𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 || 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥

Chapter 21 - Saving Chris

My fingers flipped quickly through the yellowed pages, searching desperately for something to help us out of this mess. To help Chris out of this mess, I corrected myself.

"There's gotta be a spell in here somewhere," I cried out in frustration.

"To take us to the future?" Paige asked, sighing, "I don't think so,"

"Future Mattie is still a witch, she could do it. How could she do it?" Phoebe asked no one in particular as she peered over my shoulder at the Book of Shadows.

"We don't know how," Paige just shrugged.

"How did we do it five years ago?" Piper asked.

Leo stopped his pacing to face her, "The Elders made that happen, remember?"

"Well, you're an Elder, make it happen," I pointed out, hands on hips as I glanced over at the two of them.

"That was a unique situation," Leo replied, leaving no room for argument.

"This isn't?" I countered.

"Hey, I don't like this either, don't you think I want to save him too?"

Phoebe sighed, "I don't know if I want to save him or kick him out of here,"

"That still doesn't change all the good he's done,"

Paige smirked, "Hmm, you're certainly singing a different tune. You've come a long way, baby,"

Leo rolled his eyes, "Okay, despite all his secrets, I still believe that he came back to protect Wyatt and that is enough for me to want to save him,"

Piper frowned, "The question is, how?"

Leo turned to pace once more when his foot landed on that same squeaky board - the one Chris had been demanding be fixed.

"Fix the floorboard." I repeated Chris' words softly, lost in thought.

The others heard though, Piper immediately latching onto my meaning, "Maybe he was trying to tell us something... Maybe. Maybe that's where the other Mattie was taking him. To the attic in the future,"

"But that would still be there in the future, wouldn't it?" I asked, remembering how Chris had talked about it as if it was still present in his own timeline.

Paige nodded, "Yeah, unless we fixed it,"

"Or used it to send him something, something that he needed," Piper pointed out.

"Like what?" Phoebe asked.

Paige and I intoned in unison, "His powers."

"Exactly." Paige winked my way, eliciting a grin from me.

It didn't take long to formulate our plan - write down a spell on a sheet of paper, fold it, place it underneath the floorboard. We waited as the minutes ticked by, not knowing how long we'd have to wait for an answer - to just know if he was okay or not. Turns out though, not long as suddenly, the portal glowed blue and Chris came flying out of it, landing in a heap at our feet.

He groaned as he made impact and Phoebe asked if he was okay. Chris only had time to slowly get to his feet and groan out a quiet confirmation he was before my body crashed into his. He immediately wrapped his arms around me, my head tilting up to gaze up into emerald-green eyes. I was so scared - no, terrified - that I was going to lose him, that I would no longer see him or have him in my life, that maybe he was gone back to the future for good this time.

And this time, my actions didn't scare me, didn't surprise me in the slightest. Because I knew what I wanted, what I had always wanted. And it was always going to be Chris.

My lips collided with his, butterflies erupting in my stomach at the slight touch as he wasted no time in kissing me back. His mouth was so warm, so gentle on mine, moving in perfect sync. My fingers found the nape of his neck, caressing his porcelain skin and I couldn't help but revel in the taste of his kiss, how his lips felt like the inside of a rose. I didn't want to stop, didn't even want to come up for air. But I knew I had to as we both broke away finally, breathing hard.

Our audience had long since dissipated, leaving the two of us totally alone in the attic.

"You have some serious explaining to do, Chris," I told him, trying to be stern but failing as my heart soared in my chest still.

"I know," he admitted softly, fingers caressing my cheek with a gentleness that made me shiver under his touch, "Listen, I'm sorry I lied to you. I really am, but-"

"No, no buts," I cut him off, briefly pressing my own fingers to his lips, "It's about time you tell me the truth. Now,"

Chris deliberated for a second before saying, "I can't,"

I arched an eyebrow at him so he swiftly continued, "But not because I don't want to! But because there's only so much I can tell you without the future being changed too much,"

"Um, isn't that your whole point? To come and change the future?" I asked.

"Yeah... But that was supposed to be more like a surgical strike,"

"To save Wyatt?"

He nodded once before shaking his head, "But not to change this..."

His fingers trailed down to my neck then, lingering there as he pressed his lips to mine once more. I had so many more questions, so much more I wanted to know the answers to. But right now, none of it mattered. All that mattered was that he was safe, here in my arms. And nothing could tear us apart.

Or at least, it's what I thought at the time...