The London Institute loomed before me. Everything I had worked towards for the past year was coming to a head. I wasn't going to bother hiding what, for this time period, would be a very odd way of speaking. However, I had decided it would be best to wear the fashions of the time. Showing up in clothes that had yet to be invented might have caused a mighty uproar. My trunk trailed behind me, everything inside magically shrunk to fit. The debt I owed to Callile was immense indeed. I pushed at the gate. Surprisingly enough, it gave way. I made my way carefully to the front door. If I had landed here at the right time, then Miss Tessa Gray would have arrived at the Institute the previous night, and everyone would currently be eating breakfast. I rang the bell. And I waited.
After a few minutes, the door swung wide, revealing a slender girl with pretty brown hair, a scar twisting her once beautiful features into an ugly mask. I had been expecting her to look like this, so I barely blinked, instead giving her a large grin.
"Hello, I was wondering if I may speak to Mrs. Branwell?" I asked her. She seemed to be genuinely surprised at my reaction, or lack thereof, towards her face. Honestly, I thought she would be pleased. She nodded quickly, ushering me into the entrance.
"One moment, if you please miss," Sophie said, disappearing up the stairs. I set my trunk down and tried to arrange myself into a somewhat dignified position. The dress I was wearing was heavy and unlike anything I had ever worn. Callile had almost fainted in embarrassment when I had run half-naked into his workshop, begging for his help with all the layers. I smiled at the memory. It had only been a day ago, but it felt like forever.
"Hello?" I heard a small voice call from the stairs. I turned to see who could only be Charlotte Branwell coming down the stairs. Everything I had heard still couldn't prepare me for just [i]how[i] small she was. She looked like a child. I knew she was described as such, but it was still shocking. And I was still getting used to the few inches that Callile had put on me, arguing that all warlocks were tall. Going from 5'3 to 5'7 was very disorienting, if one ever had the chance to experience it.
"Mrs. Branwell, how very nice it is to meet you," I said when she came before me, holding out a hand.
"Um, it is nice to meet you too, Miss...?" she trailed off, taking it.
"Grace, but please, call me Katsa," I requested. She nodded.
"May I ask what you need to speak to me about?" she asked. I smiled.
"Of course. I'm here to help Tessa," I answered matter of factly. Charlotte breathed in sharply, her eyes widening in shock.
"Are you a family member?" she inquired. I shook my head. Then I remembered something that I hadn't done yet.
"One moment," I said, turning around. I focused on my eyes, pretending that I was wearing a pair of contacts and was plucking them out. I turned back to Charlotte. She gasped. At least that meant it had worked.
"Sorry about that. I had to glamour my eyes on my way here. I must have forgotten to take it off," I explained. She nodded quickly, running up the stairs and calling for the other members of the Institute. In a few moments, everyone else appeared at the top of the stairs. Will was the first to appear, more handsome than I could have ever hoped to imagine. Tessa was close behind him, gray eyes wide and curious. Henry and Jessamine arrived at the same time, closely followed by Charlotte and Sophie. Then my eyes landed on Jem and my breath caught in my chest. He was beautiful. More beautiful than the deepest recesses of my mind could have ever dreamed up. His eyes and hair shone silver in the dim light. His skin stood out sharply against the dark of his shirt. Perfect. Then I remembered that I couldn't go near him, and my heart hurt.
"Everyone, this is Miss Katsa Grace. She says that she can help Tessa," Charlotte told them. Will leaned against the railing, a smirk on his face. That was the expression I had always pictured him with. His eyes alight with mirth, a cold smirk on his lips. The fact that I knew his secret only made me feel as if there was a supremely funny joke at hand, but I was the only one who understood the punch line. Tessa approached quickly, eyes shining with fierce hope. Again, my heart hurt for the girl. Her whole world was about to come tumbling down. I would have to start slowly.
"You can help me find Nate?" she inquired, grabbing me by my shoulders tightly. The look on her face made it hard, knowing what I knew.
"I can. But when I am done explaining everything, there will be the question as to whether or not you'll want to," I told her sadly. Only then did she seem to notice my eyes. She let go of me and stumbled backwards, directly into Jem, who caught her with a look of amusement.
"Miss Grace-" Jem said.
"Please, call me Katsa," I implored.
"Katsa," he corrected, "might I ask if you are a warlock?"
