It was close to midnight when the Saltzman hunter's black SUV slowly pulled behind Damon's blue Mustang in the driveway of the Gilbert house. The group of the witch, the vampire, the hunter, and the human were so exhausted after the day they had. They were all just ready to sleep for a couple of days.
However, when Emily had opened her green eyes once the SUV was parked and jumped out of the vehicle, the Radkova witch was surprised when she found three people sitting on the porch.
The Lockwood werewolf, of course, wasn't a surprise since Damon had told her that Tyler would meet them back in Mystic Falls after his transformation. The two other people were who surprised the Gilbert girl. It was none other than Scott McCall and Stiles Stilinski.
Tyler was not happy at all when he had arrived at the Gilbert house an hour ago and found the true alpha. The Lockwood werewolf wasn't exactly a fan of Scott, especially when he knew the alpha would have all of Emily's attention.
Tyler had traveled all the way from Tennessee and back to Mystic Falls on a stinky and crowded bus after dealing with the full moon. The Lockwood werewolf wanted nothing more than to just relax with Emily but he knew that wasn't possible with the true alpha being here now.
"Scott? Stiles?" The Radkova witch called out with in confusion all throughout her voice as she took slow steps towards her childhood porch. "What are you guys doing here?" Emily inquired.
The McCall werewolf swiftly turned his head around and ignored his previous conversation that he was having with Stiles when he heard the familiar voice. Scott didn't even think twice before he was rushing off the porch to the reach the Radkova witch.
"Thank God you're okay," the true alpha whispered as he tightly brought Emily into his arms.
The Radkova witch softly chuckled as she wrapped her arms around Scott's waist. "I told you I was fine," Emily reminded the true alpha.
"I know but I just needed to check," Scott mumbled with a small frown as he released the young witch from his tight embrace. "I had to see you in person," the McCall werewolf stated as he gently grasped Emily's right hand in his own.
Emily gave the true alpha's hand a comforting squeeze to remind Scott that she was here and safe. "I understand," the Radkova witch murmured before she used her free hand to place her fingertips onto the mark that she knew was on Scott's shoulder. It was Emily's way of silently telling the true alpha that she knew he was feeling this way because of their strong connection they shared.
Scott's brown eyes immediately fluttered at the soft touch before he unconsciously released a sigh of relief.
Emily giggled at the sight. It looked like the true alpha just got the best massage in his life. "Does that feel good or something?" The Radkova witch teased.
The McCall werewolf playfully rolled his brown eyes. "It just feels different since we're, you know, connected," Scott explained before he whispered the last word as he knew none of Emily's family or friends knew of their shared marks and even stronger connection.
"Oh, I'm sure," Emily teased with a giggle.
"I'm serious!" The McCall werewolf exclaimed with a wide grin stretched across his lips. "I'll show you," Scott stated before he reached his hand over Emily's shoulder and placed two fingers on top of the claw mark that was covered by the Gilbert girl's t-shirt.
Emily's green eyes quickly widened in surprise at the feeling of the true alpha's touch. "Oh!" The Radkova witch gasped.
"See!" The McCall werewolf exclaimed, "I told you!"
"It feels like I can breathe better, like this heavy weight has been lifted from my chest," the Radkova witch described in amazement as she smiled across at the true alpha.
Emily was honestly shocked by how much of a difference she felt when Scott touched the mark that connected them together. Emily had never felt something so peaceful but so powerful before. The Radkova witch could feel the strength but between them but she could also feel the comfort she felt whenever she was speaking with Scott.
A few feet away, Tyler Lockwood stood and he was practically seething. While everyone else (Elena, Damon, Alaric, and Stiles) had moved on into the Gilbert house, Tyler was waiting. Tyler was waiting for his time, his moment with Emily but the other werewolf was hogging her!
Not to mention, the Lockwood teenager absolutely hated how touchy and clingy Scott was being with the Gilbert girl. Tyler didn't like it one bit and he wasn't going to stand it for another second more.
"Hey!" The Lockwood werewolf exclaimed with a fake smile shining across his face as he jogged up to Emily and Scott. "We should head inside," Tyler stated as he gently grasped the Gilbert girl's waist and pulled her away from the true alpha.
"You're probably so exhausted after today," the Lockwood werewolf cooed as he led Emily towards the Gilbert house with Scott following from behind them.
