Chapter 21

Unhappiness

Hello my dears! I am back!

Response to reviews:

CreativeWritingSoul: Well, fair enough. XD I know nothing about guys but remember in one of the first couple of chapters Hunter wanted to keep Harmony a secret in case he offended Ashlynn? Well there you go.

princess mh: Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the chapter. Yes, feel sorry for Reece, my poor disaster OC.

Guest: I don't know! We shall see about Ash's secret…*wiggles eyebrows suggestively* And Reece would probably rather cry in an empty alleyway than in the back of a stranger's car…yeah, IDK. XD

LaurenRiverSister: Oh hoho, Plot Twists is my middle name! Will Reece live? We'll see.

micheel1: Aye aye, captain.

JORDYCAKES1203 (this is in caps for a reason) I HAVE WRITTEN YOU IN THIS CHAPTER! I'M SORRY IT'S SO SHORT BUT YOU WILL APPEAR IN OTHER CHAPTERS!

Enjoy, dear readers! :)

—

Blondie woke up early, at seven am, ready for her leap into work. That miserable stand-in crew was a crime against reporting, and despite needing to stay with Xavier, she also needed to work so she could report news in the proper way, if you please.

Speaking of jobs, she and Xavier had discussed whether it was right or not for him to get one, so he could earn money. He had decided to travel around the city for a while, and get a good look at what some of the jobs would be like. So that was settled.

Blondie arrived at the studio in no time. She looked very professional and unlike her bubbly casual self, as she had cleared away her fringe into a tight bun that she had wrestled with for a very long time, and had put on a grey pencil skirt and a white blouse. Grey was a very drab colour, she had thought.

"Good morning, Shayna," she greeted her coworker, who handled the paperwork and organised the big stories. "What's new today?" She sat down at her desk and opened her briefcase.

"Something terrible has happened," Shayna sighed.

Blondie gestured for her to continue.

"You know the orphanage? Well, it's the only one in the country…anyway. Overnight, the police have discovered…someone's set fire to it. And all the orphans are dead."

—

Cupid admired her reflection, looking gorgeous in her crisp black a-line skirt and pearly-grey button-up. Poppy had swirled her hair into a very neat and lovely bun. Cupid loved her work. Adored it. She was a guide for a Greek museum.

Her attention was drawn elsewhere when she spotted an almost insanely attractive man walk in.

"A Greek museum. Fancy," he said to himself, amusedly, as he walked into the beautiful sliding doors of the silver building. He had the naivety of a child and he spun around to look at the huge glass dome, carved with the goddesses and gods of Olympus.

"Good morning," Cupid greeted.

"Oh! Hello. Didn't see you there," he responded very cheerfully. She liked him almost immediately. "I am Xavier Lockes. I'm a bit autistic. I was missing for a very long time. My twon sister is Blondie Lockes. She's a news reporter."

She was take aback by his cheerful bluntness. So that's why he looked so familiar and so perfect.

"My name is…" she paused before saying 'Cupid'. Cupid was a psycho. Cupid was terrible. Cupid was terrifying. Cupid was fake.

"My name is Chariclo," she said slowly.

"Exotic," said Xavier.

He looked around again. "I love Greek mythology," he said, again with the naivety and bluntness of a loveable child. "And I like this museum too. I like museums. Did I tell you that? I think they're nice. They are clean and safe and pretty. They're everything my childhood home was not. My kidnapping home, I mean. My normal one was very clean. Because Blondie existed. You don't really understand, but she wants things to be…"

"Just right," Cupid smiled. "You sure talk a lot."

"That's right. I studied Greek mythology when I was kidnapped. I'm good at stealing books. I think it's very interesting. Greek mythology, I mean. Not stealing books."

Cupid laughed. "Would you like a tour?"

"Yes, thank you. I like to jog my memory. But not literal jogging. I am not very fit," he responded good-naturedly.

So that was what Cupid did.

She had never seen someone who was better than her at Greek mythology until now. Xavier was amusing to watch and listen to.

"I'm looking for a job," he said. "Do you think I can be a tour guide here?"

"Yes!" Cupid shouted, a little too eagerly.

"That's cool. I'll think about it," he replied, looking very distracted at the various statues in the building. "I have to go now. It was fun being here with you, Chariclo."

"Bye," she echoed. He left, and she stared after him. It was simple.

Cupid had fallen in love.

—

"Hopper?"

Briar knocked on her husband's door for the fifth time that day.

"Can you leave me alone, please?" he replied in a very forced and angry manner.

"Why are you so mad anyway?" Briar fumed, patience snapping.

"Because you didn't even tell me Ashlynn was pregnant!"

"Well, you never asked! You were so focused on that Ginger!"

"Just don't talk about that!"

Silence.

"How do you expect me to give you your food? Install a cat flap? You can't stay in there forever!"

"I have a stove in here, and a bunch of food supplies in the en suite!"

"Bloody hell! Are you serious?" Briar shouted. "Are you going to stay in there forever?"