"I would think it was obvious," Will answered for her, sounding very high and mighty. I gave him a smirk, biting back laughter upon registering the shock in his eyes. He will have found his match in me.
"Yes, I am a warlock. Only I am very young and inexperienced. I came to London looking for someone to train me. But then I heard about young Miss Gray and realized I could help," I said plainly.
"Help with what?" Jessamine asked accusingly.
"Ask me any question, and I'm sure I'll have an answer," I told her, not at all fazed by her icy gaze.
"Where is Nathaniel Gray?" Will asked, all humor replaced by a very serious expression.
"As of right now? He is a prisoner of Alexei de Quincey," I answered. The effect was instantaneous. Henry dropped the piece of toast he had been carrying, Will stood straight so quickly he hit his head against the shelf holding some decorations. I stifled a giggle, though I doubt anyone would have heard me over the shouting. Charlotte appeared before me and everything went silent.
"Are you saying that de Quincey kidnapped Tessa's brother?" she asked, eyes wide in shock.
"I never said that," I replied. Everyone looked at me with confusion.
"Besides, he wasn't kidnapped. He was given to de Quincey when he didn't do what he was supposed to," I finished.
"By who?" Tessa asked desperately.
"Axel Mortmain." This had the opposite effect. Everything got eerily quiet. I waited for someone to say that it wasn't possible. That Mortmain was a mortal and couldn't have dealings with the head of the London vampire clan. But they just stared at me in shock.
"Why don't you come with me to the drawing room. You can tell me everything you know about the matter," Charlotte said quietly. I nodded and turned to grab my trunk, only to find Henry already there. My heart began to thud against my chest. He couldn't go near that trunk. One accidental brush of the hidden mechanisms and he will have thought Christmas had come early.
"Please, let me," I murmured, easily taking the heavy thing from him. He looked momentarily confused, but then his eyes unfocused and he smiled pleasantly. Thank God for thoughtlessness.
"Alright," he agreed. "Charlotte, I'll be down in my workshop." Charlotte nodded distractedly, telling the rest of the Institute's inhabitants their assignments for the day. Then she turned to me and beckoned that I follow her. I did dutifully.
"Explain," she ordered when we got to the drawing room. I sat down in one of the arm chairs and began the story.
I told her everything that I knew wouldn't cause horrible time locks. I started with Mortmain's backstory: his hatred for Shadowhunter's and plan for their destruction. I didn't explain what Tessa was. That would have to wait. I did explain about the automatons and how he planned to get the Pyxis. Charlotte's eyes went from wide to buggy as I talked. She sat down when I finished.
"How do you know all of this?" she whispered. I feared I may have shocked the poor woman almost comatose.
"I've been gathering information since I came to London. I was lucky enough to get all the facts in the past months," I answered smoothly. I'd been rehearsing that for weeks.
"You said that you came to London looking for an older warlock to help you with your magic. Have you found one?" Charlotte asked. I blinked in small surprise. I'd half expected her to ask more questions about Mortmain.
"I found who I want to help me. Getting an audience with him, however, is much more difficult than I would have expected," I answered readily.
"We are going to investigate your claims. If they are true, than we will get you whoever you want to help you learn your magic," she told me. Now I was genuinely surprised.
"Until then, you may stay in one of our rooms," she added. I stood straight up.
"But I thought the Institute was for Shadowhunter's only. I am a warlock. I don't belong here," I argued. Her eyebrows flew up, her expression weary.
"Do you have any other place to say?" she asked. I bit my lip. Technically, no. I hadn't really been here the past couple of months. Just the past couple of hours. I saw her eyes stray to the trunk I'd set down by the door.
"Alright, no," I caved. She gave me a small smile and stood up.
"I'll have Sophie take you to one of the rooms," she said, poking her head out of the door. Sophie seemed to appear out of thin air. She reached for my trunk, but I leapt for it, grabbing the handle before she even had a chance to bend over.
"Sorry. All of my possessions are in here. I'm a little touchy about who... touches them," I told her affronted face.
"Excuse me?" she asked. I mentally kicked myself.
"I'm protective of my things," I adjusted. She seemed to understand. I followed her out of the drawing room and through the maze-like hallways. She stopped at what seemed like a random room, but when the door to the next bedroom opened to let Tessa out I realized she had probably decided to put me where a majority of the occupants were. Tessa gave me a startled look, but I just smiled before going into my own room. It was just as I had expected. I turned to Sophie.
