I was awoken that morning by the sound of glass breaking. I sighed and rolled out of bed, pulling on the robe by my bedside before walking out. In the kitchen, my son Alan sat, staring down at a broken plate. He looked shocked.

"What did you do this time, Alan?" I asked with a stifled yawn. I pulled my hair back out of my face and into a bun, stuck in place with one of the pencils Alan has cluttered on the counter.

"Uh... I wasn't paying attention." He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Sorry, Mom."

I sighed with a light chuckle, ushering him from the kitchen. "It's alright, love. Did you cut yourself?"

Alan quickly checked himself over. "Nope."

I rolled my eyes. "You are your father's son. Get me a broom; I'll get it."

"But..."

I shot him a challenging look.

"Right. Okay. I'll grab the broom."

I laughed to myself as he hurried for the broom.

Zeke walked in from the backyard. He smiled when he saw me. "Morning, beautiful."

"Morning, handsome."

"Sleep well?"

"Relatively." I nodded with a faint smile.

"That's good." He looked at the glass. "Alan?"

"I'm not that clumsy, am I?" Alan asked, raising an eyebrow as he handed me the broom.

"You are." Zeke and I nodded in unison.

The sixteen year old made a face. "Thanks."

"You take after your father," I stated, taking the broom and sweeping up the glass.

"Hey!"

I glanced at him. "Well, he sure didn't get it from me."

Zeke hesitated for a moment. "Okay, that's true." He nodded.

I smiled. "Of course it is."

Zeke rolled his eyes. "Are you sure you want to clean that up barefoot, my love? You could cut yourself."

"I've been cut worse and survived," I replied in amusement. "A little glass is nothing."

"Still hurts like a bitch, though," Alan mumbled.

"Language, Al."

"Whatever, Mom," Alan replied with a small laugh.

I rolled my eyes. "Dustpan?"

Alan crouched down and steadied the dustpan for me. I swept the glass in. "Gale is coming over later."

"So you've said," I replied.

"Mom, you aren't going to embarrass me again are you?"

"If a girl can't laugh at your misadventures as a toddler, she's not the girl for you, Alan."

"Dad!"

"Blythe."

"Zeke."

Zeke rolled his eyes with a snort. "Behave around his girlfriend, love."

"I always thought it was the mother who was supposed to say that to the father," I mused. "But that might just be raising daughters." I shrugged, taking the dustpan from Alan and dumping it in the garbage.

"Mom, please?"

"It's my birthday, Alan."

Alan shot an exasperated look at me. "Mom!"

I laughed softly, waving him off. "I promise, love. I won't embarrass you in front of your girlfriend. Best behavior."

"You too, Dad."

"Cross my heart," Zeke replied.

Alan sighed in relief. "Thank God."

"Doesn't mean Scarlet, Val and Kyle will be," I remarked.

He groaned.

Zeke and I laughed. I kissed Alan on the head and moved out of the kitchen, setting the broom and dustpan aside.

I walked back into the room to change for the day. Zeke followed behind me.

He kissed me softly as the door closed. "Happy birthday, babe."

I smiled, kissing his cheek. "Thank you, love." I shed from my robe and walked to the closet.

"Hear from James?"

"No," I replied. "Haven't since last week. You know how that is, though. He's been different since his last girlfriend dumped him. Doesn't reach out as much." I selected some clothes before walking into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

"Yeah..." Zeke sighed. "Do you think he'll come today?"

"Probably not," I admitted. "I think he has a case today."

"He can teleport, Blythe. That shouldn't be a problem. It's a big day for you."

"It's just one of plenty birthdays, Zeke. He's been there for almost all of them in the past. I really don't mind."

Zeke sighed, and I could imagine him shaking his head. "Whatever you say, Blythe."

I finished getting ready and walked out to my husband. I looped my arms around his neck. "It's fine, Zeke. Really. I promise."

Zeke nodded softly, wrapping his arms around my waist. "If you're sure."

"Positive," I informed him, smiling.

Zeke smiled back. "I like this dress, by the way."

I glanced down at the light blue, off-the-shoulder sundress I was wearing, decorated with an elegant floral design and ending just below my knees. "Thank you. I like it, too. I figured if you're holding a party in my honor, I may as well look the part."

"Well, you succeeded." He smiled wider. "Although, I know how you could look better."

I narrowed my eyes at him, taking away a hand from its perch to swat his shoulder. "I'm still a telepath, you know. Just because I don't use my powers often..."

