AN: Hi! So, here's Part Two and I hope you like it. If all your questions aren't answered by the end of this then you can send me a PM and I'll answer it there. And thank you to everyone who read and reviewed last chapter.
CH-35: The End Part Two
Show that you're scared like me so
Let's pretend we're alone
And I know you may be scared
And I know we're unprepared
But I don't care
Tell me, tell me
What makes you think that you are invincible?
I can see it in your eyes that you're so sure
Please don't tell me that I'm the only one that's vulnerable
Impossible
-Vulnerable by Secondhand Serenade
**********V**********
"Everyone's staring," I commented as I walked down the hallway of La Push high school on the way to my locker.
"No shit," Paul laughed loudly. "I mean look at you, baby! You're gorgeous,"
"At least that's Paul's interpretations of it all," Jared said, "The real reason they're staring is because you've been the talk of the town with your accident and all."
"Oh, great," I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I had a boy on each side of me; one holding both his backpack and mine, Paul didn't want me to strain myself with the weight of it.
"Or you know, they could also be staring because of my reason," Paul insisted. I smiled.
"Yeah, can we go with Paul's reason? I like it better," I said, smiling widely at the two boys.
"Of course you do," Jared scoffed and leaned against the locker doors next to mine.
Paul jokingly let out a fist pump, causing Jared to shake his head at his friend and for me to hide my face in my locker embarrassed.
This was my first day back at school since the accident. This is the second week of school since Spring Break so I only missed about a week, so there wasn't too much for me to have to catch up on involving school work, and Kim and brought all that stuff to me on Friday.
**********V**********
On Thursday, the day after Paul and I had talked, a lot of people stopped by after school had ended. Collin and Brady were the first to come, they brought me my favorite pie, I thanked them profusely, for both the pie and helping save me and Matt, and asked them to sign my cast.
Embry and Abby came by next, Abby was shy about coming over but between me and Embry we put her at ease. Abby was pretty shocked about what happened, she thought crimes like that didn't happen much here in La Push.I had pressed my lips together to keep from laughing and had raised my eyebrows at Embry who masterfully avoided looking me in the eyes. We were all wondering when Embry would tell Abby about the wolves, when ever we'd ask he'd say either 'Soon, I'll tell her soon,' or 'She's not ready yet.'
Abby and I talked while Embry drew something on my cast, he, like Paul, wouldn't let me look, which lead me to the conclusion that Abby was only here to distracting me.
When he was done and Abby had signed it as well I looked at saw that Embry had drawn a little stick figure picture of a man getting attacked by a rolling pin. I laughed loudly once before having to calm myself down before I hurt my ribs so bad I needed another pain pill, which usually made me tired and eventually put me to sleep. I thanked the two of them for coming by and gave each of them a hug before they left.
Quil and Claire came right before they left. They, too, signed my cast, and Claire informed me that Kim couldn't come over today because of work, Kim actually called me later that day to inform me of that also, they left soon though and a couple hours later, right after dinner time, Seth came over.
He gave me a hug, signed my cast, and told me that Leah and Josh would be around to see me this weekend, that they were both pretty worried about me. Seth told me that Tara and Alexa decided not to come because we weren't that close and they didn't want to 'intrude on my fucking solitude.'
Yep, that sounded like Tara, but he also told me I'd see them whenever I decided to return to school, and that I better have a place for them to sign my cast, they didn't want to be left out, cause that 'would be a total asshole move. I mean who doesn't sign the goddamned injured person's cast?' Seth was getting really good at doing an impression of Tara, and between that and Embry's picture, my day was pretty much made.
On Friday Jared and Kim came over, Kim brought my homework, which I started working on later that night, before Paul came over and totally distracted me. While Kim and I sat on the couch and talked, Jared took Jay outside onto the porch to talk, as well. I figured Jared was telling Jay about my dad. By the way all the pack have been acting around me, like they're trying to act normal instead of just doing it, I could tell that they all knew. Paul must have told the guys that night and they must have all told their girls. I could tell they all felt bad for me but that they were also pissed that even after death my dad, sorry, Kyle, I keep having to remind myself of that. That even after 'death' Kyle could find a way to mess with my life. Jared, like Paul, I knew was worried about me, in the emotional sense along with the physical, which I found to be kind of sweet.
"So from what I heard you and Paul talked, am I right?" Kim asked.
"Yup," I said.
"Do you think you and I should talk too?" Kim inquired.
"Yeah," I responded. Kim nodded and started talking.
"You can not believe how mad I've been at you for making me leave that room!" Kim yelled. I sat by wide eyed with shock.
"I mean, do you know what that did to me? I felt like I was just leaving you there to die? Which you almost did by the way. Do you know how that feels? Thinking that your best friend might die?" She shrieked.
"Um no, I don't." I said slowly, "And I never want to, which was why I sent you out of the room. He threatened to kill you, Kim! I couldn't let that happen. And after seeing what he did to me I'm glad I made you leave, who knows what he would have done to you," I said back loudly.
Kim sighed deeply for a second before calming down.
"I know. I know, I really do. I just had to get that out before we went on." Kim apologized.
"Its okay," I told her. "I get where you're coming from and as long as you get where I'm coming from we'll be good,"
"I do, I get you point. I still don't like what you did but I get it. I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on how we should have handled that," Kim said. I nodded in agreement.
"I was so freaked out." Kim began again, "After I left you I ran outside and couldn't find Claire and Emily, I was about to scream and call the police or something when they yelled to me from Paul's truck. We hid in there until Sam and Collin came to get us, we had been ducked down in the back seat and they'd knocked on the window, scaring the crap out of us," Kim laughed, but you her facial expression gave away that she still could not believe they did that.
"Sam and Collin got us out of the truck and told us to stay on the porch, which we did. Collin stayed with us while Sam went back into the house, we could hear you screaming when he opened the door. Jared and some of the others guys came out eventually, I could tell Jared was really worried when I saw him, which made me even more worried and panicked about you.
"Someone had called an ambulance and they got you and brought you out. Paul wasn't calm enough to ride with you, and he was also to big, like the rest of the guys so I volunteered to go with you. Actually," Kim paused to let out a small laugh, "I pretty much said that I'd kill anyone who tried to stop me from going with you, I wasn't about to leave you alone with some strangers after what you just went through, and since nobody stopped me I guess they either thought that too or were actually scared by my threat,"
"It was the threat, defiantly." I interrupted.
