The little red house was crowded with the pack in Billy's small kitchen and living room as the boys ate all of the pizza Billy bought, they were gone before Charlie arrived not too long after with two pizzas. It was good he brought over pizza coming from the station, the boys left none of us any after being vacuums in the matter of minutes, Naomi had come back from the bathroom freshly showered and sighed looking at the empty boxes.

"Animals," she muttered as Billy chuckled helping her clear the table, so I stepped in so Billy could return to his spot to watch the TV.

Charlie eyed the two of us suspiciously all night. Especially the much-changed Naomi, he asked about her hair, she just shrugged and said it was more manageable. I knew as soon as we were going to be heading home, I began to wonder what was going to happen now, all of their threats that caused their transformation from their legends were gone. Does that mean that they'll stop? Does that mean that we could go back to rebuilding the bikes?

Does that mean that Seth could come back?

Charlie let us walk the ten minutes back to the house half a mile away around the corner, Naomi kicked a rock around on the road as I walked along the shoulder of the road.

I couldn't hold it in anymore, "Mi?"

"Hm?" she called over her shoulder.

"What happens now?... Victoria's dead."

Naomi turned around to walk backwards, "Well… we have to patrol for a while to make sure we're in the clear before making any solid plans."

"How long?"

She shrugged and turned around and swiping up a rock I assume from the shoulder, "I don't know. Depends if rogues come around. Probably two weeks tops."

"So does that mean I have to stay away?" Seth I.

"No." She replied with another shake of her head, "No, those were Sam's rules. Well, I'm sticking to a lot of them because we can't just have anybody knowing the Tribe secret."

"Does the tribe know?" I asked curiously.

"They know of the legends but not the actual reality of it. Not unless they phase and/or imprint."

"Imprint?" I asked.

Naomi stopped in her tracks and face palmed, "Shit," she murmured running a hand through her hair.

"Imprint?" I asked, curious as to why she reacted like that.

"Imprinting is a wolf thing," she replied quickly, "You work tomorrow right?"

"Yeah 7 to 3, why?" I asked and then I blinked once, "Wait, Naomi, what's imprinting?" I asked quickening my steps to catch up with her.

"It's just something we do. Nothing to worry about."

"That doesn't sound convincing."

"I wasn't supposed to say anything."

I heaved a sigh of frustration, "What? Another one of Sam's rules you're keeping?"

"Sort of. It's too early to talk about that, you haven't fully process the whole turning into a werewolf yet."

"Says you. Mi, please." I pleaded. "I ran with vampires. I can handle this. What other myths aren't real these days?"

Naomi sighed, she stopped and looking over at the porch light on and lights on inside the three bedroom blue house with Charlie's cruiser in the dirt driveway.

She scratched the top of her head, "Okay. I'll tell you, just not tonight. I'll take you work tomorrow, and after that I'll come over and explain. Deal?"

A a moment of pensive thought, I looked at her and nodded.

"Deal," I said, reaching out my hand to her.

We shook hands, "Alright, nincompoop, this is your drop-off."

"Bella!" Charlie called from the porch with his hands on his hips.

"See you in the morning," Naomi said before sprinting away down the road, she was out of sight the moment she sprinted away from me. I hurried into the house and went to go down the hallway to my bedroom, but Dad was right behind me.

"What's going on, Bella?" he demanded before we could escape into our rooms. "I thought Naomi was part of a gang and you three were fighting."

"We made up."

"And the gang?"

"No, gang. Just a misunderstanding." I replied, "I met Sam Uley and his fiancée, Emily. They seemed nice to me," Bella shrugged.

His face changed, "I hadn't heard that he and Emily had made it official. That's nice. Poor girl."

"Do you know what happened to her?" Bella asked.

"Mauled by a bear, up north, during salmon spawning season—horrible accident. It was more than a year ago now. I heard Sam was really messed up over it."

"That's horrible," I echoed.

I couldn't imagine being in Sam's position knowing how dangerous or even how much of a miracle it was to survive a bear attack. I couldn't imagine being put in that position seeing Emily with open scars, my mind tortured me with Emily's scars on Naomi's face and arm. That night, I laid awake on my bed for a long time sorting through the day. It was just a normal Friday in La Push High, same routine every day of classes, but today we decided to wait for Naomi. The way she looked, her beautiful long hair that I've been missing for weeks now since I seen her in the cafeteria, the way all of the innocence was gone from her face.

