Troy stared at the face of his fiancée, who was fast asleep in the space beside him.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight more months until he saw Jayne and Cibyl. His two surviving daughters.
He sat up slowly, feeling tears come to his dark eyes as he thought about the one he lost. But, he couldn't help, but feel that it was probably for the best. It would be difficult to raise two, nevermind triplets. Of course, he knew how wrong that sounded, but that couldn't be helped.
The twenty five year old then stood himself up and wandered to look at himself in the mirror that was on the wall above the dresser.
He stared at his reflection, catching the dullness in his dark blue eyes and the stubble along his jawline and upper lip.
He rubbed it and smirked.
He'd look damn good with a goatee. Like a rock star. Maybe he'd start a band? He did know how to play the guitar and it'd be so much better than working his boring job as a lawyer.
Troy winced.
That's right. He had to go to work tomorrow. He was defending an accused thief.
He glanced over his shoulder to the sleeping Trisha. Her long, sandy colored hair messily covered her tan face whilst she continued to sleep. Her skin already had that glow to it that he remembered his mother having before her death.
Troy shook his head, regaining his senses.
No use thinking about that. It was best to think about the present. About his future.
He smiled as he returned to gazing at his beautiful fiancée.
Troy was extremely lucky to have found Trisha so soon in life. Not only that, but he was also starting a family with her. If only it was this easy for Sybil-
He looked back to the mirror as he thought about his little sister all the way over in Japan, dealing with something that could easily kill her.
Taylor was more interested in his career than in love, but Sybil was different. Sybil was afraid to give her heart away. She was afraid to open up to people. But, Troy personally believed that she was more afraid of dying than falling in love.
She acted fearless, but Sybil feared many things. However, she faced all of her fears. Apart from that one. The one that was linked with love, death, and murder.
Troy returned to his senses upon feeling the familiar feeling of Trisha's small hand against his bare shoulder. He blinked.
It was cold, but soothing all the same.
"Is something bothering, Baby?" Troy bowed his head, placing both of his hands on the wooden dresser.
"I'm worried about Sybil, Trish." Trisha blinked her brown eyes before giving her fiancée a small smile and wrapping her arms around him, her hands resting on his chest.
"Troy. Your sister is stronger than any woman I've ever met. She's smart too. I mean, she matched us up, didn't she?" Trisha kissed Troy's cheek and he quickly turned, wrapped his arms gently around her waist, and pressed his lips against hers.
It was true. Almost six years prior, it was Sybil who had brought himself and his future wife together.
Sybil was working on a kidnapping case there in Canada and had asked both himself and Taylor for assistance, which was strange enough in itself, but they agreed anyway. Evidently, Trisha was one of the victims.
By the time Sybil had asked her brothers for help, she had discovered who the kidnapper was and where he was holding his victims. She only wanted Troy and Taylor to help her and the police in retrieving them. Evidently, she had come up with a break in plan for herself and her brothers. It had worked, obviously, seeing as they were there now, but in more ways than anyone could have expected.
As soon as Troy removed the blindfold, he had been captivated by her beauty and Trisha had fallen for her savior. Things only went upwards from there.
Troy ended the kiss, smirking.
"True. If Sybil hadn't of asked for help, I would've never met you." Trisha laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes.
Troy also closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of her in his arms.
Countless times he had tried to picture himself alone, with no one to hold in his arms. He had tried to picture himself in his sister's position, afraid to give himself away. Afraid to love. Afraid to be loved. Each time, he failed.
He had to admit, he didn't really understand why Sybil was the way she was. He had always just thought that it was the trauma that had done it. But, Taylor always kept saying that it was much deeper than that. The trauma of their mother's death certainly was the catalyst of her problems, but she had been undergoing stress from pretty much birth.
"What are you thinking about now?" Troy looked down at Trisha and ran his fingers through her soft hair.
"I'm lucky to be able to hold you, Trisha. I'm lucky to be able to love you and to have you love me. I just wish my sister wasn't so stupid." The woman smiled.
"Troy, you worry too much about her. If Sybil is meant to love someone, she'll come to her senses. Just you wait and see."
***
Taylor yawned as he poured himself a steaming cup of coffee. The radio played his favorite station, Country 93, and George Strait was singing.
The man couldn't help, but hum the tune as well, seeing as it was one of his favorite songs. Troubadour.
Ah, the classics of George Strait. What he wouldn't do to have a job where he could listen to such artists all day long. Hmm, maybe he would think about a career change? A radio D.J perhaps? He could probably get a job working for his favorite station.