Kim looked at me incredulously.
"What? Your scary Kimmy," I told her, making a scared face. Kim laughed.
"I'd hit you or something right now, but I don't want to hurt you anymore than you already are." She informed me. I smiled.
"So anyways, I rode with you and you opened your eyes a little bit and the EMT put an oxygen mask on you and I guess you were in a lot of pain cause you weren't talking and she gave you something and you eventually passed out. Once we got the emergency room they wheeled you away and told me to wait. I called Jay and Haley and they were freaked and got here as fast as they could. Paul was an absolute mess until he got to see you. So, was I, of course, but it helped that Jared got to see you, to make sure you weren't dead or anything," Kim said.
"Yeah, that would have been bad," I remarked. Kim rolled her eyes.
"I think I kind of remember you being in the ambulance," I told her after a moment.
"Yeah?" Kim sounded surprised. "I mean, you were kind of out of it, I wouldn't expect you to remember much."
"I don't remember too much actually, everything's pretty vague and fuzzy but I think I remember you being there, telling the EMT person that my name was Meg not Megan."
"I did, do that," Kim smiled.
"I remember thinking that I knew your voice, but at first I couldn't place it but then I did, but only for a moment, that the last thing I remember before waking up in the hospital and freaking out because I didn't know what happened to Matt," I told her.
"That's why they had to sedate you?" Kim asked, her eyebrows raised.
"You know about that?"
"Of course. Jared, Paul, Seth, Leah, and I were in the waiting room. Jay came over and told us that you woke up but were hyperventilating and they couldn't get you to calm down, so they had to put you back to sleep," Kim responded.
"Well that's embarrassing," I said, looking down.
"Not really," Kim disagreed, "I mean it makes sense now, that you were freaking out about Matt, I mean if Max and I had gone through what you and Matt did, I'd be scared that the vampire had gotten to him when I woke up and he wasn't there. So I get it," Kim told me, referencing her younger brother.
"Yeah," I sighed, thinking that maybe Kim did get it.
Jay and Jared came back in then, Jared walked over to us and Jay walked down the hall and up the stairs, avoiding looking at me as he did so.
"I take it that didn't go well?" I asked.
"It went as well as to be expected," Jared said with a shrug.
I nodded my head gently and gave them a sad smile.
We talked a little bit more and they each signed my cast and before they left Kim asked when if I knew when I was going to come back to school, I told her Monday and she offered to drive me. I took her up on that and we agreed on the time she'd be here in the morning, then they hugged me and left.
Leah and Josh came over early Saturday afternoon, they had just come into town and I was there first stop. Leah hugged me as hard as she could without hurting me and Josh told me he was glad I was okay, laughing and saying that with the way Leah was crying and panicking on the phone last week he'd thought somebody had died. Leah had slapped him on the arm and rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, calling him insensitive. I had only giggled a little bit at the two of them. We had talked for a while and they signed my cast before they left.
On Sunday Sam and Emily stopped by, saying they were sorry they hadn't come sooner but Sam had to work and they had to deal with some other things. I told them it was no biggie and we talked for a little while until they had to go, but before they left they signed my cast just like everyone else. Sue stopped by on Sunday as well, when she came to see me in the living room I all of a sudden remembered work and started spouting out apologizes before she could get at word in.
Sue had laughed and told me everything was fine, we talked about some trivial things before I told her I was starting school on Monday and could start back at work then too. Sue responded with a stern no, and after much compromise we decided that I'd start work on Wednesday but that Seth would work with me everyday and do all the unpacking and heavy lifting. I was to check out books at the counter and sit on the stool she was going to get me and take it easy.
With that agreement, we shook on it and Sue left with a smile and a reminder to 'get well and take it easy.'
**********V**********
"Aww look! I think we've embarrassed Meg," Jared laughed as I groaned, the sound echoing off the walls of the metal locker I had my head hiding in. I felt a warm rough hand run lightly up and down my back in a soothing motion, and knew by the gesture that it was Paul.
"Sorry." Paul mumbled to me softly.
I smiled and leaned back to face the two of them.
"You two are so weird," I commented, gesturing for Paul to open my backpack so I could put some of my stuff in my locker.
Paul and Jared just smiled slyly at one another and I decided to ignore their shared look. The warning bell rang soon after that and Paul shoved my backpack in Jared's direction and warned him not to let me strain myself. I rolled my eyes but Jared took it seriously and promised Paul he wouldn't let anything happen to me. That apparently appeased Paul, who, with one last look in my direction, took off down the hall to his class.
As Jared and I walked to our class I felt self conscious. Since I was still hurting a little and not up to par, I decided to take it easy when I got ready for school, so I slipped on a pair of white sweatpants with the drawstring pulled tight in the front and a loose long sleeved blue shirt, the left sleeve pulled up above my elbow so it wasn't covering my cast. I wore my M and P necklace and my grey slip on Juicy Couture sneakers. My hair was up in a messy bun and between that and my cast along with the bruises and scratches on my face I was feeling less than appropriate for school today.
My face actually wasn't as bad as it had been, my black eye was almost all the way gone and the bruises I had were turning yellow, I had a few scratches that were still pretty noticeable but for the most part my face wasn't as bad as it had been when I was still in the hospital. The stares that I had gotten this morning seemed to have increased as the day went on, rumors were spread, people were talking in hushed tones as I walked by, and random people I have never talked to came up to me and told me they were glad I was okay, I'd always awkwardly thank them. But besides that the rest of the school day was fine and just like any others.
Like they promised Tara and Alexa came over to me at lunch insisting of signing my cast, they did so, making sure to add bad language and dirty comments. It was there thing. It caused me to laugh and then for Paul to tell them to stop making me laugh because I was hurting my ribs. We'd all smiled at that, especially me, because Paul making a joke, even as little as that was, about my injuries was progress that he was becoming more comfortable with realizing it really wasn't his fault.
Kim drove me home after school and hung out with me for a little while as we did some homework and watched Matt make cute little baby sounds. She left right before dinner. Paul called me while I was reading in my bed, resisting the urge to close my eyes and fall asleep. I gleefully answered the phone, glad for the distraction and because I hadn't seen Paul since our last class together during school.
"Hey, it's me," he said.
"Well hey, me. Long time no see, how've you been?" I joked.
Paul made an unamused sound on the other end of the phone but played along none the less.
"Oh, I've been great Meg, how 'bout you?" He asked cheerfully.