"Thank you," I said, and she bowed her head in response.
"Ummm, I may need your help from time to time, getting dressed," I told her before she left, feeling my face flush bright red. She smiled in understanding.
"That's perfectly all right, miss," she assured me. I gave her a relieved smile. She turned again to leave, and again I stopped her.
"And could you help me out of this dress?" I asked sheepishly. She actually giggled at this. She helped me out of the gigantic thing and hung it up. She looked at my bra and underwear and I blushed again. I had blatantly refused to put on a petticoat.
"Are those American undergarments?" she asked, looking thoroughly mystified.
"In a sense," I answered. It was true. Sort of. She gave me a confused look, before bowing her head.
"If that's all, miss," she said to her feet.
"Yes, thank you, Sophie," I said, allowing her to leave. When she did I collapsed onto the bed, gasping at how amazingly comfortable it was. I had never slept on a bed like this back home. I decided against putting on any nightclothes, my energy suddenly gone. I had spent the entire night with Callile preparing for today and drilling my story into my head. I was exhausted. I slipped under the warm covers, snuggling up. My eyes felt heavy, and I let them slip shut.
"Miss Grace!" I heard someone saying loudly. There were hands on my shoulders, shaking me softly. My eyes fluttered open, and all I saw was silver. It took me minute to realize where I was, and what exactly would be making me see silver. Then everything came flying back.
"Jem!" I cried, pulling the sheets up to my chin and sitting up. He grinned sheepishly.
"My apologies. Charlotte asked me to wake you because Sophie was busy," he explained. "Dinner's ready." I nodded and asked him to to tell them I would be down in a few minutes. When he left, I leapt from the bed and went to my trunk. I rifled through all the shrunken items, telling myself I would enlarge them and put them away later. I finally found the least complicated dress to put on. It was royal blue, with fitted long sleeves worn off the shoulder and the corset worn on the outside, laced up the front. It flared out at the hips, the epitome of a princess gown. I had made Callile assure me six times that it wouldn't be too risqué for the times. I slipped into the soft material, sighing at the way it felt against my skin. I donned the corset, lacing it as tight as I could. Tessa would be scandalized, but Jessamine would approve. I found a pair of silver shoes that I could tell were going to pinch my feet and slipped them on, praying to God that my feet would survive the night. Last but not least, I slipped on my lucky handcuff necklace. It used to be gold, but I had worn it so much that the gold had rubbed away to reveal a tarnished silver. It didn't exactly match, but I felt comforted with it around my neck.
I slipped from my room just as Jessamine did. She looked me up and down and gave me an approving smile. I just smirked in response. It didn't seem to faze her, as she then asked if we could walk together. I offered my elbow, which seemed to confuse her. I realized women in this century probably didn't offer their elbows to other women very often. It was habit, so I just kept it there. She took it with a little hesitation.
"You are strange," she said blatantly. I laughed.
"I get that a lot," I replied, leading her down a set of stairs.
"I'm sure it comes with being what you are. Have you always been different from everyone else?" she asked. I nodded.
"Never in my life have I fit in with the regular crowd," I answered. She looked to me again with confusion.
"I was never like everybody else," I corrected. She nodded her understanding. We came upon the dining room and her arm left mine as we beheld Will standing atop one of the sideboards, tinkering with something on the ceiling.
"Good God, Will! What on earth are you doing?" I cried, fighting a smile, because I knew exactly what he was doing. Jem turned to us with a smile.
"He's fixing the gasolier," Jem answered at the same time Jessamine exclaimed: "Will, couldn't you get Thomas to do that?" Will looked down at us.
"Is that blood on your sleeve, Jessie?" he asked her. She huffed and stomped over to seat herself at the far edge of the table. I rolled my eyes, waiting for-
"I've done it!" Henry exclaimed, bursting into the dining room, wielding a large copper tube about. "I'll wager you didn't think I could, did you?"
"No one has the faintest idea what you're talking about, Henry," I answered, earning a glare from Will.
"I've gotten my Phosphor to work at last." Henry proudly brandished the object. "It functions on the principle of witchlight but is five times more powerful. Merely press a button, and you will see a blaze of light the likes of which you have never imagined."
"So it's just a very, very bright witch light then?" I asked, receiving another glare from Will.
"Exactly!" Henry exclaimed proudly.
"Is that useful, precisely?" Jem inquired. "After all, witchlight is just for illumination. It's not as if it's dangerous…"
"Wait till you see it!" Henry replied. He held up the object. "Watch."
