes…Wes…" I whimpered over and over, my hands wrapped around his. "Wes…please Wes, please…Wes…"

The Seeker's yelling stopped. Maybe Aaron knocked her out. Maybe he killed her. A violent rush ran through my body, informing that I hoped dearly for the latter.

"Wes…Wes…Wes…"

I don't know how I long I sat there, whimpering his name, holding his hands, trying to will him back to life. Eventually I was aware of muttering around me.

"Doc got the bullet out of Brandt…"

"We'll keep her in the storage hall, then? Like we did with Wanda?"

"Sun's coming up, we have to get inside…"

"What about Wes? Should we bury him now or wait?"

"What's the point of putting it off? There's nothing to wait for."

I shivered, not relinquishing my hold on Wes' hands. They were already cold…

"Lily?" Someone whispered in my ear. Trudy. "Lily, come on, we have to get inside."

Behind us, the others were debating. Bury Wes now, wait until the next night, the sun would be up soon, would the Seeker be missed? Maybe someone was expecting her to contact them…

Trudy carefully pried my fingers off of Wes, pulling me away from him. I didn't struggle. I had no fight left in me.

"Wes…"

I didn't know what the others had decided. I didn't care.

Time passes. As strange as it seems, as much as sometimes, it feels like the end, time does pass. Hours and days, weeks and months, they go by. And life does go on. Even past the end.

Jared, Melanie, and Jamie found Wanda a new body, as we had all expected they would. And I'm happy to say that I was there for the first few moments of Wanda's new life. I watched as she finally accepted her place in our community, our lives. Watched as she and Ian quickly recovered the love, the absolute love, they felt for each other.

And I realized, as I watched them, that this was how it happens, this strange thing called love, this thing that I didn't know still had a right to exist. It wasn't planned, or maybe even wanted, in some cases. It was crazy and unpredictable and erratic and the best thing in a person's life. Ian didn't count on falling in love with an alien. But he would never regret it, either.

And I wouldn't regret falling in love with Wes. Wouldn't regret the time we had together, wouldn't even regret the time I had wasted because I hadn't realized I loved him. I would cherish it all, the good, the bad, and the wasted.

I would miss him, of course. Surely that pain would never go away. But then, neither would Wes. I still had my memories, after all. My precious memories of the time we'd had, of his beautiful grin, his infectious laugh. Wes would live in, in my mind, at least. And that would be enough until we could be reunited again — someday.

Author's Note: My very first Host story. What'd you think? Review and let me know, please? Also, please ignore any funky spelling or grammar or forgotten word errors. I'm only human, after all — Sam