I resisted the urge to snort.
"I've been better," I replied.
"Hmm," he murmured, "What do you mean by that?"
"What do you mean, what do I mean?" I asked confused.
"I mean, was that an 'I'm okay but I've felt better other days' I've been better or was it a 'My head hurts, my arm aches, and my ribs are killing me but I'm too stubborn to take my pain pills' I've been better?" Paul explained.
"Uh…the first one?" It comes out like a question.
"You don't sound so sure," Paul laughed.
"Well I'm not. Maybe it's a combination of the two,' I said.
"How much of a combination?" Paul asked, his voice caring over his concern.
"My arm just hurts a little bit, that's all." I told him.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Hmm, okay fine."
"You don't believe me do you?" I asked.
"Of course I believe you," he responded, sounding slightly insulted.
"Mmhmm," I murmured, unconvinced.
"But…" He started.
"I knew it,' I cheered, interrupting him.
Paul laughed, "But," he began again, "Like I said before, your stubborn, and I know you'd downplay your pain if it meant not having to take a pain pill,"
"They make me all sleepy and disoriented," I whined.
"Yeah, but they make you feel better," He argued.
"Can we change the subject?" I asked after a moment of silence, neither of us were planning to change our point of views on the topic of my pain and the pain pills, so we really should just move on.
"Fine. So, have you talked to Jay yet?" Paul questioned.
"Have you ever realized that you're always trying to get me to talk to Jay?" I asked, bypassing his question.
"Have you ever realized how you always try to avoid talking to Jay?" Paul shot back.
"Not always,"
"Yes always," Paul insisted.
"Well it's not him that I don't like talking to. It's just what we have to talk about," I told him.
"You should talk to him," Paul repeated.
"You know what? I'm kind of tired, I think I should get to sleep," I said, trying to get out of having this conversation now.
"Aww, come on Meg, don't be like that," Paul whined.
'I'm not being like anything," I argued, "I'm just tired," At least that part was true.
"Fine," Paul sighed.
"I love you," I said softly, all of a sudden worried he was actually mad at me.
"I love you too, babe," Paul replied.
I could tell by the way he said it that he meant it.
"I'll see you tomorrow right? At school?" I checked.
"Yep, I'll be waiting for you," He answered.
"Okay, bye,"
"Bye Meg,"
**********V**********
The next couple of weeks went about without incident. I went back to work the Wednesday after I started back at school, Seth worked every shift with me, under strict orders from both Sue and Paul to not let me over exert myself. After two weeks the injuries on my face were completely healed along with the bruises on my knees. My head still hurt periodically but it was much better then it had been before, my ribs still really hurt but I could tell they were getting better. My arm was the same as it had been it hurt and ached but I guess that was normal.
Every time I told Paul I was feeling better about something or another he'd smile widely at me and I could tell he was relived by the fact that I was getting better. School went on like normal, people continued to talk about me but all the hubbub of before had died down significantly. Paul and Jared still felt the need to carry my backpack everywhere for me, but I didn't mind that too much. In record time I had gotten all the work I missed turned in and now only had the normal amount of homework to deal with.
Everything was seemingly normal again except one thing.
Jay.
Ever since Jared had talked to him, Jay been extra cautious around me lately, giving me side long glances, not meeting my gaze when I'd talk to him, and being too attentive to the point where I decided he was trying to make up for things, like my dad attacking me as a supernatural creature, that weren't his fault. I assumed Jay told Haley what happened since she knew about the wolves, but the only indication she gave of knowing anything were the little cryptic remarks she'd make every now and again, some of them about the vamps, or the wolves, or my mom or dad. Most of them little hints that I should talk to Jay. Haley wasn't the only one trying to get me to talk to Jay though, Paul brought it up at least once a day, eventually I started ignoring him but the curiosity of what that conversation would hold was eating at me, more so lately.
But curiosity was only part of what I was feeling whenever I'd think of scouting out Jay and sitting down to talk to him, the other part was fear. Through the years I'd made a version of my mother in my mind and put her on a pedestal, now that was all crashing down and I don't think I was ready to face the reality of who she really was, because it might not live up to how I've seen her. I feared I wouldn't like who she actually was and I didn't want that to happen.
The curiosity got the better of me though, one night toward the middle of May.
I couldn't sleep, my arm was aching and my mind was reeling, going a mile a minute and I was ultimately feeling restless. Seeing that my clock read about three in the morning I sighed as heavily as my ribs would allow without hurting and got out of bed and wandered downstairs, thinking maybe I'd make myself some tea and plop down on the couch and watch TV, hoping that maybe between either of those two things I'd fall asleep and not be dead to the world in the morning. After my tea was made I walked toward the living room and noticed for the first time that a light was on in Jay's office.
Wondering if he accidentally left it on I walked over and saw that, that wasn't the case. With a peak into the room I saw Jay on the couch opposite his desk, the standing lamp beside the couch was on and Jay was using that to look at a small framed photo, of what, I don't know. I watched him for a moment as he lightly traced one of the faces in the picture and with that movement the moment seemed too private and I turned to leave him, letting him have his privacy, but the floor beneath my feet creaked at the movement and Jay's head turned my way, seeing me in the small space in the open doorway.
Jay smiled at me and gestured for me to come over. With my mug of tea in my hand I hesitantly opened the door, leaving it open a crack behind me and slowly made my way over and sat on the couch beside him. He scooted over slightly toward me before holding the picture in front of the two of us. I turned my head down so I could see it and saw what it was a photo of.
In the picture Jay sat on a couch, much like he was now, his arm was around a women who looked extremely similar to me, it was my mother, and sitting up and smiling happily at the two adults was a baby, around Matt's age, maybe a little older, wearing a little purple dress, her short curly brown hair tied up in two little pigtails on the top of her head.
"That's me isn't it?" I asked Jay.
"Yeah," he said, smiling down at the picture sadly. "That was the second time I ever saw you. The first of course, being when you were born," I nodded but kept quiet.
"Are you ready to talk or do you want to drag it out longer?" Jay asked after a second.
I sighed heavily and Jay smiled sadly at me and moved the picture, setting it on to the arm of the couch, before turning back to face me.
"I think I'm ready," I told him.
The whole moment felt very dramatic and it didn't escape my notice that all of our 'big' talks seemed to happen in this room.
"You're mad at me aren't you? Because I've been keeping secrets." Jay said, but wasn't a question, just a statement.