Will moved to object, but it was too late; Henry had already pressed the button. There was a blinding flare of light and a whooshing sound, and the room was plunged into blackness. Tessa gave a yelp of surprise, and Jem laughed softly.
"Am I blind?" Will's voice floated out of the darkness, tinged with annoyance. "I'm not going to be at all pleased if you've blinded me, Henry."
"No." Henry sounded worried. "No, the Phosphor seems to— Well, it seems to have turned all the lights in the room off ."
"It's not supposed to do that?" Jem sounded mild, as always.
"Er, no." I laughed as Will began muttering under his breath. Then there was a great crash, and I felt someone at my feet.
"Will!" someone cried from behind me, and suddenly a blinding light flared from the same spot. I flinched from it, shielding my eyes instinctively. I looked down and saw that Will had fallen from the sideboard in a heap of broken crockery.
"What on earth...?" Charlotte trailed off, looking about with amazement.
"I was trying to straighten the gasolier," Will explained, leaping to his feet and brushing the broken dishes off himself.
"Thomas could have done that! And now you've broken half the plates."
"You can thank your idiot husband for that." He looked down at himself. "I think I may have broken something. The pain is quite agonizing."
"You look fine to me," I said at the same time Charlotte responded with "You seem quite intact to me." She gave me a surprised glance before turning to the rest of the room. "I suppose we'll be eating by witchlight tonight." Jessamine sniffed and again, I rolled my eyes.
"I hate witchlight," the girl whined. "It makes my complexion look absolutely green."
"Ungrateful child," I muttered, receiving a bemused expression from Will. As the witchlight tapers were brought about to light the room, I took a seat beside Will. Surprise flashed in his eyes, but he turned to his food without saying a word.
"How did your investigation go?" I asked. Again, a flicker of surprise passed his blue eyes.
"How did you know about that?" he asked in response.
"It seemed a likely job for two underage Shadowhunter's to undertake," I answered confidently. This was easy. He took a bite of his food, chewed slowly, swallowed, and turned back to me.
"We found an automaton. Henry opened it up and found de Quincey's seal carved into it. Do you still think that Mortmain kidnapped Tessa's brother?" he asked, his voice proud.
"Yes I do," I replied without inflection, "Mortmain put the seal there to lead you down de Quincey's trail."
"How do we know that you aren't an agent of de Quincey's, sent to blow us off his scent?" he accused quietly. I glanced around to make sure no one was listening.
"Because I know things about everyone in this room that de Quincey could never hope to guess," I answered cryptically. His eyebrows shot up in an amused expression.
"Oh, like what?" he challenged. I leaned closer, till my lips were almost against his ear.
"I know who Cecily is," I whispered. He froze, panic rising in his eyes. Jem noticed.
"Will, are you alright?" he asked with worry. Will immediately composed himself.
"Fine," he answered confidently, but his hands were clenched underneath the table, his back stiff as a board. Tessa took the oppurtunity to engage me in a conversation.
"Jem tells me that your eyes are your warlock's mark. They frightened me at first, but now I find them very beautiful," she told me. I smiled a gratified smile. It had taken a month and a half to choose what exactly I wanted them to look like. Eventually I'd ended up with the black to green to blue that I'd once given a character of my own, with a bronze pupil. They were strange, even among warlocks, according to Callile.
"Thank you," I replied.
"And that is a rather charming necklace. I don't believe I have ever seen anything like it," she added.
"Well, I don't think there are many like it anymore," I responded coolly. After all, it was technically true. Jessamine perked up.
"Is it a family heirloom?" she asked. I chuckled.
"No, I bought it myself a couple of years ago," I told her. Her eyes widened.
"Do you come from a rich family?" she asked.
"Jessie!" Charlotte cried, giving me an apologetic look.
"It's quite alright," I assured her, then turned back to Jessamine. "This is not an expensive necklace. The stones are paste diamonds and the metal is rather cheap. But I loved it the moment I layed eyes on it and decided I didn't care if it turned my skin green, I had to have it," I explained. Then I left her to figure that out and turned back to Tessa. She gave me a small smile.
"That was magnificent," I heard Will whisper into my ear. I gave him a quizzical look.
