Hello loves, I hope you're enjoying the story. Here is a brand new chapter.

Chapter 45

Melanie huffed as she looked through her closet. The plastic hangers click-clacked loudly as she searched for a top anxiously. Isaac wouldn't say what was going on, so she didn't know what to wear. The brand on her shoulder was healing nicely, though it would scar. The infection was gone, thankfully. The other night Isaac had awoken her unintentionally, his deep and guttural need for her came to the surface. Her skin was still glowing and the images of him were still fresh in her mind.

"Are you ready yet?" Isaac poked his head in the door.

"I have no idea." Melanie whined. She looked down at herself and blew out her cheeks, all frazzled.

"You look great." Isaac snaked his arms around her waist from behind. His hand skimmed her midriff just past the hem of her black t-shirt. "Let's go."

He took her hand but she dropped it quickly.

"As soon as you tell me where we're going."

He sighed, slumping forward. She giggled with a smirk at his annoyance. It was so damn adorable to see from time to time.

"I swear, I will carry you out of here."

Melanie was unfazed by his low, threatening tone. Her lips twitched, taunting him. Their staring contest didn't falter until he shrugged nonchalantly and turned to leave her there. He turned back, catching her off guard and crouched quickly then grabbed her legs causing her to fall forward over his shoulder.

"Isaac!" she squealed as he lifted her up. Her hair fell around her face, tickling her nose. Her glasses dangled loosely from her ears making her vision waver between blurry and clear.

"Put me down you caveman!" she squealed.

He swung her around and off his shoulder, making her scream louder as he caught her in his arms like a cradle. She slapped him on the chest causing the smirk on his face to widen. She pushed her glasses back to their normal spot on her nose and looked up at him. There was a sudden sparkle in his eyes that she hadn't seen in good while. At the rick of attracting trouble, she thought that they almost seemed normal right then. Her hand at his chest slid up along his chest over his collar bone to his jawline.

"I have missed you terribly." Her voice cracked as if she might cry again. She hadn't cried for three days. She didn't want to break that record. She smiled and blinked a few times. The watery feeling passed like a sneeze making your face wrinkle embarrassingly and then not following through.

Here, with him, was safe. He was her home. He set her on her feet and kissed her forehead then her lightly parted lips. The kiss was chaste, sweet, most importantly, slow. That pace was one they'd never had before.

"I was…" he stopped and sighed. The difficulty in her eyes matched the tension that had yet to release from the depths along his spine. It didn't feel safe enough yet that he could allow her to be out of his sight let alone his grasp. "I was scared."

She didn't leave the heat of his embrace. She didn't want to. He brushed back her bangs. They had grown a bit, partially covering her eyes now. The bruising over her eye and nose wasn't as dark of a shade of purple as it once was, but the throbbing was still evident. He grazed his thumb under her eyes. She inhaled sharply at feeling him take away her pain some more.

"Stop," she said, turning away from the touch. "You can't keep taking away the pain. I see the way it makes you cringe and hold your breath."

"It's okay."

"It's not. Not to me."

The soft look she gave him made him squirm every time. He growled inwardly, his chest rumbling. The rumbling turned to a deep exhale as her fingers moved up into his hair, her thumbs pressing into his scalp. Her arms were extended all the way and she leaned her front against him. Her toes barely scratched the ground.

"Let's go," he said.

He took her hands in his and led her out to the car.

"Where to?"

"You are trying to ruin this aren't you?"

"I don't do surprises," she grumbled.

"Too bad. I think you're going to like this one."

"How do you figure?"

"You'll see." he grinned.

The drive was long. He glanced over at her often and noticed her knee twitch as they passed the town sign. She glanced at the clock often. The minutes passed painfully slow. He took her hand, her fingers finding the familiar spot between his. It grew dark quickly and the lining of the trees blended with the night sky.

Isaac pulled off to the side of the road. Melanie looked around. Her eyes were wide and she wished she had night vision. There was nothing but the faint shape of woods. Twigs and leaves crumpled and crunched under her high tops. Was this some kind of joke?

