This is kinda the second half of chapter 9, but I'm making it chapter 10. Just remember that it follows basically directly on from last chapter.
You people have to review – or I will just stop updating – lame threat I know but, eh, I do what I can.
Also, I will go back to chapter four and change the name of Cole's mother, but I haven't got round to re-posting. In this chapter she has the correct name.
Chapter Ten: …And I'll cry if I want to
Christopher Wyatt closed the bedroom door behind him and sighed loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose lightly, gathering his thoughts. He'd been familiar with the Halliwell's since his son, Leo, had started dating the second eldest, Piper, whom Christopher found to be a charming girl and perfect for his son. He was particularly fond of her, as well as her three sisters, feeling almost like an Uncle to them. And now Phoebe, the next one down from Piper, was "hanging around " with his stepson, Cole.
That evening, he'd been settling down with his wife, Elizabeth, with a glass of wine and an old movie, enjoying the peace and quiet they seldom got to share. Christopher worked a lot at the hospital, and when he was at home, his son – sons – were often there. However, that had all been disrupted when he'd received a phone call from a clearly distressed Leo, who had implored his father to get to the Halliwell manor as fast as he could because something was wrong with Paige and she desperately needed a doctor - which is exactly what Christopher was, and had been for almost two decades.
Upon arriving at the manor, he had found two young men with whom he was vaguely familiar sitting with his son and stepson on the floor in the hallway, each one looking as uncomfortable and awkward as the next. Leo had thrown his arms around his father, before directing him upstairs and into one of the bedrooms.
"How is she?"
The question jolted Christopher out of his thoughts, and he smiled softly at Victor.
"I gave Paige a sleeping tablet so at least she can have a good night's rest," he explained. "The cuts weren't that deep, so there's no need for stitches, I've just cleaned up her arms and bandaged them."
"Will she be okay?"
"There will probably be a faint scar, but nothing major. The emotional repercussions…"
Victor nodded. "I know. Thanks for coming, Chris."
"Not a problem."
"Would you like a coffee?" Victor offered.
"Thank you, but I think I should take my boys home and give you and your family some time alone," Christopher replied. "I can drop home the other two on the way."
Together, they descended the stairs, to see that Prue, Piper and Phoebe had joined the guys in the hallway. Prue pacing back and forth, Piper next to Leo, their hands intertwined, and Phoebe in between Cole and Glenn, Cole's arm around her shoulder, her hand resting on Glenn's.
"Is Paige okay?" asked Prue, rushing to meet her father and Christopher at the bottom of the stairs.
Christopher nodded and all seven of the teenagers let out breaths they hadn't even realised they were holding.
"She's sleeping right now," said Victor, immediately recognising the girls' eagerness to go upstairs.
"Come on kids, we should get going. I'll drop Andy and Glenn off on the way back."
Nodding mutely, all four guys stood up, saying goodbye to the girls, each making promises to call tomorrow.
Once they'd left, the girls looked to their father and hugged him, each seeking comfort in his embrace.
"Where's Grams?" asked Piper, suddenly noting that her grandmother was not with them.
"She went to bed when Christopher got here," replied Victor. "She was feeling a bit dizzy."
"Can we please go up and see Paige?" pleaded Phoebe.
"She's asleep, girls," Victor repeated.
"We know," answered Prue. "But…"
"Fine," Victor relented. "But you have to be very quiet and don't wake her, okay?"
The three of them nodded and headed upstairs, creeping down the corridor to Paige's bedroom, where Piper slowly and silently pushed the door open. Paige was lying curled up on the bed, her dark curls falling over her pale and delicate features, looking child-like and innocent. The only sign that anything was wrong were the thick bandages wound round both wrists.
Piper pulled the armchair up to Paige's bed and sat in it, while Phoebe and Prue settled themselves at the foot of the bed.
"She looks so…peaceful," commented Piper, her voice barely above a whisper.
Paige stirred, her eyelids fluttering, a hand coming up to brush her hair from her face.
"Piper?" she asked softly into the darkness, her voice thick with sleep.
"Hey sweetie," came the reply of her sister, and a hand, recognisable as Piper's by the short nails, came to rest on her own.
Slowly, Paige was able to make out three shapes, one next to her bed, and two at the end. Her sisters. Her half-sisters.
"What are you doing in here?" Paige demanded, desperately fighting off sleep.
"We wanted to see how you're doing," replied Prue.
"I'm fine. Now you can go and have a cosy chat with your dad," Paige told them, her voice cold, despite her tiredness.
"Paige, he's your father as well," Piper responded, her tone soft and loving.
"Not according to biology."
"Screw biology!" exclaimed Phoebe, before checking herself and continuing in a softer voice. "Biology doesn't matter. Not really. You're our sisters, and dad's daughter, in every way that matters. You're the little sister who I used to take baths with and put all the bubbles into your hair."
"And when you were four you got upset that you couldn't go to camp with me and Prue and Phoebe," added Piper. "So we made our own camp in the back garden and Grams let us have that little electric cooker so we made spaghetti hoops and slept in the tent."
"And you're my baby sister that I wanted to play mummy to when you were born," Prue continued, smiling fondly at the memory. "Mum let me give you a bath, and help to feed you, and tuck you in at night. You were like my little baby Paigey doll."
"Paige, you're our little sister, and we love you so much. You annoy the hell out of us sometimes, but you couldn't do that unless you were our sister," Phoebe said.
Paige was glad of the dark of the room, because the other three girls couldn't see a tear roll from her eye, down her face, over her nose and on to the pillow, leaving a small wet circle.
"Can you please go now. I'm really tired," she told them, not lying as sleep was becoming harder to fight off.
"Okay," Prue responded and Paige felt the weight lift from the end of her bed.
Each of them placed a kiss on her cheek, before leaving the room, shutting the door quietly behind them.
Once they had left, Paige pressed her face into her pillow and cried until she fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
What you guys reckon on Paige having a relationship with Sam? Yay or nay?
Please review.
