𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐕𝐄
— 𝒾𝓂𝒶𝑔𝒾𝓃𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒷𝑒𝑔𝒾𝓃𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔 —

𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓, Paul Lahote escorted the blonde girl to the foyer of the Reagan household with his arm placed securely on her waist. The endless sky offered enough light for Serenity to place a chaste kiss upon his cheek, and after the couple bid goodnight to one another, as she retired to her room with a soft smile gracing her lips, she realized that the forest was no longer calling to her. Perhaps the boy had averted her attention for the unfolding time; dusk would usually offer a mind full of thoughts, but tonight, her conscience was clear. Worries didn't haunt her dreams that night like they so often did, and the moon allowed her an uninterrupted slumber until the birds outside woke her at dawn. And as she ascends the staircase with rosy cheeks and a sparkle in her eye that promises to never disappear, she finds her small family seated in the parlor with cups of coffee placed in their palms. They were expecting her — a porcelain dish rests on the countertop of Marina's mahogany dining table (a birthday gift from Laythe and Serenity the previous year), presenting breakfast for the youngest of the three.

"Good morning," Serenity greets them, her cheeks burning scarlet from the weight of their expectant gazes.

"I'd assume you are having a good morning," Laythe chimes, a chuckle leaving his lips as his mother nudges his side. "What? She went out with a boy last night, aren't you curious?"

Serenity ignores the dull pain in her foot as she sinks into a seat at the dining table. A vase, seemingly new, rests upon the mahogany while presenting a bouquet of carnations. The girl gently touches the petals, finding them to be as soft as powdered sugar. "Who brought flowers? They're beautiful."

With a smile tugging at the corner of her lips, Marina mindlessly tugs on the sleeve of her cream sundress. "I think you should retire to the backyard after breakfast. Someone decided to stop by and see you."

The inside of her chest swirls with anticipation, practically bursting at the seams of her skin. Serenity is quick on her feet without a moment of delay. Laythe gently catches her arm before his cousin exits the home, his eyes laced with hesitation. "Be careful out there, okay?

She places a chaste kiss on his cheek, "There's no need to worry, I promise I'll be safe." The girl pauses, biting the inside of her cheek. "He'll keep me safe."

They watch as Serenity departs, bursting from the back door with a smile lighting up the world that surrounds them. These moments make her wonder -- is this the way she will feel every time he visits? She never wants the emotion to end, as it twists through her veins and embraces her heart with the utmost warmth. But when her eyes find those of Paul Lahote, it multiplies with each passing second.

Rushing forward, despite the aching of her foot, she places herself within his strong, waiting arms. "What are you doing here so early?" Her voice is muffled, her words barely escaping her lips as she's pressed against the soft cotton of his shirt. He smells like the damp earth beneath their feet, the oak branches that rest just behind their wavering figures, and smooth vanilla.

Paul grins, his hands still placed on her small waist as they separate. "I had to see you. I'll be busy all day tomorrow, and it wouldn't be suitable for me to wait two days before taking you out again. Why put it off when the weather is perfect today?" The waistband of her blouse had ridden up, exposing her back in the slightest -- his fingertips rest against her skin there. Where his touch is burning, hers is chilling . . . they find the neutral temperature where their bodies collide. "So what do you say, sweetheart? Will you take a walk with me?"

The term on endearment sends a shiver up her spine, and she relaxes into his stable grasp. "Of course I will." The Reagan girl takes the arm he offers, limping as they disappear within the woodland that lies ahead. "Thank you for the flowers," she nudges him, scanning his features as a light blush rests on the apples of his high cheekbones, "they look lovely in the parlor."

Paul's jawline is set as he stares into the nothingness as if he's lost in thought or suspended in an alternate universe. His hair is tousled in a way that suggests he'd stayed up the previous night, running his fingers through it with his mind suspended in thought. "I saw them while I was out earlier, and they made me think of you."

As a breeze picks up around them, Serenity pulls the cardigan closer to her chest and furrows her eyebrows at the warmth that radiates from the boy's body. "The wind is cold, why aren't you wearing a jacket?" Her hand brushes along the side of his arm, and she clings to the heat of his skin.

Although he despises himself for it, his lips form a lie with ease, "I'm just naturally warm. But I could imagine how hot I'd seem to you." He shoots her a wink, a smirk gracing his features. Serenity had yet to encounter the flirtatious side of Paul that flusters her, but before the girl can react, his focus is averted to the temperature of her skin and his countenance fades to one of worry. "You're practically freezing, Serenity. Come here."

Paul carefully lifts her from the ground and into his arms, before continuing forward with a grin that makes her heart skip a beat. "I can walk," Serenity hides her face with her palms, "you don't have to carry me."

"You're injured and cold," he justifies, enjoying the sensation it brings to hold her close. "I don't have to, I want to. Besides, getting to the cliff is rough terrain. You could slip and hurt yourself, and I'm sure neither of us wants that to happen again." Memories of finding her body in the forest tear away at his insides -- never again did he want to see her in pain the way he had that night. Then, her frail silhouette was lying against his chest, just as it is now

"Wait, you're taking me to the cliffs?" Her heart rate speeds with joy as she recounts the many times she's ventured there before. "I haven't been that far since . . . " With furrowed eyebrows and narrowed eyes, she tries to place her mind on a single moment when she and her cousin resided there. But upon coming up blank, her lips tighten into a thin, nearly trembling line. "Actually, I can't quite remember. I seem to have forgotten everything lately."