I missed my best friend, I loved her more than anything. And I wish Seth stayed. He would know now.

I eventually fell asleep dreaming about her, dreaming about the garage, dreaming about drives with her and Seth, the bikes. It was like a whole year passed within a single dream of a solid nine hours of unconsciousness. A whole year of happiness, I can't remember what we said but I remember the feeling of the happiness, the warmth in the chill. The healing behind the cleansing rain of the Earth, the growth behind each event and season. It was a year I deeply desired to come true.

I dreamed that Seth came home. He found out. Everything was perfect again. Just the way it should be.

Naomi

I didn't sleep. I didn't sleep the whole night, I laid in my bed in the same position staring out the window, listening to the wind and the rain. My thoughts went sluggish the moment I left Bella's presence, my whole body going numb and cold fully realizing he was gone. Falling into the hole but watching myself in an out of body experience, staring out the window, feeling the wind and the rain wash down on me. The adrenaline pumping through my veins. Maybe I did fall asleep, maybe I was dreaming of running through the woods at high speeds through the wind and the icy rain, running aimlessly deeper and deeper into the woods until it felt my mind disconnected from my body.

Just as quickly as that feeling came, my alarm clock blaring in my ear snapped me awake, I almost fell off my bed. I swung my legs off the mattress lowering down to my knees and dropping my head onto my arms with my heart racing in my chest. Once I managed to get myself to relax and turned off the 6 am alarm, I took less than a ten minute shower and was dressed, I grabbed the only cash I had left and was out the door. Bella was quiet this morning and I didn't push conversation, she slept most of the ride to Forks anyways.

I parked in front of the store, and shook Bella awake gently, "Hey, come on Bells. Time for work."

I walked into the store once it was open and wandered around, looking at the items on the shelves, I seen some granola bars and trail mixes, some mixes of nuts.

Nuts. My mind snorted, probably the worst time to think about dick and balls right now, especially the only ones I've willingly wanted to see. I really hated my thought process at times. I grabbed a box of granola bars and a bag of cashews, I looked at a pair of cargo pants for hiking, I grabbed a grey camo pair. I was stuck staring at a rack, not really focusing, my thoughts going sluggish.

"Hey, Naomi, right?"

I turned to the familiar voice, I blinked a couple times at the blonde haired boy from the movies in Port Angeles.

"Mike?"

He smiled, he nodded once, "Hey, kid. How are you? How's Seth?"

I blinked at the pain striking my chest, making it hard to breathe for a second, I looked down over at the other aisle and back at him, "He uh… he moved back with his mom."

"What?" Mike deflated, "No. I was so happy to see you I wanted to see if you guys wanted to do a movie night again. Did you guys break up?"

I looked down at the items in my hands, "Yeah."

I hated how dead my voice sounded.

"Oh, shit," he mumbled to himself so lowly that only my heightened hearing picked up. My eyes brimmed with tears, "Hey, Nao, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-."

"It's okay Mike," I looked up at him tears falling from my eyes, I wiped at my face, "It's okay. A movie night sounds good. Leave the dets with Bella." The last part was rude but I didn't want to be here, he was too much of a reminder.

More tears streamed down my face as I stride over to Bella at one of the only two registers, she turned to me as I dropped down the box, the cashews and the pants down I was continuously wiping my face.

"Naomi…"

"I don't want to talk about it right now please." My voice cracked with certain symbols.

"Okay," she said softly calm and began checking me out.

"I'll leave the keys with you. I'll meet you back at the house." I pulled out my car keys from my front jean pocket and handed them to her, exchanging them for my bag of purchased goods.

She took my hand, her hand was so much cooler than mine and I realized again how fragile she felt compared to wrestling with the twins, she squeezed my hand. I looked up from her hand and met her concerned but calm brown eyes, she gave me a reassuring smile.

"Go for a drive. I have lunch at 11, we can go get burgers at the diner. Or those cheese fries you were talking about." Bella says holding my hand, I involuntarily snorted a teary laugh.

I wiped my face again, I nodded and trying to stifle my smile, "Sure, sure." I wiped my face again as more tears fell when I blinked again, she gave me back the car keys.