"I've never seen anyone shut her up so quickly," he clarified. I laughed. Loud, pealing laughter that had me clutching my stomach, and had him laughing along with me. I saw Tessa chuckling and Jem grinning. Jessamine looked venomous. Of course, that only made me laugh harder. It was wonderful. The last time I had laughed this hard was... I stopped laughing suddenly. The last time I had laughed this hard had been with another boy named Wes. The lightness in my chest that had come with the humor of the situation was replaced by a pain so real and jarring that I clutched at my heart, a gasp flying past my lips before I could stop it. Everyone looked at me with worry. There was pinching in my heart, and I doubled over in my chair, sucking in a deep breath that made the pinching worse. I hadn't experienced the pinching since my mother's death. This wasn't a good sign.
The pain receded slowly, and I righted myself. Charlotte was standing up, her eyes alight with concern. Concern that was mirrored in everyone else's eyes. Everyone except Henry, who was completely unaware of what had just occured. I felt a blush creeping onto my cheeks.
"I must apologize. Occasionally, I have small flares of pain in my chest. They happen suddenly and go away quickly. They're nothing to worry about," I explained. No one looked appeased. But the tension was relieved by Agatha and Sophie coming and taking our dinner. I heaved a sigh of anxiety, and Will gave me a sideways glance. I excused myself and left for my room. I should have known better. I should have known that leaving him would have be harder than anything I had ever had to do in my life. I remembered the shock in his face when I'd shown him Callile's workshop. The panic when I'd told him what I was doing.
Then I remembered the more recent pains. The tears in his eyes when I'd told him I was leaving. For good. How hard his grip on my arm was when I'd tried to leave. How we had done everything but sleep that night.
I leaned against the wall for support, my legs suddenly struggling to hold my weight. The pain was back. Not the pinching that made me want to carve my heart from my ribs. The gaping, black hole in my chest that made it hard to breath and had tears crawling up my throat.
"Katsa," I heard behind me. I righted myself quickly. I caught a glimpse of Jem, staring at me with concern, before my vision started swimming. I felt myself stumble, and then his arms around me. The scent of sweat and burned sugar found its way into my nose, and it seemed to clear my head. I gasped, finding the black hole had diminished upon Jem discovering me.
"I'm sorry," I apologized.
"You don't need to apologize. I'm guessing you left something behind," he said. I looked at him with confusion.
"Did you leave someone you loved in America?" he asked. My breath caught. Was it that obvious?
"Yes," I breathed. Tears pricked the back of my eyes, and I focused on the collar of his shirt, not wanting him to see.
"Perhaps you should write them a letter," Jem suggested. It made me remember another time someone had made the same suggestion. It seemed like forever ago. But back then I could actually follow through with the suggestion.
"I can't," I told him, detaching myself.
"Why?" he asked, tilting his head to look into my eyes.
"It's complicated," I answered truthfully, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear. He nodded in understanding.
"I see," he said quietly, looking to his feet.
"I know you didn't hear much of my conversation with Will, but I should tell you that I know about your illness," I told him. I hadn't been intending on it. It wasn't part of the plan. But I had underestimated how much just being near him seemed to move me. I had always thought that if he was real, I would fall in love with him without trying. And now that I was, it knew that that was a very real possibility.
"Is that what you told him? That made him look so scared?" he asked. I shook my head.
"I told him that I know everyone's secrets," I replied. His eyes widened.
"You know Will's secrets?" he questioned. I bit my lip and looked to the ground, nodding.
"How?"
"Again, it's complicated. But I would never use his secrets against him. I'm not a monster," I assured him. The fear in his eyes lessened slightly.
"So you know all of my secrets?" he asked.
"All of the current ones," I answered. Confusion flashed in his silver eyes. They were so much more beautiful this close up.
"You will have more secrets as time goes on. Isn't that how life works?" I clarified, and he grinned.
"I guess you're right," he agreed. "Why don't I walk you to your room?" I smiled.
"I see no reason against it," I replied. He offered his elbow, and I took it without a thought.
"It amazes me how readily you settled here," he told me after a few minutes of silence.
"I've always been an extremely adaptable person," I responded.
"Do you miss your home?"
"Sometimes. But mostly I miss the people I left behind."
"What made you leave them behind?"
"Well, my mother passed away, and it took its toll on me. I knew that if I didn't get away, I would do something stupid. It may sound selfish, but I left to keep myself from going insane." He seemed to think this over.
