The Spanish influenza hit Chicago pretty suddenly. First there was talk of it, then a few people were hospitalized, then the hospitals, few as they were, became full of influenza patients. Small clinics opened their doors, and new clinics rose up. Tips for fending off the flu and keeping healthy were broadcasted frequently on the radio. When it first hit, Tatiana asked Edward if he was afraid he would catch it.

"Not too much," he'd said casually. "I mean, of course I don't want it. I would like to keep myself and my family safe, but we are pretty healthy. And I mean, I know how to keep clean and stuff."

"True," she'd responded.

"Are you scared?" he asked then, lifting his hand to brush her bangs out of her face.

"No," she admitted. "I have a very high immune system. I never really get sick."

Edward shrugged. "If you say so, darling."

Tatiana wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face into his chest. She wished she could share her immune system with him, because she was definitely afraid for him.

It was only a few weeks later that his father was hospitalized. Elizabeth had told Edward, despite his protests, to stay home away from the sick ward while she visited and cared for her husband. The Masons took him in so he would not be stuck alone in his family's house. Elizabeth was at her husband's side as often as she could, and Tatiana signed up as a volunteer there to help her.

A week before the flu took Mr. Masen, Mrs. Masen was diagnosed and hospitalized as well. When he found out, Edward immediately went to the clinic with Tatiana. Tati showed him where his mother was, and left them alone to talk.

"Edward, I told you to stay away from here," his mother said weakly when he approached her bed.

"Tatiana told me you were sick. I had to come," he said, kneeling down and taking her hand.

"My son, I do not want you to become infected as well," Elizabeth said firmly. "You have your life ahead of you. A life full of joy and opportunity. You have a life awaiting with Tatiana-"

"And she will understand the sacrifice I must make to be with my mother," he said. "I will not leave you."

The days that came after that were harder than they would have imagined.

Tatiana spent more time at the clinic than she did home, mostly because she refused to stay away from Edward for very long. A doctor who befriended her had been showing her simple medical tricks to help make the patients more comfortable and what kind of medicine to give them and such.

Only three weeks of being hospitalized, and Edward Masen Sr. succumbed to the flu. Tatiana stood aside as Elizabeth and Edward tried to converse with him to the end. Elizabeth wept for almost an hour straight, and Edward held his mother, trying to console and comfort her. Later in the evening, Tatiana helped Edward arrange for his father's body to be sent back properly to his home for burial in the garden behind their house.

"I am sorry about your father," she said quietly, taking his hands.

"It's alright," he said with a sigh. "We weren't very close…"

"He was still your father, though," Tatiana said. She took his chin so that he would look at her. "You don't have to keep this held up inside, Edward."

He shook his head, and he wrapped his arms tight around her, pressing his face into her shoulder. She held him tight and tried to mutter words of comfort as he let out a few shaky breaths and wept quietly.

Only a week and a half after his father's passing, Edward began to show symptoms of the influenza. Tatiana nearly had a breakdown with her father.

"I don't want to lose him, father," she said, on the verge of tears.

Matthew hugged her close. "I wish there was something I could do to help you, darling."

She pulled back and loomed at him. "What if… Could you change him? To be like you and mother?"

Matthew hesitated. "I don't think I can-"

"Why not?" she asked. "You saved mother, you could save him too!"

"We would have to move, Tatiana. We would have to move across the country."

"Father, I will do anything if it will save him," she insisted desperately.

Matthew sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "I will need to talk to your mother about this," he said. "But darling, you could perhaps save him yourself."

Tatiana looked confused. "But I'm not venomous," she pointed out.

Her father took her hands. "But you have the gift of healing. Perhaps if you try practicing on the other patients there, you'll be able to heal him yourself, and talk to him about... Well, perhaps give him the choice of becoming like us."

Tatiana thought about it and put her hands at her sides. "Do you really think I could be capable of healing him of the flu?"

Her father smiled kindly at her. "I know you can. You just have to believe in yourself, trust your powers."

He sent Tatiana off then so he could continue his work.

Tatiana took her father's advice, practicing her healing powers on patients when there were no other doctors or volunteers around.

"Do you feel any better?" she would ask casually after straining for five minutes. Only a few people did, but they said only slightly.

