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Kristina
Cujo eats the last bit of bacon from my hands before darting down the porch steps and into the woods. Where that dog heads out to, I have no idea, but he always comes back, so his return fills me with joy and provides me with comfort. I watch him bound happily, in spite of the freshly fallen snow, as he disappears from my sight.
Shaking my head, I amble down the stairs and head to my favorite, childhood spot in the woods. I tighten the scarf around my neck and then bury my hands in my jacket pocket.
A lot has happened in the past six months.
About four months ago, Wyatt passed away from lung cancer. After the whole ordeal with Gerard, we insisted on keeping him nearby. He protested a bit at first. Eventually, he came around to the idea of having two nurses at his beck and call. I had known he was sick, but I failed to realize how much. Unfortunately, his cancer was far more advanced than Rose and I thought, and by the time he sought medical attention it was too late.
Drake and Ray headed in separate directions. Drake joined the werewolves in an effort to locate more of Gerard’s victims. Ray rejoined the Legion to continue searching for his missing wife. With Gerard gone, the remaining Institutes were in complete pandemonium. Word had reached us that others had taken off with valuable information, medical research, and potential victims, to start anew where Gerard had left off.
What no one spoke of was of the supposed cure for deadly diseases like cancer. Gerard had claimed to have these cures, but he never revealed where and how he had gotten them. Though by this point, I don’t think it matters. Anything that came from this man would have been tainted in some way.
With Wyatt dead and Drake and Ray gone, Grandma and I have settled into our old routine life. She still bakes my favorite apple pie and I continue to care for her as I promised my brother I would. Yes, life is normal again. But nothing is the same. Not after what we went through. Rose hardly ever speaks of what she did during her flight or where she went, but I sense there’s more she’s hiding from me. Being kept in the dark scares me. Wondering frightens me even more.
I trudge through the snow toward my favorite log, wiping the snow off with a gloved hand, and then take a seat. I sit and study the cloudy sky above, listening to the rustling of the branches over my head as the wind blows. Hayden, they seem to say to me.
I haven’t heard from him or seen him since he left that evening with Castiel, Nyall, Akana, and Gabriel. Neither has he tried to contact me. I find myself wondering how he is doing, now that he’s not forced to carry out orders. Is he really enjoying life as much as I like to think he is? Is he comfortable in the world we share? Is he safe?
I may not ever see him again in this lifetime, but I like to believe he’s doing well. Maybe better than I imagined. But truth is, I miss him. I miss the sound of his voice. The innocent look in his eyes when he encounters something new. His passionate kisses.
My lips curve up involuntarily as I recall the first time I kissed him. He had been so nervous. Did he even have the slightest idea how much he affected me? I’d had boyfriends before, had kissed other boys and a man or two, but I’d never been as thrown off by somebody as I’d been with him.
A snapping branch alerts me to a presence. I turn to my left, expecting to find Cujo bouncing back to me, but my gaze collides with a pair of golden brown eyes instead.
“Hayden?”
Clad in a winter coat, gloves, jeans, and boots is the man who has been constantly on my mind. Though his hair is longer, the tips falling down to his cheeks now, he looks exactly the same as the last time I saw him—minus the blood and wounds.
“Rose said you’d be here.” He tromps through the snow toward me. “She said you come here often.”
“This is where I like to sit and reminiscence,” I say with a lift of the chin. “And lately, my mind tends to wander off a lot.” Cold or not, I needed to hold on to my memories. I promised never to forget the moments we lived together, and I aimed to keep my word.
He stops when he’s standing directly in front of me. “Am I in those thoughts?”
I wonder briefly how he got here. I didn’t hear a car driving up the driveway. Not that it matters. He’s here and that’s all I care about.
“More than you know,” I whisper, barely able to contain my excitement. A tear slides down the left side of my face. I’m so happy to see him at last.
He takes off a glove to wipe the tear away with his thumb. “The last time I saw you...you were upset because of me. I don’t want you to cry because of me anymore.”
“What do you plan to do about it, then?” As opposed to the last time we saw each other, my tears are not of sadness, but of joy. I’m happy he’s here.
“I want to bring joy to your heart and soul. Make it so that you never regret picking me up and bringing me home. I want to have the opportunity to show you I’m not a monster.”
That last bit breaks me and I rush to wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face in his jacket. “I’ve never thought of you as a monster.”
He plants a kiss on the top of my head, circling his arms around me to draw me closer. “It may not always be pleasant, but I will try my best.”
I nod in agreement, withdrawing to look up at his handsome face. “Can we start over?”
He locks his lips with mine as a means of a response. The rest of the world melts away as we kiss. The future is always uncertain. This morning, I woke up believing Hayden was gone from my life for good, and now he’s here. Nothing is ever assured. Sometimes life brings surprises. Six months ago, I stopped to pick up a stranger I nearly ran over. It never occurred to me that he would turn out to be the very man I’d end up falling for in such a short amount of time.
While we may not know what other dangers lurk out there, as long as we fight as a team we can overcome any obstacle. If we managed to survived Gerard, what can’t we endure?