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— 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐃𝐀𝐘 opened with a quiet morning.
Paul had slept over at Willow's — with Briony and Brian none the wiser, and Briar and Brady acting like they didn't know.
The brunette was quick to get ready, the silent tension only feeding the melancholy and apprehension in the air. And all the while, Paul just watched her — waiting patiently for her to finish her routine so that they could go to his house and let him get ready before they met at Emily's with the rest of the pack.
They didn't linger — leaving the house at dawn. By the time they reached Emily's — the sun was only starting to rise.
And it seemed that the others had the same idea, as they arrived within minutes of one another. They too — seemed just as upset about what they were about to walk into, she thought.
And even though they all knew that it was the pack's sole duty to protect human life; that this was necessary for the sake of everyone on the reservation and in Forks — the haunted look in each of the boy's eyes spoke of so much burden.
She, Kim, and Emily shared a look of concern for the pack, but nonetheless, they remained quiet.
They knew that nothing they said would make the boys feel better.
By the time everyone was ready to leave, she stepped away from Kim and Emily to talk to Paul. When he saw her heading his way, he smiled softly — though Willow could tell he wasn't happy...at all.
"You be safe here, alright? I'll be back in no time." Paul whispered, despite knowing the others could hear him perfectly well.
"Paul..." She whispered back and saw the moment the last bit of hope left his brown eyes, shoulders lowering in defeat.
"Please don't." He tried, the pleading in his voice almost managing to convince her to change her mind. But she remained adamant.
"I'm extremely pissed off with Edward. You and I both know that, Paul. And whether you like it or not — if I'm mad at him, then you're downright furious." She cupped his cheek, thumb caressing his smooth skin in a gentle caress. "And you guys really can't afford to be fighting right now. If you tell me that you fully believe you'll be able to control yourself without me there then I'll back off. No arguments."
She watched him think for a moment, hoping that he would say yes. That he could control himself without her there. She knew Paul struggled with his anger issues — and she didn't fault him for it one bit. But she wasn't sure she could handle the no doubt casual way they were going to discuss risking their lives to kill an entire vampire army.
Losing Paul was easily one of her worst nightmares. She'd already lost her parents — her first rock, and if she lost Paul...she honestly didn't know what would become of her. The upcoming meeting with the Cullens was only going to be a reminder of what was coming, and what was possible.
But when he sighed and hung his head a little, she knew her answer.