Emily let a light chuckle as they climbed up the steps to the porch. "Yeah," the Radkova witch sighed before she mumbled, "it's been quite the day."
Emily honestly like her twenty-four hours turned out to be forty-eight hours. It was a very stressful and frustrating day from traveling all the way to Tennessee and not getting all of the answers she wanted. Hell, Emily didn't even get the chance to talk to the wolf pack when that had been her original goal that she had sat out this morning.
"Did you run into anymore trouble after I left?" The Lockwood werewolf worriedly asked as he glanced over to Emily with his brows deeply furrowed. Tyler would hate himself forever if something happened to Emily when he had promised he would protect her.
Emily quickly shook her head before the werewolf could worry too much. "No," the Radkova witch stated. "We made it safely back to the car," Emily recalled, "and we left soon after Damon found us."
"Good," Tyler sighed in relief. "I'm glad you didn't get hurt," the Lockwood werewolf mumbled as they walked through the foyer.
However, before they could step foot into the living room, Tyler pulled the young witch to a stop. The Lockwood werewolf waited for Scott to walk pass them into the room with the rest of their friends before Tyler focused his attention solely onto the Gilbert girl.
"I'm so sorry I wasn't there the whole time to protect you like I promised I would," the Lockwood werewolf voiced his guilt as he apologized, "I'm so sorry I left you."
"Hey," the Gilbert girl cooed as she grabbed ahold of her best friend's hand and gave it a tight squeeze. "It's okay," Emily assured the Lockwood werewolf. "You had to take care of your wolf," Emily mentioned with a small shrug before she uttered, "I understand that."
Tyler shook his head as he mumbled, "I never wanted to leave you."
"Ty, it's okay," the Radkova witch murmured with a soft giggle. "We all made it back home, safe and sound," Emily reminded the Lockwood werewolf before she stated, "that's all that matters."
The Lockwood werewolf released a heavy sigh as he silently nodded his head. "You're right," Tyler mumbled before he swiftly pulled the Gilbert girl into his chest. "I'm glad you're okay," the Lockwood werewolf whispered as he repeatedly patted the crown of Emily's head.
Tyler felt so happy to have the Gilbert girl back in his arms after they were separated for the past couple of hours. Tyler felt better especially when he hadn't even known if Emily was okay or not since he lost his phone during the process of his wolf transformation.
Tyler also couldn't help but feel a little cocky at the moment after his conversation (or argument) with the younger Salvatore vampire. Tyler felt arrogant that he was the one holding Emily while Stefan couldn't even lay eyes on her.
The moment between the Lockwood werewolf and the Radkova witch soon came to an end when a pair of loud stomps headed their way. Emily curiously glanced over Tyler's shoulder before a grin quickly worked its way onto Emily face when she found a pouting Stiles Stilinski.
"When will it be my turn!?" The human boy whined.
The Radkova witch chuckled in amusement as she pulled herself out of Tyler's arms. Emily walked up to the Stilinski teenager before she greeted him with a grin, "hey, Stiles."
The Stilinski teenager crossed his arms over his chest as he gazed across the girl, who he hadn't seen in a couple of years. "Hmm," Stiles muttered, "you're shorter than I remembered."
The Radkova witch playfully rolled her green eyes at the human boy. "It's good to see you, too, Stilinski," Emily uttered with a chuckle as she patted Stiles' back before she turned him around to lead the Beacon Hills teenager back into the living room.
Stiles scrunched up his nose as he moved a few steps away from the Radkova witch. "You stink," the human boy cringed.
Emily gave the Stilinski teenager a deadpanned expression. "I just came back from the woods, where I fell into dirty water and ran away from a hybrid," the Radkova witch told Stiles before she sarcastically muttered, "excuse me if I don't smell like daises and rainbows."
Stiles shook his head before he seriously stated, "rainbows don't have a smell, though."
Emily released a loud groan. "You're worst than Damon!" The Radkova witch whined. Emily could deal with the vampire's annoying attitude and teasing but two of them? That was complete hell for the Gilbert girl.
"When do you go back to Beacon Hills again?" Emily mumbled as she gave the human boy a stink eye.
"Stop bothering her, Stiles," the McCall werewolf told his best friend with a chuckle as he gently grasped Emily's hand before he pulled her away from Stiles and over to the couch. "I promise he isn't always that bad," Scott promised as he sat down on the far left side of the couch.