I walked out the automatic doors and into the rain that made me a mope, I didn't leave the parking lot right away, I stayed and waited for my emotions to gather together enough to drive. I turned the radio on and listened to the nonsense babble, by the time I was over that I finished three packs of the granola bars and switched the station. The only other station the antenna seemed to picking up signal had to be a torture right now, I turned the car off before the music could sink into my brain and I would have to repeat my process all over again.

I didn't end up going to a drive, I ended up staring at the air controls until Bella opened the passenger door. I didn't fully snap out of it until she was settled and spoke.

"Ready?" She asked.

I hummed in response and started the ignition, I followed her directions to the diner I vaguely remembered from childhood. Lunch was quiet and I felt bad when we were going back to my car.

"I'm sorry I'm a stick in the mud today."

"It's okay."

I dropped her back off at Newton's and drove around Forks passing Newton's just in case she was let out early like she was most days. By the time 2 pm came around I passed Newton's again and she was standing outside, I pulled into the parking lot and she climbed into the passenger seat.

"Were you waiting long?"

She shook her head, "Just came out actually."

I drove back to La Push trying not to think about anything, she didn't push for conversation either and she didn't seen uncomfortable to my knowledge, I parked in the driveway with Paul sitting on the porch steps. I handed her the keys before leaving her with Paul, I sprinted into the trees.

The weight of the days emotions drained the energy from my body but sent a rolling shiver of heat down my spine and I felt myself explode. My wolf burst from deep within my being and taking form, I was greeted by the twins as they wandered aimlessly before their patrol.

Mimi. Jacob greeted trotting beside Embry as they fought over who had the widest jaws.

Naomi. Embry greeted with his playful growl sinking in through Jacobs senses.

I greeted them with last night and today's events, the heaviness of my despair darkening the images to a midnight blue shade. I thought about Seth and the pain I felt every time I imagined him walking through the doors of the airport disappearing. I slowed to a stop before lowering onto my belly and whimpering, even if I successfully fought off thinking about him since this morning it was all crashing down on me now. My thoughts beginning to spiral with the insults from the council meetings, my own insulting mind agreeing and sending me further into the hole I had been trying to stay out all day.

Paul phased in and his thoughts focused on Bella and replaying their conversation, it kicked me backwards into the hole, I phased out. I curled in on myself, on my side in the mud and leaves, and sticks, I didn't care if I was naked or if I was crying on the forest floor. Time passed I don't know how much but I was completely locked in on myself.

"Mimi," I hear Jacob say before I felt him wrap me in something and haul me up from the ground, "Let's get you home."

"No, no patrol."

"We got it covered, Mimi."

"But I'm-."

"We got it covered." Jacob's tone meant full business now, and I didn't have the energy to come with a rebuttal or to actually do a patrol.

He carried me home, and he didn't push conversation, that's why he was my Beta. My mind decided to ponder about Jacob, I don't know why but I had a feeling… I had a feeling in a different life that Jacob want my cousin, it was a strange feeling but I pondered on it. Or maybe I was just going through my mental bullying and I needed something to distract myself. I stopped thinking about it, it felt too weird to entertain that train of thought. Dad was a different story when Jacob carried me into the house, ducking his head to pass the threshold, he didn't let Jacob leave until he got the truth out of him.

I sat in the bathroom listening and huddled into a ball against the wall, everything was so foggy and muffled and wasn't sticking to the memory tissues of my brain, I turned on the water when Jacob started telling Dad of my episode in the forest. A shower will snap me out of my funk, a shower will erase all of the irrational thoughts moving sluggishly in my cranium, I didn't bother turned the hot water on it wouldn't have mattered either way. I got use to cold water quick and the water that was beating against my skin ran hot and steam was filling the bathroom from the hot temperature of my skin and the cold water mixing, I couldn't think of anything other than him. Especially what I told him in the truck, it felt like it was ages ago but it was only a month ago a couple days, I told him he was safe with me.

Sam made me lie, Sam made me break my promise, he made me break my personal vow to be a steady and consistent person in his life. I broke it.

All thoughts ended after I admitted that I broke the promise myself, just like I was in a daze all day, the same daze continued for the next two weeks. Patrol was cut down by the end of the first week, no vampire trails and no sightings, it felt like the earth in our territory was healing while I was dying more everyday. By the end of the second week, there was nothing to worry about so far expect for Quil finally phasing after the intense buildup that he was refuse but you know. He exploded into a chocolate brown wolf walking through the woods on the way home from school, he was fuming about all the events for weeks and it had continued to build his phasing. Either way, I kept up patrols for another two weeks to be certain that more weren't coming for Bella, that Quil's phasing wasn't caused by lingering bloodsuckers. But by the middle of the last week, there was nothing but the forest and it's Earthly (normal) creatures that greeted us, everything was settling again.