"Okay…are you planning on killing me?"

"No. Just come on." He got out and trotted around the car to her side. He took her hand again and started leading her in.

"No way. This has bad horror movie written all over it." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Don't make me carry you again." The levity in his voice from before vanished and his golden eyes glowed. Melanie's jaw tightened. This was not a date. This was a hiking trip where one of them would end up torn apart by some beast, more than likely a supernatural one since it was Beacon Hills. Odds are, it would be her.

Her head snapped to him, mortified.

"You would love that," she sneered.

"Not as much as I enjoy making you nervous." He put on his best charming grin again.

She shook her head and looked past him. Her heart trembled. He squeezed her hand lightly.

"Don't worry. Nothing will hurt us here. I've made sure of it."

The darkness was overwhelming and was making her chest tighten up anxiously. Sticks snapped under a small animal's feet as it looked for a place to sleep. If she looked around close enough, she would see several pairs of reflective eyes following them as they traipsed deeper into the woods. The trees were getting closer and closer together. Their shoulders grazed the bark as they weaved between them.

Isaac squeezed her hand lightly, but her vice grip didn't loosen. She was looking every which way but forward, still wondering if they were going to get attacked. He pulled her up by his side then stopped. Melanie looked around, a mixture of emotion rolling over her like a fog as they stood in an enclosed clearing. Small oil lanterns hung off branches around the edges, giving off a subtle, angelic glow. There were patches of fern that sprouted up like umbrellas here and there. An afghan laid on the grass. It was the same afghan from the back of the couch actually. She'd been looking for it all over the house.

She sniffled, holding back a snort. It was just this blanket. It was sweet and dare she EVEN think it, romantic. It was hard to think romantic since that wasn't her forte. Peril and agony on the brink of death was her forte which was just sad.

She tilted her head back, her lips parting in wonder as she stared at the patch of starry sky above. The tips of the trees stretched to touch it. Their leaves rustled in the light breeze. Her jaw tightened suddenly as she saw the full moon just past the canopies. She snapped to Isaac who stood calm and collected. His hands were stuffed in his pockets. His ivory features were soft, untouched.

"How?"

It was all she could manage. Her paranoia was shattered by a starburst of wonder.

He stepped toward her, closing the small space between them and brushed his thumbs across her cheeks, bringing her attention back to him.

"You." The single word answered several questions that pertained to him. "You ground me. You make me feel like I've lost all control. I'm whole with you by my side. I'm okay."

He'd told her a while ago about how it was with his brother, mother and father and how hard it was. Going through that seemed almost worse than losing them all at once like she did with her family. But he was okay. It was over for him. As that thought came to her, she realized that it was over for her too. The need to avenge Laura wasn't gone, but the gut wrenching loss of her parents was. It was okay. He was closure. A solidarity of peace.

Isaac's lips pulled up into a velvety grin before he pulled her up onto her tippy toes and kissed her. She relinquished a sigh through her nostrils and held his wrists, trying not to fall off balance.

She pulled back sooner than he would've liked or so she guessed by the slight disgruntled look on his face. Her eyes narrowed and she looked at the blanket again.

"Are you trying to seduce me?"

He bit his lower lip, making her stomach turn and pinch with yearning.

"I thought this was a date," she continued.

"This is."

He turned and looked at the small clearing.

"This spot is ours. This is where the world doesn't exist for us." He glanced around some more. "We are surrounded by mountain ash right now. Danny helped me build the circle."

Melanie spun around. She didn't see any mountain ash. If there were any, how did he come into the clearing before her? Her eyes darted around all of the edges then back at him confused.

He showed her his hands. They were plum purple with bruising at his fingers and palms. He'd given no notion that it had hurt him at all. Her brows furrowed and watched as the bruising faded to light brown as he allowed her to take some of the throbbing aches away. It stung her fingers some.

"It wasn't easy," he said.