"For my sake, I hope so," Emily joked with a light chuckle before she flopped down on the couch beside the true alpha.
The Radkova witch couldn't help but feel amused when Scott grabbed ahold of her hand once she was settled on the couch but she didn't comment on it. Emily figured it was because of their new connection. This was the first time they had seen each other in person since Emily brought Elena back to the land of the living along with the arrival of the marks on her and Scott's shoulders.
Emily figured it would take some time for both of them to get used to how strong their connection is between them as the true alpha and the Radkova witch.
The group of supernatural being (and humans) had been quietly conversing between each other before Jenna walked into the living room with a glass of red wine mixed with blood in her hand. "So, what happened out there?" The Sommers vampire asked as she settled beside Alaric on the loveseat.
"A lot of nothing," Damon muttered as he soon walked back into the living room with a bottle of whiskey in his hand that the vampire had snagged from the kitchen. Damon figured it belonged to the vampire hunter but Damon couldn't care less at the moment.
"I wouldn't exactly call that nothing," Tyler muttered as he took a seat on the couch beside the Radkova witch before he tossed his arm over Emily's shoulder. "We had to fight a hybrid," the Lockwood werewolf informed the members of the group who weren't in the Great Smoky Mountains.
"A hybrid?" The Sommers vampire inquired with her brows furrowed in confusion, "do you mean like Klaus?"
"Kind of," Alaric told his girlfriend as he tilted his hand up and down to show that Jenna was partly correct. "He wasn't as strong as Klaus but a hybrid nonetheless," the Saltzman hunter stated.
"We found out Klaus has been turning werewolves into hybrids," Emily told her aunt and the two Beacon Hills residents.
Scott furrowed his brows as he curiously asked, "why would he do that?"
Emily released a heavy sigh. "That's what we've been trying to figure out," the Radkova witch mumbled. That question was the main source of Emily's stress. It was the one question that they just couldn't get answered without putting them all in danger during the full moon.
"Did you guys talk to the hybrid to see what he knows?" The Stilinski teenager inquired before he clarified, "the one you fought."
"Kind of hard to do that when he was trying to kill me," Damon muttered as he rolled his blue eyes at the human boy. "Besides, my brother dearest killed him before anything else could happen," the Salvatore vampire recalled with a scowl displayed across his face.
The Sommers vampire couldn't help flinch at the mention of killing and Stefan in the same sentence. Jenna immediately thought about Andie and her death at the news studio. Jenna had to remind herself that it wasn't the younger Salvatore vampire's fault. but Klaus'. It wasn't Stefan's fault that the hybrid was controlling him.
"So, you guys finally saw Stefan, then?" The McCall werewolf asked before he turned his brown gaze onto the Radkova witch. The true alpha gave Emily's hand a comforting squeeze before Scott gently asked, "did he say anything?"
"Nothing good," the elder Salvatore vampire muttered. "The usual," Damon recalled, "give up, stop looking for me, I'm not coming back." The Salvatore vampire rolled his blue eyes before he childishly added, "blah, blah, blah."
Damon paused as he took a hefty gulp from the whiskey bottle before he stated, "it's just the basic self-hatred traits Stefan gets whenever he feeds off humans."
"Do you guys have a plan for what you're going to do next?" The Stilinski teenager curiously inquired as he glanced at each face of Mystic Falls group.
The Radkova witch released a heavy sigh. "I'm not sure," Emily mumbled as she slowly shook her head.
Emily honestly felt stuck at the moment. There wasn't exactly a direction they could move when they only knew Klaus was making hybrids out of werewolves. It would be nice if they knew where Klaus and Stefan were heading next but Emily was as clueless as everyone else.
"Hey, It's okay," Scott softly cooed to the Radkova witch as he gave Emily's hand another squeeze. "You should take a break and start fresh tomorrow," the McCall werewolf advised, "maybe a plan will come to you when you have a clear mind."
"He's right," Elena jumped in agreement as she shot her twin sister a small, assuring smile. "It's been a long day," the Gilbert girl reminded the group before she stated, "let's just relax for the night."
"I guess so," Emily mumbled with a deep frown settled across her face.
The Radkova witch knew Scott and Elena were right. They were never going to be able to come up with a plan after such a tough day in the Great Smoky Mountains. Emily just hated feeling stuck like this. Emily liked to take action and help but this was the complete opposite.