"Who knows! You're not the only smart one here, Briar!" Hopper yelled back. "Like you always act like!"

Briar huffed. This was becoming too much of a chore. Trying to lure him out always ended with an argument, insults which were too blunt to stab into one another, and then ending with something too sharp and too insensitive.

There came a knocking from the front door. Briar trudged down and opened it to see Ashlynn, with a very large suitcase. She frowned and began to close the door, but decided against the idea.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Are you mad at me?" Ashlynn responded.

Briar rolled her eyes. "Trust, it's all falling apart. Come on in."

Ashlynn somewhat reluctantly and very carefully stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

"So…you can't have children," the brunette sighed.

"And you never told Hopper about my pregnacy, even before you argued," the strawberry blonde pointed out.

"You never answered my question. Why are you here?"

"Hunter wants some alone time. He's basically sobbing over Reece, saying he killed him or something."

"I'm pretty sure alone time means going out of the room, not out of the house. Or the street, for that matter," Briar said. "I'll take your stuff to the guest room. Make yourself at home."

Ashlynn sat down on the couch, where the news was playing on the television. She smiled, seeing Blondie, who she did miss quite a bit. However, her smile faded as she watched what the reporter was saying.

"The orphanage in Charmington has been found to have burnt down overnight. Police highly suspect this as an act of arson, after inspecting the building thoroughly. Much of the frames and bricks have been destroyed, and doctors have found many of the orphans dead," Blondie said somberly.

Ashlynn pressed a hand to her open mouth. She was surprised that she hadn't run out of tears already.

"The two orphans left alive are in a critical condition. The younger one, Samantha, is only five. Both children have suffered blows to the head and heavy damage to their muscles and bones. They are currently residing in White Rabbit Hospital under the care of several healthcare professionals. At this point, doctors have deemed it uncertain whether the orphans will be able to survive."

Ashlynn scrambled up, ran to the front door and quickly opened it, slamming it behind her. She drove back to her neat little house and barged in, where Hunter was sitting on the couch looking depressed and worn.

"Hunter! The orphanage has been burnt down overnight, and we have to go to the hospital. Please, Hunter!"

Her husband looked up, shocked, then grabbed the car keys and her hand and dashed to the Jeep. Following this was a series of panicked driving, and finding the right hospital room. The smell of the hospital overwhelmed them both. Their visits to this place had been too common.

"What are your relations to the patients?" asked a medical attendant outside the ward.

"They're orphans, how can we be related to them?!" Hunter exclaimed.

"Sir, ma'am, I can't let you in without…"

"Let them in," ordered a voice from behind them. The three turned to see a dark-skinned young female doctor, with long black hair tied up with a purple scrunchie.

"Doctor Jordan, I—"

"You did your job well," Jordan responded. She turned to the two quivering adults. "I assume you're Ashlynn and Hunter. Samantha has been calling your names all day." She looked quite emotional herself. "Follow me."

They silently walked next to the doctor as she led them into the hospital room, where a familiar little girl was curled up in the hospital bed, with tubes and oxygen masks attatched. There were bandages around her head and her legs were both in casts.

"Samantha?" Ashlynn whispered.

The girl's eyes opened. "Ashlynn and Hunter," she said, quite muffedly. "Am I gonna die? Emmie died. She was my bestie. I don't wanna die. I wanna stay with you guys. I want you to adopp me."

"Shh. It's okay, baby," Ash soothed, brushing hair away from Samantha's forehead. "You're gonna do just fine."

"You're not going to die. You're going to be okay, and you're going to come live with us," Hunter added, holding her hand.

Samantha started to cry.

"I never had a mummy or a daddy. I think I'm gonna die. Emmie says when you die you'll be an angel. I-I wanna be an angel but I don't wanna die."

"Don't be silly, darling," Jordan smiled. "Look at Ash and Hunter. They are your parents. They love you, don't they?"

"You're already an angel, sweetheart," Hunter whispered. "You'll be okay. You can go sleep now, okay? Mummy and daddy will stay here with you."

"Okay. Okay. I have a mummy now. And a daddy," Samantha giggled. Within seconds, she was asleep, exhausted. Ashlynn and Hunter mourned silently for the child they wanted but could never had. Jordan stood behind them.

Twenty minutes later, Samantha's heart monitor went silent.

"She's gone," Ashlynn sobbed. They bowed their heads and looked at the perfect little child.

The little girl who would never be a woman.

"Don't worry," Jordan answered. "She is an angel now, remember? Just like she wanted. And remember that while she did die, she died surrounded by love." The dark-skinned woman reached over and slowly, carefully, unhooked and took off all the tubes connected to Samantha. She lifted up the peaceful child. "Would you like to hold her?" she asked.

Ashlynn and Hunter both supported her weight. Samantha was too light to be a healthy child. If she had been healthier, and loved, and adopted, she would have survived.

"We love you," Hunter whispered. They both kissed her on the forehead. Their message would never come across to her. But in their hearts they knew that Samantha had always loved them back.