Snapshot » l.t.

Chapter 39

Chapter 39


Renee's POV


My life was perfect. I had the perfect boyfriend, the perfect job, the perfect life. Let me elaborate:

Elise's reaction to me walking into Teen Tiger and telling her I worked there again was hilarious! She squealed and clapped her hands and jumped up and down and gave me a massive hug.

I told her what had happened between me and Leo (excluding the parts with Louis in it, which was kind of hard), and she was spitting mad. We literally made a vow never to go near the guy again.

Something Louis said must've triggered something in Leo, because he didn't try going near me again. I would get the occasional sneer or stare, but other than that, he knew his place.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Justin Bieber himself came back for me! He kept clamoring for "the girl with the clunky camera". Nobody knew who he was talking about. But when he saw me, he nearly squished me in a hug. His bodyguards had to haul him off of me.

He told me ALL about the awful photographers and how only I had gotten the right angle and he had a framed picture of my "lucky shot". Yeah, this guy was adorable.

But the weekends were the best. Louis and I would hang out and do whatever we wanted. Right now we were just walking along the pavement, swinging our hands together. Louis had just told me his friends' reaction to our relationship together. He told the boys about us. Of course, Harry wouldn't stop babbling about how he had predicted this would happen. And, in a way, he did.

I leaned my head on Louis' shoulder a moment before straightening up again. I was content. For the most part. One thing still bothered me.

In all the time Louis and I had been together, we hadn't told each other that we loved each other once. I wanted to, but I wasn't sure if Louis was ready. I would think he was, because Lacy told me he had said so himself. Why would he tell her that he loved me and not actually me?

I pushed my concerns to the side. They were unnecessary. Today was perfect, why ruin it with silly nerves?

"What are you thinking about?" Louis asked me, breaking me from my thoughts.

I frowned. "How did you know I was thinking?" I asked.

He smirked. "You always get this seriously concentrated look on your face, and you bite your lip," he informed me. "Which reminds me...."

He bent down and swiftly kissed my lips. I smiled and grabbed his hair to make it last longer. He eventually pushed me away, and I pouted.

"Your fingernails are like claws," he complained, patting his head.

"You know you love it," I teased him. I hoped I had caught him in a trap; it's his turn to say he loves something about me, isn't it?

"Yeah, I suppose," he sighed and tapped his fingers against my arm.

I sagged in disappointment. So close, yet so far! Maybe he didn't love me. Maybe Lacy lied. Maybe what we had was a small, quick relationship.

I shook my head. No. I couldn't afford to think like that. If I started to believe it, I could jeopardize our relationship. Then we'd both definitely be single.

Louis' phone rang, making me jump. "Sorry," he said, taking it out of his pocket. He checked the caller ID, and his eyes widened a little bit. "This is important," he added. "Wait here." He walked off a distance and answered it.

I shuffled my feet nervously. Was it serious? Was it that bad kind of important? Was our weekend off?

"Hi, doctor," Louis said with forced cheerfulness, and I felt the blood drain from my face.

Oh no. A doctor?! Was one of the boys sick? Was one of his siblings or parents sick? Or worse... was Louis sick?!

My heart pounded in my chest. Louis and the doctor talked for a while quietly, which didn't help my nerves.

Finally the call ended, and Louis turned towards me. Thankfully, he had a large smile on his face, but I wasn't entirely convinced. He frowned. See?

"Geez, Renee, who died?" he asked, coming towards me. He held my cold hand in his warm one. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

I swallowed. "Oh, um," I stammered. "I just... I'm fine."

Louis glanced at me, unconvinced. I sighed. "Alright," I admitted. "I heard a tiny bit of your conversation. Who's the doctor?"

Louis seemed confused by the panicky look on my face. "Just... a doctor," he replied slowly. He probably would've continued, but I interrupted.

"Ermagherd!" I shrieked. "You're dying?!"

"What?" he shouted over me. "Of course not! What made you think that?"

Yes, what made you think that? the rational part of my brain asked me sarcastically.

I blushed. "Sorry," I mumbled. I squeezed Louis in a hug. "Please don't die on me," I begged. "My life would suck without you." I froze, then had a little celebration in my head. Totally went Kelly Clarkson there. Good work, Renee!

"Trust me, the devil himself will have to strike me down," Louis chuckled, and pried me off of him. "Now why did you think I was dying?"

I blushed again, just when the old one was fading away. "I just thought since a doctor was involved, someone was sick," I explained. "And since it was your phone, that someone was you."

That actually sounded pretty logical, I thought in surprise. Great coverup!

"Well, I'm fine," Louis told me. "I actually have really great news from the doctor."

I raised my eyebrows. He sounded pretty excited. I didn't see how it had anything to do with me, but I asked anyway. "Okay, what's the great news?" I asked.

"He might have finally found a cure for your color-blindness!" Louis squealed, and waited for my reaction.

I blinked and just stared at him. What? Who's "he"? And a cure? For my... color-blindness? Impossible!

