Faithless

Chapter Sixteen

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"Life always offers you a second chance. It's called tomorrow." - Anonymous.

Dedication: TheGreatDance for the awesome cover!

Recap:

"Hi, Gran," he choked out, his voice sounding hoarse.

I whipped my head towards him, surprised at the vulnerability in his tone.  His eyes were watery and his cheeks tinged pink. Swallowing uneasily, I followed his gaze, forcing a polite smile on my face.

Slowly, she turned her head to us. Her gaze was soft, but something in her eyes weren't right. She looked... distant. Sudden realisation dawned on me and I felt this morning's unpleasant sickness hit me in full force.

"Sorry, who are you?"

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The last hour had been intense.

We'd only stayed with Ivy for about twenty minutes, as she didn't know who we were and it was making her very agitated. We decided to just leave.

Xavier rushed outside, taking in a huge gulp of air. Slowly wandering out the doors behind him, I peered up at him uneasily, unsure of what to do.

"She's getting worse," he said breathlessly, tugging at his shirt as though the collar was the reason he couldn't get air flow to his lungs.

"Alzheimer's is a bitch." my voice was bland and I winced at my emotionless tone.

He didn't respond. He turned his back to me, pressing his hand to his lips. My stomach clenched uncomfortably. I was not the right person for this. I was far too inconsiderate to be compassionate. Feeling awkward, I placed a light hand on his shoulder.

Without any warning, he spun around and engulfed my body into a rib-breaking hug. I gasped in surprise. He clutched me tightly and I couldn't breathe. His touch melted my cold exterior almost immediately. The feeling of his skin, pressed against mine, had me softening. With a moment of hesitation, I gripped him back. I wormed my face into the crook of his neck. My hot breath rebounded off his skin, fanning my face.

"How am I supposed to help her?" he mumbled into me, sounding hopeless. "She did so much for me and now I have to watch her forget everything. And I can't do anything about it."

"Shh," I said soothingly, having no words of comfort.

He made a funny sound in the back of his throat and somehow gripped me tighter. I really was finding it hard to breathe, but I didn't want to move. I felt like he was close to crumbling to a million pieces and I was the only thing holding him up.

Silence fell between us. I'm not sure how long we stayed like that, but it must have been a while. My muscles began cramping and my feet ached. I just wanted to go home. I'd signed up for a lot today without realising. But I'm glad I was here for him. It sounds like he hasn't had anyone there for him for a long time.

"Let's go," he murmured finally.

Reluctantly pulling out of his arms, I stepped back, my cheeks feeling hot. I'm not used to comforting people. He reached for my hand and my eyes almost popped out of their sockets. We walked slowly back to my car, hand in hand. I kept staring down at our fingers intertwined, still confused.

What did this all mean?

As I slid into the car, my stomach growled with hunger. Slapping my head to my stomach sheepishly, Xavier gave me a small smile. It didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Hungry?"

I nodded, slipping the seat belt over my chest. "Want to get some lunch on the way home?"