Thanks as always for your lovely reviews Kelly & EC Brenway! Much appreciated!

Kelly - here it is - Chloe's trip across to the island, let's see how it goes if she can reunite with Elly!

EC - A werewolf escorting Chloe does feel like something that's needed to avoid anything bad happening to Chloe!

The Chemistry In Darkness

Chapter Sixty-Nine

Wednesday 26th February 2025

Chloe clasped her hands together nervously as she sat in the dingy watching Lexa oar them across the ocean to the Island. Chloe felt relieved that it wasn't on her to get herself over to the Island alone on the dingy after dark because the trip was much longer and rougher than Chloe imagined. Yet Lexa looked like this exercise was the same as going for an evening stroll along the beach.

Chloe had kept an eye on Lexa, worried the brunette would warn Elly she had turned up but it seemed like Lexa was on her side, despite been somewhat hesitant to trust her. Chloe understood. She'd been stuck in her marriage, fearing for everything to do with her baby, for the past two and a half months. She had no idea how Elly had survived the time apart.

Should I ask Lexa about what things have been like for Elly...? And Aster? Or should I just wait to see for myself?

Eventually Chloe couldn't resist finding out any longer, asking Lexa, "Has Elly been...okay? And Aster? Have they both been...okay out here on the Island?"

Lexa raised her eyebrow at Chloe, "If Elly had done things the way I would've to have coped with the heartbreak...they'd have been a different fuckboy in Elly's bed every night."

Chloe's eyes widened at the mere idea of Elly moving on from her.

I never wanted Elly to find someone else...even a temporary fuckboy to take her mind off me...how selfish am I? I was with Pierce...lying in bed with him every night for months...years...Elly had...has every reason to move on...

"Don't panic, your girl didn't take any of my advice. No fuckboys. Or fuckgirls for that matter," Lexa reassured.

'Your girl'...is Elly really? By tonight...will she be? Or will Elly need time to come to terms with me now choosing her knowing this baby is hers when I could've chosen a life with her even whilst thinking I was pregnant to Pierce?

"But she's been...okay?" Chloe found herself asking again.

Lexa eyed Chloe for a moment, before answering honestly, "The love of her life let her go...Elly hasn't been okay...but maybe seeing you again this evening will help Elly to be...more than okay...as long as you're not here to break her heart all over again?"

Chloe couldn't help placing her hand over her stomach, feeling the connection between herself and her baby for the first time and wanting desperately to give Elly the chance to do the same.

But first, I need to tell Elly I love her, I need her to know it was her all along...our baby only confirms it...and helped me find the strength to leave my husband to be with the woman I love with all my heart...

"No heart breaking," Chloe promised.

Lexa eyed Chloe once more and the way she was holding herself as she sat on the opposite side of the dingy to her, "Your heart is beating quickly, almost like there's an extra beat in there."

"It feels like it's beating a million miles an hour," Chloe admitted, "Maybe because it's hoping that Elly forgives me and she and I and Aster can have what we should've had months ago...years ago."

"Maybe," Lexa whispered, before concentrating on oaring the dingy to the Island as quick as she could.

Fifteen minutes later the pair were dragging the dingy up onto the sandy beach. Lexa was doing most of the work, Chloe was just pretending to help really considering her strength compared to Lexa was nothing. Chloe was so nervous about seeing Elly again after the way she'd rejected her months ago.

Lexa watched the anxious woman standing on the beach, "Come follow me. We've got a set up in the middle of the Island, a clearing where we found some fancy glamping tents that luckily didn't burn down when this place went up in flames. Not that there's much proof of that fire happened anymore. We probably wouldn't have known about it, if Elly didn't mention it. The tents were a bit sooty but not enough to steer us away from them. We're pretty used to living rough if we need to. Don't need the beds but since we've got them, we make good use of them. Guess we have you to thank for all this…the Island."

Chloe was busy thinking back about the experience of visiting the Island for the glamping holiday years ago with her husband and all their friends, and the fire that had nearly engulfed them all before rescue had come their way.

Three months since Elly had disappeared…I really missed her so much…that trip was a nightmare…but missing Elly and trying not to let Pierce know it… If only I knew Elly was alive…if only I hadn't let Elly go home alone from my Hen's party…Elly wouldn't have been turned into a werewolf…and I wouldn't be pregnant with our baby now…has everything worked out for a reason for us?

Eventually Chloe was brought out of her thoughts, "It's just an Island, you'd have found another place to stay after what happened to your cabin. Only good part about it is that…I worked out where you guys were and I didn't have to spend months looking for Elly…and Aster. I don't want to think about that now, I just want to find Elly. There's a lot I need to tell her."

Lexa nodded, pointing to the direction to the side of them, "I'm taking you to Elly first. Our clearing with the tents is up by that way…which I guess you might remember but then I doubt you arrived after dark."

"Will Aster be with her?" Chloe asked, feeling like she wanted to be prepared to reunite with both of them.

Lexa paused for a moment, "No, Aster would already be asleep. The lil one usually crashes in Raven's tent for a couple hours after spending time with her and Clarke, then they get her back to Elly's tent when Elly returns…from her nightly moping ritual."

