Bella's childhood friend makes an unexpected visit. Phoenix is a strange woman with white hair, light blue eyes, and a beautifully odd face. She brings out something in Bella that the Cullen's have never seen before.
With the newborn army looming o...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Phoenix hesitated at her daughter's hospital room door. She took a deep, shaky breath. She then forced herself to open the door. The scene she was met with made her eyes prickle, her throat tightened. Leah was lying with Angel in the bed, all snuggled up and reading a book. Angel and Leah glanced up, all smiles.
"Hi, mommy!" Angle greeted happily.
"Hey, sweetie," Phoenix whispered.
"Are you okay?" Angel questioned.
Phoenix nodded, her throat burning. "I just need to talk to you."
Leah assessed the tense atmosphere and started to get up.
"No, no," Phoenix mumbled. "You should probably stay."
Leah scrunched her brows, but sat back down. Angel sat up, worry gracing her tiny features.
"Mommy, something is wrong. What is it?"
Phoenix sighed. "Jebediah told me that he had a way to make me age normally, I wouldn't expire."
"But you don't trust him," Angel stated.
Phoenix nodded, smiling sadly. "There wasn't a way to tell if the procedure wasn't already tampered with."
"You're speaking in past tense..." Leah noticed.
Angel looked to Leah, then back to her mother. "You're not going to do it."
Phoenix shook her head, tears forming rapidly. "He's dead now."
"What else?" Angel asked. She could tell that her mother wasn't saying something.
Phoenix hesitated, but she spoke quietly. "My expiration date is coming sooner than we expected."
Leah gulped, tightening her grip on Angel.
"How long?" Leah asked.
"Six months," Phoenix choked out.
In that moment, Angel's world stopped. She could have sworn that she had gone deaf. No sound, no comprehension, she couldn't even hear her own heart beat. She could see her mother's lips moving, but she could not hear her. Angel barely registered the fact that Leah was nudging her shoulders, possibly trying to get her attention. When the sound came whooshing back to her ears, her bottom lip started to tremble.
"I don't want you to go," Angel whimpered. Her voice trembled, making Phoenix's heart shatter into a million pieces.
Phoenix opened her mouth to tell her that she was sorry, but it came out as a half cough, half sob. Little Angel climbed into her mother's lap, squeezing as tightly as she could. Leah had a hand covering her mouth, trying to quiet her own crying. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying her damndest to block out the heartbreak. But the pain just wouldn't stop.
Leah could feel it. Taste it. The pain grew instantaneously in her poor imprint. Leah slowly leaned forward, earning a tight squeeze from Phoenix.
Angel had fallen asleep, exhausted from crying for nearly three hours. Phoenix and Leah were both sitting in chairs on either side of Angel's bed. They both watched Angel sleep, both exhausted; zombies.
"What are you going to do now?" Leah asked suddenly, yet quietly.
Phoenix took a deep breath, unsure of how to answer.
"I don't know. Live, I guess. Hopefully catch Ari before I'm gone," Phoenix said.
Leah nodded thoughtfully. Phoenix thought of what else to say. She needed to let Leah now how important her role will be to Angel now.
"You realize how important you are now, right?" Phoenix whispered.
Leah looked into Phoenix's eyes, slight confusion twinkled.
"You, Bella, Charlie and the Cullens are her family. She's going to need all of you after I'm gone. For quite a while, it was just me and her."
"I understand," Leah nodded. "I have to say, I'm surprised at how... accepting you are."
"Which part, exactly?" Phoenix grinned.
"All of it, actually," Leah said after a moment. "My imprinting on Angel, your death..."
"I suppose that its easier for me to accept what can't be changed. I knew from the beginning that I was going to expire, that I wouldn't live a normal, human life. That's something that I can't change. As for you imprinting on her, I think that it was meant to be. It's funny how the universe works."
Phoenix smiled before continuing, "I think the universe put you in our path because I was going to expire soon. The universe surrounded us with family because it knew that she would need all of you."
Leah had teared up again, this woman she barely knows considers her family. And what made it worse? Leah considered her family, too. She didn't want her to die.
Nothing more needed to be said between them. So, they sat there in silence, watching the little girl they loved so dearly sleep peacefully.
Author's Note:
Hello! Sorry that's its been so long! Yes, this is a short chapter, but I really wanted a whole chapter just for that moment.