Paul, still unaware of her health condition, begins to wonder about her tendency to forget. "There are always new memories to make," he assures his imprint as she places her arm around his shoulder for support, "there's no need to worry about those that have passed."

And for a fragment of time, she nearly accepts his words -- maybe it's because he feels like home, or perhaps her heart has finally found a safe haven within his hands. No matter the cause, Paul's assurance appeals to no end.

But slowly and surely, Serenity Reagan is losing her memory. And one day in the foreseeable future, nothing else will be left behind . . . including those who have impacted her life the most.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The bank of the cliffs that await them has more pulchritude than what Serenity originally remembered. Pine trees surround the couple, spilling sap upon the chilled soil that embraces the roots with fondness; the beginning of winter was approaching all too soon, and the girl imagined that nature, too, could sense the upcoming season. The shallow waters below reach out to the jagged rocks, if only for a small touch, before retreating for another opportunity. The Reagan teenager tries to envision her past self standing in this exact position, motivating her heart to just remember.

She is met with an emptiness that settles within her chest, attempting to smother her fighting heart. But Serenity could not give up -- if she allowed the dullness to take her, what would become of her future?

"Jacob told me you enjoy the Reservation because you didn't have much experience with the woods before," Paul carefully places her feet on the ground while maintaining a cautious hand on her waist. "After being sheltered in place for so long," he momentarily glares at her injured foot, as if it were the only thing he couldn't protect her from, "I assumed that you missed it. Besides, we wouldn't want you sneaking out at midnight to go for another walk in the wilderness, would we?" Though his lips drip with sweet honey and a dazed chuckle follows, his mind always wanders back to the jarring memory that still haunts his nightmares every night.

Serenity allows her hand to fall away from his shoulder but wishes that she had let it linger for a second longer. Never before had she felt such a steadfast attraction to an individual, and she proceeds to blush at the mention of her mistake so many days ago. "I . . . I was looking for something," she attempts to explain, chewing on her bottom lip.

While she struggles for her words, Paul watches her actions with the utmost of attention. He intakes a sharp breath, fighting the intuition that would tell her to stop biting that pretty little lip before he makes her. But he is quickly torn from his proclivity when she brushes her fingertips across his bicep for comfort. When Paul finds a struggle claiming her features, his previous intentions fall away and his gentle palms rest on either side of her face.

"If I tell you something," her voice is barely above a whisper, and she's vaguely aware of the way in which his thumbs trace the apples of her cheeks absentmindedly, "do you promise you can keep it from everyone else? The guilt of it is weighing me down, but I couldn't bear to tear my family apart."

Somehow he understands that the emphasis lies beyond just Marina and Laythe -- it extends to his pack brothers and his alpha's imprint. He is gentle when addressing his tiny girl, "I would make the world stop spinning if it made you happy, baby doll."

A smile that could bring peace in war overwhelms her lips, the scarlet in her cheeks still residing there. Is it possible that she's found the boy she was meant to be with? Though some would argue that fairytales didn't exist, Serenity Reagan had hope . . . she still believed that somewhere, at some time, in some place, a girl found her home in the hands of another. Perhaps now, in this moment, she was that girl. "When I began living with Marina and Laythe, I had this strange connection with the forest. I always had the feeling that something was there for me, and I needed to find it: that's why I got hurt that night. I saw it in the clearing when I was on the balcony, and I had to follow it. And even though I never caught up to it, I feel as though I've already found it."

The Lahote boy doesn't dare to interrupt, slowly processing her words as she continues. "But when I hit my head, I . . . I think I might have onset a dormant condition I've had." For the first time, she is admitting aloud what she has feared all along. "I have been losing more memories. Before, it was occasional, and I didn't bother mentioning it anyone because it would make them worry. Now that it's speeding up, I've been too scared to even process what it could mean."

Her beautiful eyes pool with unforgiving tears that will stain her cheeks, and a pit ravages at Paul's stomach as he realizes what her panic attack the night before had presented. "I don't want to forget, Paul," she cries as he pulls her so tightly that he worries she might shatter beneath his touch. "I don't want this to be the end of me."

If what Serenity was insinuating was correct, he couldn't halt the inevitable outcome of fate. With angry tears stinging his own eyes, he holds onto his imprint, almost as if his arms can shield her from what awaits. But the burning sun shines down on them with no mercy and ensures them that the day will continue despite the heartbreak of two lovers that may never have the chance to love.

This isn't how Serenity wanted to love, this isn't how she wanted to break. Because if anything in the relentless world around them was without fault, it was the truth about Niemann-Pick that demanded to be spoken: there is no cure.

Nothing could bring back the lost memories of Serenity Reagan . . . not even the unconditional love of Paul Lahote could save her.

But he could sure as hell try.

❝ so freakin emotional already y'all,
there's only 3(ish) chapters left until
part two of this book that will take place
during breaking dawn pt 1! does anyone
have any guesses as to what might happen?
i promise, you might want to kill
me for quite a while, but i promise the
heartbreak is worth it :) also, i posted
a quil ateara fic titled 'shallow tides' if
you wanna check it out! it's honestly
my best writing, and my favorite book! ❞