Shackles on the heart (Book #1)

49. Tribulation

(Lincoln's POV)

William is finally gone for good, he can never hurt RaeAnna or her family ever again. He hurt his daughter way too much already, her spirit will be scarred for life. I can see it every time I look into her eyes, the pain, the suffering. Her smiles don't reach her eyes like they used to. The damage she has been through is evident.

I try my best to make her feel better, to make her laugh. It works sometimes, but other times I can tell her laugh is forced.

We are currently out of school for the summer. We take turns going back and forth to each other's houses. Today she is at mine, she turns to look at my father. "Oh my gosh I totally forgot to ask, but can we look at old pictures of Lincoln? I'm in the mood to see a baby link." He chuckles at her. "Ofcourse, I'll be right back." He goes upstairs to retrieve the large box of pictures in his closet. I turn to her. "You feeling okay?" She nods her head at me. "I'm fine." She lies, she doesn't meet my eyes when she lies I noticed, but I won't push her to talk.

She clears her throat, nervously. "Let's not talk about me, okay? Let's talk about you for a change." She tells me. "Um.. okay. What do you want to know?" I question. "Everything! What are your biggest fears in life? What are your dreams? What do you love the most?" She questions me, eyebrows slightly elevated. I smirk at her. "My biggest fear is losing you, my dream is to always be your friend and you. I love you the most." She rolls her eyes and slaps my arm playfully. "Besides all of that."

I think for a moment before answering her. "Well my biggest fear is to die before I accomplish anything meaningful in my life. My dream is to be in a band, playing guitar, I've always wanted that for as long as I can remember. I've always thought the guitar was an amazing instrument. What do I love?" I dig in my thoughts for another moment. "I love the little things in life, not the materialistic crap, but the things that have actual meaning. I love creating happy memories with the ones that I love." She laces her fingers through mine. "Those were amazing answers. That was beautiful Link." I give her hand a little squeeze. "You're beautiful Ann. Inside and out." She blushes, adorably. "Thank you my handsome bestfriend." She sends me a dramatic wink that I cant help but smile at.

Just then my dad walks in carrying the box full of pictures. RaeAnna bolts up off of the couch, making me giggle like a small child.

She digs straight into the box, not wasting any time. I go to stand beside her, figuring I might as well look through them with her. She finds one of my favorite pictures of me and my older brother, Landon. We were outside in a mini pool. It was scorching hot that day, I kept begging my dad for popsicles and my mouth was bright blue. I remember that day like it was yesterday. "You and your brother look a lot alike." She states. "Nah I'm definitely the cuter one." I say, making my dad and her laugh.

I come across a picture of me and my mom that was taken only a few years back. I get stuck in the photo for a moment. She looks so happy, so kind. When actually we had no idea who she was at the time. Looking at the picture in my hands, you wouldn't be able to tell what kind of person she was. I feel my eyes start to water slightly, I sniffle causing RaeAnna to look over at me. She takes a gander at the photo in my hands, her eyes shooting up to mine with sympathy and pure understanding. My father seems to be oblivious to the conversation we are having with our eyes.

We look through the photos a little longer, when I notice that RaeAnna is starting to act a little funny. I go straight into her bag, pulling out the glucose monitor to check her blood sugar. I clean her finger with an alcohol swab, letting it dry for a few seconds. I poke her finger, getting enough blood for the test strip. It reads 43, I run straight to the kitchen, pouring a glass of orange juice. I hand it to her, her hands are shaking so badly she can't hold still, I help her steady it and bring the glass to her lips so she can drink it.

This disease scares the crap out of me, I have learned a lot about it over the last several months, reading all that I can about it so I can know what to do when she starts to feel sick. I hate this for her, but I'm always happy to help her in any way that I can. 20 minutes later I check her blood sugar again, it now reads 89. "You feeling better now?" She smiles weakly at me and nods her head. "Yes thank you." She tells me.

She looks exhausted now, I can see it in her face. "You want to go and lay down for a little while gorgeous?" I ask her. "Yes if you don't mind." She responds. I help her up off of the couch, leading her upstairs to my room so she can lay down on my bed.

I make sure she is comfortable before laying down right beside her. I wrap my arm around her gently, while stroking her hair lightly with my free hand. Not long after her cute little snores fill the quietness. I grin down at her. My arm has fallen asleep, but I don't dare move it in fear of waking her up. She looks so peaceful laying in my arms, I don't have the heart to disturb the calmness that washes over her when she falls asleep with me.

I can't make myself fall asleep, my thoughts consumed with my beautiful best friend. She is so strong-willed, so resilient. No matter what she has gone through, she still make sure that everyone else around her is happy. She has an amazing soul, maybe a bit shattered, but amazing nonetheless. I lean down to kiss her forehead softly so I don't wake her. "I love you Ann. My love for you grows stronger every day. Thank you for being here with me, I wouldn't know what to do without you. I love you so much." I whisper into her hair quietly.

She is dead asleep, but I swear I can see the faintest smile tug at her lips. This girl is my everything, she always will be.