Love Untouched

At Long Last

            Abernathy waits impatiently by Bellezza’s bedside. It’s been hours since she’d stopped convulsing and she hasn’t moved since. Her eyes closed and she became very still much like how she looked before. Her skin has gone to its original pigment since then and her temperature is back to normal. He never leaves her side. Not when his stomach begs for food or when his eyes threaten to close from exhaustion. His skin has gone sickly pale as he sits by the bed stroking the princess’ hair and kissing her hand. Milis often checks on her son and is horrified by the grotesque creature he has become.

            “Amharach,” Milis steps into the room where Aber sits holding Bellezza’s hand and staring at her face. “Would you like some tea or a piece of toast?” He shakes his head silently, his gaze never wavering. “Please, my son. You have to eat something.” Again he shakes his head. Angry, Milis marches up to him and yanks him by his collar, forcing the prince to stand. “You are going to eat something,” she shouts. “She will still be here when you get back.”

            Aber pulls himself from his mother’s grasp and sits back down. “You don’t know that,” he sneers. “Say I go with you and sit at the table and eat. Who’s to say that she’ll still be alive when I return? Who’s to say that if I turn my back for more than a minute, she won’t die?” His eyes find Belle’s face and he frowns. “I’m not leaving her. She may die while sitting here but at least I will honestly be able to say that I was with her until the end.”

            Milis flinches involuntarily at his tone and begins to walk from the room. Before she leaves, she turns to face her son. “At this rate, you’ll be dead.” She shuts the door behind her and covers her eyes with her hands as the tears begin streak down her cheeks.

            Abernathy continues to stare at Belle’s face, willing her eyes to open. Sighing, he rests his head against hers and silently begs her to wake up. His eyes sting with the coming tears as he squeezes her frail hand.

            “Belle,” he sighs her name. “My beautiful Belle, please wake up. If not for yourself, then do it for me. I need you here with me, Belle. I need you to be with me. Please, have mercy.”

            As Aber’s tears fall onto her face, Bellezza’s eyes slowly open. She looks at her lover hovering over her, crying. It breaks her heart. Slowly, weakly, she reaches up to stroke his wet cheek. Startled, Aber jumps back and a grin appears on his face once he sees the princess. Their lips meet in a fit of passion. Their kiss is filled with longing, yearning, and happiness. When Abernathy breaks the kiss, he wastes no time lying beside her to hold her in his arms. He nuzzles her neck and breathes in her scent.

            “Belle,” he says her name over and over again. “What happened?”

            Sighing, Bellezza turns in his arms to face him. “I’m not sure. One minute I was so excited for the wedding and then the next, I could barely walk. It was like my strength was leaving me. And then there was nothing. I couldn’t open my eyes for the life of me. It took all that I had just to remember to breathe.” She shakes her head and buries her face in his chest. “I felt lost and afraid. I was calling your name in the darkness, but it was like you couldn’t hear me. And then something else happened, something that’s hard to explain. It was like everything was on fire- I was on fire but I wasn’t burning, I wasn’t dying. It was horrible.” Tears begin to leak from her eyes as she recalls the intense heat that engulfed her during her slumber and the memories of Teddy that came with it.

            “I opened my eyes and I saw you and Milis and Neamh but at the same time I didn’t see you. I could only focus on the pain. It was when I felt you squeeze my hand that I was able to regain some control. But it was short lived. My body was betraying me and I knew that at some point I was going to die.”