The Boy Who Danced on Water

Bell

       (Cyrus' POV) 

The sun was still down. Outside I could see the stars, but my night was too restless to sleep. It had been almost a month since I kicked out Bell and she hasn't left my mind. 

I missed her. 

Here I was laying in my bed, at 4:00 in the morning, thinking about a person that I demanded leave. She has always been just a room away, but now I don't even know where she is. 

My heart ached when I thought about all the early mornings we had. I didn't realize that I was crying until my own tears fell into my hands. I missed waking up to her mixing pancakes in the morning. 

I missed her crooked smile, and her shy giggle. I missed my love. She had changed when Coda came, and it was for the worse. She grew violent and isolated. I should have helped her, but my Bell slipped too far. She hurt a child. 

Bell was not a good person anymore. She hurt a child, and Bell tossed out our relationship. Even as children Bell and I were always together. We would play in the streets of our town, and terrorize the schoolyard. Bell was the love of my life. 

Coda was one of the last things in my life that made me forget Bell. He was like my little brother, and I would never let anyone hurt him. Coda's glasses always slipped down his nose, making him look adorable in the mornings. My heart always melted. I loved him too. But Bell almost took him away from me. 

At this point the sun started peeking over the mountain and it was time to wake up. I pushed myself out of bed and into the kitchen. I began mixing batter for waffles when I remembered that we had to get more eggs from the chicken coop. 

I swung open the tree door to find a girl, beaten, blooded and bruised crumbled at the stoop. She had a square face and a dark bruise formed on her chin. My eyes fell to her waist. On her ribs the shirt she was wearing clung to her body, being dampened and stained by a steady flow of blood. 

The girl's hair was done up in a complex braid. I gasped and lifted her into my arms, she groaned in her sleeping state. Bell was home now. I cradled her close to my chest and refused to let go this time. Her button nose was red from the chilly morning air. 

Just as I was laying Bell down Coda came simpering out of his room. I heard him gasp and could feel his arms wrap around my waist. I bent down to his height and tussled his hair. 

"Good morning poppet!" I grinned. Coda threw himself into my chest and clung to me for dear life. I could feel his heartbeat pounding. 

"Is she gonna hurt me?" He sobbed out still half-asleep. 

I calmed him by hugging him close and distracting him from the idea of Bell, my Bell, being home. When he soothed I made my way into the kitchen, to finish breakfast. 

"Hello.." I heard a soft voice call. It was smooth like honey, and fragile. Coda whimpered and ran into the kitchen. Grabbing a handful of my shirt, he dragged me into the living room. 

On the couch sat a fully awake girl. She had the same features of Bell, the same build. But her eyes were different. They were a deep pool of chocolate, one that had a drive behind them. Bell's eyes did not look like this. My heart sank, this was not my love. This was an imposer.  

The girl groaned and sat up. I strode over to the couch and sat by her feet. "Are you ok?" 

She nodded quickly and stood up. Her ribs started to bleed again, but she kept wobbling in the direction of Coda. He tried to hide behind the stuffed animal he was grasping and whimpered when she lifted his head up. 

"You dropped these," she pushed back Coda's thick curls and slid his glasses onto his face. He smiled softly. My heart melted at the sight before me. A stranger that looks so much like Coda's biggest fear was kneeling before him-helping him-and my little buddy was happy. 

When the girl stumbled trying to get up I rushed over to her side. Tossing her arm over my shoulder I helped carry her to the kitchen. Coda stumbled after us still clinging to his toy. 

He climbed up onto the chair and sat carefully across from this new girl. I retrieved a cold washrag from the freezer for her bruise. She pressed it to her jaw as I got back to work making food. 

I heard Coda shift in his seat, and the girl's laugh fill the room. My heart twinged, it sounded like Bell's perfect echo. I buried my feelings and kept cooking. 

"Do you have a name?" I asked the girl, not turning around. My voice was softer and more shaken then usual. She didn't answer but Coda was laughing too loud. 

I snapped at him, "Coda! Keep your laughter quiet, I didn't ask to hear you!" I  regretted what I said when Coda started to sniffle. My eyes went wide and I scooped him into my arms. 

"I am so sorry little guy! You're voice is the most amazing sound in the world." I meant every word, his laugh was my sanity. He was calm, and the girl was cooing over him. 

I decided to ask again, "Do you have a name?" I went back to mixing the batter, and started to pour it, 

This time the girl laughed calmly, "It's Emily. Emily McNabb." 

I dropped the bowl causing it to shatter. Coda jumped at the sudden noise. 

My voice was hardly above a whisper, "Do you know a Bell McNabb?" 

The girl's-Emily's- face grew shy and dark. 

She nodded, "She's my sister."