Flaws ▪Embry Call [1.5]

02.

Mia was seven when her parents started disappearing for long periods of time. Business trips they always claimed, yet the brunette knew they just stayed up in Seattle in the penthouse they both own. When she was younger she had been confused, wondering if she did something wrong to make them leave. She would be sad until they returned and would run into their arms in greeting. When Mia turned ten and they missed her birthday, she realized they didn't care and they had never wanted a child. She stopped calling them "mommy" and "daddy" then, they became "mother" and "father".

She was twelve when she over heard a conversation between the two, her father was angry with her mother for getting pregnant in the first place. Now, Mia laughed, knowing it takes more than one person to get pregnant. But then, even after realizing that they didn't care, Mia cried herself to sleep. That was the last time she cried.

As a young girl Mia spent most of her nights in the Evens household. Jessica Evens didn't approve of her best friend disappearing act, and she certainly didn't approve of a young girl being home alone. When Mia turned sixteen she stopped going to Grace's house everytime her parents left. A year later and Mia was used to the silence in her house. The only noises were the house settling or the appliances running. Yet for the life of her, Mia couldn't figure out why the silence was bothering her. The TV didn't help, neither did the radio.

Quietly she walked up the drive way of the house in front of her, Mia knocked on the front door, hoping the owners were home. Jessica Evens opened the door, dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. Her scrubs were dirty and her hair was in the messiest bun Mia had ever seen. "Mia?"

After spending years with Jessica, Mia saw the blonde haired woman as more of a mother than her own ever was. "I can't handle it," Mia stated softly, hating the weakness in her voice. She just wanted to prove she wasn't weak.

"Handle what?" Jessica ushered the brunette into the house, shooting an annoyed look to her husband who was drinking himself away in his chair.

"The silence," Mia answered sitting at the dinning room table. The brunette ran her fingers through her hair. "It's consuming."

Jessica moved to the brunettes side, hugging her closesly. "I know."

"It's like I can hear her voice, telling me to do all these chores," Mia chuckled as a tear fell from her eyes. Jessica laughed aswell, pulling back slightly. Mia eyed the older blonde's face that was covered in tears, "I wish she'd just wake up."

Smiling weakly, Jessica hugged the brunette again, rubbing her back in a soothing way. "Me too sweetie."

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Hours later, Mia entered the hospital, making her way to Grace's room. The bag in her hand held chicken and barbecue potatoes for Paul, Grace's mother sending them. Paul rarely left Grace's side, this made Mia happy, knowing Grace would always have someone with her, but worried her. Paul was getting worse, he barely ate and looked like he hadn't shaved in weeks. The brunette knew her best friend would kill her if she woke up to her boyfriend looking like death.

"You need to eat," The brunette stated, placing the bag on the side table bh Grace's bed.

"I'm not hungry," He muttered, not removing his eyes from Grace's pale figure.

Mia sighed, "I get you love her and wanna suffer or whatever cause she's in pain. But you need to eat, think of how upset she will be if she wakes up to you in the hospital because you refused to take care of yourself."

"You don't understand," Paul spoke through gritted teeth, clutching Grace's hand.

"She's my best friend Paul, she was my best friend long before you came along. So don't tell me I don't understand." Mia snapped. "You don't think it kills me everyday I come in here to see her still laying flat, a heart monitor the only thing telling me she's alive. You don't think I'm angry about the lies you and the doctors and everyone wants to spread, claiming she was attacked by a bear. I know it wasn't a bear!"

"You don't know anything!" Paul shouted, shifting to glare at Mia.

"I know you love her, and I know that a bear didn't attack my best friend." Mia snarled, returning the glare to the boy. "And I can promise you when I found out what exactly happened, I'm going to kill whoever did this to her." Turning her attention to Grace, Mia watched Paul out of the corner of her eye. He shook, glaring off into space before turning his attention back to Grace, the shaking slowly subsiding. "You need to eat and care for yourself Paul."

The brunette exited the room, breathing deeply as she continued down the hall. The clean smell of the hospital made her sick to her stomach, the plain white walls driving her insane. Exiting the hospital, she took a deep breath of fresh air, brushing her hair out of her face. Keeping her arms wrapped around her Mia made her way to her car, heart beating loudly as she realized the things she was trying to ignore all day was finally here.

Twenty minutes later, Mia stood in the gymnasium of the school, glaring at everyone around her. She felt odd being here, Grace not at her side as she prepared for their last high school event together. Graduation was in five days, practice starting up to get everything perfect. The graduating class wasn't big, Mia was pretty sure it was twenty-seven kids at most. The joys of living on the reservation.

The brunette shifted in her spot, listening to their principal speak about how important this ceremony was. Her eyes couldn't stay focused, roaming over everyone here. Embry was making his way towards her, Jacob and Quil at his side.

"Hey," Embry greeted, giving her a small smile.

"Hi," Mia spoke, her eyes catching Eve's across the room. Her lip curled up in disgust and anger as Eve laughed, mocking the brunette with fake tears. Everyone in school was aware what had happened to Grace, kind of hard for them not to considering she wouldn't be here and neither would Paul.

"How are you?" Embry questioned, looking down as Mia shot him an annoyed look. "Right that was stupid to ask." Shaking his head, Embry looked towards Jacob and Quil for help as the brunette focused on the teachers again.

He didn't know what to say, his mind wasn't focused on anything as he thought over everything. His best girl friend belonged here with them, practicing for graduation. Something she talked about doing for weeks, hell he can remember her talking about graduation when they were freshman. She had always dreamed of being here, of walking across the stage and receiving her diploma. But now that the time was here, she lied in a hospital bed her body fighting to stay alive.

He wanted to believe that whether he was close with her or Paul was dating her or not, she still would have been attacked. That it was better that Paul had imprinted on her and could feel her pain. But he couldn't stop thinking about the what if's. What if she didn't know them or wasn't with paul. Would the vampire have left her alone? Maybe he could smell the werewolves on her and used it as a reason to attack her. It was no secret vampires hated werewolves with a strong passion. He couldn't stop thinking about all the possibilities. He knew he needed to stop, he just couldn't.

Each day the past without Grace at their side, they all died a little bit. She was that bit of happiness that kept them moving forwards. She never let them feel down, she was always positive. Now that she wasn't there it was harder and harder each day to stay positive. It was harder and harder to find something to be positive about or something to be happy over. They couldn't even find themselves happy about graduating, something most teenagers were ecstatic about. To them it made them feel worse, knowing she wasn't at their side like she belonged.