Melanie touched his hands gingerly, her head tilting to the side a little.

"We deserve to have our own world. After everything, we deserve it, Melanie."

His tone was firm but never once lost that velvetiness. In one swell motion, he pulled her bangs from her eyes causing her to make full eye contact. She really needed to get a haircut. Her dead ends were getting ridiculous and unmanageable.

"I love you." he said in a whisper.

Melanie didn't even need to hear him say it. It was written so clearly in his eyes. There was no doubt. He bit his lip nervously. Melanie felt him tug her waist a little toward the blanket.

"You aretrying to seduce me," she chortled, rolling her eyes.

He pulled her down onto the blanket. She fell on top of him and he quickly rolled over so that he lay over her, his leg pressing between hers.

"Obviously, I succeeded." He pressed his lips to hers with no lingering hesitation.

Melanie felt her whole body flush with warmth as he pressed his weight down on her. The sounds of crickets melded with sounds of her sighs which turned airy as the kisses deepened. Isaac moved to her ear, biting the lobe of it. She arched up into him. A small shockwave rolled over her.

A place of their own. Nobody could bother them

He licked her neck, kissing it. Melanie's hand tightened over his shoulder and her eyes began to close as his intentions to take her advantage of her increased.

"Marry me."

Her eyes shot open and she stiffened. Isaac kissed her jawline. She pushed him off and shook her head. Did he really just say that, she thought.

"W-what?"

"Marry me. Be with me."

"Isaac-" She paused. Her heart ricocheted painfully in its small space.

Marriage? I'm only eighteen, she thought, panicked. She grabbed a handful of grass under her hand, causing some of the blades to break.

"Just say yes." He said, a hopeful look in his eyes.

A silence wedged its way between them and the hopefulness faded like a star in its final moments right before it exploded. Rejection, a painful as hell look, took its place.

"I can't." she croaked.

Then, like a star, he exploded. His eyes glowed hauntingly blue, reminding her of the exact moment he succumbed to her. She gulped and scooted back from his once passionate embrace.

"Why not?" he growled as he got to his feet.

"Isaac, we're already together. We're as connected as it gets. People don't achieve a bond like this in one lifetime. We don't have to worry about marriage. We transcended it. "

None of it was a lie, though it felt like it. Marriage had never crossed her mind. She wasn't the kind of girl that got married. Was she? She couldn't be sure. She never pretended what it would be like to find prince charming when she was little. She never thought about happy ever after. One day at a time. That's how it was.

"So, you don't want that."

"When we're already deemed to be together forever? Why?"

He went silent and turned away from her. Melanie could feel the gears grind in his mind and it left her disturbed. She wasn't overwhelmed by the idea, but confused by the concept. And he didn't see it or understand. He didn't know about her hospital visit either. Now she really didn't want to tell him about it. It would only devastate him more.

"I just figured you wanted to be with me. I didn't think it felt like a forced obligation for you."

Melanie's eyes widened with shock. Obligation? No, that's not what it was. She sighed inwardly and fumed angrily. How could he think that? After everything that had happened?

"No, Isaac that's not what I meant. I just-it's just-" Her face crumpled, trying to hold back tears.

"Let's go."

Isaac disappeared through the darkness into the woods. She could see the slight pause in passing through the Ash this time.

The drive back was quiet. Once or twice Melanie nearly jumped out of the car at a red light. A headache crept up from the back of her cranium, threatening as much destruction as her thoughts were.

He's going to leave me, she thought. She kept her hands clasped together on her lap to keep from trembling. Her thumbnails pressed into her skin. They left crescent marks.

Isaac's face remained blank as he focused on the road. His calm still remained, but now it was chilling. Melanie wanted to scream for him to talk, to say anything, yell, be angry, but not this.

Once back in the driveway out front of the house, Isaac shut off the engine and went inside. Melanie sat there for a moment longer. She stared at the porch swing and moved to looking at the house. He'd fixed it himself. All of it. There had been no obligation. Even with this string of fate that attached the two of them. He didn't have to work on the house. He didn't have to keep her car in good shape, but he did.

