Saving Haley Grace | Book 2

•sixteen•

Inheritance

Haley's hands shook as she stared vacantly at the doorway. She could feel each finger tremble as they clattered against the wood, and sense the fear rising in her stomach.

A lamp warmed the outside air and illuminated the porch softly. It even made the flies lingering beside it call out for acknowledgement, the buzzing the only other sound in the air besides Haley's soft murmurs.

The door finally creaked ajar to reveal a disheveled Mellisa McCall. Instantly, Haley was pulled into the warmth- a blanket wrapped around her chattering frame.

"Haley honey, why are you outside so late? Have you been sleeping?" Mellissa questioned the girl softly. Fear was the most prominent in the mothers reaction.

She could see the dark circles curling around Haley's eyes, see the exhaustion strangling each of her breaths.

"You need to help me mel. I think something's wrong with me." Haley whispered through her gentle tears, each marking another trail down her cheek.

Mellissa nodded, cupping the teenagers face in her hands and shushing the girl like a mother would.

"Tell me what's wrong, I promise you I will fix it." She sang a maternal hum, her brown doe eyes wide with worry.
Haley shook her head- her breath shallow and pained.

As she thought of what could be wrong with her- memories came flooding back.

The pain resurrected in seconds.

.•.•.•.

Haley and stiles Stilinski were thrusted into pain early on with their lives. It wasn't supernatural or unexplainable. It was just an illness.

A terminal illness.

Everyday the twins travelled to the hospital in the rusted blue jeep with their father. Young faced and doe eyed, that had quickly vanished over the course of several hospital visits.

It was a flip of a coin, head or tails, if their mother was really there that day. Or if another day was stripped from them as she screamed for seclusion.

Haley was always the first to saunter into the room, the boys too hesitant to see the diseases destruction.

"Oh baby, you came." Claudia sang from her bed, a tired smile plastered on her lips. Haley nodded and smiled, her excitement subtle as she headed to her mother.

Claudia's expression fell flat as she noticed the girl in front of her husband. The way the child smiled at her like she should be happy to see a stranger.
Her back tensed as she pushed her back against bed frame, eyes slitted as the girl reached for her arm.

"Get away from me!" She screamed, hands clutching the thin sheets draped over her.

"Noah, get the nurse away from me- tell her to leave me alone!" She continued to shriek, fear struck into her face as Haley began to step back.

"Mum..." she whispered, her expression nothing but hurt.

"Mum it's me. It's your daughter." Haley attempted to reason, her hand still outstretched in a plea for recognition.

"Noah tell them! Tell them we never had kids!" Claudia begged, her figure cowering in the corner of her bed.

Within moments the twins were being pushed toward the door, both with the same expression. Their dad directed them in the direction of Mellisa McCall, the brunette silently transferring files to not raise suspicion as she eavesdropped on the conversation.

"I'm sorry kids, I'm sure she'll be better tomorrow. If she remembers anything I'll call Melissa okay, you'll just have to wait with her until then. This is just how things are now." Noah hummed as he kissed both of their foreheads, trying to ignore their big round eyes.

That was the first day Mellissa McCall seemed more like their mother than Claudia Stilinski did.

.•.•.•.

A warm cup of tea was pushed into Haley's hands as she blinked back to reality. Her gaze was fixated on the soft surrender trailing in the mug from the teaspoon.

"Sweetheart, you need to warm up okay? Just calm down and tell me what's wrong." Melissa soothed as she smoothed down the tangled hair knotting from the damp. Haley finally looked back up at her 'surrogate mother', trying to find the right words to say.

"Is frontotemporal dementia hereditary" Haley whispered, watching the fear rush through the mccalls face.

"Why would you ask that, Haley?" She asked, her hands dropping to her sides as she anxiously awaited the answer.

Haley gulped down any trace of fear residing in her stomach, wiping the dry stained tears from her cheek and blinking away the haze. She needed to tell someone, someone who could help her. Even though she knew, there was no cure.

"Because I think I may have it, and it's getting worse."

•••

4.83k!

I know I have not updated in a while. And I know that is rude of me because, you guys wish to read the story line that I had so gingerly taken away for a couple weeks from progressing.

All I will say without speaking too much, is I had reason to.
Something happened in my life, which I had explained in the notes within "the O'Connell" that made me stay away from my work for a while.

I apologise, but I am back.

This chapter is dedicated to everyone who commented on the last chapter, new readers as well as old. And to those who don't make themselves known, but read my stories.
So thank you.

Please vote, comment, and add to those reading lists.

Sorry for the wait and any mistakes,

Thank you for reading,

Goodbye X