Yours, now and forever.

Chapter 25

Bella's POV

It was time. I looked at the moon in the sky, gazing up into the stars. It was about 9 o'clock. I packed up a few things I wanted to take with me; the hairbrush I had been made by one of the boys, a little doll that Noah played with a lot and a blanket that smelled like, well, home. The rest was left in a secret place.

I spoke into the pink shell I had found with Dealla, who I had already said my goodbyes to. Saying a message that simply flowed out of my lungs like a song straight from my heart. Then I left it with my other things, and went to say goodbye to the others who knew.

I walked out of my tent to see Oliver holding Noah in a tight hug. Noah was sat on his waist, his arms twisted around Oliver's neck, refusing to be put down into the floor. Oliver had wrapped a brown cloak around him and had given him his own little bag of belongings. Next to Oliver stood a wooden cage. Only silence came from it. It didn't shake or rattle like it was containing an angry beast. Instead it simply sat deadly still. I walked over to where the boys were stood and tapped Oliver on the shoulder. He untangled his head from his and Noah's embrace. Noah's head was still buried inside Oliver's jacket and clothing. Tears fell from his face.

It killed me to separate them, but Oliver had preached that he didn't want to come with us, and he had agreed that Noah deserved a real life. Not firing arrows and sword fighting all day. He deserved a real mum and dad, ones who could feed him and get him ready for school, read him bedtime stories and protect him from monsters under his bed.

Nobody spoke. Oliver simply passed Noah to me. Noah didn't protest at all, he simply unwrapped his arms from Oliver and re wrapped them around my neck. Me and Oliver hugged tightly, like our life depended on it, and breathed slowly in and out. I can't believe this is the last time I'm ever gonna hug Oliver. I went over what he was going to say to the other boys with him, and finally, I knelt down next to the cage.

Pan was sat quietly. His knees bent and apart, his body hunched over the gap between them and his elbows leant on his knees. He was simply playing with his fingers and staring into the space in front of him. Pure hopelessness in his eyes. Water trickled down his cheeks in silent sorrow. I wrapped my hand around the bars of the cage and peered in at him. "Just leave." He whispered, so silently I could hardly even hear him. Tears filled my eyes as I tried to push every emotion inside of me away, like I had done so many times before.

"Pan." I whispered back to him. I stuck my hand through the bars, holding out my closed fist towards him. He glanced at it quickly before turning away again. I shook it around in front of  his eyes. He reached up quickly and closed his own fist around it, stopping it from moving anymore. I let my fist uncurl inside Pan's, releasing a crushed piece of paper into his palm. "Goodbye." I whispered, taking back my hand and standing up.

I hoisted Noah up onto my hip again, took one last look around, and turned away. Walking into the darkness of the forest without turning back.

This was it, a goodbye to the new life I had come to love.

A/N: Ik this was a rly short chapter but pls stick with it cause shit is about to
Hit
The
Fan.