Melanie got out of the car and went into the house. Her phone buzzed as she made it through the front door. The faucet in the kitchen was going and she could hear dishes clinking. She turned and went upstairs, though she struggled with wanting to go talk to him. Her footsteps were quiet. Her fingers brushed along the walls.

Melanie sighed. The heaviness in her chest didn't fade as if a boulder was slowly replacing the organ that resided there. The short lived conversation was still on replay and at high volume in her head. Sitting at the vanity table she reached for her brush. She paused, the tips of her fingers just touching it and her eyes grasping at the only two perfume bottles she owned as they started to shake and clink. The table trembled then and she stumbled away from it.

"Isaac," she said, quietly at first.

The whole room shook harder and harder. She scooted back quickly as the dresser tumbled forward with a crash. She wobbled, getting to her feet.

"Isaac!" She yelled. She gasped as she nearly fell forward. An arm grabbed her around the waist quickly, pulling her backwards into the doorway. Isaac's body hunched over hers as he gripped the door frame tightly. The wood cracked and splintered under his hold. He remained firm in keeping her pinned against the doorframe.

The house stopped shaking though Melanie didn't. She glanced around the demolished room then looked up at Isaac. He focused on the floor while his hand and still gripped the cracked frame behind her. His body radiated with heat. She could barely breathe, partly because of earlier and partly because of how close he was.

She reached out and caressed his cheek.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

His voice cracked. He was struggling not to cry.

"Yes," she replied.

He leaned in, laying his head on her shoulder and let out a shaky breath. The entire room was a mess. The whole house probably was.

"Melanie," he breathed.

He looked up, his eyes piercing through her. They glimmered on the verge of releasing tears.

"I am in love with you. Maybe I always was. I saw you hiding in those clothes that first day and I knew instantly that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. I don't want to marry you because we became what we are…meant to be. I want to marry you because I am in love with you. I want to BE with you." he said.

Melanie kissed him. Her lips parted, kissing both his top and bottom lip then opened her eyes. In that moment everything, yet nothing, collided similar to how she always figured the big bang happened. He felt her mouth the words against his lips-I love you.

"I do not want to do this because we are usually facing life or death situations once a month. I don't want to because I know we can. We are together now. We can be together for the rest of our lives and not be married."

She let out a short laugh.

"We have the rest of our lives to get married. I don't plan on dying anytime soon," she said.

Isaac shivered and she knew instantly that he was picturing every time she had nearly ended up in the grave.

"Hey-" he looked up still hurt, "I love you. Never did I feel otherwise." She said.

Her voice went stern as if to reprimand him. Her nose touched his. The crystalline blue of his eyes glowed fuchsia. The sheer color made a chill crawl down over her shoulders.

"I never felt obligated, never felt as if I had to, never ever felt pressured. I'm not fighting. You are my best friend, my lover…my mate," she went on.

He pressed into her, embracing her in his arms quickly. The doorframe pinched her back, but she ignored it. She wanted to relish in him not being upset at her anymore. The knots in her stomach undid themselves.

"Isaac," she said, her voice muffled as she laid her face against his chest. He relinquished. "Ask me again when we're older and wiser."

His face lit up and suddenly Melanie's feet were off the ground as he lifted her up. The doorframe bit into her back as he pressed her to it and kissed her.

"At least go to prom with me," he insisted. His lip jutted out and he gave her his best sulky eyes.

Melanie's face froze. He chuckled at the blank look. She hadn't even thought about prom. Had it come up that quickly? Being in the fighting ring, the proposal, the earthquake, the darach, all it was dragging her further and further away until she'd forgotten. I'm still a teenager, she thought.

She nodded at this request, a joy filled grin spreading across her lips. She kissed him and took his lower lip ever so gently between her teeth. The prom; it didn't seem like either of their kind of event. It was frilly and colorful, but they deserved something normal even though it was ridiculous and cheesy.