Taylor took a sip of his coffee and smiled to himself when the next song came on.
Don't Blink. Kenny Chesney. How true the lyrics were.
Taylor then opened his eyes and stopped smiling.
When the hourglass runs out of sand, you can't flip it over and start again.
Now that he listened to the song more closely, it had so much meaning. Perhaps if Sybil listened to it, she'd understand too. She'd understand that fearing such an important thing would only slow her down from finding the true meaning behind her existence. Surely it wasn't just saving people she would most likely never know. Sybil deserved so much more than that.
Taylor put down his coffee cup down and looked up to a photo on the wall of his kitchen. There, a photo hung of Troy, Sybil, and himself three years ago.
She stood in the middle of them, her arms over their shoulders as she smiled goofily. She wore that black cap, but she had much longer hair then. Truthfully, the only reason she had cut it was so that she could donate it to make wigs for people going through chemotherapy. Such a selfless soul. Personally, Taylor would give anything to be like her. To see things her way.
He turned his attention to his coffee, which was pitch black. Just the way he liked it. He couldn't have it any other way. Sybil and Troy always joked that it was because he enjoyed seeing his reflection. Well, that was partially the truth. The main reason was that it was the only thing strong enough to keep him awake through the day. He really needed to take some more time off. Every Saturday just wasn't cutting it.
Taylor closed his eyes in thought.
Maybe he'd go back to Japan and surprise Sybil. He didn't mind so much seeing his mother's sperm donor, seeing as Sybil seemed to have somewhat forgiven him. Yeah. That sounded like a great idea. Of course, he'd ask Troy and Trisha first if they'd come as well, then he'd send Sybil an email. She probably wouldn't be all that happy about his decision, but what could she do? There was no way that she'd stop them if her family wanted to come and see her.
Life is a Highway. Rascal Flatts.
Taylor smiled again as he took another sip of coffee.
How true.
***
To Sybil, things were happening so fast that every time she blinked, there was something else to do with the investigation.
Things were slow at first, there wasn't much to work on, but with the new Kira surfacing, it seemed that everything was speeding.
This new Kira was infatuated with the original, that was certain. Of course, that only further proved it, to herself at least, that the Second Kira was a woman or a teenage school girl. Everyone else, including L, seemed a little hesitant to accept this, which ticked her off a great deal. Much of the time, she was mumbling incoherent insults about close minded men under her breath. At least, until the supermodel Misa Amane surfaced. Light's new girlfriend.
It enough was to raise suspicion, especially since she had arrived soon after the Second Kira had announced ending it's search for the original Kira. Of course, her obvious obsession with the poor boy was even more reason for suspicion against the girl. As soon as it was proven, judging by hair samples and fingerprints discovered on the tapes from Sakura T.V, that Amane was the Second Kira, Sybil had mentally kicked herself for being so easily trusting with Light and her wall went back up.
It took L days to get back in after Misa was sent to confinement, strapped to a metal table, with a blindfold. A move he had taken upon himself to do without confiding in his comrade. Again, that ticked her off to a huge extent. She was still mad at him and hardly said a word to anyone, apart from Jerrod. He, of course, gave her advice that only a father locked away for fifteen years could give. Forgiveness. Sybil took that to heart and forgave her friend with much hesitance, but her father had done much worse and she had forgiven him, which was her reason for so easily doing so. Only, she didn't punch L hard in the jaw. No, she hit him in the arm instead. Now, he had a very large bruise that he had been trying to keep hidden from her. But, seeing that she too was a genius, she had noticed it and apologized quietly. Not that she was truly sorry. She just didn't want that bruise weighing heavily on her conscience.
Now, there Sybil sat. In her seat, beside her detective partner, staring, bewildered still to how life flew by so fast when she with him. When she was with L. Strangely enough, it made the twenty three year old feel fifty three. It made her long the feeling of true happiness so much more. She even secretly envied Misa for feeling such a loyal emotion and not fearing the consequences.
Why couldn't everyone just feel the same way about others as that blonde idiot down there? Maybe, just maybe, Sybil was seeing everything all wrong and there was nothing to fear about being in love. After all, people survived broken hearts everyday. At least, everyone, but Jane Carlyle Corvax.
"Sybil? Is something wrong?" The young woman shook the feeling and her thoughts from her mind before smiling at her dark haired friend.
"No. It's nothing. Just daydreaming about a better future for us all. Nothing more."