I'd gotten so used to having my world in black-and-white, it was like a part of me. I could tell the colors apart from different shades of gray (not the book, but you know). It seemed unbelievable that there was actually a cure.

"Well?" Louis urged. "What do you have to say?"

I'd hate to disappoint him with my rather calm reaction, but that's all I had. Confusion. "Um, please explain," I said. "Like, who 'he' is, and what you mean by 'cure'."

Louis sighed. "Fine," he said. "It all started way back in the hospital room where we first met. Around after you slapped me."

I winced, but he talked about it so casually, like he didn't blame me at all. I love my boyfriend.

"The doctor told me that he might be able to find a cure," Louis continued. "But it might take a while. So, that's who 'he' is. I said...."

Louis' voice faded away and he frowned. I did, too. Why was he stopping? What did he say?

"I said that I would tell you that he might be able to find a cure," he said with a grimace. "But I guess I just... kinda... forgot."

I stared at him. Before I knew what was happening, rage filled me up. "You FORGOT?!" I shrilled. "You forgot to tell me that my ruined life could be fixed?! Well, oops for you!"

Louis winced. "Renee, please let me explain," he said.

I took a deep breath to calm myself, and I nodded shakily. I think I have anger issues along with depression.

"I just... forgot," he said. "I don't know how I forgot, I just did. I remember Harry telling me to use that as leverage to get your forgiveness--"

"What?" I yelled. My face was probably red. It definitely felt like it.

Leverage for my forgiveness? Was this all fake, then?

No, my heart told me. You love him. That's for sure. You just don't know if the apology was real.

Louis slapped a hand over my mouth before I could kick him in his soft spot. My voice is my power, so I was temporarily disabled.

"But I didn't," Louis said, sounding like he was pleading with me. "I wanted your apology from your own accord, not just because you felt the need to. The apology was real."

I sighed behind his hand, instantly warming it up. I believed him. As much as I wanted to stay mad at him, I couldn't. Besides, it was Harry I wanted to kill.

"I want that little bastard right in front of me where I can reach so I can strangle him," I growled once Louis removed his hand.

"Who?" he asked.

"Harry," I clarified.

He laughed. "You and me both, Ms. Peacemaker," he teased me.

"Now tell me the rest," I pressed.

He got a thoughtful look on his face. "Actually, that's about it," he said. "The doctor found a cure--possibly--and he said he wants us to come as quickly as possible."

I grinned. Euphoria flooded through me, and I grabbed Louis' hand. "Then what are we waiting for?" I asked excitedly. "Let's go!"


*~*~*~*


I forced myself not to get my hopes up. After all, this "cure" could possibly fail. Like those blue and red contacts. Those failed.

I took a deep breath. It's not like I would weep over the failure like last time. Like I said, I was used to seeing black-and-white. It was normal for me.

But as I walked down to the office hand-in-hand with Louis, I felt a longing feeling stir up in the pit of my stomach. I wanted to see color again. Really, really bad. I felt like a part of me was missing. And if it didn't work, at least I'd see some color. Just a small bit of it would be precious to me.

Louis knocked on the door. My hands were clammy, probably getting his hands all sweaty, but he didn't remove his hand. What a gentleman.

The doctor opened the door a crack, and he smiled when he saw us. "Ah, hello, Mr. Tomlinson and Ms. Wilson," he greeted us. He opened the door wider to shake our hands. Make that two guys with sweaty hands. The doctor didn't wipe his hand on his coat. What a gentleman.

He ushered us inside. I took a seat on the gray plastic bed with thin white sheets. Louis sat on a stool that spun. He spun in circles at least twenty times before the doctor shut the door and turned around. I giggled in amusement.

The doctor pursed his lips, as if struggling not to roll his eyes. "Mr. Tomlinson," he said. "That's my seat. Yours is over there." He pointed to the red cushiony chair.

"Of course, sir," Louis said and saluted to me. I giggled again. "Louis, the doctor is over there," I said, pointing to my left.

"Whoa, how many doctors are in here?" Louis asked with a grin. "Doctor, I think you have quadruplets."

I bowed my head as I laughed quietly. I slid off the bed to help Louis to his seat. Then I jumped back on and looked at the doctor expectantly.

"My name is Dr. Karl," he introduced himself. "I don't know if you remember me from before, Ms. Wilson, but I was the doctor that tested your vision."

I had a sour taste in my mouth. "I remember," I mumbled.

"I promised you I would try to find a cure," he told me. He looked pretty eager. "And I think I found one."

That's great, I thought sarcastically. Can I actually SEE this super awesome mega cure now?

But I didn't say that out loud. Instead I said, "That sounds great, Dr. Karl. Um, where is it?"

"There's only one pair," he warned me as he took them out. "They may need some tweaking if they work. This is just the prototype."

I had no idea what he was talking about, but it suddenly made sense when he showed me two dark contacts.

I stared at them. All that trouble, just to get two little contacts. And they were just the prototype. What was the real thing?

