Missing Trilogy Book 1: Finding Home

Chapter 14: Here in Your Arms

There was a knock on the door. Again. It was the fifth time that week that one of those people who claimed they wanted to "help them recover" had knocked on the Voltas' door. They were utterly relentless.

"We don't want your charity," Hope called out for the fifth time that week, finding herself annoyed once more.

She didn't even bother with checking who it was. It was always either one of those people or the Tartines (although they usually said who they were and, depending on who it was, didn't even knock at all- this phenomenon was most common with Rocky, Vella's little sister).

"We're not here for charity," a somewhat familiar voice replied.

Hope stopped what she was doing and went over to the door.

Vella stood outside, listening to the movement inside and feeling a slight bit of deja vu talking through the door.

"Who are you?" Vella heard Hope asked, her voice closer.

Brief memories of a flaming ship and talking to what she thought was a computer flashed through Vella's mind.

"Vella."

No, she couldn't have heard her right. Vella was dead, lost in that abyss after trying to save... A small glimmer of hope rose in her chest. Maybe it really was Vella. And if it was, and Vella was really alive, maybe there was a chance Shay was too. Maybe then she wouldn't have to suffer anymore.

Vella listened to the silence behind the door. She had taken to pressing her ear against it, trying to hear what was going on. She nearly fell when the door opened (inwards).

Vella, Shay, and Shay's mom all stood there staring at each other for moment in silence, before Hope excused herself and shut the door, going off to find her husband.

"Well," Shay said. "That went... better than I expected...."

Shay's mom stood at the door again, her husband accompanying her.

"I know this has been hard on you, but we can't keep living like this," he said. "You know that it's always a h-"

"I know it isn't this time," Hope interrupted. "Please, just trust me."

Her husband sighed. "Okay. But if it is a hallucination again, I really do think we should start thinking about accepting help."

"We won't need to," she said, smiling weakly as she opened the door.

Shay and Vella still stood outside, idly chatting and hoping that they weren't just going to stand there all day.

"Shay?" his dad's voice interrupted their conversation. His mom stood there too, tears brimming in her eyes, assured that he wasn't just a hallucination.

Shay smiled wordlessly and ran to them to be enveloped in their embrace. They stood in that doorway for a long while.

Meanwhile, Vella started to sneak off to find her parents. But she didn't need to. Her family had come to see how the Voltas were doing. But when they saw their daughter and the other family's son standing there, they froze and barely dared to breathe, for fear that the slightest movement would cause them to disappear.

It didn't. Vella spotted them, her mother opened her arms, and Vella too ran to her family, embracing them all at once. And for the first time in what seemed like a very long time, both Vella and Shay could safely say that they'd found their way home.

The End

--

On the off-chance that someone on Wattpad actually reads this, just know that I did not write all of these chapters in the span of 30 minutes- I actually posted all of this on another website before realizing "Hey, I put Finding Home on Wattpad too, maybe I should post the chapters there too...".