Zeke laughs. "I know. That was the point."

I shook my head at him, unable to hide my smile. "Alright, Zeke."

Playfully, Zeke pulls the pencil from my hair, grinning lopsidedly. "I like your hair better down."

I laughed softly, moving my hands to rake them through my long strands of raven colored hair. "Of course you do. Twenty years, and you're still a child, Zeke Vermont."

"Twenty years, and you're still the most gorgeous woman I've ever met, Blythe Vermont." Zeke paused. "Sadly, I still prefer Blythe Hayes."

"Can't beat the classic." I smiled softly.

"You really can't," he agreed with another smile.

I raked a hand through my hair again, smoothing it out further. Another blessing of being whatever the hell I am; my hair always remains in top shape, as long as I shower and groom it occasionally. "I'll let you dress. I should make sure Alan doesn't drop something again."

Zeke scoffed. "He's sixteen, not six."

"And he still manages to break everything," I pointed out.

Zeke could only shake his head in amusement. "Sure."

I grinned, pecking him on the lips before leaving the room as a knock on the door sounded.

"I've got it!" Alan called, sliding into the living room in his socks.

I snorted as he stumbled, gently motioning with my hand to make sure he didn't fall over. He grinned at me.

Alan opened the door to reveal his brunette haired, hazel eyed girlfriend - Gale. I watched as he grinned at her with a small smile. "Gale!" He invited her in.

She hugged him, smiling. "Hey!" She looked at me, turning bashful. "Hello, Mrs. Vermont."

"Hello, Gale." I smiled widely. "Welcome."

"Happy Birthday. I left my present in the car." She blushed, rubbing the back of her neck.

I laughed. "Thank you, Gale. No harm no foul, I assure you. Hungry? Thirsty?"

Gale shook her head politely. "No, thank you."

Alan led her to the couch and the two sat down, chatting about something school related.

~~

It was awhile before the other guests arrived. Valerie and Kyle were first, followed by Halle and Warren.

"Happy birthday!" Halle said with a broad smile.

I smiled in reply. "Thank you, Halle. Warren." I nodded at him. He nodded in return. "Have you heard from James?"

Halle's smile dropped. "No. No, I haven't. Sorry. He's... Well, he's busy."

"Too busy to go to his best friend's birthday party?" Zeke asked in annoyance. "I understand the dude has a life, but today's kind of a big deal. He's just going to miss it?"

"Zeke..." I sighed. "It's fine. I promise, it's fine. I didn't expect him to show up anyway."

"If you can't expect him to be here, Blythe, when can you rely on him?"

I clenched my jaw. "When I need to, Zeke. Let's drop the subject. Shall we?"

Zeke still looked slightly miffed, but he nodded. "Sure. Whatever you say."

I rubbed his shoulder, turning back to Halle and Warren. "Sorry. It's fine; we were just hoping he'd show up." I motioned into the house. "Setup's out back. That's where everyone else is."

The two friends glanced at each other before walking out to join everyone.

~~

Soon the party was in full swing. Everyone was having a blast, and I was enjoying my first day of official retirement from the fighting world. I was also embracing my calling as a fashion designer; a much different career, but one that everyone encouraged. Everyone, it seemed, besides the one person who truly mattered alongside my husband and son.

Scarlet walked up to me in the stables while I groomed one of my horses. "I know for a fact that you should be out there instead of back here, Blythe."

I glanced at Scarlet with a small smile, before looking back to the horse I was grooming. "I've never been one for grand affairs."

"But it's such a big day for you! You shouldn't be hiding away." She frowned. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head. "Nothing to concern yourself with, Scar. Just a little overwhelmed."

"It's because of James. Isn't it?"

I shook my head again. I knew I couldn't lie to her, but I could avoid the subject. "I really don't want to bother with it right now, Scar."

"Alright... Your husband is concerned. He didn't see where you went."

"What'd you say?"

"That you probably went inside to get something. Does he even know about James?"

"Of course he doesn't. James and I both didn't want to put him through that stress. Not to mention the chaos that would ensue. Frankly, if I could not know, I would. The curse of being a telepath, I suppose."

"Yeah... I don't know, Blythe. I think he should know."

"He will. Eventually."

"Do you think that's why James hasn't showed?"

"I'm relatively sure. Or he could just be on a mission like everyone's saying." I shrugged. "Either way."

