Ten years later….
"Jersey, get that!" Phoebe Halliwell-Turner screamed at her sixteen-year-old. Jersey rolled her eyes and walked to the door. She opened it.
"Tim!" she squealed. Her oldest brother was twenty and he lived in a dorm room at college. "What are you doing home?"
"I don't have any classes until Thursday. All my professors are on a break. Something about a teacher's strike, I think. Anyway, I thought I would come home."
"Tim, is that you?" Phoebe walked in a hugged her eldest son. She took one of his bags and walked him up the stairs. They passed by a room on the left with the door closed. Nobody had touched the room or gone into it since Tim's elder sister had died, ten years ago. She would have been twenty-six right now. Whenever Phoebe or Tim went into the room, they would have a premonition of Christina in her life and they didn't like it. The pain was too much to bear.
"I'm so glad to be home, Mommy!" Tim had adopted Christina's habits of using baby names for his parents, but he only did it when he wanted to reassure them. "Where's dad?"
"He's working on a case. He's still in the office." Phoebe rolled her eyes. Whenever Cole had a major case, he would be in the office twenty-four/seven. He wanted to make up for all the evils he had caused the world. She opened the door to Tim's room and looked at the walls. The room was exactly as he had left it. His mother never liked to change anything. She walked over to a picture on his bed stand. She picked it up. It was a picture of Tim and Christina and Cole and Phoebe, taken when Phoebe was pregnant with Jersey and Jordan. All four were sitting on a porch swing and laughing. "Will the pain ever go away?" she whispered as she fingered the smiling seven-year-olds face.
"I don't know." Tim wrapped his strong arms around his mother and let her cry.
Downstairs, Jersey and Jordan were watching TV. They were both sixteen. Jersey was randomly throwing things and freezing them, then letting them fall to the ground. She had so far broken a lamp. She hadn't ever really gotten over that habit, but it had gotten to a point where she only did it when she was upset about something. She tried to focus on the TV, but the show was at a point where they were in the process of killing off the older sister of main character, and that struck a little to close to home for Jersey.
Jordan was busy trying not to pay attention to the TV. He understood exactly what Jersey was feeling. When they were thirteen, they had discovered that they had the ability to feel what the other was feeling, and it wasn't just a special bond. Jersey had broken her leg when she was fourteen, and Jordan had limped for a week. Jordan tried to wipe a tear from his eye, but it didn't work. They both felt incredibly sad remembering Christina. Finally, he just picked up the remote and changed the channel to a more happy station. He heard footsteps on the stairway and turned around. He saw his mother and Tim walking down the stairs.
"Dinner?" His mother called to them. "Jordan, it's your turn tonight." Jordan sighed loudly and went into the kitchen. He started pulling random things out of the refrigerator. He looked at what he had and laughed. In the other room, he heard Jersey giggle. He put some of his stuff back into the refrigerator and grabbed a bag of ravioli out of the freezer and put a pot of water on the stove to boil.
In the back of his eye, he saw a blue and white light orb into the kitchen. Must be Leo, he decided. He continued making dinner. He started chopping carrots of a salad.
"Careful," a voice behind him said. It wasn't Leo. The voice was far too feminine. He hadn't heard that voice for ten years. He turned around and couldn't believe his eyes. Jersey felt his shock and ran into the kitchen.
"Christina," they both whispered in awe. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm your whitelighter," she head up a hand, "I know, I know. I'm not supposed to be one, but the Council made an exception for me. Don't tell mom, I want to surprise her." She quickly orbed out.
"What was that all about? Jersey, I saw you run out of the living room. Did you feel something?" Both twins turned around, startled. Their mother stood there with a look of concern on her face.
"Nothing," they chorused together. But of course, the opposite was true. "Dinner in five minutes." Jordan told his mother. Jersey and Phoebe walked back into the living room. Phoebe had a growing suspicion that the twins were up to something but she settled on the couch and let herself think that they would tell her later. Jersey just sat there with a stunned look on her face. Christina would be back soon. She let herself be absorbed into the program. Five minutes later, they all walked into the kitchen.