My birthday came and passed, I got cards mostly, small gifts, a leather friendship bracelet from Bella who wore the other half, Charlie gave me $25 and a whole pizza to myself. He was never good at gifts and I always suggested money and food from him if he honestly couldn't conjure up a gift idea. Plus, Charlie isn't one for shopping, barely shopping to put clothes on his back, that's why him and my father get along so well. Charlie knows not to bring my dad shopping with him, then they'll be arguing like an old married couple throughout the store.

Bella witnessed this when Charlie mindlessly invited us to go food shopping at the only market in town, Dad has a really good food stamp month and he was just complaining about wanting to cook something. Bella and I say in the backseat of the cruiser, I was listening to the older men's conversation about NFL RedZone, they didn't want to miss it.

I walked with Bella as she shopped for their house and Charlie was still going on about the games with Dad in the aisle over, I chuckled quietly, breath full when Dad told Charlie to shut up for a minute because he forgot what he came here for. Bella hummed in question scanning a row of dry packaged food products, I looked at a big bag of rice we could buy and split it up at the house.

"They're arguing like Blanche and Estelle," I smiled and picked up the biggest pound of rice with ease, I put it in the cart, "We can spilt this up at home. Your half should last you guys for three months or eight."

"Good thinking, Mimi."

I glanced at her, "Mimi?"

Bella nodded, she shrugged, "Jake calls you Mimi. I like it."

"Awww, I see we go there Bee."

"Bee? Like in Bumblebee?"

I cackled, "Maybe. Bells, and Bella is taking and I'm not calling you Belly."

"What about Belle?"

"Like Beauty and the Beast?"

She blushes and smiles widely looking over at the other aisle, "Yeah. I mean, I am a wolf girl nowadays." She breathed those words, it looked like she was talking to herself to the woman who passed us in the aisle. The woman looked at me and scurried faster away, I snickered as she left.

"We're not going to hurt you, goodness."

"She's new in town. She has three kids, two teenagers, the oldest boy is in my grade. He's a jock and privileged, the middle girl is a freshman, she's shy and she heavy in the schoolbooks, and they also have a four year old. I don't remember their names." Bella mumbles picking pasta boxes from the shelves, we looked over the Blanche and Estelle entering the aisle with an empty cart.

They looked up at us and our cart that had majority of what we needed expect for refrigerator items, I put my hands on my hips and snickered again.

"Alright, Blanche, Estelle, do you two want to wait in the car?"

"No," Dad says rolling into the aisle and heading for more pasta boxes.

Charlie sighed, he leaned his forearms down on the handle of the cart, "We did it again, huh?"

"Like clockwork," I laughed, I grabbed the front end of our cart and pulled it forward and Dad dropped the boxes in the basket. "What's next?" I asked Bella.

"All fridge items."

"I thought so."

"That's a big bag of rice," Charlie was intimidated by the large bag.

"It'll last for a long time."

"They have deals on meat from overstock."

"Hehehe." I snickered making Bella laugh.

Around prom time, La Push High decided to do a dance for all four grades because of numbers and a donation to the town from an anonymous donator. During the month of April, the pack that was still deciding to go back to high school went back, and it was everyone expect Sam. In fact since the threats seemed to disappear and Sam wanted to go back to college, I gave him the clear. Sam and Emily moved away before the week of the dance, Jared and Kim were planning on attending college in the Fall and I gave him the clear for that too. Quil and Embry imprinted on freshman during buying tickets for the dance, immediately they both had dates, Jacob and I were left alone at our table during most of the dance as the rest of the group were entranced with their dates.

Bella and Paul's relationship started blooming, they connected quickly and Paul was over the Swan house everyday, oh and Bella refuses to take my Camaro. She insists on taking the motorcycle, I promised her the motorcycle if she got her license for it continue to practice over and over again riding it, Paul and I spent a whole day looking for parts for the motorcycle so it wouldn't give Charlie too much of a heart attack. But I knew either way Charlie was going to have a heart attack, everyone knows how clumsy Bella is, but she is determined to have two different stable feet. She wanted to be independent, she wanted to experience new things, and Paul couldn't say no to her.