Scarlet tugged my arm. "C'mon, let's go get drunk or something."

"I don't get drunk, Scarlet," I said in amusement. "You know this."

"Yeah, and you know that I meant that I'd drink and you'd keep me from doing something incredibly stupid." She shrugged.

I shook my head in amusement, pulling off my apron and hanging it up. I set the brush and such aside, petting Nightmare for a moment before walking from the stables with Scarlet at my side.

Scarlet beelined for the alcohol cooler, and I couldn't help but laugh softly.

"There you are." Zeke's arms wrapped around me from behind. "Where were you?"

"Around," I said simply.

"You just disappeared after I took that call." He rested his chin on my shoulder, frowning slightly. "I was concerned."

"I'm fine." My eyes found Alan and his girlfriend dancing and laughing to the music. Kyle and Valerie were beside them, swaying in tune and calling out jokes. "Who was calling?"

"A friend. Told me about the Reiweth situation. The Rowe girl led her troops in yesterday to overthrow the rule. It looks like they're going to win."

"Good. Poor girl could use a win like that."

Zeke hummed in agreement. "She really could. Especially without her family supporting her."

I shook my head sympathetically. "It's one thing not having a family to be supportive. But she does have one. They just don't support her."

Zeke nodded. "You're sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Zeke. I promise."

"Okay."

~~

No matter how many times I told people not to get me presents, I ended up with them anyway.

Valerie invested in a new sketch book and correlating materials, before placing a crown of purple and blue flowers I didn't bother naming on my head. Kyle didn't get me anything, merely shrugging and saying that I'd said I wasn't interested in presents. Then Valerie admitted that he'd helped her get the art materials, and everyone laughed.

Halle gave me a gadget of her own design, which was supposed to act as a sort of all-purpose helper. I had to admit, it definitely would come in handy in my attempts of domesticity. Warren had taken the liberty of getting me an antique, rather gorgeous dagger he'd found, admitting that while I probably wouldn't use it, one could never have two many weapons.

As he put it, you could retire from the job, but the job would never be done.

Scarlet had written a rather endearing poem that brought a few people to tears.

Gale had gotten me a necklace to match the earrings she'd noticed I wore so often. For protection of course, but she'd grown up in a normal family and didn't know much about the magic world. It was a lovely gesture, nonetheless, and I had Zeke help me put it on.

A few gifts and drinks later, it was safe to say that besides the children, Alan, Gale, Warren, Valerie, Zeke and myself, everyone was a bit buzzed, to my utter amusement. People danced along to music with others they'd normally never dance with, and some even started singing along to the music.

If you aren't a telepath, I'll take the liberty of telling you: drunken thoughts are loud. Not to mention, highly amusing.

Zeke's arms wrapped around my waist again from behind, and he placed a kiss next to my ear. I could smell the faint scent of alcohol on his breath, but knew better than to assume he was drunk. The man knew how to handle his alcohol. "Enjoying yourself?"

I hummed, closing my eyes and leaning against him. "I am. Are you?"

"If you are." He tightened his grip around me. "Don't think I forgot your present, either. I still have one to give you."

I smiled. "Oh?"

"Mhm. You'll have to wait to see it, though. I want to give it to you in private."

"Ooh, Zeke," I sang in a rather flirtatious tone.

He snorted. "Nothing like that, love. Although, I wouldn't be opposed..."

I stepped on his foot. "There are children, Zeke."

"Ow!" he whined quietly. "That hurt."

"Sorry." We both knew I wasn't.

Zeke sighed. "I know you miss him, Blythe. You keep watching for him. I seriously need to-"

"Do nothing," I interrupted. "What James does is his own business, Zeke. I'm not going to complain if he decides not to show up to a birthday party."

"It's not just a birthday party, Blythe. It's a celebration in your honor to congratulate you on your achievements the past century of your life and to promote your new business. He's one of our best friends. If he cared enough, he'd be here."

I pulled myself from Zeke's grip, turning around to face him with thinned lips. "James cares very much, Zeke. I've known him for a very long time. Just because he doesn't show up here doesn't mean he doesn't care enough. He has a life, and I am not the center of it. One celebration out of the sixty some-odd we've shared together is not going to change how much he cares."

"Why are you defending it? Blythe, it's your big day, and the one person you'd hoped would show up didn't. Aren't you upset?"

