(Please R&R! Also check out The Rain is like a Lullaby, a short story about the night world. Though it doesn't tie into this at all really)

Chapter 12

"I don't think that this is really such a good idea." Rashel voiced her opinions for the hundredth time it seemed. Yet Dr. Gunderson wasn't paying her much attention.

"Why not bring him back to a place that has a public views with kids his own age?" he voiced.

"But he's not a kid—not really anyway. He's been that age for over 12 years! (I don't have the book next to me as a reference. Sorry) I don't think he would remember how to interact with these kids let alone want to be around them."

Dr. Gunderson had brought up the notion to Rashel and Quinn a few days ago; at the time Rashel agreed…. but now? Now it just seemed that this hadn't been a smart idea. Timmy's views on humans were still on the border of vermin infested.

They stayed far back from the park ground leaning on the borders of the grass; Gunderson had let Timmy go off on his own on a bright sunny day. "This was his need to feel will be restricted by the amount of people and the sun."

Rashel leaned against the picnic bench, her boot tapping endlessly against the graveled ground. Why was this eating at her?

A warm hand cupped her, a thumb moving back and forth over the back of her hand. Quinn gently tugged at her, forcing Rashel to look over at him. "You can't shadow him forever." He said.

Like always Quinn hit it on the spot and it was killing her more. She quietly looked over toward Gunderson who was busy reading a book he'd had tucked away in the folds of his jacket. She met Quinn's gaze again, "I just found him again John. He's my brother. Why can't I fix this?"

Quinn pulled her closer forcing her to sit on the bench with him and folded her up in his arms as if protecting her from everything that could and would cause her pain. Only he was allowed to see how fragile she could be and he was the only one that was able to let her walk along that glass road without her feeling like everything would shatter into a million pieces.

"He's been with them too long. When your lost in that darkness for so long you loose sight of that light and even forget what it looks like. Sometimes when you find it you can't even recognize it." His hand came up, warm and sure, pushing away the curtain of her raven hair to look at the emeralds of her eyes. "You push away a lot of that darkness and proved to me that there was a light, maybe you can be the same for Timmy and maybe you can't, but you need to try everything."

"But if it doesn't work—"

"Then we will keep trying. Rashel you don't have to do this alone. I'm not going to let you. We will do everything we can for Timmy, I promise."

Rashel smiled up at him, "I love you." She whispered.

Quinn rewarded her with a smile that made her heart skip a beat and make it hard to breathe. She was the only one that ever saw that smile of his. He kissed her, the only way that he could to show just how much she meant to him.

As their souls rose above them in the park, to embrace one another, Rashel heard it small and sure, creeping up in her heart and mind like a whisper in the wind.

I love you

(It's very short I know. But the next chapter is going to be longer. A lot longer I promise!

This is all leading up and I give you a TEASER! The upcoming episodes will start getting very very JUICY!)