ADOPTED BY PHAN

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

When the nurse came out to give them the news, Skye was forced to leave, getting dragged back to her mental hospital by Eleanor. Phil fell into a fit of tears, wondering how he would break it to Dan. Small families sit around in the room helplessly, wondering how to calm him down. The nurse approaches Phil, speaking to him softly.

"She's okay, Mr. Lester. She's breathing. Your daughter is alive. You can visit her if you'd like."

Phil wipes away a few tears, "I'm sorry for this outburst, I'm just so relieved." He pauses, taking some time to calm down. He then clears his throat and asks, "Could you take me to her room please?"

"Of course," She nods, then begins walking. "Right this way."

After following the nurse down a few long corridors, Phil finds himself anxiously turning in through the door to the small hospital room. His daughter looks up immediately when he arrives, her green eyes burning a hole straight through his heart.

This is all my fault He thinks to himself. If I had've been there for her, this never would've happened. This is playing out the same way it did with Dan. I can't make those same mistakes I did with him. I need to save her.

"Daddy?" Iris speaks up, snapping Phil back into the present moment. His tear-filled blue orbs connect with hers, and a guilty look overtakes Iris' facial expression.

His voice comes out raspy and broken, "Yeah?"

Iris stares at him for a moment, her mind rambling with everything she wants to say. I am sorry. I missed you. I love you. "I want to be normal."

Phil walks forward, voicing towards her, "Normalness leads to sadness."

"Then why am I sad?"

"Because you're wishing to be someone that isn't you." Phil replies, grabbing her hand and lacing her fingers with his. "You're perfectly You, Iris. Please don't try to change that. Embrace who you are and love yourself for it, just like everyone else loves you."

"Not everyone loves me." Iris whispers.

Phil lowers his tone to match hers. "Those who don't love you, don't matter."

A comfortable silence fills the air. Both minds are racing with thoughts, dying to escape through their lips. But no one speaks.

Phil begins to pull his hand away, but Iris's grip tightens. "Don't go."

Phil looks down at their intertwined fingers, then back up at Iris. Their eyes meet, and he can see everything. All of that self-hatred and misery. Everything. He looks back down at their hands, before carefully pulling his away, exchanging it for a hug.

It's one of those hugs that substitute the pain. Obviously a simple embrace can't make it go away, although it becomes more bearable. Feeling the warmth from Phil's body pressed up against her's, it just proves to Iris that she is loved. She slowly moves over, pulling away from their hug and making more room on the hospital bed.

Phil agrees to her unsaid offer, carefully laying down beside her. He wraps one arm around her, leaving his other to awkwardly stay by his side. Iris turns her body towards his, laying her head on his chest. His heartbeat is quiet and calming in her ear, and she closes her eyes in peace.

"Did you tell dad?" Iris quietly asks.

"No." Phil replies.

"Are you going to?"

"I don't know."

* * *

"Hello love," Iris hears Skye's broken voice fill her headphones.

It's been two days since Iris landed herself in a hospital bed. Phil still hasn't told Dan, and they don't know how long they're going to keep it that way. However, he did bring her in her laptop from home.

She's now currently watching a video Skye sent her privately through YouTube. A video of Skye, herself. Iris' heart drops at the state she's in - white-blonde hair greasy and tasseled, her usual happy eyes blood-shot and makeup-less, stuffy nose and fighting against frowning her lips - overall appearing very fatigued and miserable.

Skye continues to speak in the video, and you can see her blue eyes begin to water. "I just wanted to say that I miss you. A lot." She sniffles, wiping away a tear that managed to escape. "A day doesn't pass that I don't think about you, and- and I just really hope you're okay. Because- I- I miss you so much and I just want you to be okay. And- oh gosh- and I- I think-" Skye cuts herself off, taking a deep breath and wiping away her tears, before admitting; "I'm in love with you, Iris Howell-Lester."