Chloe's POV:
It's been three days since the accident and I don't know what to do with myself. I've taken off of work to stay home and cater to Quil. He spends most of his day sleeping off the pain and trauma to his body and the second half of the day wanting to be left alone. Joy and Old Quil both stopped by the day after the accident to drop off food and home remedies for pain. Joy completely stocked up our fridge, which Embry really seemed to appreciate.
In a particularly stressful moment for me as I watched Quil groan and whine in pain Joy comforted me as I cried quietly in my room. She rubbed my back and held my face to her chest, reminding me Quil is strong and he's alive. It felt wrong for his mom to be the one to comfort me, but still I selfishly let her. She also gave me some kind words about still seeing me as his imprint and still expecting grand babies from me. It was sweet and made me laugh.
I've tried my hand at helping Quil out with tasks like heating up his food and bringing him water, but he insisted he did not want to be babied. Normally I would expect him to act like this is it were Embry doing it, but for me? I expected him to let me baby him a bit. After thinking he was dead and going through the stress of him being in danger I want to baby him. I feel like I need to. I want to be by his side constantly but he's pushing me away it seems.
Safe to say I feel useless again.
We haven't actually talked much about the accident, but it's his process to grieve and go through on his own terms. I don't want to push him. His mom calls him and he's a bit snippy. Embry tries to talk to him and he says he wants to be alone. He's not snippy or mean to me, but distant. I hate it, but I don't want to push him too hard.
Bella came home yesterday with some cute pink casts on. I went to visit her at home, which I'll admit was a bit scary considering that's where it all happened, but I made it through. She kept up a positive attitude and Charlie was there to cater to all her needs. She also mentioned Edward coming by every evening to sleep next to her, which I thought was sweet. She spoke positively of Jake too, but I can see her heart lies with Edward officially. While I'm sad for Jake, I know there's someone else out there for him. He's be okay soon.
For the most part I've been moping around the house, trying to keep myself busy. I've cleaned every room except Quil and Embry's bedrooms. I've reorganized my clothes. I've painted my nails twice. I've even gone through two whole shows already. All I want is to talk to Quil, but I don't see that happening right now.
I'm laying in bed on my phone when I hear the sound of glass shattering in the kitchen and a string of curse words coming from Quil. Quickly I push myself from my bed and wander into the kitchen to see Quil hissing out his breath as he bends over to clean the mess. He's in the same sweats as he has been for three days and his curls are disheveled. Still my heart aches and all I want is to cuddle and kiss him.
"Don't do that, I got it." I quickly walk over to the mess, bending down to help.
"No!" Quil yells sharply. I stop in my tracks, my back straightening as I rise back up. "I got it." He says defensively.
I watch him bend over to collect the glass, hissing every now and again in pain. His face is scrunched up and his hand flies to his chest to cup the covered wound. I don't understand why I can't help him. Is this an ego thing or something else? I don't say anything or push the topic, but I stand nearby to watch him. "What's wrong with you lately?" I mumble quietly, finally needing an answer.
He doesn't look at me. "Nothing's wrong with me, I'm fine." He grumbles in a cranky tone. This is all unlike Quil. He's never rude to me like this, even before imprinting he was annoying but never mean.
"You seem distant." I counter, resting my hip on the kitchen island. "Why is that?"
Quil throws the last big chunk of glass into the garbage with a huff. "You probably think that because we're not imprints anymore so shit is different." He mutters, walking over to the fridge, collecting a bottle of water.
His words sting but I try to brush them off. He's still recovering, he's been through a lot. "That means nothing." I say softly, trying to keep myself from falling into sadness again.
He raises his eyebrows but doesn't look at me. I watch as he walks right past me, headed towards his bedroom. "It means everything. You don't even look at me the same." He says before making it to his room, softly shutting the door behind him.
His words leave me stunned for a moment before I follow after him, pushing the door open to see him wincing as he sits down on his bed. His wound is patched up but still evident, he's been hiding it under t-shirts. "I look at you the same." I declare, standing firmly planted in his doorway. "Why would you think I don't?"
Patience. I remind myself. Quil needs my patience. Although if he keeps acting like an ass I'm going to blow up.
"I can see it." He huffs, laying back down. He looks so pouty and defensive like a child. "I can see you look at me differently, it's not the same. You got what you wanted, we're not imprints anymore. Now your body doesn't react to me when I touch you and you don't look at me like you used to. It's back to how you wanted it. I'm alone and you're alone."