Chloe furrowed her brow, "Elly has a nightly moping ritual…that keeps her from putting Aster to sleep every night?"

"Elly's been…a little upset," Lexa revealed.

"How upset?" Chloe asked, not wanting to hear that it was because of her.

What else could've made Elly so upset…she thought I've given up all hope of being with her? I have a lot to make right with Elly and Aster tonight, tomorrow and every day after that.

Lexa shrugged, "Enough that she can't be around us all the time. Seeing you again should start to fix that…as long as you don't hurt her all over again."

"I'm here to make things right with Elly and if she gives us a chance, I want her back," Chloe declared, "Her and Aster."

"Then let's get you to Elly as soon as we can so we can stop putting up with Elly's moping…I mean so you two can reunite already," Lexa decided.

"I like the sound of that," Chloe agreed.

Fifteen minutes later, Chloe was trying desperately not to feel too tired after her day of running around all over the place, in the hope that Pierce wouldn't be able to find her. At least for a few days, she knew she couldn't avoid facing him again one day and only hoped that day would involve legally ending their marriage. Remembering that she hadn't slept much the previous night and had been up and out of her house by 3 am. She hoped she wouldn't just end up collapsing into Elly's arms and fall asleep.

There's so much I need to say to Elly tonight about our baby…

Lexa finally pointed ahead of where they were walking, "You'll find Elly up through that clearing about 100 meters away. I'll leave you be here; I don't need to see your sappy reunion. Don't think Elly likes being interrupted out here anyway…though I'm sure you're the only interruption she'll want."

Chloe nodded awkwardly, "Okay."

And like that, Lexa headed off back from where they'd come. Chloe walked forward, then a few seconds later, glanced backwards but Lexa was nowhere to be found.

They really do have speed…I'm never going to be able to keep up with Elly… What if Elly's meant to be with a werewolf…instead of a human like me…? How am going to cope if this baby turns out to be a werewolf too? Better for this baby to be a werewolf than…like Pierce…

Chloe's thoughts were interrupted as her eyes finally found Elly up ahead. Chloe paused for a moment, breathing in the sight of the woman she hadn't seen in nearly three months.

The way Elly affects me…just looking at her. I never want to be apart from her again for this long…there's so much I need to do to make up for the pain of the last few months…I want to spend every day of the rest of my life with Elly and our family…if she wants the same thing too.

Chloe watched as Elly was sitting by a small fire, on some sort of a log or something. Her back was to Chloe and she seemed to be holding what looked like an acoustic guitar.

Elly can play the guitar? I wonder what kind of music she can play you...oh yes, just walk up behind Elly after all this time and ask her to play you a song...she'll probably sing the saddest song ever heard...it's pretty much what you deserve for how you rejected her and sent her living out here on an Island for two and a half months!

Chloe could sense, even as far away as she was, that Elly was sad. Everything about Elly's stature and the way she was sitting with her back to Chloe, told Chloe that the brunette was deeply upset.

Did I cause this? Did me not choosing to be with Elly cause the love of my life to give up on us? She was so sure when she left me that it was a matter of time before the pair of us would be together…I wanted to believe Elly…but I just never had that hope she did…until now…but am I too late? Have the past few months been too hard on Elly to believe I'd ever come back to her? How much will it take for me to convince Elly she was right…now is our time and I love her more than anything…as well as our baby?

Chloe had stood there silently for more than a minute, watching Elly, terrified of how Elly could react to her wanting them to reunite. Let alone the truth about the baby she was carrying.

But Chloe needed to put all her fears to the side, she needed to believe that Elly would forgive her and their baby would bring them together to share a lifetime of memories together.

Taking a deep breath, Chloe walked forwards, expecting Elly to hear her with her super hearing skills long before she was in her presence. But as Chloe continued walking over to Elly, the brunette never turned around to her, never even moved from her position of sitting there in front of the fire, holding her guitar, not playing it, like she was out of anything good to sing about.

As Chloe got to within thirty meters away from Elly, she remembered Elly telling her werewolves had excellent sense of smell and yet Elly still hadn't moved in recognizing she wasn't alone, let alone it was the woman she loved, wanting to reunite with her.

Then as she took a few more steps, Chloe's ears suddenly picked up on the sound of Elly sobbing quietly. Chloe's heart broke with every sob from the woman she loved.

When Chloe finally found herself several steps behind Elly, she cleared her throat, about to open her mouth to call out to Elly and snap her out of her sobbing.

Elly was snapped out of it instead when Chloe accidentally trod on a branch on the ground that cracked in half under her foot.

In a flash, Elly was standing up opposite Chloe, the acoustic guitar raised above her head, prepared to smash it upon the person whom had 'snuck' up on her.

Chloe's heart broke even more as she saw the broken and devasted look that was etched all over Elly's face and the tears stained against the woman's cheekbones.

As Elly gently lowered the guitar to her side, Elly's voice broke the silence between them, clearly shocked and confused to find Chloe standing in front of her after months of being able to return home for fear of her heart being broken all over again, "Chloe?"

Next time - will it be "Chelly are reunited and it feels so good" or "Chelly are reunited and things aren't as perfect as they could be..."?