"Of course I'm disappointed, Zeke. I wanted to share today with him, too. But he's not here, and we have to respect that. James is always there when we need him to be. He doesn't need to be here, we just want him to be. I'm not holding him to something he never promised to come to."

"He should very well need to be, Blythe. It's such a special day." He grabbed my hands, squeezing them. "I love him like a brother, but I don't like that he's made you so disappointed. I want you happy."

"I am happy, Zeke. I have an amazing husband, a brilliant son, fantastic and supportive friends... I couldn't ask for anything more. I promise it's all okay."

Zeke sighed, shaking his head. "I just..."

"Let's drop the subject," I suggested. "For good this time. It's only going to frustrate us both."

Zeke nodded in agreement, smiling faintly. "I love you, Blythe."

"I l-" I was cut off by the sound of someone screaming.

My head snapped around. One of the guest's children - Abigail, I believe; Cece's daughter - had found herself face to face with someone who definitely wasn't invited.

"Abby, run!" Cece bellowed. Valerie's hand shot out as the woman spoke, causing the grass in front of the man to sprout up around him, creating a barrier while the small girl ran to safety.

My hand darted out. The antique dagger Warren had gotten for me flew into my grasp. "Alan, Gale!" I barked. The two turned to me. "Get the children and lock yourselves into my room. Do not come out no matter what, understood?"

The two didn't waste time arguing. They grabbed the smaller children and ran into the house.

"My gun is inside," Zeke hissed.

"I think Kyle has an extra," I muttered, unsheathing the dagger. My dress morphed, the skirt wrapping around my legs and forming a romper of sorts; easily maneuverable. My hair shrank in size, up to my chin. This way, I wasn't letting anything drag while I fought.

"You'll be okay on your own?"

"These assholes decided to crash the party," I said curtly. "It's only fair we show them what we do to unwelcome visitors."

Zeke chuckled deeply, pulling me in for a chaste kiss before jogging over to Kyle.

In the few minutes it had taken for the little congregation of my friends to sort themselves out into battle formation, more enemies had arrived, bringing the total to thirty, which outnumbered us quite a bit. No matter, though. We'd taken on worse with less.

The battle ensued quickly. It appeared most people were directing the fight at me, as I found myself surrounded by five men while everyone else was battling their own.

Armed with only a dagger, I could easily be mistaken as simple prey. However, as my assailants were quick to find out, just because I stopped fighting didn't mean I didn't have fight in me. I lashed out a kick at one of them, my dagger finding its way into the throat of another. Withdrawing my blade, I was met with a kick in the stomach, sending me sprawling and the air rushing out of me. Three of the men towered over me, but I wasn't about to let that be the end. I reached out with my powers and sent the lot of them flying back with a shockwave. I rolled over and stood up, grabbing my dagger.

Suddenly, a sharp pain in my back alerted me, and then I was on the ground, gasping.

"Blythe!" Zeke screamed. I could barely hear him. I'd been stabbed through the back. By who? I didn't know.

I tried to get up, but I was kicked back to the ground. A strangled cry escaped me, almost inhuman. I could feel the urge to let my primitive side take over, but stomped it down. The last thing I needed was to lose control. I just needed to heal. I rolled onto my back, protecting the wound from further damage and commanding the fabric of my dress to stitch back together over it. Do you know how hard it is to heal from a fatal injury when you're trying to simultaneously ward off people trying to kill you?

I brushed my fingers across my wrist, throwing up a yellow shield to protect myself while I healed. I stared up at the sky, breath labored. It would take a minute to heal, and the process was harder with half of the energy I had being poured into keeping the shield up and going. I could vaguely hear Zeke calling my name, but the sound was muffled through the shield and the pounding of various magical and physical attempts to destroy the shield.

Suddenly, as I watched, I could see my assailants be yanked away from the shield one by one by black, ink-like tendrils. A smile touched my lips. He had come after all. I let the shield fall, knowing I didn't have to strain myself further.

A familiar face peered over me after a moment of sitting there. Though his lip was busted and there were a few cuts on his face, he still looked the same as he had when I'd actually seen him properly a few months ago. A small smile appeared on his face.

"Hi," James said.

I smiled faintly back up at him. "Hello."

"You changed your hair."

"Not permanently. It's getting a bit long, so I decided to shorten it for the fight." I shrugged lightly. My hair grew back to its usual length as I spoke. "Better?"

"Oh, much." He nodded. "Are you healing alright? I caught wind you'd been stabbed."