The next day, Edward was confirmed with the flu, and was bedridden. He knew his mother only had days left, so he insisted that Tatiana help him across the ward to be with her.

"Dr. Cullen, how long… would you think Mrs. Masen has left?" Tatiana asked one evening while Edward was being with his mother.

"Well, she has definitely held up better than many other patients, but she has been getting worse," he informed her. "I wouldn't give her more than a week."

Tatiana felt tears form in her eyes, and she lifted a shaky hand to wipe them away. "She's such a kind woman," Tati managed to say. "I wish... I wish I could help her."

Dr. Cullen put his hand on her shoulder. "There is only so much medicine and treatment can do, child," he said quietly. "I wish the same though. She does not deserve this fate."

"Neither does her son," Tatiana murmured. "Doctor, say that you... knew a way to help someone, but you weren't sure if they would really want that help in the end. Would you still go through with it without asking them because you knew it would help them?"

Carlisle hesitated before responding. "I'm not sure, Tatiana," he admitted. "I think it would depend on the circumstances and the person or people involved."

Before she could respond again, Edward called her into the room.

"I'm ready to go back now," he said, standing up straight, trying to look stronger.

"Be sure he gets rest and his medicine, please," Elizabeth said from her bed.

"Of course, Mrs. Masen," Tatiana promised. "And Dr. Cullen will be in here soon.

Edward took his mother's hand and kissed it. "I love you, mother. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I love you too, my son. Be good," she said, giving him a smile.

Edward returned it before taking Tatiana's hand and letting her escort him back to his bed.

"I'm not so sickly I can't walk on my own," he teased her, trying to give her a good smile.

"I know, but what if you trip and can't get up or something? Then what?" she said, smiling softly back at him.

"Come now, even with the influenza, I'm much more graceful than that," he said before coughing a few times into his shoulder.

Tatiana sat on his bed with him once they arrived there. "Is there anything I can get you?" she asked.

"No, no I'm fine," he responded. "Just stay with me a while?"

"Of course," Tatiana said as he put his head on her shoulder. She held his hand and tried to control her anxious thoughts.

"Something's wrong," Edward said, running his thumb over the back of her hand. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Oh, no, I'm quite fine," she assured him. "I just... am worried about you."

He lifted his head and looked at her. "I will be fine Tatiana," he said positively. She looked at him, and only felt more worried by his appearance. He was a mess; he had circles under his eyes from not sleeping well or enough, his forehead was sweaty, making his hair stick up funny in the front, and he overall just looked sickly. "I will get better. I will get better for you."

"You can't promise that," she said weakly, raising a hand to his cheek.

"I promise it anyway. I will get better, and I will be with you for as long as you want me, "he said. His tone was serious, but she heard the wavering illness that was slowly consuming him.

"So forever then, I guess," she said, attempting a smile.

He returned the expression and nodded. "Forever, then."

Tatiana hesitated, then leaned forward, pressing her lips to his. It was only their second kiss, but this one was by far the most meaningful. She was surprised how much energy he could put forth, considering what his body was facing. She lifted a hand to his hair and felt one of his move down her cheek to her neck.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed once they finally pulled back, but for a moment, she didn't care about time.

"You're sure to get the flu now," he mused quietly, trying to give her his signature crooked smile.

Tatiana tried to smile back, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She ducked her head down and sighed, hopelessness overcoming her. She knew she had to try to heal him, but deep inside she knew it was a long shot.

"Edward," she began weakly. "I have to tell-"

"Miss Mason."

Tatiana looked over to find Dr. Cullen standing in the doorway, eyeing her cautiously. Tatiana stood up slowly. "Dr. Cullen," she greeted quietly.

"It's quite late, I'm sure your parents will begin to worry if you're not home soon," the doctor said.

"Yes- of course." Tatiana turned to Edward, who was looking worse by the second. She could feel her heart breaking the longer she stared at him.

"Go ahead, love," he told her gently. "I'll still be here tomorrow, waiting for you. I promise."

She felt the burning in her throat threatening for her to start crying, but she ignored it. "You can't promise that, Edward," she told him again, placing her hands on his cheeks.