"Jersey, get that!" Phoebe Halliwell-Turner screamed at her sixteen-year-old. Jersey rolled her eyes and walked to the door. She opened it.
"Tim!" she squealed. Her oldest brother was twenty and he lived in a dorm room at college. "What are you doing home?"
"I don't have any classes until Thursday. All my professors are on a break. Something about a teacher's strike, I think. Anyway, I thought I would come home."
"Tim, is that you?" Phoebe walked in a hugged her eldest son. She took one of his bags and walked him up the stairs. They passed by a room on the left with the door closed. Nobody had touched the room or gone into it since Tim's elder sister had died, ten years ago. She would have been twenty-six right now. Whenever Phoebe or Tim went into the room, they would have a premonition of Christina in her life and they didn't like it. The pain was too much to bear.
"I'm so glad to be home, Mommy!" Tim had adopted Christina's habits of using baby names for his parents, but he only did it when he wanted to reassure them. "Where's dad?"
"He's working on a case. He's still in the office." Phoebe rolled her eyes. Whenever Cole had a major case, he would be in the office twenty-four/seven. He wanted to make up for all the evils he had caused the world. She opened the door to Tim's room and looked at the walls. The room was exactly as he had left it. His mother never liked to change anything. She walked over to a picture on his bed stand. She picked it up. It was a picture of Tim and Christina and Cole and Phoebe, taken when Phoebe was pregnant with Jersey and Jordan. All four were sitting on a porch swing and laughing. "Will the pain ever go away?" she whispered as she fingered the smiling seven-year-olds face.
"I don't know." Tim wrapped his strong arms around his mother and let her cry.
Downstairs, Jersey and Jordan were watching TV. They were both sixteen. Jersey was randomly throwing things and freezing them, then letting them fall to the ground. She had so far broken a lamp. She hadn't ever really gotten over that habit, but it had gotten to a point where she only did it when she was upset about something. She tried to focus on the TV, but the show was at a point where they were in the process of killing off the older sister of main character, and that struck a little to close to home for Jersey.
Jordan was busy trying not to pay attention to the TV. He understood exactly what Jersey was feeling. When they were thirteen, they had discovered that they had the ability to feel what the other was feeling, and it wasn't just a special bond. Jersey had broken her leg when she was fourteen, and Jordan had limped for a week. Jordan tried to wipe a tear from his eye, but it didn't work. They both felt incredibly sad remembering Christina. Finally, he just picked up the remote and changed the channel to a more happy station. He heard footsteps on the stairway and turned around. He saw his mother and Tim walking down the stairs.
"Dinner?" His mother called to them. "Jordan, it's your turn tonight." Jordan sighed loudly and went into the kitchen. He started pulling random things out of the refrigerator. He looked at what he had and laughed. In the other room, he heard Jersey giggle. He put some of his stuff back into the refrigerator and grabbed a bag of ravioli out of the freezer and put a pot of water on the stove to boil.
In the back of his eye, he saw a blue and white light orb into the kitchen. Must be Leo, he decided. He continued making dinner. He started chopping carrots of a salad.
"Careful," a voice behind him said. It wasn't Leo. The voice was far too feminine. He hadn't heard that voice for ten years. He turned around and couldn't believe his eyes. Jersey felt his shock and ran into the kitchen.
"Christina," they both whispered in awe. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm your whitelighter," she head up a hand, "I know, I know. I'm not supposed to be one, but the Council made an exception for me. Don't tell mom, I want to surprise her." She quickly orbed out.
"What was that all about? Jersey, I saw you run out of the living room. Did you feel something?" Both twins turned around, startled. Their mother stood there with a look of concern on her face.
"Nothing," they chorused together. But of course, the opposite was true. "Dinner in five minutes." Jordan told his mother. Jersey and Phoebe walked back into the living room. Phoebe had a growing suspicion that the twins were up to something but she settled on the couch and let herself think that they would tell her later. Jersey just sat there with a stunned look on her face. Christina would be back soon. She let herself be absorbed into the program. Five minutes later, they all walked into the kitchen.