Wilted

Rebloom

    Dear Orchid, 

     I miss you. I understand if you don't want to see me, after this incident, but I miss you. I'm breathing because of your protection spell, I know, only a witch as powerful as you could keep my stubborn ass alive as long as I have been. 

I know how angry you are, or maybe how sad, it's been weighing on me since the morphine wore off. 

  Do I deserve it? Maybe, I don't know, I guess, but if I was gonna leave, I wanted you to know how much I couldn't help but care about you. Jørn too, of course, but I wasn't about to kiss him, unless he shaved.

     Orchid, do you remember when we were children, and you made those weird dolls out of sticks? You gave one to me and I broke it within a few minutes. I've been messing up your life for years, and let's be honest, this isn't very different, but damn, this time I guess I messed up. 

You're my dearest friend, I never want to be away from you, I should have waited, or maybe not even did it, I'm still dead, but my grave seems shallow if you aren't in it.

     Visit me soon.

             Pelle.

     Orchid crinkled the paper as she read the letter once more. It was a shock to find it in her mail that day, and even with Linnea's urging to reconsider, Jørn was all too eager to pick her up on his way back from gathering Pelle's things from Øystein's house.

     "You look nice, Kid." He smiled weakly at Orchid, trying to break her concentration, mainly so one of her blood vessels didn't burst from the white knuckled grip she had on the paper.

"Oh, uh, Thank you, I wish I could say I felt the same." She mumbled, taking a deep breath. "I can't believe he's alive…"

"Pelle is a lot more sturdy than he looks, I know it isn't saying much…" he trailed off, pulling into the parking lot, "Should be able to talk now, so I've heard."

"That's good, he's got a lot to explain…"

"Don't be too hard on him, kid, He's fragile right now."

"I thought he was sturdy." She quipped, climbing out of the car.

"Go ahead in, I'm gonna have a cigarette real quick."

     Orchid nodded, slowly walking in through the large double doors. The chill of the hospital wrapped itself like an icy blanket around her.

There was an audible yelp when she burst through the door, followed by a string of weak sounding coughs. Pelle's eyes were ready to burst from his skull, mostly in shock, as she was anything but conspicuous.

     "Orch-", his throat sounded scratchy, like any second a burst of dust would fly out of his mouth. 

Orchid stood in the doorway, reflexively covering her mouth as tears threatened to break from her eyes. 

     "Pelle…" 

     Normally, when you hug someone, they coat you in an almost smothering warmth, like a wool coat, soft and comfortable enough to fall asleep in. 

Pelle, though, even with his arms wrapped around her, covered in a veil of stringy blonde hair, punctuated with hot tears, he was frigid, clamouring for even a candle flicker of heat.

     "What am I going to do with you…" she sniffled as she broke away from his arms, "I could kill you myself after all of this." 

     "Couldn't blame you…" he leaned back, giving the strongest smile he could muster, before his face fell, "Where's your flowers? Your braids…"

Orchid took a deep breath, "It's nothing to concern yourself with, you did almost die." She muttered.

Her eyes darted to his sewed up throat, the sight was tough to even look at, much less state as intently as she was. "God, Pelle-" she pulled the thick black ribbon from her hair, a ponytail falling into Sandy waves on her shoulders, "Your hair's getting all in your, um…Your blood."

     He smiled as she ran her fingers through his blood tresses, pulling it away from the dried blood, and tying it back with the ribbon. It had been a long time…too long, since they were this close, and though words were not pouring the way she wanted them too, it felt like sparks were crackling under her fingertips every time she touched his skin.

     Her arms rested on his shoulders, closing her eyes before crushing their lips together, an insane amount of emotion spilling inside of her, unable to escape via words. 

     Kissing him felt both natural, and eerily strange, like a feeling in the foggiest part of childhood memories, sad, but comfortable. 

It was powerful, something that couldn't be broken apart, not by a blazing fire, or a raging snowstorm, not even a-

Cough

      She jumped back, falling into the window with a yelp.

Jørn cleared his throat, "Should I come back at another time?"

"Jørn!" Pelle croaked, throwing his hands as up as they could go. 

"I knew you'd make it, man…" he hugged his friend tightly, "You know you missed quite a bit…"

The room went gravely quiet, lingering before Pelle spoke up, "I left…" he muttered.

"Yeah, I know you left, Øystein let everyone know." Jørn rolled his eyes, "...He might have also thrown you out."

Fuck's sake. 

((A/N: My god, hey bitches. After a major surgery, wedding planning and SEVERAL mental breakdowns, I am here and I cannot die.
If you managed to stay and not hate me, you da real mvp)