I tried but then Bella started to fake cry and made Paul mad at me, she grinned at me when I caved. She can be slick when she wants to be. She agreed to practicing and studying for the license up until graduation, and with help from the pack she was learning quickly and steadily, she freaked Paul out when she said she wanted to learn how to do a wheelie. I almost pissed my pants along with the twins and Quil, imagining Bella doing a wheelie on the motorcycle was probably the most, hilarious image of the year and would always be remembered.

She also quit at Newton's and started working at the market, it wasn't cutting so much time into traveling and gas money. Just as quickly as the finals for the year came and passed, Bella, Jared and Kim graduated. The summer came and it passed, Bella started online classes at the Community College in Port Angeles, Jared and Kim moved away to Oregon for school. Jacob imprinted on a freshman on the first day of Junior year and just as quickly as time passed on there was no need to phase as much anymore and before I knew it, most evenings and weekends I found myself alone.

Life continued on while I continued to wait. I continued to wait for threats to the tribe, I continued to wait for Harry's health to increase, I continued to wait through the happiness and love through the holidays. I continued to wait as life continued to bring life to everyone I loved, I continued to wait as I watched life continue on as the years passed. I continued to wait even as my name was screamed from family as I walked across the stage to claim my diploma, I continued to wait. And wait. Wait. Wait. And wait.

I continued to wait for him. My imprint. I continued to wait. Anything that makes not wait anymore, anybody, boy or girl, I don't care. But I felt like all I could do was wait, and I was patient. I have been already for what almost five years now, I can wait. Continued to phase.

I started working at Dowlings in Forks, and I continued to wait. And wait. I continued to wait, and years passed until everyone was graduated and I continued to wait. Still living with Dad and was the first one to assist Harry and Old Quil with anything. Doctors appointments, meetings, shopping, all that good stuff, I should quit at Dowlings and become an at home nurse or nanny or whatever but I had a lot of customers at Dowlings. Once Dowling found out Jacob, Embry and Quil were also fear heads and wanted a job after college even after majoring in high paying careers, they still wanted to be under the hood, but Dowling refused. He was jealous that I was keeping his business alive, I knew he was deeply afraid of running him out. Either way, Fiona majored in business and decided to build an auto shop in La Push, there was a meeting with everybody about the new business and majority agreed to pitching into the project.

I continued to wait even while my family was reunited. I did however quit Dowlings and brought a lot of business the first week of opening. And business continued to be steady with the amount of connections I had unknowingly made over the years. My hair didn't effect my fur as a wolf I had noted over the years, which was crazy because it effected the boys. Then one night I came across a unknown scent trail during my vacation after my 23rd birthday, two unknown scent trails. Well one smelt like Leah Clearwater and I couldn't understand why. I followed them until I found Leah Clearwater cowering as a white grey wolf under fallen trees, the whole area she was looked destroyed and this kicked every sense within me for the next four months of reaching Leah and bringing the pack back together for patrols. Everyone that was still present, everyone but Sam and Emily.

The scent never came back after two attempts back into the territory in two months, I waited until a month shy of my 24th birthday. Life settled again, and I continued to wait. Harry passed in June of 2014, Leah didn't stop phasing after that and neither did I. It wasn't a week after that Emily's parents called for Billy and said that Emily and Sam passed in a car accident, and they had a child and they couldn't care for the child. A child that just starting kindergarten, a babygirl named Laura, and had been visiting them for the summer. Sam and Emily had made a will and I guess over the years as I found this out after hearing their will that a lot of the pack was thinking doing the same. Leaving my name for their kids, their lives if anything happened to their own. A little light in the black tunnel started as a dot, a spark of hope for myself, and before I knew it, the little girl was being dropped off by authorities and the signing of papers for custody process.

Everyone was shocked when I didn't put up a fight to taking her in, I was already taking care of my old man and Old Quil, a child wouldn't be any different. I earned it and she was glued to my side when she wasn't in school or I wasn't at school, and that hope began to grow. But I continued to wait as I fell unconditionally purely maternal in love with Laura, she looked exactly like Sam and Emily, a perfect blend of everything them.. She was bright, she was smart, she was funny and she was so unbelievably kindly innocent, I feared for her life and her wellbeing with nightmares that began to haunt me of an overactive mind. I nearly ended my employment with putting patrols first, Leah had joined me, but I was just paranoid and cared for an innocent young soul.

