Learning to be Strong Alone // Jeraphina Fanfiction

Chapter XV: I Was Right

"New changes have begun;
things shall end
and things shall start."

...............

Seraphina's POV

Arlo sat before me at the chestnut brown coffee table in the living room—both of us sitting opposite each other.

Remi had clung onto one of my arms—I told her to. I was afraid that I might try and run once more when they started speaking past my beliefs.

Adrion had left the room, so had Elaine, and Remi was about to. Soon, it would only be me, Arlo, Claire, and the bitter truth of our reality.

"Are you ready, Sera?" Remi asked me, gently squeezing my arm and preparing to leave me be.

My knuckles were turning white from the way that my hand sat—fingers folded over and hard pressure being placed on the wooden surface.

"Yeah," I hesitantly replied, letting a deep sigh free from my lungs, "I'm ready."

I decided on not bothering to get my hopes up; I'll listen to what they have to say, but who's to say that I'll believe it?

The girl once beside me gave one last comforting smile in my direction before she skipped through the halls and vanished behind Elaine's bedroom door.

Arlo took a sip of black coffee from the mug that lay cupped in his pale hand—swirling the hot and bitter liquid that settled within.

Claire just looked down-fiddling with her fingers.

"Claire's ability is called Clairvoyance," Arlo began speaking, feeding me the easy to swallow stuff before shoving the whole spoon in my hesitantly opening mouth.

He carefully placed his cup back down on the coaster provided, "It allows her to see visions of the future," he explained.

My head gave a single nod to his short statement, my reply even shorter, "I guessed."

"But only sometimes. I can't really choose when," Claire butted in, looking up at my face to help assure me of her words.

I nodded, intertwining my slightly shaking hands on the table's surface. "And she had a vision of John?" I correctly guessed.

"I did, yeah," Claire said, folding her arms to cover her pale green shirt, "That's why we think he . . . might be alive," she said with her eyes looking downward.

My thoughts simply paused in my mind, confusing me with the way they all stood still, intently listening to what they had to say.

No hope.

Arlo continued, "I know it is little evidence to base the perception of a very heavy fact on, but it's all the evidence we have, and all of it..." he paused, taking another sip of his drink and making eye contact with my tensing eyes, "...seems to be pointing up."

No. Hope.

My brain clawed for ideas that could mean he was gone—little coming to avail.

"Yes, but what if she saw the vision before he . . . y-y'know." I stopped, not wanting to say any more about that dark event.

Claire looked back up to Arlo for information that they both shared and he spoke.