Aurélien Cullen thrived on chaos. Maybe that's why fate presented him with a werewolf for a soul mate. After all, what's more chaotic than a love that goes against your very Biology?
"You have such a beautiful soul, Seth Clearwater."
Seth Clearwater...
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There's a certain type of numbness that always happens in grief. First, you feel so sad that you forget what happiness even feels like. Then you're angry. Angry at the world around for continuing to turn on its axis when you are falling into pieces, angry that someone you love has been taken from you. Then you're numb. Your body had used up all its energy cycling through the negative emotions but you're still not ready to be happy again, so you're stuck in the in between, not really feeling anything at all expect emptiness. Like a used up shell, a husk.
Aurélien had reached the numb stage pretty quickly. So much so that the threat of the wolves prowling closer to the house barely registered, neither did the appearance of Edward, Bella's blood staining his shirt and hands and mouth. Jacob telling his pack that the baby was his imprint, that by law it must remain unharmed, seemed so far off, as if he was only an astral projection viewing the moment rather than physically there.
Aurélien!
Aurélien!
It took a while for him to realise that his precious mate had called his name and tugged at his arm in desperation. Seth's words seemed to echo round his scull for far too long before they really clicked.
When Aurélien looked up, he noticed that the wolves had long left and his family had gone inside, so only him and Seth remained. The aforementioned boy was looking up at the vampire with big, brown eyes filled with concern and a frown resting on his pretty lips.
"Bella's gone," is all he can say, his voice hoarse and thick with grief. "She's dead." Not even realising it, Aurélien slumped to the ground, his knees colliding with the earth in a way that would've hurt if he were a human. Even if he could feel it, Aurélien doubted it would register — the pain would be only a flicker compared the blazing pain inside his chest.
Seth cupped his face with his hands, tilting it up so they were looking into each other's eyes. His mate cannot translate how much his heart is breaking for his loss and how desperately he wished he could comfort him into words, so Aurélien read it in his eyes instead. It's a silent communication between to people whose souls are connected and hearts have been exchanged, and no dialect in the world could facilitate the exchange that passed between them. The promises of comfort and support, the promise that things would get better, the promise that Seth would fill him with love until his wounds faded to scars.
"Aurélien."
This time it's Carlisle who called out to him, not Seth. The blond man was striding toward the duo, a smile on his face that seemed so foreign to Aurélien, who was drowning in grief. "It's okay."
"How is it okay?"
"Bella isn't dead."
Aurélien took a very long time absorbing those words, struggling to pull himself free from the quicksand that's was his grief long enough to hope, to believe.