"Well I am doing it anyway," he said stubbornly. "I will not give into this ridiculous flu. I will stay strong for you."

Tatiana shut her eyes tight and sighed. She leaned down and kissed him, feeling his hands reach up to tangle in her hair. She didn't want to stop kissing him. She didn't want to leave him. She didn't trust his immune system or his mortal body to keep him alive. She tried to use her healing powers through her hands on his face and her lips on his. She kissed him a little harder as she felt her energy draining as her healing magic seeped into him. For a few moments she could swear that his heart began to beat stronger.

"Ah, Miss Mason..," Dr. Cullen said again

Just a few more minutes, she thought silently, but she knew this was it. She was out of time. Edward pulled back and looked at her curiously.

"I- I felt… better," he muttered, as if in a daze.

"I'm so sorry," Tati said so quiet she wasn't sure he had even heard her. He moved his hand to her cheek to brush away a tear on her cheek she hasn't noticed escape her eyes.

"I will see you tomorrow," he promised again, managing his smile again.

She nodded slowly. "Tomorrow," she agreed. She gave him one more, slightly shorter kiss, and stood up, collecting her small bag from his bedside table. She ran her hand through his hair and tore herself away from his side. She passed by Dr. Cullen without a word.

She walked home alone. The night was chillier than usual, but she didn't bother to button up her cardigan. She didn't mean to start crying as she walked, it just kind of happened.

She took an alley as a shortcut, and a group of four tall, gross men were gathered around a fire in a trash can. Normally, Tatiana would have turned and gone back, but she didn't care tonight. She wasn't scared of them, and she wasn't in the mood to walk the long way home.

"Hey there little miss," one of them called out. "Got somethin' for us?"

Tatiana ignored them as she approached to pass their little fire. "Don't be so cold, darling," another said, moving away from the fire. Soon, all four men had moved and were circling around her.

"Not too often we get such a pretty girl coming this way," the first man said.

"You're going to want to leave me alone," Tatiana warned dangerously.

"Oh I don't know about that," a third man said in a low tone. His greasy hair was shoulder length and the top part was hidden under a dirty cap. He reached forward to touch her face.

"I have been with influenza patients all day and all night for over a month," she snapped. "Just you breathing the air around me has increased your chances of being infected greatly." That was enough to make two of the guys scurry away, and the last two stepped back hesitantly.

The first guy seemed to have lost all his marbles because he took a step toward her confidently. "Yeah right. You're just saying that," he accused, although he didn't sound that brave. He reached forward, attempting to grab Tatiana, but before he could, Tati thrust her arms out to the sides and all four men flew backwards, hitting the walls of the alley or trash cans. They yelped and groaned, but Tatiana just crossed her arms and continued through the alley and to her road home.
When she got home, she just trudged up to her bedroom and collapsed on her bed without even greeting her parents in the family room first. She dropped her bag on the floor and sighed sadly, trying to think optimistically. Edward was strong- his body proved stronger than other patients- but he was only human and humans proved little match to the influenza.

There was a quiet knock at the door. "Darling, are you alright?" her mother asked gently, opening the door and stepping in.

"Of course I am, mother," Tatiana replied miserably. "I'll always be alright. I'll never have to worry about catching life threatening diseases or my body getting too weak to sustain my life anymore."

Her mother sat next to her on the bed and caressed her hair gently. "Is Edward… is he getting worse?"

"Well he isn't getting better!" Tatiana said. She sat up and pushed her hair out of her face. "His- His mother... I don't think she is going to last much longer, and I know he isn't far behind. His body can't save him forever and… I tried to heal him today. I tried, but I was interrupted and had to leave."

"Then you can try again tomorrow, love," Eloise said, trying to comfort her daughter. "Things will work out fine-"

"You don't know that, mother!" She dropped her head in her hands. "I just- I don't want to lose him," she finished quietly.

Eloise took her daughter into her arms and held her close. "My darling, I have lived a long time, and through my life I have learned this: everything works out for people who are good and honest. It may take longer than you would like, but so long as your heart remains true, fate will shed good light upon you, and life will be in your favour," she said gently. "I felt very lost in life before I met your father. When he offered me this immortality to be with him for eternity… I was so unsure and cautious. I kept him waiting for a week. I had many things I could have done in that week that would have changed my life, but I knew in my heart that going with your father was right. I trusted myself, and I have been blessed with the most amazing life any person could hope for."

