The Guardian

Chapter 7

*

"Raven?" I knocked on her bedroom door.

"Uh yah, come in" she wiped her face quickly and stood up as I walked in.

"Are you okay?" My eyes widened with worry.

"Yah I'm fine" she smiled and wiped her eyes.

"Raven.."

"Really I'm fine" she smiled.

"Raven you know you can tell me-"

"Fane was looking for you earlier. Maybe you should check up on him" she interrupted me.

"Okay" I sighed in defeat and turned towards the door.

"Rose, I'm sorry. I just.. I hate feeling like this" she laughed as more tears spilled down her cheeks.

"I know" I was pulling her down onto the bed beside me and held her. "It's my fault. I'll never be able to fix what happened. But you have to know how sorry I am" tears stung my eyes.

"No Rose stop it" she pulled back to look at me. "We all knew what we were up against when we stood by you. And I would do it all over again. I just..." She sniffed back another sob. "I miss him so much it hurts"

"I miss them all" I wiped at my eyes.

"You lost a lot that day. I'll always admire your strength Rose" Raven smiled through her tears.

"I wish I could change what happened" my heart broke all over again as the images flashed in my head. One by one I had watched the people I cared about drop dead before my eyes. At the hands of the evil bitch that was my mother.

"I think about them everyday" I admitted.

"They're remembered and loved Rose. That's all we can do for them now. I'll never forget"

"Neither will I" we sat in silence for a few minutes, our tears drying.

"I don't know if I could ever find somebody who makes me feel the way he did" Raven whispered into the silence. "But at the same time, I would feel so guilty if I ever tried to replace him"

"It's not replacing him Raven. Hunter will always hold a place in your heart. But it's okay to love again" I squeezed her hand.

"I don't think I'll ever be ready to love somebody else"

"That's okay" I soothed.

"Speaking of love. Fane really was looking for you, it seemed urgent" she dried her eyes.

"Okay, I'll come find you later. Maybe we can have a sleepover like we used to" I smiled as I stood up.

"Okay" her eyes lit up.

*

My heart thudded excitedly as I made my way down the hall. I couldn't wait to see Fane. My smile faded as I reached Stone's office door. I could hear muffled voices inside.

"Stone you have to tell her!" Fane was upset.

"I can't! More information will break down the confidence she just built!" Stone yelled back.

"She'll give up on all of it when she finds out we've been keeping this from her!" Fane argued.

"She'll ruin any chance we have if we tell her!" Stone persisted.

"Stone! I'm not doing this shit anymore! I love her! And I won't keep hurting her!"

"Fane we just need to keep this hidden while we-"

"No! I'm done with this! You know she hates being kept in the dark"

"Give me two weeks. Okay? Two weeks and we'll tell her"