And I thought his words stung earlier.
"If I look at you "differently" than it's because I'm worried about you. Or scared you might be in pain. Or because I love you." I say breathlessly, not looking in his eyes. My heartbeat is loud and ringing in my ears and I feel nervous to be so vulnerable, but I don't want to lose him when I just got him back. It wouldn't be fair. "Maybe it's because I lost you and I grieved you and I felt the imprint bond leave. Fuck it scared me, okay? It broke me. I felt so guilty because I made your last few days shitty. I kept holding back from the imprint, and for what? Now you don't feel the same anymore and I'm stuck loving you-"
"You love me?" He says confused, his features scrunched up. He looks like a mixture of disbelief and near anger, as if I'm toying with him.
"Yeah I love you." I say it like it's obvious, because it is. "I love you, imprint or not. Maybe losing you put it into simple terms for me, but I fucking love you." I throw my hands up in annoyance.
Love has always felt like a strong word to me but I'm tired of running away from what Taha Aki planned for us. He chose me to be Quil's soulmate. This isn't just some regular old relationship, this is supposed to be for life. It was given to me and I ran from it out of fear and denial, but now all I want is to have it back. I'll never take Quil for granted again.
My eyes lift to his right as his lips part. "I've always loved you, I never stopped."
"Then why are you avoiding me?" I take a step inside of his room, kicking the door shut, and marching up to his bed. I take a seat at his side, looking down at him for an explanation.
His face is soft and sincere, and his hand reaches for mine. I watch our fingers intertwine as he speaks. "Because I'm scared to see you go back to how you used to feel. You always said this wasn't real, it was just the imprint, but it was never ever like that to me. I feel the same for you now as I did for you the past few years. I want you, I want this. Imprint or not." He lips his lips, looking up at me with a pouty look.
A smile raises to my lips, "I want this too." I close the gap between our lips, pressing mine to his.
There's those butterflies. There's that little zap shooting through my body that makes my toes curl and my cheeks blush. It's all real, it's all still there.
He pulls back all too quickly, "You mean it?"
I snort, pressing my lips to his again, kissing him hard and good. "I mean it." I mutter against his mouth, pressing kisses to it over and over again. "I want you. I want this." I smack my lips to his, my fingers toying with the ends of his curls.
I feel him grin against my lips. "You love me."
"Shut up." I giggle a little, pulling back. "No shit I love you." His arms wrap around me, engulfing me in his warmth. It's like home.
I press a kiss to his cheek before shifting so I'm under his blankets at his side, snuggled up against him. His arm wraps around me, holding me to him. I'm careful of his chest, not pressing my face to it. "I missed this." I mumble softly, "I haven't slept good in days."
"Me either." His arm strokes up and down my arm. "When I'm fully better I wanna take you on a proper date."
His words make me feel like a giddy middle schooler. "Really?"
He scoffs, "What, don't think I'm a romantic kind a guy?"
I giggle, shaking my head, "That's exactly what I think."
"Well when it comes to you I am." He declares proudly, pulling me further into him. I notice that while I can't smell him as strongly as I once did, I can still smell his cologne and his natural musk. I can still feel my butterflies when he kisses me or says sweet things. I still feel that sense of safety when I'm in his arms. All that love is still there, it's just different now. " I think you were right about living with Embry, I'm not ready to leave him yet. I think he needs us."
As if on cue Embry throws open the bedroom door making Quil chuckle. Embry stands in the doorway, his hands on his hips, giving us a narrow eyed look. "What was that about leaving me?" He asks pointedly.
"Oh yanno, Quil wanted to move out but I told him no." I tattle tail on him.
Quil playfully smacks my butt. "Embry it was all out of love, I just didn't want you to hear Chloe screaming my name every night. I felt bad. I tell her "be quiet Embry's home" but she literally can't contain herself." I giggle at his words, swatting at him.
Embry scoffs at his words, looking repulsed. "Disgusting. Yeah, maybe I do need my own place."
"No you're stuck with us now. We're a thrupple." Quil smirks at his friend, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
Embry pretends to gag at him. "Fuck off with that. I need to find my own imprint and get the hell out of here."
"Maybe we need a system, like I'll put a sock on the door so you know." He suggests, all too seriously. It's nice to see Quil be playful again, and despite Embry's disgusted looks, I'm sure he's glad to see this again too. I really had Embry to lean on in those scary moments, and I'll be forever grateful for that.