Dr. Karl made me wash my hands before holding them. I held one to the light. Rainbow colors shined down on me, and I was forced to squint. All colors of the rainbow were inside, including black, brown, and white. But what about the minor colors, like tan or copper? Wouldn't they be important, too?

This is just the prototype, I reminded myself.

My heart pounded in my chest as I glanced at Dr. Karl. "Am I allowed to put them in?" I asked in a quavering voice.

He laughed. "Of course, Ms. Wilson," he said. "Why else would you be here?"

"Fair point," Louis and I said at the same time. I rolled my eyes, but didn't look at him. This was almost more important.

As I carefully positioned one on my finger, I felt my heart soar with hope. Stop it, I scolded myself. This could fail.

But I couldn't help but plead to whoever was looking down on me that this would work. It's all I ask, I thought. Please, please, please.

I put them both in.

I blinked a couple times. My vision was watery. I had to finger them a bit, moving them around. I finally managed to remove the antibacterial liquid behind the contacts and see clearly.

I gasped. I stared around. I looked at the doctor. I looked around the room. I looked at the window. I raced over to it and stuck my head outside.

I felt like I was seeing everything in a new color. Literally. Everything was bright and colorful, even more beautiful from what I remembered.

I forced myself not to cry. I didn't want the colors to leak out. They all blended perfectly. I could see the blues and the greens and the reds and the yellows. I could see everything.

I turned around slowly, to see Louis and the doctor staring at me.

"Well?" the doctor urged.

"It's... perfect," I breathed.

He grinned and nodded, quickly jotting down notes on his clipboard. "I'll make sure that a whole shipment arrives to your place," he told me as he wrote. "You can keep the pair that you have now, just don't sleep with them in."

I nodded absently, not really paying attention. Louis was still staring at me like I was alien. "What?" I asked nervously.

He shook his head. "N-nothing," he stammered, and I cocked an eyebrow, unconvinced. He sighed. "Show her, doctor," he said.

Dr. Karl pulled out a tiny compact mirror (though I wasn't sure why he had one of those) and gave it to me. I opened it and looked at my reflection.

My eyes widened, which only made the colors stand out more. My eyes were rainbow. No joke. My irises were all the colors that I saw in the contact. It was quite scary, to tell you the truth.

"Er, I'm not sure what to do about that...." Dr. Karl said slowly, but I grinned. "No, that's okay," I said. "I like it." People will definitely think twice before messing with me and my patronizing rainbow stare. Just ask Louis. Hey, speaking of him....

I turned towards him with a sheepish smile on my face. "So, what do you think?" I asked nervously.

I think he found my rainbow eyes kind of unsettling. Who could blame him? I would too if they weren't my eyes.

Louis suddenly smiled and swept me up in a hug. "I love them," he said. "They look beautiful on you."

I smiled and kissed him passionately, but still a part of me hesitated. He loved the contacts, but not me? Maybe it was about time we had a conversation about that....

"You're free to go," Dr. Karl told us. "Remember my warnings, Ms. Wilson."

I nodded readily and grabbed Louis' hand. "Come on, Tomlinson!" I yelled. "Let's go scare some old people!" I dragged him out of there, which was quite a lot of work.

Outside the office, I stopped. Louis chuckled. "Scare some old people, really, Renee?" he asked. "I think the doctor guy is kind of scared of you now."

I didn't really care. It was time to get serious. "Louis, I have to ask you a very serious question," I said solemnly.

He put on his best poker face. "Okay, shoot," he told me.

"Don't you love me?" I blurted out. "We never say it. I want to hear you say it. I love you with all my heart, but do you? I--"

He broke me off by pressing his lips to mine. I mumbled in surprise, but then relaxed. A second later I felt a surge of frustration. Was he avoiding the topic again?!

But when Louis stopped, he held my face to his. Our foreheads touched. Our breath was heavy.

I stared into Louis' eyes. Holy crap, were they blue! I loved the color, especially with the tiny flecks of gray surrounding them. They were beautiful, just like him.

"I do love you," he told me. "I just thought it was so obvious I didn't need to say it."

I smiled widely and jumped up to kiss him again. "You idiot," I whispered. "I needed to know."

Louis swept me up bridal style and carried me down the hall. "Where to now, princess?" he asked me.

I struggled to hold back a giggle. Princess. I liked that. I could get used to that. I came up with the perfect place.

"McDonald's!" I yelled. "Onward, my trusty steed!"

Louis rushed forward, and I threw my arms around his neck to keep from falling. But I wouldn't fall. Louis would catch me. There's just one thing he couldn't stop me from falling from. Falling in love.

Like I said in the beginning, my life was perfect. My life was perfect even before that. My life was going to be perfect when I met Louis, even if the circumstances were tough. I thought my life was ending when I became color-blind, but really it was just the beginning.

Life is one snapshot after the other. It may be tough, but it'll turn out beautiful in the end. You just have to be ready for it.