The Radkova witch reminded herself that she needed to relax like Scott had advised. Emily definitely wasn't going to be able to relax in these dirty clothes, so she decided to go clean up. That way, she would at least be comfortable in some fresh clothing.
Emily released the true alpha's hand before she slowly pushed herself up from the couch. "I'm going to go take a shower," the Radkova witch announced before she mumbled, "I stink."
"I told you!" Stiles loudly exclaimed as he pointed his finger towards the Radkova witch with his brown gaze crazily widened.
Emily playfully rolled her green eyes at the Stilinski teenager before she turned around to exit the living room. The Gilbert girl made a quick stop to lightly thump Stiles on the back of his head with a chuckle before she headed upstairs.
Emily walked down the hall before she pushed her bedroom door open. The Radkova witch walked over to her bed to plug her cell phone into the charger. Emily honestly was surprised that her device didn't die at all during their trip to Tennessee and back.
The Gilbert girl walked across the bedroom and over to the wooden dresser in the corner. Emily grabbed a pair of panties and black silk sleep shorts before she headed over to the closet. Emily grabbed the first shirt that she saw which ended up being a plain emerald green tank top.
The Radkova witch placed the shirt on top of the other clothing in her hand before Emily exited her bedroom and headed a few feet down the hallway to the bathroom.
Emily placed the clothes down onto the sink before the Radkova witch walked over to the shower. Emily messed with the hot and cold faucets until she found the perfect temperature.
After she was sure the water was hot enough but not too hot that it would burn her, Emily took a few steps back before she went to remove her dirty clothing. The Gilbert girl cringed as she had to practically peel Tyler's wet and ruined clothes from her body. It honestly felt like a second skin.
Emily tossed the dirty clothes into the laundry basket to wash later before the Radkova witch made her way into the warm shower.
The Radkova witch instantly sighed in relief when she felt the clean water fall down her body. It felt so good after being covered in dirt, leaves, and wolfsbane for most of the day.
It took Emily a good fifteen minutes of scrubbing every inch of her body with her favorite strawberry shower gel before Emily felt fresh and clean. It then took another ten minutes before the Radkova witch's hair was untangled and shiny.
Emily felt a sense of calmness settle over her as the Gilbert girl stepped out of the shower and wrapped a fluffy blue towel around her body. Emily almost felt like a normal teenager who's only stress was worrying about acing an exam.
The Radkova witch did her usual bed routine as she blow-dried her brunette hair before she brushed it out until it fell straight down her back. Emily then gave her teeth a good scrub before she finished it off with some minty fresh mouthwash.
The Gilbert girl dried any leftover water droplets from her body before she tossed the towel into the laundry basket. Emily took her time getting dressed in her sleeping outfit before she exited out of the bathroom.
However, before Emily could take more than a step out of the bathroom, the Radkova witch quickly gasped in surprise when she found Scott standing out in the hallway while he was doing something on his cell phone.
The McCall werewolf quickly looked up at the sound before he chuckled when he saw Emily's frightened expression. "Sorry," Scott apologized with a hint of amusement in his voice, "I didn't mean to scare you."
"Oh, you gave me a scare, alright," Emily muttered as she shot the true alpha a slight glare before she continued walking towards her bedroom. The Radkova witch led Scott into the room as she teasingly called over her shoulder, "why were you being such a creeper?"
"No! I wasn't!" The McCall werewolf promised as he quickly followed Emily into the bedroom as Scott felt his cheeks heat up. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Scott hurriedly tried to explain without sounding like a complete stalker.
Emily chuckled before she shot the true alpha a smirk. "I'm just messing with you," the Radkova witch stated before she told the McCall werewolf, "relax, Scotty."
"That's just rude, you know," the true alpha mumbled as he stared at Emily with a deep pout settled onto his lips and his arms across over his chest.
"But it's fun," Emily giggled.
"Alright, I see how it is," the McCall werewolf muttered as he flopped down onto Emily's queen sized bed. "The next times Stiles is bugging you, I'm not gonna save you," Scott warned the Radkova witch.
"Aww, now that's just rude!" Emily loudly whined as she fell down beside the McCall werewolf on top of her bed.
Scott chuckled in amusement before he held out his pinky to the Radkova witch. "Truce?" The true alpha offered.
