One Drop

Chapter Twelve: Will

"What happened?" Jilly asks suspiciously as we carry in the shopping from Emily's light blue VW Bug. "Nothing Jilly. Everything's fine, don't be such a mother hen!" laughs Emily, giving Jilly's shoulder a squeeze as she dumps three paper bags onto  the marble counter. Jilly relaxes when she hears this, and I smile at this. "Are you gonna help us with these, or are you just gonna stand there interrogating us?" I ask in mock seriousness, and Jilly immediately jumps up and grabs the four bags I'm juggling in my arms. I roll my eyes and go outside to get some more, meeting Emily halfway and smiling flirtatiously at her. She grabs my hand, squeezes it and then leans in to kiss me, a kiss which is soft and sweet, and so full of love. We jump apart guiltily when Jilly marches into the corridor, harrumphing at our antics. "Can you two keep your hands off each other for at least five minutes? God, it's like PDA central in this house sometimes!" Jilly chastises, and I stare in mock guilt at me feet, pretending to be reprimanded. "Now Jilly, wouldn't you think there was something seriously wrong with us if we didn't hug and kiss?" Emily argues, and Jilly pretends to consider this. "Well, maybe a little. But keep it on the down low, alright?" she glares, and we both nod and quickly walk out to the car. "Koi pond, five minutes?" I whisper, and Emily looks over her shoulder and then nods. We giggle conspiratorially as we grab more shopping bags,  and split up to take them to the kitchen. Emily heads off to give the others some food, while I go to the library to offer Mona something to eat. When I'm finished I dump the remnants of Mona's lunch in the sink and half run, half walk to the maze entrance, off to find my love, my life.

When I reach the middle of the maze Emily is waiting for me, just like she promised. She's sitting on a cracked stone bench, and she smiles when she sees me. I saunter over, her watching me the whole time with a look of amusement on her face. "So, you managed to get away from the guard dog," says Emily as I sit down next to her on the bench. I shrug, and she leans against my shoulder. "Are you really going to do this for me Emily? Because, it kills me to think of the after, it kills me to think of the crying, the mourning, and it kills me to think of waking up every morning and realising all over again you'll never walk in with a cup of coffee and that, that smile that takes my breath away," I stumble over the words that I'm hoping will change her mind. "Emotional blackmail isn't going to work William Marksbury. I've made my decision so move on. When I'm gone, you're not allowed to mope in bed. There are things to do, and say, and take care of. You can't just collapse, because there are eight people in there that need you, more then you need me. I'm willing to take that sacrifice because I can't go another day seeing you suffer with this,"   Emily whispers into my ear, and she kisses me, strongly and passionately. This is when the understanding finally hits me. She isn't going to back down now, and the truth is I do want to be whole again, not some crazy monster that I can't control. I want to be human, and she can see that, and there's nothing I can do. "I have to go!" I say suddenly, jumping up from her embrace and pacing my way out of the maze, leaving Emily sitting dumbfounded.

"Mona, are you in there?" I shout, my voice echoing around the library and shaking some dust from the rafters. I hear her faint call from somewhere in front of me, so I walk into the swirling dusty abyss to try and find her. Five minutes later Mona comes into view, hunched over a mahogany desk with papers and books piled around her small frame. "What is it Will? As you can see I'm quite busy, so make it quick," Mona says, eyeing me over the top of her spectacles, eyebrows raised. "Well, I wanted to talk to you about Emily. You see, she has this idea that she's going to use the cure we found to save me, but in order to save me she has to sacrifice herself in the process, and I can't discourage her, so I really need your help to stop her before she ruins her life," I gabble, stopping short when Mona raises a hand. "William, surely you know that there is no way you're going to dissuade Emily from doing exactly what she wants? She's a stubborn little madam when she wants to be, and there's nothing you or I can do to change that. So, if she wants to do this, I think you should be honoured that you mean so much to her," Mona says fondly, and this is when I accept it. There's no way that Emily is going to take no for an answer. There is nothing I can do. I'm going to lose her again, and it's all my fault.

Hey guys!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry that this chapter's soooooo short, but that's the way it came out, and I said everything I wanted to say, so like it or lump it. Love you all, please keep reading, I promise it will get better from here. P.S, be prepared for firecrackers in the next chapter, it's the chapter I've been waiting to write since this story happened. So, sit tight and stay tuned!!

Bobes