"About the wolves. Your mom." Jay continued.
"Did you…" I paused, taking a deep breath, "Did you know? That Kyle wasn't my dad?"
That was the main thing I'd been wondering about, because if Jay had known, then all his excuses before about not taking me away from my dad were a load of crap, because if Jay knew that Kyle wasn't my biological father he could have done more, he could have tried harder, brought it to the courts, demanded a paternity test. Something. I hoped to God he didn't know, because I don't know how I'll handle it or feel about it if he did.
"Yes," Jay said. My hope was dashed and tears started forming in wide eyes.
"But not then, Meg," Jay hurried to backtrack. "I didn't know then, when you were younger. I only found out after he died," He explained. I looked up, trying to keep my tears at bay.
"When? How?" I asked my voice rough.
"After he died and we went through all the things in his house. I found your mother's journals from the last couple years she was alive and I kept them, read them. That's when I knew you weren't his. Not before when it would have mattered. Not when I could have done something more with that information, gotten you away from him," Jay said, easing my worries of before slightly. It was as if he knew what I'd been worried about, afraid of.
"Did you know about the affair? That she was leaving him when she died? Did you know?" I questioned.
"Yeah," Jay nodded. "About a year or so after you were born, Kyle called me, asking to talk to Lily," he said, referencing my mother, "Your mom wasn't here though, but being the good brother I was I covered for her. I called her the next day and she came down to explain. Lily told Kyle she was visiting me, with you of course, when in reality she was going to visit her lover. She'd been having an affair, for a while. She never told me how long. I just assumed it had been going on since after you were born, not before, that's why I never even considered the possibility that Kyle wasn't actually your father.
"She showed me a picture of him, and then another one taken the day before with you and her in it as well. She told me all about him. His name was Scott Redford. He was a lawyer, pretty successful. He was nice to her. And she loved him. She didn't tell me that then of course, but I could tell how Lily felt about him, at one point in time I saw her look that way when she talked about Kyle, in the early years, when they'd just started dating." Jay stopped for a second and stood up, walking over to a cabinet and opening the door and taking out a medium sized cardboard box, he shut the cabinet and brought the box over, setting it on the ground in front of us.
"I told her to break it off though, the affair. She didn't, and for years I kept telling her she had to make a choice, Scott or Kyle. She did eventually though, but when it was too late." Jay pulled the top off the box. "She came to me one night, with you in her arms a small bag at her feet. She asked me to watch you, told me that she was going to talk to Scott about them being together more permanently, then she was going to talk to Kyle, ask him for a divorce.
"I said okay, I'd watch you while she did what she needed to do. Because it'd been what I've wanted for her, for you. Lily to finally make a choice. She left your bag of stuff, kissed you goodbye, and gave me that," Jay pointed at the necklace I had on. The M necklace.
"What's so special about it? Did she tell you?"
"No, the only thing she told me was that if Kyle ever showed up for her or you, to never let him see or have that necklace," Jay told me. "I thought that was a strange thing to say, but I went with it. I got a call the next day, from Lily. She told me that her plan worked. Apparently she had deliberately left her journals out for Kyle to read, for him to find out about the affair for himself. They fought and she left. Lily went straight to Scott and they celebrated then got in the car, heading to the airport so they could catch their flight to come and get you," Jay's tone turned somber and between that and the part of the story we were at, I instantly knew what was coming next.
"They died on the way there. Car accident." Jay said.
I knew that part, I've always known that part, just now it meant more because there was one more person in that car that I hadn't known about, someone who could have meant something great to me.
"Everything happened really fast after that. The police called me, and I flew down to Monterey with you. The funeral happened and then Kyle took you and told me he'd send you down for the summer, a clear indication that I should leave then. Neither he nor I brought up what happened the day before you mom died. I could never tell if he knew, that I knew about Scott and Lily, but I wasn't going to say anything either, especially when you grew up and were around more." Jay said.
"Those journals? They explain a lot, don't they?" I asked after a moment.
"Yes, they do. Every question I had that she never answered and even the one she did were in the journals. Its like she couldn't tell anybody all this stuff, so she wrote it all down, and told the pages her inner most secrets." Jay explained.
"My necklace," I said, my hand involuntarily rising to stroke the cold metal of the small pendants.
"Was the reason she didn't want Kyle to have it in there?" I inquired.
"It was," Jay told me, removing a small leather bound book from the box and holding it out to me.
I sat my tea down onto the floor and then took the journal hesitantly, holding it in one hand while the fingertips of my other hand, the one with my cast on it, gently stroked the worn front, ghosting over it softly.
"Tell me what's in it," I demanded.
"Don't you want to read it yourself?" Jay asked, surprised by my request.
"I don't know," I answered honestly, the object in my hand all of a sudden weighted heavily on my hands and my mind.
Between what Kyle and Jay had said, it seemed like there were a lot of secrets in these journals. Some I'd want to know, like the ones about my necklace and my real dad, Scott. Some I probably don't want to know. I just wasn't sure if I really wanted to read all of this and find out things that I might have been better off not knowing.
"Tell me about the necklace," I insisted, my gaze staying firmly on the small brown journal in my hand.
"It said that Scott knew you were his daughter. But because of some messed up reasons from the two of them, they decided it would be better to act as if you were Kyle's. To let him believe you were his. But Scott loved you, Lily wrote that repeatedly.
"The necklace? Scott gave that to your mom for you. Lily wrote that it was so he'd always be with you, so you'd always have a part of him even if he wasn't around. He gave it to Lily the first time he saw you since you'd been born. The M of course stood for Megan, Meg. It was his mother's name you know? Scott's? Lily named you after your real grandmother." Jay told me.
"I know," I sighed. I saw Jay look at me shocked in my peripheral vision.
"Kyle told me," I swallowed the lump that suddenly appeared in my throat.
"When he was talking about me not being his daughter, he told me about the name. He'd also read about that in the journals." I explained, turning to look at him.
"Ah," Jay nodded.
"Do you think…" I paused as tears slipped down my cheeks, a few of them landing on my hand, the others splattering on the journal's cover.
"Do you think she gave you the necklace because she knew Kyle would want it gone once he read her journals? You think that's why he always had a problem with it? Why he freaked out about the P one?" I asked Jay, my mind conjuring up the memory of Kyle ripping the P necklace off of me last summer when we fought.