Tatiana listened and took a few minutes before responding. "I feel in my gut that he will be okay… But what if that is just because I am hoping so hard that he lives through this flu?"

Her mother ran a hand through Tati's hair. "I have always believed that hope and fate are intertwined. As long as you can keep your hope alive, it will lead you to the fate you desire."

"I hope you are right, mother," Tatiana said quietly. "Because I hope for nothing other than to keep Edward alive and at my side."

"Then fate shall grant you his companionship, darling," Eloise told her. "I'm sure of it."

—

Tatiana had managed about three hours of sleep. She went to the hospital early the next day, 6am instead of her usual 8am. When she arrived, she noticed fewer nurses on duty than usual. The air felt… different. Something was wrong. She quickened her pace until she was running towards the ward where Edward stayed. She walked in and held her breath, looking at Edward's bed. It was empty, and the bed was made with clean looking sheets.

Maybe he's gone to have a shower, she thought hopefully. A nurse walked to his bed and was replenishing the medicines and clothes in the bedside table. Tatiana swiftly made her way over.

"Um, excuse me," she said, her voice coming out quieter than she meant. "Where- Where is Edward Masen? Is he showering or gone for a walk?"

The nurse looked at her and her expression changed to sympathy. "Oh, dear," she said gently, reaching out to place a hand on Tatiana's arm. "Last night, Edward Masen…"

Grief struck Tatiana right in the heart. It felt like someone grabbed her beating heart with ice cold hands and was sticking her with numbing needles. "No," she mumbled. "No- no, he can't-"

"I'm terribly sorry, Miss," the nurse said, looking like she meant it. "Dr. Cullen was with him all night, trying to save him. Said the poor lad put up a brave fight, but this is a nasty flu."

Tatiana couldn't breathe. She couldn't take deep breaths, and she pulled away from the nurse, holding her head in her hands and beginning to shake. "No, no, no," she muttered, tears already forming in her eyes and dripping to her cheeks and hands. "He- He can't be-"

"I'm sorry, Miss," the nurse said again. Before she could try to say anything else, Dr. Cullen himself entered the room. He froze upon seeing Tatiana, who did the same as her eyes caught sight of him.

"Carlisle," she said weakly. "Is he- he's really…" She simply couldn't manage to finish the sentence. It refused to process correctly through her mind.

Dr. Cullen pursed his lips and gave a single nod, dipping his head down apologetically. "I'm sorry, Tatiana," he said, and she caught a faint trace of grief and guilt in his tone. "I did all I could, but-"

"No, no no no no," she began muttering, no longer listening to the doctor. She sat helplessly on the edge of Edward's old bed, just where she had sat only seven hours before when her Edward was…

Oh, god. Tremors shook her entire body as she sat and wept in her hands. The best friend she'd ever had, the most kind, gentle, interesting person who had ever, and she was sure would ever, entered her life… was gone. She simply couldn't fully process it. She should have stayed. She should have snuck back in after Carlisle went home for the evening. She should have done so many things. She should have told him everything…

Dr. Cullen took a seat next to her and put his arms gingerly around her shoulders. She didn't protest. She just sat there and wept until the sun rose above the horizon and Carlisle and the nurse had other patients to attend to. She gave Carlisle a brief thank you for staying with Edward and for being so kind to the both of them, for being her friend for the while they worked together. She managed a small smile for him before she went home and inevitably cried more in her bedroom.

—

It was a full day before Tatiana could manage to speak to anyone. She carefully made her way down the stairs and into the family room where her parents sat, conversing quietly. They stopped and gave their daughter their full attention once she stood before them.

"I need to leave," she announced quietly. "I cannot stand to stay in this city. Every time I walk across its streets or admire its fantastical beauty, I will only be reminded…" She took a deep breath. "I cannot stay here. I understand if you both want to stay, and I know Oliver enjoys it here. But I am seventeen, and I can take care of myself. I can stay in one of our old family homes in another state, or-"

"Tatiana," her father said, cutting her off. "You are not leaving. Not without your family."