I nodded. "It's healing. Taking a bit longer to close up than usual because it should have killed me, but it's almost there."

"That's good. Sorry I'm so late." His fingers reached out and touched my neck to check my pulse.

"That's alright. I figured you were busy or something."

He nodded. "More so than I can explain," he said with an apologetic smile. "You know I'd never miss a celebration like this for the world." He removed his fingers. "Your pulse is a bit erratic but otherwise steady."

"Ah, adrenaline my old friend," I replied with a slightly amused smile.

James chuckled. "Miss it?"

Before I could reply, Zeke finally reached my side, saying my name in a rushed exhale and pulling me into his arms.

"Are you okay?" he asked, face buried into my hair.

I closed my eyes, allowing him to embrace me while my hands wrapped around him. "I'm fine, Zeke," I replied in a hushed tone. "I'm mainly healed."

Zeke's entire body sagged in relief, and he hugged me tighter. "Thank God. I'm so sorry I couldn't get here, I-"

"It's okay," I interrupted, pulling away to place a hand on his chest. I looked him in the eyes. "I'm alive, I promise. See?" I pecked his nose.

He smiled slightly. "Yeah, I see. You're definitely my wife."

I laughed softly, before turning my head to James. "Thanks for coming to the rescue."

"Just like old times, huh?" James replied with a small, reminiscent smile.

"Absolutely." I smiled back.

"How'd you get here so suddenly?" Zeke asked curiously.

"Ah. Your son phoned me as soon as he got into your guys' room and laid out the situation. He could see it all from the window." He looked at me meaningfully.

I frowned. "We really need to consider repositioning the window," I commented. I'd deal with my son later. He'd seen me in action before; my near death experiences aren't exactly news to him, but I don't doubt he'd been scared quite badly nonetheless.

"If I had known all it took to get you out here was an emergency call putting us all in danger..." Zeke said grumpily.

I swatted his shoulder lightly. "Play nice."

James laughed slightly. "I had Necromancer stuff to deal with," he said. "I couldn't get away. Alan's call gave me the ability to say 'screw it'." He looked at me. "If Mel calls, tell her I was making sure you were taken care of all day."

I made a face. "Any chance to lie to the bitch, I'll take it."

James and Zeke laughed at me. My animosity towards the female so obsessed over James wasn't exactly a secret.

"You're staying, then?" Zeke asked.

James nodded. "Of course. If you guys'll have me."

"Wouldn't have it any other way," I replied with a warm smile.

"You're always welcome here, James," Zeke added with a nod.

James smiled faintly.

"Blythe!" Scarlet shouted, interrupting the moment.

I glanced up. "Yeah?"

"They're in the house!"

I jolted into action, grabbing James's wrist before teleporting into the house, Zeke and James appearing with me. We all stood upright. Zeke went to the pantry, pulling out the two hand guns we'd hidden in there when he moved in. One of them he handed to me, and the other he put into the waistband of his jeans. James already had a gun in its holster at his side.

We approached the door. I could hear faint sobbing on the other side, and what sounded like Alan trying to coerce someone into dropping their weapon. I brushed my hand on the doorframe, and it swung wide open.

"Hands in the air!" James barked, walking in first with his gun drawn.

Zeke followed after him. "We will not hesitate to shoot. Drop your weapon!"

I followed after them, gun drawn. My eyes immediately met my son's wide ones. "Let the kids go," I said, looking at the two men in the room. "No one has to get hurt."

"Mom, you're okay!" Alan exclaimed, obviously relieved. He went to move towards me, but was struck backward by one of the captors.

"Al!" Gale protested, picking her boyfriend up.

My entire body tensed, and a growl escaped. "I'm fine, Al," I said curtly. "This isn't the first time I've been stabbed. I'm going to need you to stay back, okay? Keep the kids safe for me and let the adults handle this, yeah? You'll be safe soon."

"Let them go," Zeke demanded, eyes narrowed. He was about as tense as I was, royally pissed about seeing his son smacked around.

The two captors looked at each other.

"What do you think, Troy? Let go of our only leverage to the situation, or milk this out?"

"I dunno, Frank. I really think we should milk it out. Look at Miss Blythe there. She's so dreadfully upset about her poor son. Ooh, and Zeke doesn't look to happy, either. Their pain is our merit, Frank."

"Yes, I quite agree, Troy." Frank grinned.