I reached up and stroked the pendant, needing physical reassurance that it was still there and not lost on a hard wood floor of an empty house.
"I think that'd be a safe assumption. That's what I've been thinking since I read the journals."
"I guess it's a good thing I didn't wear it to the dance then," I said softly, more to myself than to Jay.
Because if Kyle had ripped the P necklace from my neck when he was human, he'd probably would have crushed the M one to dust if he's seen it as a vampire.
I could see the look of confusion on Jay's face, but he didn't ask. Jay reached in the box again and this time handed me a couple of pictures.
The first was of Kyle and my mom. My mother looked young and happy and Kyle stood beside her stiff, but with a smile on his face as he gazed down at my mother. I quickly flipped past that one to the next. This one was taken on the day I was born, my mom was in a hospital bed, I was bundled up in blankets, cradled in her arms, and Kyle stood bending down over the two of us, a tight smile on his face and clear disappointment in his features. I hurried past that one as well.
The next picture was better. This one was of a man, one I'd never seen before but who had certain features I see everyday when I look in the mirror. I didn't need Jay to tell me who this was. Scott Redford was a handsome man. In the picture he stood in front of a tall building in a nice gray suit with a navy blue tie, his arms were crossed at his chest and he had a wide smile on his face. He was tall, which was probably where I got my height from, since my mother had been on the shorter side. He had lightly tanned skin, probably from the sun that was shining in the background, short messy brown hair and blue eyes, that shined with a special gleam in the photo. I had his nose and the shape of his eyes and those were the only similarities I could find, but those few things were more than I'd ever been able to find in the 17 years I looked for between Kyle and me.
I sloppily brushed away my tears before they could fall on to the picture, I didn't want my tears to ruin it. I looked at the next picture and it was of Scott and my mother, looking happy in an off centered picture as Scott held the camera away from them, one of his arm wrapped around my mom, both smiling widely, happily into the camera. The last picture was of my mother and Scott again, but this time I was in it as well. One-year old me was wrapped protectively in Scott's arms and my mother was leaning into his side and gazing over his shoulder at me. The two looked happy, I looked content.
"That's the only picture I have and could find of you and Scott," Jay told me, sounding apologetic.
"This is enough," I told him, meaning it as I stared down at the only picture of my father and I. "Where'd you get the pictures?" I asked.
"I've had the two with Kyle in them for a while; the ones with Scott, your mom gave me the day she told me about him,"
I nodded my head and stared at the photos. Jay moved and took a few other things from the box and handed them to me, it was a three more journals.
"I case you ever change your mind," he told me simply. I nodded and took them, stacking them on top of the other, holding the pictures to the top of them with my hand.
"When you found out Kyle wasn't my dad, why didn't you tell me?" I asked him, truly curious about his answer, wondering why he kept me in the dark.
Jay sighed. "I found out about a week or so after we got back from Monterey, in between work and taking care of Matt I read Lily's journals and found all that stuff out. I was shocked, genuinely shocked, I never thought there was a chance that Scott could be your father, not a one. After I got over that shocker I started worrying about you, and how'd you handle something like this. You didn't know about the affair or any of it, and I kept wondering how I was going to tell you." Jay looked down at his hands, which he was wringing together in his lap.
"Around that time you were still dealing with Kyle's death, and just dealing with so much emotionally right then, I didn't want to add to it. So I figured I'd tell you once you were better, but then you seemed just so happy, with life and Paul and your friends, I didn't want to ruin that. So, I decided I'd tell you after you graduated, let you get through your senior year with happiness. I'd planned on giving you the journals, than talking to you once you read them." Jay paused.
"And then," he said exasperatedly, "Kim calls and says you're in the hospital and Jared tells me that it was a vampire who did it to you, then after your home and getting better Jared tells me that it wasn't just a vampire who had done that to you, but Kyle.
"He was here after Matt and he told you things I hadn't yet. I couldn't believe it, that Kyle wasn't dead that he'd been turned and that you knew he wasn't your dad. After it all registered I didn't know what to do, I talked to Haley and she told me to wait until you were ready to talk, wait for you to come to me, which I did." Jay shrugged. I was silent for a moment, just letting his words register as I traced my fingers over the picture of Scott, my real dad.
"I think…I think I get why you did, what you did. I hate the way I found out about it but I get that you had your reasons for not telling me right away," I said to Jay.
He'd been looking so sad and contrite that I couldn't stand it. What I told him was true though, I did understand why he kept it from me, I just wish I had found all this out his way instead of how I actually did. It all just threw me for a loop.
"I'm glad," Jay said.
"And I was never really mad at you," I added, "I was just confused and wondering why you never told me, that's all,"
Jay nodded. "I hope you can forgive me one day, for not telling you all this," He said.
"There's nothing to forgive," I told him softly. He turned his head to look at me.
I shrugged. "You were protecting me. You were doing what a parent should have done. I get that now," I told him honestly.
He did what any good parent would probably have done, tried to protect me and allow me to be happy for as long as possible, add in the fact that he ultimately should not have had to be the one to tell me this, my mother should have been here, she should have been alive and able to explain to me things that were her doing, not Jay's, he just got landed with the job and he did what he thought was best.
"Thank you," Jay said gently. I smiled and with one hand picked up my tea, taking a sip and finding it cold. I wrinkled my nose in distaste and put it back down.
"You should get to bed," Jay told me, glancing up at the clock.
It was close to six and I needed to be up for school in an hour or less. I nodded at him and stood, the journals and pictures held in the crook of my casted arm, my mug of tea in the other hand. It was awkward, the way I was holding things, and I was pretty sure something was going to fall soon. Jay took mercy on me as I passed him on the couch and relieved me of the mug of tea, telling me that he'd take it back to the kitchen for me. I thanked him and continued to head for the door.
"Hey, why were you up anyways?" I asked, tilting my head to the side a tad. Jay smiled.
"Matt woke up around two, and after I got him back down I couldn't go back to sleep." He explained.
"I guess that's one of the good things that came out of this messed up situation. Matt." I said, clarifying at the end. Jay smiled wider and agreed.
"Yeah, your brother's defiantly a good thing," Jay responded.
It was then, when he said that, that I came to realize something I probably should have long ago, when I first found out about everything. Matt wasn't actually my brother. He and I weren't biologically related. The only parent that was causing us be biologically related to one another was Kyle, his dad but now, not mine.