The Radkova witch silently stared at Scott's finger for a few seconds before she mumbled, "fine." Emily brought her small finger up before she linked it with the McCall werewolf's larger one.
The true alpha and the protector of the innocence shared a series of chuckles together before Scott was the one to sober up first. "How have you been?" Scott gently asked, "you know, with the hallucinations and the nightmares?"
"It's not so bad anymore," Emily told Scott as she climbed further up her bed until her back was leaning against the headboard. "Your blood has helped me a lot," the Radkova witch informed the true alpha.
Scott followed the Gilbert girl's movement as he settled himself beside Emily with his back against the headboard. "That's good," the McCall werewolf murmured, "I'm glad I could help you."
"Yeah, it's been way better," Emily uttered with a chuckle. "I used to couldn't go a day without having hallucinations," the Radkova witch recalled.
"Thank God you and Deaton helped me out," Emily murmured as she released a sigh of relief to show her gratitude for their help. "I think Lena was seconds away from sticking me in a hospital from my constant nightmares," the Radkova witch half joked.
The McCall werewolf frowned as he turned sideways, so he was staring at Emily's face. "I'm sorry you had to go through that all alone," Scott mumbled as he could feel his wolf practically begging to crawl out of his chest.
Scott had never felt this way during the whole time he has been a werewolf. It was definitely a new and strange feeling. It was like his inner wolf wanted to coddle Emily and protect her from everything and everyone.
"Hey, it's alright," Emily assured the true alpha as she placed her palm on top of Scott's hand and gave it a short squeeze. "It's not the worst thing I've been through," the Radkova witch joked.
"That doesn't make me feel better!" The McCall werewolf whined as he leaned his head onto Emily's shoulder.
"Sorry. Sorry," the Radkova witch apologized in a fit of giggles.
Emily could practically feel the true alpha's pouting against her shoulder and the worries in his head, so the Gilbert girl crawled across the bed until she was sitting straight across from Scott instead of beside him. "Look, here," Emily murmured as she grabbed the true alpha's hand before she placed it on her shoulder and on top of the claw mark.
"I'm okay now," the Radkova witch softly assured the true alpha before she reached over and placed her point and middle fingers onto the pentagram marking on Scott's shoulder. "We're both here and safe," Emily murmured as she tried to console Scott's inner wolf.
Scott forced his body to take a deep breath before he slowly nodded his head. "Okay, yeah. You're right" the McCall werewolf mumbled. Scott took a couple more deep breaths to calm the wolf inside him.
The McCall werewolf released an embarrassed chuckle before he apologized to the Radkova witch, "I'm sorry about this. I'm not usually this clingy, I promise." Scott waved his hands around as he stated, "this is just a whole new experience for me."
Emily softly chuckled before she shook her head. "It's okay. I don't mind," the Radkova witch assured the true alpha. "Do whatever you need to do to make yourself feel better," Emily offered.
Emily wasn't feeling what the true alpha was going through since she had been the one in danger. However, the Radkova witch would gladly help Scott in any way she could as she hoped the true alpha would do the same for her when their positions were reversed.
"Are you sure?" Scott bashfully asked.
The Gilbert girl quickly nodded her head. "Yeah, go for it," Emily assured the McCall werewolf.
That was all Scott needed to hear before he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around the witch's shoulders to pull Emily into his chest. Scott released a heavy sigh from relief that came from his inner wolf once Emily was close enough for his liking. It was like their souls were finally connected -- at least that was what Scott's inner wolf felt.
"We're okay," Scott whispered as he tightened his arms around the Radkova witch's waist like he was afraid she would be taken away from him.
"We're okay," Emily repeated the true alpha's words as she gently rubbed Scott's back in a comforting motion with her head lying against Scott's chest.
The embrace between the true alpha and the Radkova witch was something they both really needed right now. It wasn't until they were wrapped in each other's arms that they realized that.
Scott because his inner wolf had panicked when he experienced the feeling of the Gilbert girl being in danger for the first time while for Emily, it was because of the long day she had and from not getting the answer she needed to bring Stefan back home to her.
The embrace lasted for a few minutes before Emily slowly pulled herself from the true alpha's chest. "You know, Allison might have kicked my ass if she was here right now," the Radkova witch joked.
The Gilbert girl wasn't a jealous person. However, Emily knew for a certain fact that she wouldn't have been okay with some girl she had never met hugging on her boyfriend if she was in Allison's position.