After all these years of believing that I broke promises I believed she was here for a reason and as bad as that reason started out to be, I couldn't imagine going back to how it was before. She had became my kid.

Jacob got married first and started a trend through the pack, Quil and Fiona next, Embry and Katelynn, then Jared and Kim, and then Bella and Paul. All within the same year, and every girl was pregnant by the last wedding. I continued to wait. And wait. I have gotten tattoos over the years, butterflies were the main theme all different kinds of butterflies outlined in black and white ink against my skin of my chest, my ribs my back my shoulder and arms. On my right thigh was an Quileute poem of love, a line more than the whole poem, it would be my whole leg.

Even while I wait here,

I know somewhere,

Somehow, there was love for me. With tribal markings, during the third weddings arrival I extended the tattoos of the butterflies throughout the rest of available skin. Expect for my palms and the soles of my feet and of course away from sensitive regions. On my neck I did a branch of just blooming apple blossoms, some of them fully bloomed and it was minimal compared to the others. Leah thought was extremely twisted for full body ink when I arrived to the wedding with Laura with temporary spray on hair dye,

I continued to wait as I attended every wedding, I continued to wait as I watched my family make permanent ties for the rest of their lives, I continued to wait as they began new lives. I continued to wait as the babies were born months from each other, I continued to wait as I met every newborn baby, I continued to wait as the months followed and Laura grew. I continued to wait. And wait. Wait. Wait. And, wait.

"Mimi!" Laura's high child voice shouted cheerfully from the doorway and her rapid footsteps followed with giggles, she jumped onto the bed and I opened my eyes chuckling groggily. The muscles on my cheeks unconsciously pulling my lips into a smile, she hugged me, and sat up before I could hug her back. She was about to burst with excitement, it was concerning for a moment, she was the most cheerful and happy girl I have ever met and I was pretty sure she had ADHD too.

"Bella's having the baby!" She announced with such enthusiasm her voice went higher.

I laughed as she jumped off the bed, and began announcing the news to Billy as he called back with, "I know, Laura, I was the one the told you, nukie."

Nukie, she got that nickname before when she first showed everyone her real excited side, it was like a nuke went off of excitement and giggles. Hence, nukie.

I got dress and got stuff together to the long labor hours in the hospital with excited and anticipated family members in the waiting room.

"Laura, are you buckled?" I asked once Dad was in the passenger seat and I was settled in the driver seat of Camaro I maintained well over the years after Bella bought herself a car.

"Yes," she answered excitedly and a bit impatient.

Dad chuckled, I put the car in reverse and turned on the radio, it was Laura's turn for the music today and she had to, of course, request Journey out of all the CDs. It was almost January of 2015. Laura made me play one song on repeat for the whole 12 minute drive to Forks Hospital, Dad was humming Send Her My Love to the baby delivering section of the hospital. By the time we got there the musical tone played of a new baby's birth and Paul was coming through the doors announcing his son's arrival not even a minute later.

And then I heard a voice I was surprised to hear the most of everyone in the room.

"Billy? Naomi?"

We both turned to Renee Dwyer, or a I guess not by the missing rings on her fingers, there was someone sitting next to her and a scent that was still familiar invaded my nose. I didn't move my eyes from Renee, I didn't want to, I didn't want see him. All of that pain that numbed since Laura's arrival began to burn at the still open hole in my chest. I made it a rule then and there not look at him whatsoever, even if he wasn't looking.

"Naomi?" the tone of the male voice was more mature and more in disbelief than his mother beside him, I broke my rule and the instinctive curiosity and answering reflex to my name.

I seen him, standing up from the hospital chair, and nowhere near the boy I knew years ago. Older, mature, and a spitting image of his father but his mothers feature were strong, I met his eyes. His brown eyes that sucked me in, he was outlined in a light I knew from memory, I felt my world shift and the gravity from under my feet go out from under me. I fell instantly, unconditionally, purely in love all over again with my senses heightening, gravity snapped into place on him as the tunnel I had been crawling through the years flew past me. I let out a heavy exhale as the connection solidified into place and I was brought out of the abyss and my wait, just as quickly as I snapped back to reality he stepped forward with his very need and want being spoken through his eyes, the connection.

He needed me. He wanted me.