"Don't think like that." Jay said sternly, as if he knew what I was thinking. What pieces I had put together just then.
"No matter what, Meg, Matt will always be your brother. If not because of Kyle then because of Haley and me. He's our son and we see you as a daughter; I always have since your mom died and Haley since you came here for the summer. So don't you even think for one second your relationship or bond with him has changed, because it hasn't. Haley and I are going to raise him knowing that you're his sister, no matter what biology says. Do you understand me?" Jay's voice was stern and commanding as he said this.
I bit my lip and nodded my head, I understood and now I just had to make sure I kept any negative thoughts about that subject pushed out of my mind.
"Yes," I said, nodding my head multiple times.
"Good," Jay said, his voice now light and back to normal.
"You really have the 'dad' voice down, you know?" I mentioned.
"Yeah?" Jay asked happily. "That's good, you're giving me good practice for when Matt's a little older,"
"Glad I could help," I said sarcastically, the tension in the air lifting from our earlier conversation.
"Go to bed," Jay said, rolling his eyes at me.
"I think maybe I'll just stay up." I told him. "I have to get up for school in less than an hour anyways,"
"When did you get up anyways?" Jay asked, his eyes narrowing in concentration.
"Never went to sleep," I told him, sounding sheepish.
"Why not?"
"I don't know. My mind wouldn't shut off I think."
"Go to bed." Jay ordered.
"But I just told you-"
Jay cut me off. "I know what you said, but between your not sleeping and the talk we just had, I've decided to give your poor brain a break and not make you go to school today. So, I'll call the school in a bit and you go upstairs and sleep, okay?" Jay said.
"Okay," I breathed.
"You should go back to bed too," I commented, half-way out the door.
"Eh, I'm fine. My schedule's been messed up since Matt came, so I've started getting used to working with sleep deprivation." He said lightly.
"Uh huh. Well good luck with that," I teased, before smiling once more at Jay and walking out the door and going back up the stairs and to my room.
I sat the journals on my desk, but brought the pictures back to bed with me. I sat down on the bed, with my back leaning up against the head bored, the light on my side table on low. I put the pictures down on the bed so I could use my good hand to get my phone and send Paul a quick text.
"Talked to J, not going to school today. Stop by my work tonight? –M"
I sent the text off, hoping it wouldn't wake up Paul, and then placed my phone back on the side table, before picking the pictures again.
I flipped through them a few times before taking the one of Kyle, my mother, and me, and laying it side by side on my reclined legs next to the picture of Scott, my mother, and me, then taking the one of just Scott and my mom and putting it next to the one of just Kyle and my mom.
The difference between them was clear, while the ones with Scott were filled with happiness and love, for both my mother and me, the ones with Kyle had an edge to them, you could see that he loved my mother, but that there was some restraint there. Apparently the restraint snapped once Kyle had learned of the affair.
Kyle had been so violently in love with my mother that he didn't know how to properly handle things when she was gone. Kyle may have loved my mom, the picture of the two of them clearly proved that, but it was a bad kind of love, all consuming to the point where it made him mean and vindictive. And when my mother betrayed him and left him for another man and then died before he could get his revenge on her, he took it out on the only thing she loved that he could reach- me. I thought back to the time where Kyle would tell me that love wasn't real, I think in his messed up mind he might have believed that, considering how he had loved someone and then been betrayed and heartbroken by that same person, but deep down, straight to my core, I knew he was wrong about that.
I knew that Paul loved me, pure and simple, and I loved him. Kyle's relationship with my mother was a vast difference from my relationship with Paul, and I was going to make sure it stayed that way. I knew Paul would never do anything like Kyle had, he was different, we were different. And that wasn't going to change. Paul and I would love each other forever and it wasn't going to turn into some kind of all consuming hatred and need for vengeance like Kyle's had. Kyle may have loved my mother the best he knew how, but it wasn't good enough.
It wasn't good, period.
But it was all over now, all of it. There was no more hatred or love for Kyle to dish out, he was gone. For good this time.
With that thought in mind I placed the pictures on the side table, keeping the one of my real dad with me and my mom, firmly in my grip as I slowly scooted down into bed until I was laying and staring at the ceiling. My eyes drifted close immediately.
*********V*********
Paul had come to visit me while I was at work later that day. He had responded earlier to my text, with-
"I'll be there.-P"
But he had been late because he got detention; apparently he'd been checking his phone constantly to see if I had texted back and got caught with it, warranting a detention. I apologized, telling him I was asleep but he'd waved me off saying that it was no big deal.
Seth had banished himself to the back room when Paul got here, letting us have our privacy as I told him about my talk with Jay and what had been said. Paul had been mildly shocked that Jay had known for a while but also happy for me that Jay hadn't known this whole time, meaning when I was younger and still with Kyle. I took the pictures I had brought with me and showed them to Paul. He's smiled widely as he saw them, telling me how cute I was when I was younger and pointing out the similarities I had found earlier this morning between Scott and myself.
Paul had just been really happy for me about the whole conversation. He was glad I now knew who my biological father was. He was glad I had finally talked to Jay. And he was glad that I wasn't mad at Jay in anyway and that all this didn't ruin mine and Jay's relationship. As we continued talking the occasional customer would come in and we'd pause our conversation and I'd help the customer and check them out at the register, then Paul and I start right back up where we left off. I told Paul about my whole 'Matt's not actually my brother' revelation and Paul basically said the same thing as Jay did, about it not mattering.
I had laughed and told him that great minds must think alike because that's almost exactly what Jay had said.
When I told Paul that Jay had given me my mother's journals he, too, didn't understand why I didn't want to read them and I didn't know if I could explain it to him well, but I tried and I think Paul understood my reasons then, for the most part anyways.
We chatted until the end of my shift, then when Seth came out of the back, we all locked up and then the three of us went and got a late dinner. When we finished eating Seth went his own way and Paul drove me home, making me promise to be at school the next day in between kisses as we sat in the driveway. I promised and Paul eventually detached his lips from mine and let me out.
**********V**********
In the middle of May, things became more hectic. A week after Jay and I had talked things had been going well; there was no awkwardness between us or between me and Matt. Everything seemed perfectly normal and fine, the only thing different was the leather bound journals that have taken up permanent residence on my desk and the three pictures that had been framed and placed around my room- the ones with Scott in them, the pictures with Kyle were placed in my desk drawer under a bunch of non-important stuff.
