~Blood Rose~
a painful reminder that life is not continued from beyond,
but from the depths of a soul's breath;
where privacy becomes secrecy,
and secrets are revealed in order to exhale.
(From Michael: Secrets Exhaled)
Chapter 21:
A cool breeze crept through the open window, brushing away the sheer draperies. Jax awoke to the fresh smell of salty air. He looked down to where Skye was sleeping amazingly peacefully, wrapped up in his arms. It felt so good to have her there, the warmth of her body mixing with his own. He could almost drift away into his own peaceful slumber, almost. The night before weighed too deeply on his mind to simply let it go.
~Last Night~
Skye reached out her hand towards Jax and with out hesitating he took it in his own, coming to his knees beside her, waiting for her to tell him why they were in this cemetery at night. There was a clear look in her eyes, no clutter of emotions or thoughts, her features spoke of a purpose, there would be no turning back. Taking in a slow breath she paused a short moment, then spoke.
"Jax, meet my daughter."
An eternity seemed to pass as those words hung echoing in the space between them. She looked up at him waiting patiently for his response. He was lost within himself, there were no words that his tongue seemed able to form, no clear thoughts pausing long enough to detach themselves from the tangle of his mind to make sense of her words and their full meaning.
He looked at the tombstone, dark shadows making it difficult to read but in the slight glow of the celestial lights above, he could just make out the inscription.
Roslyn Anglique
Patterson
'In Heaven with Wings'
Roslyn. Rose. The image of a white door with a painted rose came to mind, the image of the room beyond it with a white bed, stacked boxes, and beyond that something be hadn't been able to identify till now, mostly covered by the items in front of it, with white bars. The pieces to an unmade crib.
Jax turned away from the slab of stone, standing strong in the sea of surrounding darkness, a monument to its story, the story of a life. He found Skye still staring up at him, her eyes carrying an unspeakable depth into her soul. As he looked at her he did the only thing he could think to do, reaching his arms out he pulled her to him, holding her tight. He wasn't sure if he did this in a reaction to give her comfort or himself, he rather suspected a little of both.
If he had expected her to cry he might have been surprised when she didn't, but he really didn't have any expectations at all, he couldn't think straight enough, didn't have enough answers to the all the questions that had sprung up to have any expectations.
She rested her head in the crook of his neck, allowing him to hold her as close to himself as the third life present would allow.
Time passed slowly in an endless silence until Skye shifted against him, quietly pulling away. She brought up her hand, pressing her fingers to her lips, then reached out and gently touched the grave before standing up. She walked away, not waiting for him, trusting that he would follow, and he did.
As they had come, so they went, her a few feet ahead her gaze far away, and him coming behind watching her constantly.
When they had reached the shore before the beach house, he had stayed behind on the sand, watching the waves roll in, then out, while she had gone up to bed. He had tried to fit everything together, to make sense of all the pieces he had to the mysterious puzzle that was Skye, but he was observant enough to know that there was still too much he didn't know to claim any form of understanding, at least any she would accept.
After some time had passed he had gone up the wooden steps and inside, and headed to her room. The door had been open, and he had gone inside with out thought, discarding some of his outerwear and crawled beside her on the bed. She had been awake and while she didn't resist, she didn't respond when he pulled her to him. She had let him into an area he had no doubt had never been opened before; he knew it had to be hard, her opening up, and he was grateful for her trusting him. He also knew he had to be patient, barriers had been let down but there were many more before him.
~*~*~*~*~
When Antoinette opened her eyes to the morning light, she found that she was still in the arms of Jax as she had been when she fell asleep. She tilted her head up, seeing that his eyes were shut, though for some reason she couldn't explain, she knew he was awake, simply lost in thought.
She brought her head down onto his chest and felt his grip tighten about her for a moment, then release her. It had taken a lot for her to tell him what she told him, not just in telling him but in effort it had taken to get herself to decide to tell him and yet for all that, nothing had been done to prepare her for what to do afterwards. She didn't think she could have handled thoughts of that nature, it cost her so much with the first step, but now she had no choice. She couldn't take back what was done, nor keep things as they were. There would be questions, so many questions, and memories she's hid from resurfacing.
Perhaps it had been foolish to start this path when it was so dire for her to remain stress free, but then if she waited, there would be no second chance. She was fighting against time to show him what he deserved to be shown, to make sure he didn't fall into the despair he had with Brenda, she wouldn't leave him to that. Their child would need him, and hopefully someday he would choose a woman that would be a proper mother, give her child the love she wouldn't be able to show from the world beyond.