"That's not selfish. It would have been selfish for anyone to be angry with you for wanting to leave all that pain behind. You left in order to save yourself from misery. Anyone who thinks that's selfish doesn't deserve the pleasure of your company," he said. I felt my breath catch.
"You talk as if you already know me," I said quietly.
"I feel as if I do," he replied. I felt my cheeks flush.
"I guess that doesn't make sense. But from the little interaction we've had, I feel that I've learned everything I need to about you," he said.
"Like what?"
"You're funny, and sweet, and caring. You're willing to put others needs before you, and you feel everything more than the average person might. You can keep up with Will, which is a very hard thing to do, and you don't care what people think of you," he said. I was shocked, because he'd hit the mark spot on. Well, maybe he was pushing it when he said I was sweet, but most people thought that when they first met me.
"How very observant of you," I replied. He chuckled.
"This person you left behind? You loved them very much, didn't you?" he asked. I fought back the wave of emotion that the question brought on, and nodded.
"What was his name?" he asked. I gave him a confused look.
"Humor me?" he offered with a shrug. I looked ahead.
"His name is Wesley," I whispered.
"Isn't that an odd name?" he asked with a smile.
"I guess." We were at our rooms.
"Well, Miss Katsa, I must bid you goodnight," he said quietly. He took my hand and pressed his lips to my skin. Then he stood and disappeared into his room.
"Goodnight, James," I whispered to the door. Then I turned into my own room.
Because I had slept for so long that day, I knew that sleep would be hard to achieve. So I decided to begin unpacking. It was a long and tedious process, involving several enlargement spells and all of my magical energy. By the time I was done getting everything out of the trunk three hours later, it was all I could do not to fall asleep right there on the ground. But I got undressed and slipped under the covers.
I hadn't been asleep for very long when I was woken by someone yelling my name. I jerked up to see Will hovering above me, worry gnawing at his blue eyes.
"Will!" I hissed, yanking the covers up to my chin. I fought back bitter laughter at remembering being in this exact situation a few hours earlier, only with Jem.
"Listen, I need you to tell me everything you can about my family," he said in response, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"William Herondale, on what planet is it okay to wake a woman at this ungodly hour to talk about the family you left behind?" I snapped. He leapt off the bed. He probably wasn't used to anyone other than Jem using his full name.
"If you know that, then you can tell me if they're okay," he said after a few moments of silence. I rolled my eyes, then rearranged myself into a more comfortable position.
"They're fine. They're living well, and they miss you. That's honestly all I can tell you," I replied. His eyes bore into mine, searching for more. Which there was, but I couldn't tell him that without him going crazy and trying to ride out to Wales. His eyes stopped searching mine.
"I guess that's all there is to know," he muttered, plopping onto the floor. Forgetting how little I was wearing, I slid from the bed. It wasn't anything he hadn't seen before. I kneeled beside him.
"Will, you were supposed to move on from your family," I said. He tried to interupt, but I cut him off. "I know that's easier said then done. Trust me. But you can't keep pushing the family you have now away from you." He chuckled darkly and held his head in his hands.
"Yes I do. You have no idea what I've been through," he replied, his voice muffled by his hands. I rolled my eyes.
"Like I said at dinner, I know everybody's secrets," I told him. His head snapped up, sheer terror written across his features.
"You couldn't possibly-"
"I do." And he believed me. I could see it in his eyes. And then it was like a door opened, and I was seeing into his soul. I gasped, seeing such raw agony contained in just one person.
"Oh, Will," I choked, grabbing him and pulling him close. I felt him shudder violently, and I thought he was trying to get away from me. But then I felt moisture on my chest, and I realized he was crying. Huge, choking sobs racked his body, and I understood that he felt utterly hopeless; completely alone. I felt tears burning at the back of my eyes as he reached around and clutched me harder. Gently taking his face in both of my hands, I made him look at me. It broke my heart, seeing the suffering this beautiful boy had to go through.
"You can open up to me," I told him. I wouldn't tell him the truth. Not yet.
"I can't," he choked.
"I'm willing to risk this, Will. I know that you have Jem, but I also know that Jem isn't enough," I said.
"I can't allow myself to do that," he said, the tears slowing.
"You won't be able to push me away. I won't let that happen. But you could make it a bit easier for me," I replied.
"And how would you suggest I do that?"
"Let me in."
Author's Note: He he, so yeah. I hope you like it! Tell me what you think and if I should bother continuing the story. Constructive criticism please!