School had been good, everyone, especially the seniors, were excited that the end of the year was approaching. I'd been doing okay, my ribs still hurt but were much, much better than they had been a few weeks ago, they wouldn't be fully healed for a while though. My face was totally clear of any scraps and bruises, as was the rest of my body. The only thing that had been really hurting me was my arm, it been aching and sore a lot lately, I told Jay that and he and Haley got convinced something was wrong and that I should call the doctor. I had waved away their concerns, but then the next day my arm starting killing me, hurting more than it had and I caved and called the doctor and set up an appointment.
After school on Wednesday Paul drove me to the hospital in Forks for my appointment with Dr. Collins. Dr. Collins asked me what was wrong, looked at my arm, and moved it around some before deciding that we needed to take the cast off and get it x-rayed again. After that, we waited an hour or so before Dr. Collins put a temporary cast on my arm and told me to go home because the x-ray developing center was backed up and it would be hours before they got my x-ray done, he told me he'd call me tomorrow with the results and to be nice to my arm in the mean time.
True to his word Dr. Collins called the next day after school.
When we learned that my arm wasn't healing properly and would need to be surgically set and re-casted, Paul became convinced that my doctors were incompetent and decided that we needed to call Jacob Black and have him bring Carlisle, the vampire doctor, down to come and fix me properly. It took a while but I eventually got him to reconsider, arguing that I had just gotten attacked by a vampire and that I really didn't need to be in the vicinity of another one any time soon. Good or not, vampires still freaked me out. Now, more than ever. By late Friday, the time of my scheduled surgery, I had convinced Paul that this was not my doctor's fault and that, yes, they did know what they were doing and that he didn't need to worry, I'd be done soon and decked out in my new red cast.
It was in memorial of my red dress that I wore to the senior ball, after what happened later that night the red dress didn't make it. It got cut and torn and Emily, Haley, Jared's mom Tess, and even Kim's mom all had to tell me that it was unfixable before I believed them. So this was kind of my homage to my gorgeous dress.
By the end of that night Paul had his arm wrapped around my waist and was leading me to his truck, I was still groggy from the medication they gave me to knock me out but I had Paul and my red cast and between the two I was entertained enough until Paul carried me up to my bed and I fell fast asleep.
The next week was the same as before with the exception that my arm wasn't killing me now.
On Monday everyone started reviewing for finals but that was over shadowed by my new red cast, which everyone had ohh'd and aww'd over, though this time Haley had told me not to let anyone sign it, because now it would be nice and clean for my graduation ceremony. I did keep my old blue cast, though, the one with all the signatures, I couldn't bare to part with Paul's sweet little declaration of love or Embry's picture of him and Bert.
By Tuesday, though, my cast and I were old news as Jacob Black breezed into town. Even though he didn't need to come down, Jacob still came to La Push for a visit, without his vampire entourage luckily. He stayed a week to visit with his dad, hang with his friends and the pack, and to meet all the new imprints. He met Josh and me and then Abby and Tara, who we reminded him didn't know anything yet. Jake was nice and funny and I could see why Seth and Leah missed him so much when he was gone and why they wished he would stay. But he did leave and soon things went back to the way they were before he'd come down. He left the weekend before finals started at school, everyone was stressed because of those, but also happy and excited that school was ending.
Kim and I couldn't contain our excitement and practically squealed anytime someone brought up graduating. Finals were done and over with and it was now the beginning of June and the last day of school for us seniors, tomorrow was the last day for everyone else and graduation day for us.
For my last day of school I decided to dress in a pair of dark wash skinny jeans with a white and gray stripped short sleeved shirt. I had on my high-top black converse, my M and P necklace, which had even more sentimental value now, and my silver flower ring. I also had on my blue sunglasses from last summer and my All You Need Is Love Bag. Since it was my last day and I had already cleaned out my locker I didn't need my backpack so I brought my purse with me today instead.
The group of us were at lunch right now, the last lunch with all of us. Paul and I were sitting next to each other, his arm draped around my shoulder while I leaned into his side. Jared and Kim sat across from us.
It was then when I, along with everyone else, began to get way too sentimental and nostalgic.
"Can you believe it? It's our last day!" Kim squealed.
"It's gonna be so sad next year, with you guys gone," Claire pouted from her spot next to Quil, with Abby and Embry on the other side of her.
"I know!" I agreed.
"I can't believe you guys are graduating." Seth commented with a shake of his head.
"It really is unbelievable," Quil added.
"Yeah, I mean who would have thought Jared and Paul were actually smart enough to graduate?" Embry laughed loudly.
Paul reached around a few people to try and slap him but still couldn't reach. I laughed though, right along with everyone else with the exception of Jared and Paul who glared daggers at Embry.
"Now you just need to prove to us that you can graduate, Embry," I said, because it would be Embry's turn to graduate next year.
"Piece of cake," Embry replied casually.
"Yeah," Collin scoffed. "Especially when you have a super smart girlfriend to help you with your homework."
"Hey," Embry pointed at him, while Abby giggled quietly. "You're just jealous that you don't have a super smart girlfriend,"
"I think he's just jealous he doesn't have a girlfriend in general," Tara commented as she and Alexa strolled up to the table, sitting down across from Seth.
"Yeah, knowing Collin I don't think he'd care if she was smart or not," Brady said.
Seth snorted when Collin tried to look offended.
"Give it up Collin, we all know you too well," Quil told him.
"I still can't believe this is your guys' last day," Claire repeated, sounding sad.
"Yeah, detentions totally going to suck without you Paul," Alexa commented.
"Oh, I'm sure Tara can keep you company just fine when I'm gone," Paul replied.
Tara laughed.
"I bet all the teachers are really going to miss you, huh Paul?" I joked.
Paul squeezed my shoulder and stuck his tongue out at me.
"Nope, its Kim the teachers are really going to miss," Paul remarked.
"So true," I nodded.
"You know there's nothing wrong with being a good student and having teachers like you," Kim told us.
"Yes, yes, we know," Jared said, rolling his eyes.
Kim smacked him on the arm. We all laughed and smiled at the two of them.
We continued to joke around for the rest of lunch until the bell rang. Everyone went to class with the exception of the entire senior class who had to report to the gym for graduation rehearsal. As we rehearsed I was shocked at how small the number of seniors there was, it always surprised me when I thought about how small this school actually was.
Though there was one good thing about the small number.
