"I can feel her slipping away." Lindsey was sitting at the circle table in the cafeteria- sipping on his third cup of coffee and staring into space.
"Don't say that." Mick shook his head, shifting in his chair across the table. "She's going to be fine." He repeated for the tenth time since he'd arrived a couple of hours earlier.
Nodding lightly, Lindsey ran his hand across his face as he thought about the only woman he'd ever truly felt connected to. "When I got sick a million years ago, Stevie said that she could feel it..." he recalled in a soft tone. "She said that she could feel my pain..." he lingered as he creased a brow lightly. "And of course, I thought that was just absurd, ya know?" He let out a dry chuckle- not really finding it funny, but instead, finding it heartbreakingly ironic. "But I kind of get it now..." he shrugged, eyes becoming incredibly watery. "I can feel her getting further away." Lindsey had never really believed in anything like that- he just didn't, but something felt different now. "This is going to sound crazy, Mick." He warned as he held up a hand. "But I can feel her leaving me."
~~~
With a cup of coffee in hand, Stevie sat at the dining room table as she stared blankly at the plate in front of her.
She'd had a restless night- tossing and turning for a long time before she finally closed her eyes for just a few hours. She just couldn't sleep.
She had stopped getting clues in her dreams a couple of nights earlier, which really didn't set well with her... That felt like her way out of this life and suddenly, all the help was gone.
She had to figure it out alone, and that was probably scarier than anything else, but she had to get out.
This was not the life for her.
"Do you want some more coffee, mom?" Dylan asked her mother as she held out her hand to take the cup.
Pulling herself back into reality, Stevie nodded softly. "Please," she carefully handed over the half empty mug as a very faint smile trailed across her face.
She sat back in her chair a moment as her eyes scanned over the full table... Five perfect, funny, sweet kids- all hers.
She'd never even dreamt of having a family quite that size and even though this life was far from what she was accustomed to, she found it hard to let them go... She wasn't sure she'd be able to.
There were moments that her decision was easy- she wanted out and then there were occasions where she wasn't ready. It was weird.
""You okay?" David's hand met her shoulder, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the top of her head.
Luckily, things weren't nearly as awkward as you would assume... Actually, it was the exact opposite.
They didn't have one of those long drawn out conversations like she had dreaded... In fact, after she had promised that she would put in an equal amount of effort to fix their marriage, he dropped it.
He didn't like those types of talks either, which is probably why they had stayed married for as long as they had.
She'd made a mistake and she was human... David couldn't hold that against her.
Reaching up, her hand met his. "Yeah," she assured, leaning her head back to look up at him.
She loved him so much, it was almost overwhelming... She hadn't felt it before, but suddenly it was there and it was strong.
It didn't happen all at once, but it definitely was begging to become more apparent.
So much so, she had almost begun to really regret ever seeing Lindsey...
"These pancakes are good, mom." Darby complimented as she motioned towards her plate.
Stevie laughed lightly as she felt her husband rub her shoulders softly. "I'm glad, honey." She nodded, looking around at her other kids as well.
This life was starting to overpower her old life slowly, but surely. She had started to forget simple things like her dogs name, what street she lived on, what had happened on her last normal night and even some of her friends were becoming a blur... She was starting to forget herself.
"I'm gonna go start on the dishes." She announced in a low tone as she patted David's hand, silently telling him she was going to stand.
"DJ and I are going to play some basketball." He helped her pull out her chair, hand meeting her back when she stood up.
"Let's go, old man." Their son already had a basketball in hand, hurrying through the dining room with his dad not far behind.
With a smile on her face, she watched them head through to foyer, laughing and joking until they both disappeared outside.
She loved it.
"Thank you, sweet girl." Stevie met Dylan in the kitchen doorway with her coffee. "I love your dress." She added, eyes falling to Dylan's feet and then back to her face.
She was pretty- very much so... It was like all of the best traits of Stevie and David combined.
"Thank you, mama." She giggled lightly, popping a shoulder playfully. "Are you gonna come outside with us?" She wondered, motioning towards the back patio door, where almost everyone had already retired to.
"Go ahead." She trailed further into the kitchen with her cup in hand. "I'll be out in a few minutes." She assured, leaning back against the counter a second later.
She waited for a minute- listening for the sound of the door closing once more before she picked up the house phone and dialed his number.
The part of her that knew better was still so strong and so determined.
Lindsey was the only person who held a special place in her heart and she couldn't help that... That wouldn't change until the strength of this life totally erased any trace of the last.
"Hello?" Lori's voice caught her off guard, but not enough to make her hang up.
"Hi, Lori." She smiled lightly, suddenly missing her best friend more than anything else in that moment. "I have a couple of questions about some sheet music for Lindsey..." she lingered, lying through her teeth. "Is he around?" She wondered, knowing that it wasn't fair what was happening, but also knowing that in the other world, Lori would hate this.
"Yeah, I'll grab him for you." She had a smile on her face- Stevie could hear it from over the phone.
"Thank you..." she couldn't help but smile as well, a little relieved that it was that easy.
"Hey..." he was there just a second later... he couldn't have been too busy.
"Is she listening?" She asked in a very quiet tone.
Lindsey grinned lightly, glancing around the empty room. "No," he couldn't help but chuckle as he listened to her laugh on the other end.
"Run away with me."
