ALANA'S MISTAKE ✔

Chapter 22

Alana lay curled up next to Noah on the sofa, her Kindle in her hand. The fire was on full blast, heating up the whole room and providing somewhere for Cooper the cat to lounge in front of, on a fluffy sheepskin rug. He lay on his back, paws above his head, stretching his legs so you could see the beautiful cream fur on his belly. Alana wanted to go over and stroke him but she was too comfortable to move so she just watched him there, luxuriating.

A radio; small, green and leather-covered, retro looking with gold knobs, sat on the windowsill, sending out the low hum of their favourite radio station. They liked to do this sometimes in the evenings, once Snow was tucked up in bed asleep. They both snuggled, read and listened to music. Alana loved to read romances on her Kindle whilst Noah usually preferred a graphic novel or a comic. Tonight he was reading something obscure, sci fi, Alana thought but she couldn't be totally sure. There were lots of people with green hair on the front cover.

'So you want to go in the camper van this summer? For real?' he said, nudging her playfully with his foot.

'Yes. More than anything.'

Noah put a lock of his blonde hair behind his ear.

'What's changed?'

'Oh, I don't know. It would be good to get away, that's all.'

He threw his comic aside and slid off the sofa onto his knees and turned to her.

'I can't wait,' he said, pulling her towards him.

She didn't resist, she liked the feel of his sturdy hands on her back, then as he kissed her she let herself feel his soft lips, to enjoy them - like she had when they first met. They hadn't been close in a while. But now, she shook off the memory of what she had done and allowed herself to get lost in his embrace.

Even when Noah and Alana were first together it was never the frantic months of passion she heard so much about from her friends who had long term boyfriends. They were young, so young and just as stupid as they were passionate. It had only taken a matter of weeks for Alana to realise she was pregnant.

Noah never did anything but stand by her, loyal through it all. He could've walked away, most sixteen year old boys would have and her parents certainly expected him to do so at any minute. But once the morning sickness started, he was there, holding her hair back as she was sick, rubbing her back as she lay flat on the sofa, unable to move. And when the back ache began he learned how to do massage just to make her feel a bit better every night.

He seemed to enjoy it even, like he was born for this kind of thing and he often said he never  really wanted anything else, only a family that he could care for. Alana was always grateful for his steadfastness. But she knew now that she had never really, truly appreciated him.

She spent the last six years taking him for granted, often wondering if there was something more exciting out there for her. Maybe someone who wanted more, an artist, like her... I found that, didn't I?

He kept on kissing her and they rolled onto the floor, knocking Cooper off the rug so that he fled onto the sofa and curled up there instead. Noah was over her, still kissing, when the sound from the radio reached her ears and caught her attention.

She kept kissing back, running her hands through his hair and wrapping her legs around his waist but the song playing... It just sounded so familiar. The voice. She pulled back from Noah and froze still, listening.

'What is it?' he said, holding her thighs tightly.

It was Elias' voice. Unmistakable. She put her hands flat to the ground. He was singing something about an 'angel' 'from heaven she came.' The blood drained from Alana's face.

'Hey, that's the band we saw, right?' said Noah, sitting back on his feet.

She nodded silently. All she could do was keep listening.

'What's wrong?' said Noah, a slight note of worry in his voice.

The song came to an end and the radio DJ's voice came on.

'That was the debut single by Silence, a new band who are, we believe, very much ones to watch. The song, for all you new music lovers out there, is: "Guardian Angel."'