The McCall werewolf released an amused chuckle as he shook his head. "Allison understands," Scott promised before he joked, "but she isn't going to be happy with me when she finds out that I came to see you without bringing her along."
"Have fun with that one," Emily teased told the McCall werewolf before she let out a few giggles.
Emily had spoken to the Argent hunter a few times since their first conversation right before Emily had performed the spell to bring Elena back. The Radkova witch wished she had more time to talk to Allison because they had a nice friendship. When Emily did have time, she and Allison would text and talk on the phone over silly things like their difficult homework or the TV show they were both watching.
"You're so mean to me!" Scott whined as he jumped his forehead down onto the Radkova witch's collarbone.
Emily playfully rolled her green eyes as she pushed the true alpha's head off of her. "I'll call Allison later and tell her to go easy on you," the Gilbert girl promised.
Emily would have loved to hear about the hunter beating up her werewolf boyfriend but it was partly Emily's fault as to why Scott had rushed here to Mystic Falls. The Radkova witch figured she would bail Scott out this one time.
Scott innocently raised up his hands with a wide grin stretched across his face. "That's all I ask," the McCall werewolf murmured.
The true alpha and the Radkova witch stared across at each other before they broke out in heavy laugher. However, they were soon interrupted when there was a small knock on the bedroom. The duo turned their heads in unison before they found Elena standing in the doorway.
"Hey," the human girl greeted as shot the witch and the werewolf a small smile. Elena pointed her thumb behind her before she uttered, "Ric made mac and cheese for dinner."
"Oh, thank God!" Emily groaned as she quickly jumped up from her bed. "I'm starving," the Radkova witch mumbled. Emily honestly wasn't even sure she ate anything today. Well, other than the granola bars that Alaric had picked up on their way to the Great Smoky Mountains.
Elena chuckled in amusement as she stared over at her twin sister. "You better hurry, then," the human girl advised before she reminded Emily, "we do have a house full boys."
Emily's green eyes widened in remembrance. Not only did they have boys but they also had two werewolves who could probably eat more than a normal human. The Radkova witch quickly turned to Scott with a pout. "Can you go use your alpha status and get us first dibs?" Emily asked as she pulled on the werewolf's left arm with both of her hands.
Scott released a small chuckle before he nodded his head. "You got it," the McCall werewolf murmured as he gave Emily's shoulder a small squeeze before Scott walked around the Gilbert twins and headed downstairs.
The entranceway of Emily's bedroom was silent until the McCall werewolf was down to the first floor of the Gilbert house. Elena turned back to her sister with her right eyebrow raised. "What was going on up here?" Elena teasingly asked.
Emily rolled her green eyes at her twin. "We're only friends, Lena," the Radkova witch uttered with a chuckle. "He was just making sure I was okay," the Gilbert girl explained to Elena before she reminded her, "we do share that strange supernatural connection with each other."
Emily lightly shrugged her shoulders before she informed her twin, "Deaton says it's normal with him being a true alpha and my witch thing."
It pained the Radkova witch to not be able to be completely honest with Elena. However, Emily knew she couldn't tell her twin about how her and Scott's connection had grown stronger since Emily brought her back to life. It would lead to more questions and Emily couldn't afford to let her loved ones find out the consequences that she now had because of the resurrection of her twin sister.
Elena softly smiled across at her twin sister. "I'm glad you have someone who cares and will take care of you like Scott does," the human girl murmured.
"Me too," Emily uttered with her own smile. While they didn't even live in the same state, the Radkova witch felt safe and protected by Scott and the connection they shared. It felt nice to always have that little angel on Emily's shoulder, ready to shield her from the danger.
"You will always be my number one, though," Emily teased her twin sister with a smirk before she leaned up and placed a short kiss onto Elena's temple.
Elena giggled as she playfully rolled her brown eyes. "Oh, come on. Let's go eat," the Gilbert girl murmured. Elena wrapped her arm around her sister's shoulder before she led Emily downstairs to the smell of cheesy goodness.
The Radkova witch couldn't help but smile to herself when she saw a few of her friends and family surrounding the dining room table with bowls of mac and cheese while they talked and laughed with one another. It almost seemed like they were normal people.
Today was far from perfect nor successful but Emily felt at peace for the moment. Emily felt safe and relaxed by being surrounded with the people who she cared and loved.