Chapter 3
Something immediately happened when Krista looked into those water-blue eyes. Something that took her breath away and made her forget about everything else. Looking into those petrified and confused pupils, Krista's soul could only scream that this was her daughter – a feeling so foreign to the woman.
"Krista?" Eric asked as he stood and moved towards her. When she didn't respond, he followed her gaze to the bed and he, too was taken back by the feelings that overwhelmed him.
Renee on the other hand, was also in complete shock. The man that perfectly imaged her father was still with her and not only that, but he was standing with a perfect image of her mother!
Krista was the first to finally come back into reality and allow her motherly instincts to kick in. She ran over to the young girl, sat beside her on the bed, and grabbed a hold of her hand in sympathy. Renee was a bit startled by her affectionate actions, but was in so much shock, she didn't care.
"Renee," Krista started. "How are you feeling?" The girl just stared at her blankly. "Renee?" Krista repeated. The teenager finally snapped out of shock.
"Um, okay, I guess. Who are you?" she asked as she sat up. "How do you know my name? Where am I?"
Eric, who had taken a seat on the opposite side of the bed, used the opportunity to explain the situation. "Well, I don't know if you remember, but you ran into me and passed out. I was worried so I brought you here to the hospital." Eric waited for a response and when he received none, he continued to explain. "We're Eric and Krista Williams" he said, motioning to him and his wife. "We know your name from your journal." He saw her eyes go wide and she started to speak, but he cut her off. "Don't worry. I didn't go through it."
Krista decided to get down to the important business. "Sweetheart, where are your parents?"
Renee tried to think of a reasonable lie, but decided to go with the basic truth. "Um, well," she started. "They died." She stated bluntly as she looked down at her hands.
"Oh." Krista simply said. She thought it was terrible that this girl was all alone, but something inside of her claimed Renee as her own with this statement. "Where are you living then?"
Renee shrugged her shoulders and looked back at Krista. "Wherever is warm."
Krista looked over at Eric as he matched her gaze. They could both see mutual understanding in each other's eyes as they both felt such a strong parental connection to Renee. With the agreement settled, Krista looked back at Renee's distraught face and gave her a look of joy. "Well, I'll tell you what. How would you like to come live with us?" she asked as she reached for her hands.
Renee stared at Krista as shock spread across her features. She continued her stare to Eric and when she saw a similar expression, she was completely taken back. "You can't be serious…"
Eric let out a soft chuckle. "Trust me, when Krista asks someone to stay at our house, she's definitely serious."
Renee still couldn't grasp the idea of sleeping in a human bed with a house full of human people - weird thought, but at the same time, very intriguing, but she couldn't possibly impose though. "Um, that's okay. I would just get in the way and you –"
Krista cut her off. "Nonsense." She stood up and walked over to where the bag of clothes was sitting on the chair. "You definitely will not get in the way and besides, we want you to." She picked up the bag and brought it over to Renee. "Hopefully these fit. Eric thought you were about a size six, but they might be too big with how starved you are."
Renee took the clothes, but shook her head. "I don't understand. I don't know you people." She gestured to Krista and Eric. "Why would you help me? You just met me."
Eric looked at the floor and tried to find a logical explanation. "Well, we're not exactly sure ourselves. Something just seems right though and if you don't mind, would you just let us be a help?"
Renee laughed a little at his way with words. She looked at him and Krista still trying to discern if they were serious or not. She finally decided that she had nothing to lose and to just accept the help. "Okay, but if I get to be a problem of any kind, don't hesitate to kick me out."
Krista's smile widened to a thousand watts as she finally felt like she had found her daughter. "Wonderful! Don't worry though - we won't have to go to those measures. I'm sure you'll be fine. Oh, and as a side note though, if anyone asks, you're our daughter." Renee was a little confused by this, but oddly didn't care. "Let's get you out of here and on home."
