The Thing About Timing (The Becoming of Elliott Goode)

Chapter 19

Cordelia woke up to find the sky was still dark, rolling over to briefly check the time. This was unusual, she normally slept through the night no problem, but something seemed off to her, and she couldn't quite figure out what it was. After tossing and turning for a few more moments, the supreme sat up and threw the covers off of her, getting off the bed and sliding on her slippers. She opened her bedroom door and heard nothing outside of the rain pounding the roof of the house, not even the dog. Cordelia made the rounds to check on the girls the way she normally did, and she stopped at Elliott's room last, opening the door softly and peering in. Elliott laid completely still, her chest rising and falling at a slow pace.

Cordelia was about to shut the door and go back to bed when she heard the young girl whimper from across the room, violently turning herself over then flipping back again, repeating the motion several times. While Elliott did normally thrash around a bit when she was having a nightmare, it was nothing compared to this. Cordelia waited a few moments to see if the girl was able to calm herself down, but stepped into the room once Elliott had whimpered a little louder and almost thrown herself off the bed.

Cordelia quickly made her way to the girl and sat down on the bed, holding the girl as still as she could and rubbing her back to try and wake her. It didn't work, and it only made the young girl thrash harder to get out of Cordelia's grip, rolling as far away from the edge of the bed as she could, landing on her back. Cordelia could see the tear tracks running down Elliott's face and she once again tried to wake the small girl as gently as she could, shaking the girl slightly and whispering, "Elle? You gotta wake up for me Elle." Elliott slowly opened her watery eyes and looked around rapidly before she settled down, blinking her eyes quickly to get rid of the remaining tears. "Hey, hey. It's ok, you're ok. Just relax, you're safe." Cordelia said softly, one hand gently running through Elliott's hair while the other wiped away the tracks down her face.

Once Elliott's breathing and rapid heartbeat evened out, Cordelia gently pulled the girl into a hug, Elliott gripping onto her for dear life. "You want to talk about it?" Cordelia whispered into her hair, not surprised when the girl shook her head no. Cordelia pulled back once Elliott's grip had loosened a bit and saw the girl's eyes had once again gotten watery. Whatever this dream was, it really shook her up. The supreme grabbed the girls hand and stood from the bed, pulling Elliott up with her, making her way back towards her room. Normally, Elliott would have fought back, insisting she could sleep in her own room, but she was still half asleep and not in the mood to fight, so she just quietly followed Cordelia's lead. Cordelia put Elliott in bed and kissed her on the forehead, whispering, "Goodnight love."

"Night mom." Elliott mumbled out sleepily, obviously already drifting in and out of consciousness. Cordelia's eyes got teary and she pressed another kiss to the young girl's forehead, her heart fluttering before she rounded the bed and got in on her side, falling asleep almost instantly.

The next morning Cordelia woke and was surprised to find Elliott still fast asleep next to her. Not wanting to wake the girl, Cordelia quietly tiptoed out of the room and head downstairs, grabbing a cup of coffee and sitting at the island in the kitchen and picking up a small thank you note from David, who had left for class earlier in the day. She smiled and set it back down right as Misty wandered into the kitchen. "Mornin'" Misty said softly.

"Good morning, you sleep ok?" Cordelia asked quietly. Misty nodded her head as she reached for a glass in the cabinet above her, and an awkward tension filled the room. Neither woman knew how to act, both not wanting to discuss the events from the previous night. Cordelia desperately wanted to talk with Misty about what Elliott had said to her last night, to tell her everything she was holding in, all the secrets, and her true feelings for the girl, but something was holding her back. She felt trapped by her own lies, and she hated it, it was eating her alive.