Her mother nodded. "We are a family, and we stick together."

"I cannot ask you both to just up and move," Tatiana said, feeling helpless again.

"You don't have to," Matthew said. "We stay together, no matter what. You are more important than our ties in this city, Tatiana."

"We will leave immediately, if you so need," Eloise agreed.

Tatiana rushed forward and hugged them both, never feeling more grateful to her parents before in her life. "Please," she said quietly. "As soon as possible."

—

It took the rest of the day for Mr. Mason to get all the transportation prepared. Whichever house they decided to move into would be, thankfully, already furnished. Mr. Mason enjoyed furnishing his houses each individually with furniture and trinkets from his many travels. On the third day after Edward's passing, the Mason family had packed what few belongings they wanted to bring with them, mostly items from Tatiana's and Oliver's rooms, and were off, on their way to Manhattan where they had chosen to live next.

Tatiana didn't speak much of the whole car ride. She couldn't help her mind from wandering to the sweet, short-lived bliss she had been given with Edward. His last promises to her echoed painfully in her mind, endlessly.

Edward technically didn't wake up from his three-day long transformation, but the state of being in searing pain, to feeling perfectly fine was sudden enough to seem so.

Carlisle had been right at his side as he woke up, and promised to answer any questions he knew Edward would have. But the doctor had managed to sneak quite a few fresh corpses of poor no-namers who had stumbled into and perished inside his hospital back to his house. Edward wasted no time draining each body dry of its blood, and thankfully, it was enough to quench his thirst, if only for temporarily. Carlisle explained the promise he had made to poor Elizabeth Masen about keeping her son safe at all costs, and what he had turned Edward into. Edward panicked briefly before he was able to keep himself calm again.

"The flu would have taken you in a matter of days," Carlisle told him gently. "After your mother asked me… I knew this was the only way I could truly protect you, to… save you."

"You sound as though you don't truly see this as saving me," Edward noticed.

Carlisle shook his head and took a deep breath. "I feel that is up for you to decide. You shall live on forever in this cold, stone immortal body, forever frozen as your seventeen year old self. You will have to feed on blood regularly to keep from going insane. We cannot starve, but the more time we go without blood, the more frantic our minds and instincts become."

Edward seemed most troubled by this. "I don't want to become like the monsters from fairytales," he said. "I don't want to become a bloodthirsty monster who hurts people."

"There is another way," Carlisle informed him. "A method I have discovered to be quite tolerable. Feeding on animal blood does not completely satisfy our needs, but it tames us well enough."

Edward sat still, staring at nothing as he considered all of this. "I will try," he decided. "As best I can… And, Carlisle," he added, "I thank you truly for trying to save me. I will never be able to repay you for this second chance you have given me."

Carlisle smiled warmly at the boy. "There is, however, one more matter I believe you'll want to attend to. The Mason girl, Tatiana."

Edward's expression changed immediately to happiness, then to shock and concern. "Have you talked to her? Have you seen her? What does she know of me?" he asked, sitting up straighter now.

"I saw her the first day you spent changing. I told her what I told the hospital, that you had fallen to the flu," the doctor explained. "She was heartbroken, to say the least. But I believed it would be up to you to find her again once you woke."

Edward felt distraught, He had promised her several times he would beat the influenza for her. He would live for her. And now she thought…

"I have to see her," he decided. "But how will I explain what I am now to her?"

Carlisle hesitated. "I admit that I have felt… suspicious of Miss Mason for quite a while now. She and her family possess qualities that lead me to believe they are quite like you and I are. That is to say, I think they are immortals as well."

Edward shook his head. "Tatiana isn't like us," he insisted. "She is warm and full of life. Her heart beats strong, and I know blood courses through her veins."

Carlisle ran a hand through his hair. "I would prefer to not speak more of my suspicions while they remain uncertain," he admitted.

"I need to see her," Edward said again. "Can I go to her house?"

"Yes, but you'll need to feed more," Carlisle said. He stood and offered Edward a hand up. "I will teach you how to feed until your thirst is truly sated for now. Then you may go find Tatiana."