She was tired, so tired. Closing her eyes, she fell asleep once again, a mercifully dreamless sleep.
a painful reminder that life is not continued from beyond,
but from the depths of a soul's breath;
where privacy becomes secrecy,
and secrets are revealed in order to exhale.
(From Michael: Secrets Exhaled)
Chapter 21:
A cool breeze crept through the open window, brushing away the sheer draperies. Jax awoke to the fresh smell of salty air. He looked down to where Skye was sleeping amazingly peacefully, wrapped up in his arms. It felt so good to have her there, the warmth of her body mixing with his own. He could almost drift away into his own peaceful slumber, almost. The night before weighed too deeply on his mind to simply let it go.
~Last Night~
Skye reached out her hand towards Jax and with out hesitating he took it in his own, coming to his knees beside her, waiting for her to tell him why they were in this cemetery at night. There was a clear look in her eyes, no clutter of emotions or thoughts, her features spoke of a purpose, there would be no turning back. Taking in a slow breath she paused a short moment, then spoke.
"Jax, meet my daughter."
An eternity seemed to pass as those words hung echoing in the space between them. She looked up at him waiting patiently for his response. He was lost within himself, there were no words that his tongue seemed able to form, no clear thoughts pausing long enough to detach themselves from the tangle of his mind to make sense of her words and their full meaning.
He looked at the tombstone, dark shadows making it difficult to read but in the slight glow of the celestial lights above, he could just make out the inscription.
Roslyn Anglique
Patterson
'In Heaven with Wings'
Roslyn. Rose. The image of a white door with a painted rose came to mind, the image of the room beyond it with a white bed, stacked boxes, and beyond that something be hadn't been able to identify till now, mostly covered by the items in front of it, with white bars. The pieces to an unmade crib.
Jax turned away from the slab of stone, standing strong in the sea of surrounding darkness, a monument to its story, the story of a life. He found Skye still staring up at him, her eyes carrying an unspeakable depth into her soul. As he looked at her he did the only thing he could think to do, reaching his arms out he pulled her to him, holding her tight. He wasn't sure if he did this in a reaction to give her comfort or himself, he rather suspected a little of both.
If he had expected her to cry he might have been surprised when she didn't, but he really didn't have any expectations at all, he couldn't think straight enough, didn't have enough answers to the all the questions that had sprung up to have any expectations.
She rested her head in the crook of his neck, allowing him to hold her as close to himself as the third life present would allow.
Time passed slowly in an endless silence until Skye shifted against him, quietly pulling away. She brought up her hand, pressing her fingers to her lips, then reached out and gently touched the grave before standing up. She walked away, not waiting for him, trusting that he would follow, and he did.
As they had come, so they went, her a few feet ahead her gaze far away, and him coming behind watching her constantly.
When they had reached the shore before the beach house, he had stayed behind on the sand, watching the waves roll in, then out, while she had gone up to bed. He had tried to fit everything together, to make sense of all the pieces he had to the mysterious puzzle that was Skye, but he was observant enough to know that there was still too much he didn't know to claim any form of understanding, at least any she would accept.
After some time had passed he had gone up the wooden steps and inside, and headed to her room. The door had been open, and he had gone inside with out thought, discarding some of his outerwear and crawled beside her on the bed. She had been awake and while she didn't resist, she didn't respond when he pulled her to him. She had let him into an area he had no doubt had never been opened before; he knew it had to be hard, her opening up, and he was grateful for her trusting him. He also knew he had to be patient, barriers had been let down but there were many more before him.
~*~*~*~*~
When Antoinette opened her eyes to the morning light, she found that she was still in the arms of Jax as she had been when she fell asleep. She tilted her head up, seeing that his eyes were shut, though for some reason she couldn't explain, she knew he was awake, simply lost in thought.
She brought her head down onto his chest and felt his grip tighten about her for a moment, then release her. It had taken a lot for her to tell him what she told him, not just in telling him but in effort it had taken to get herself to decide to tell him and yet for all that, nothing had been done to prepare her for what to do afterwards. She didn't think she could have handled thoughts of that nature, it cost her so much with the first step, but now she had no choice. She couldn't take back what was done, nor keep things as they were. There would be questions, so many questions, and memories she's hid from resurfacing.
Perhaps it had been foolish to start this path when it was so dire for her to remain stress free, but then if she waited, there would be no second chance. She was fighting against time to show him what he deserved to be shown, to make sure he didn't fall into the despair he had with Brenda, she wouldn't leave him to that. Their child would need him, and hopefully someday he would choose a woman that would be a proper mother, give her child the love she wouldn't be able to show from the world beyond.
She was tired, so tired. Closing her eyes, she fell asleep once again, a mercifully dreamless sleep.