Timeless [h.s]

1 year later

Stuart:

"Sienna, are you home?" My voiced sounded panicked and unnatural, but I couldn't conceal how terrified I felt. I tried to keep my tone low, acutely aware of Harry peacefully asleep on his bed.

"It's seven in the morning, Charlotte. Where else would I be?" I rolled my eyes, ignoring her rudeness because I desperately needed her presence beside me. My hands shook and I leant against the bathroom door, glancing down at my plaid pyjamas.

"I have an emergency. A really fucking big emergency."

"Charlie, are you dying? Is Harry dying? If not, it can wait until we meet for the ball preparations." Her words discouraged me, but I wouldn't insist if it wasn't important.

"I might as well be, Sienna. I wouldn't be calling you this early if it wasn't something big. Please come over." I heard my sister sighing through the line, probably raking her hands through her messy blond hair, trying to understand if I was overreacting or actually desperate.

"Please, please. I really need some support right now." My tone probably made her cave as I heard a complying grunt.

"I'll be there in ten." She promised.

"Don't let Niall see you." I hung up before she had the chance to make other crude remarks. Standing up and facing my image in the mirror became suddenly terrifying. I envied Harry and the way he blissfully snored, enjoying his slumber while my entire world shifted. My wide eyes and parted lips could be considered the prelude of happiness or terror, I wasn't sure which one I was more prone to choose.

"Get yourself together." I mumbled, quickly brushing my teeth and splashing water on my face. Keeping the noise down was imperative, otherwise Harry would wake up and see me, something I couldn't deal with at that moment.

I opened the bathroom door with calculated precision, eyes immediately scanning Harry's body for any sign of change. He held onto my pillow tightly, legs draped over my side of the bed, just like I had left him. The image made me smile brightly, the snowy morning somehow complimenting the scenario. Our garment bags hung behind his bedroom door, together, unlike the year before.

Inside my prosaic idea of haven, I looked back in time and wondered how life once was anything different than what we had at the present. I felt as if Harry and I were never apart, as if Gaston and the tales of immortality and enchanted daggers would only become sources for bedside stories when we put our children to sleep. During my centenary existence, I had never felt so at ease, so comfortable just by being myself.

I took slow steps towards the door, blowing Harry a kiss he would never know about. Making my way downstairs and desperately downing a large glass of water, I wondered if my sister would take long to arrive. It was ridiculously cold, even for a Christmas Eve, but I waited for her on our doorstep, jumping from one foot to the other trying to stay minimally warm.

As promised, Sienna did arrive faster than usual, parking the car sloppily, just like most days. When she saw me, her eyes widened in surprised, waving a bit before jogging inside. When I closed the main door I hugged her body with force, head leaning against her chest and breath becoming shallow. I didn't want to cry, I wasn't entirely sure why I was crying, but the hot tears flowed down my flushed cheeks without consent, alarming Sienna.

"Char, what is going on?" She asked, keeping the tone down. I took her hand and guided us towards the kitchen, trying to prevent Harry from waking up because of our conversation. She followed without complaint, eyes roaming up and down my body, perhaps searching for any injury.

I removed the small stick from inside my pink fluffy robe, handing it in silence and watching the way Sienna's expression shifted from curious, to terrified until finally settling on elated. She squeaked lowly, hugging me and twirling my smaller body inside the kitchen, kissing my cheek and immediately placing a hand above my still flat belly.