As Zeke protested, in my peripheral vision I could see a tendril of shadows snaking along the ceiling, scratching at a few of the sigils. A small smile appeared.

"Why is she smiling?" Troy demanded, almost nervously.

"What?" Frank looked at me. His eyes narrowed. "Why are you smiling? We've just threatened your son's life, and there's no magic allowed in the room."

My smile widened. I handed the gun to James, stepping closer into the room. "Technically, when I charmed the room, I had to take into account the fact that my dear friend James liked using his power to check up on me. He had a habit of just popping into the room when I hadn't responded to him in a few days to make sure I hadn't died in my sleep, or something." I shrugged. "So I made sure his Necromancy could get through it all. Never did get around to changing that up again."

"Why are you smiling, then? What does that...?" Frank still looked confused.

"Have to do with anything?" I finished, smiling even wider. "This, you sick bastards." I flung my hands out. Red light struck both men in the chest, and they went down, unconscious.

The kids and Gale ran towards us. James escorted the children outside to be reunited with their parents. Alan barreled into me and wrapped me in a hug.

I hugged him back, laughing slightly and resting my chin on his head. "I'm alright, kiddo. It's okay."

"I saw him stab you," Alan mumbled into my shoulder. "I got so scared..."

I rubbed his back. "I'm okay, I promise. I can heal things, remember?"

"Yeah... I know. I just..." He pulled back, looking at me. "I'm glad you're okay, Mom."

I smiled. "I'm glad you're okay, too. I really didn't want to have to soil my dress with someone's blood."

Zeke chuckled softly. "I'm chopped liver now?"

"You didn't almost die," I pointed out.

"I could have." Zeke shrugged. "It's happened before."

"Yes, and I've healed you every single time. Let my son and I have a moment."

"He's my son, too!" Zeke protested.

"Most definitely," I agreed with a nod. "But I also carried him inside of me for nine months, so..."

"Aw, mom, way to ruin the moment!"

I laughed. "That's me in a nutshell, Alan dear."

Zeke grinned, looping an arm around my waist. "Pretty much. Blythe Hayes-slash-Vermont, savior of the weak and ruiner of moments."

I snorted, leaning into him. "'Ruiner' isn't a word, Zeke dear."

"It is now," James said, leaning in the doorway. "Zeke and I have proclaimed it as such."

I wrinkled my nose. "No."

"Yes," Zeke replied, kissing my temple while Alan watched on in amusement.

"No," I replied, ducking away from the kiss. "You can't just do that."

"We just did, babe," Zeke replied with a grin.

I shook my head. "Alan, you and I should invest in a dictionary for your father for his birthday. Half and half?"

Alan grinned. "Sounds like a plan."

"How're you holding up, Alan?" James asked.

Alan shrugged. "I'll be fine." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I should probably go talk to Gale."

"Probably," I agreed. Zeke, James and I stepped out of the way for him to walk through. When he was gone, I slumped into Zeke with a sigh, closing my eyes and resting my head on his shoulder. "This was one hell of a birthday," I mumbled.

Zeke pressed a kiss to my scalp. "I'll say. You've had worse, though."

"Oh, most definitely. James, remember my forty-first?"

"Don't remind me," James replied miserably. "I still have nightmares about it."

I nodded. "I'd sympathize, but..." I gestured to the various knickknacks around the room.

"Fair enough. Sorry about the runes, by the way. I should have asked first, but..."

"No, don't worry about it. I had to redo them anyway."

"Ah. Alright, then."

I opened my eyes and turned to look at him, hyperaware of Zeke at my side. "You're appreciated around here. You know that, right, James?"

Zeke nodded beside me, although I doubted he caught along to the undertone in my voice. "You always will be, man. We wouldn't be where we are today without you."

James smiled thinly, nodding. "I know. What else are friends for, right? You have my back, I have yours."

Zeke and I looked at each other. We both caught onto the slight sadness in his voice. Zeke unwrapped his arm from around me and walked up to James, clapping him on the back. "Let's go drink while there's still some alcohol left, yeah?"

James chuckled, nodding. He glanced back at me as the two walked down the hall, and I offered him a smile before closing the door to take care of the guests in the room and change into something cleaner.

--------

Let's just take a moment to sob for James. 😭 Poor guy.

So, yeah, this is life if Zeke had never died. So many things would have and wouldn't have happened.

sammy8300

This AU or the current one?