Since we were lined up in alphabetical order I ended up sitting right next to Paul because there no one's name was in between Tanner and Taylor, our last names. I found this funny but enjoyed getting to sit there with Paul holding my hand the whole time while Kim and I made faces at one another, she just wishes she could sit next to Jared, but she just wasn't as lucky as me, I planned on telling her my theory later that day.
We were let out of rehearsal when the bell rang, with a reminder to be here tomorrow morning for our last rehearsal. The four of us walked out to the parking lot and hopped into Paul's truck. I relaxed into the back seat with Kim and pulled my sunglasses down over my eyes. Since Sue had let me have work off this week, I didn't have to go there so we decided to go down to the beach today. Everyone was meeting us there later.
The group of us spent the day at the beach, someone ended up bringing food and drinks, and eventually the boys started a small bonfire to keep us all warm, because even though it was June it was still La Push, which meant that it was still a little cold out, even with the sun shining today. We all enjoyed ourselves but had to leave eventually when it started getting too late.
We all went to bed that night with the next day's exciting events looming over us.
**********V**********
The next evening as I sat on a hard metal chair clad in a black cap and gown, Paul next to me with his hand in mine, calming the nerves that raged in my stomach, I looked out at our family and friends that sat a crossed from us on the bleachers. Since the class size was small there was no set limit of the number of people you could invite, which meant there were a lot of people, so many that some were pouring out of the side doors. Graduation was a big deal here in La Push, Jay had told me that this morning.
As the valedictorian, some tall, lanky guy with those large geek-chic glasses, who I only have a vague recollection of seeing in the halls, gave a speech about how this was the start of the rest of our lives, I looked out at the people who were here for us. The people who have been there for me since last summer, some of them before that.
Jay and Haley were there, Matt was held securely in Jay's lap and Haley was poised with the camera at the ready.
Next to them on one side sat Jared's parents, and on the other side sat Paul's parents along with his sisters Shane and Shawn, all smiley and happy for their older brother.
Embry and Abby were there, their relationship had been going strong and she still didn't know about the wolves, but Embry promised that would change soon.
Quil and Claire's relationship, like Kim and Jared's or mine and Paul's, was good and steady, they were in love and going great.
Leah and Josh, who finished there first year of college yesterday, drove down special for this instead of celebrating the end of the year with their college friends. The two of them were doing very well, their relationship was moving fast but it worked for them and they both deserved the happiness that they gave each other, especially Leah. They told us last week that they had decided they were going to rent an apartment off campus together next fall and live together permanently.
Sam and Emily were happy together too, I think since Leah had finally found someone of her own and the guilt of their imprinting vanished away that it helped their relationship tremendously, because Emily had told us that her and Sam have been discussing having a baby, which was a major step in their marriage.
Tara and Seth were still in the friend zone, well kind of, Seth was making some progress. They went to the underclassmen's end of the year dance together and I know they've kissed a couple of times but they were still not in an actual relationship.
Tara's best friend and Paul's detention buddy, Alexa, announced in late May that she was pregnant, shocking everyone. The dad was Abby's older brother Tyler. The two of them had secretly been seeing each other for the last six months or so and were now going public with everything, including the pregnancy. I heard that Alexa's parents kicked her out and even though Tyler's parents weren't happy about things, they invited Alexa to come live with them. She was now three months pregnant and just starting to show and I heard that she and Tyler were talking about possibly getting married.
Brady and Collin were here too, they sat nudging and laughing with one another, smiles on their faces.
The valedictorian finished up his speech and with one last short speech from the principal, names started being called. Jared and Kim got loud applauses along with Paul and me when we walked across the make-shift stage for our diplomas; our little crowd of people cheered and yelled, there were even a few whistles thrown our way, all of which just made us smile wider. When all the diplomas were handed out, the principal had us move our tassels to the other side, and then announced our class, sending the whole gym of people whopping and cheering.
I looked over at Paul and smiled widely at him, he smiled back at me, his eyes shining with happiness and love. I launch myself in his arms and he picked me up and swung me around once before planting a searing kiss on my lips. The kiss was interrupted though, by Kim and Jared coming over, Paul and I hugged them both, Kim and I squealing loudly as we did so and then we made our way across the gym to the rest of our family and friends.
Jay and Haley reached me first, hugging me tightly and kissing me on the cheek, whispering in my ear how proud they are of me. I was handed off to some friends and soon Paul's parents, having already seen their son, came over to congratulate me as well, his sisters too, who each gave me a hug and told me how pretty I looked. I thanked them and they left to go find their parents, saying they'd see me at The Diner later; Embry's mom was nice enough to close it to the public for today so we could have a little graduation party there for Jared, Paul, Kim, and me.
I was hugged by one person and then another, pictures were taken, though this time nobody had to remind me to smile, I was pretty sure it was physically impossible for to not smile right now with the amount of excitement and happiness that raced through my body.
Eventually I stripped off my gown, revealing the green spaghetti strapped dress under it, the dress went down to my knees and had four bronze buttons going down the top and small flowers embroidered at the bottom, the green even went well with my red cast, which I would have to wear for another three weeks, but just to make sure it went even better I paired the dress with my red converse along with my M and P necklace and my flower ring.
After I was hugged many more times and the gym started to clear, I followed the sea of people and walked out of the gym looking for Paul. I found him in the mass of people gathered outside, he smiled widely when his eyes connected with mine and made his way over.
"You heard what they said, didn't you?" Paul asked when he got to me.
"No, what?" I replied confused.
Paul smiled and reached out and took my hand in his.
"That this is the start of the rest of our lives," Paul said.
"Yeah? So?" I laughed at his ridiculousness.
"So, are you ready to start the rest of our lives?" Paul asked, his brown eyes sparkling.
"With you? Absolutely," I said.
Paul leaned down and kissed my lightly on the lips, before we started walking across the grass, hand in hand.
AN: So, what did you think? I really hope you liked it. Like I told you last chapter this is the last normal chapter for this story, all that's left is the epilogue which I have written, it just needs some major editing, so it should be up by the end of the week. If I got anything involving the graduation wrong I'm sorry, I was in independent study for high school so my graduation was small with maybe less than 30 other students graduating, so I tried to take that and what I saw from my friends normal high school graduation and combine those two to make this one. Also the song at the beginning of the chapter is the song that I got this story title from, I didn't inspire the story but the song is great and you should go listen to it. Like always Meg's outfits are on my profile. And thank you to everyone for reading.
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