( WHEN THE STORY ENDS
WE BEGIN TO FEEL
EVERYTHING. )

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BEATRIX SAT IN THE BACK OF AN ambulance, she had quickly woken up after she passed out and right on time for the paramedics to check her over. They said she was exhausted and was drained in more ways than one. They stitched up her side and are now cleaning all her other wounds. They told her it was lucky she lasted so long. How lucky she was...

She saw Mindy pass by, but she was quickly put into an ambulance, no time to waste, due to being left to bleed out. Still no sign of Chad, not even in a body bag. She felt her heart thumping as she waited to find out if he was truly dead like Richie said.

As if her mind was read, a group of paramedics start riding a stretcher out of the house and there he was...Chad was there, oxygen mask over his face, his eyes frantically searching for something.

Beatrix quickly gets up, stumbling for a second before she caught her balance. She felt the weight of the world fall off her shoulders as she saw that he was alive. Tears filled her eyes as she called to him. "Chad!"

His eyes avert to her and it was like he could breathe again. She was okay. He reached out to her as she rushed toward him. She takes his face into her hands gently before placing their foreheads together.

Their eyes shut for a couple moments, relishing in the others touch. The touch they thought they had lost forever. After some time, their eyes flutter open and they stare into each others eyes.

In this moment, their eye contact was way more intimate than their words would've been. It brought them to life, it said everything they could just without words. It brought them comfort and safety and that was the only thing they wanted to feel for the rest of their whole lives.

"Hey, they need to take him." Sam breaks up their moment. Beatrix looks at her and nods, letting the paramedics take him, not before she gently places a kiss on the back of his hand.

"I wanna go with him." Beatrix tells Sam.

"Dewey can take you, they won't allow you to go with right now." Sam explains. Beatrix only huffs in response, watching them put Chad in the ambulance. "You know...you're my sister and—."

"You don't have to say anything." Beatrix cuts her off, looking to her as Chadms ambulance drives away. "We can go back to how it was. I don't want to get between you and Tara."

"You're my sister, Beatrix." Sam says sternly. "My little sister and my job is to protect you and that's what I'm going to do from now on. I can't let this go and I won't."

Beatrix looks at her, eyes soft. Sam was her last family member left, she couldn't say no. Not when she was so willing to be there for her. "I guess we can give it a shot."

Sam laughs and wraps an arm around the girls shoulders, they start walking with a limp. "Let's get to that hospital."

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Beatrix sat in a chair next to Chad's hospital bed. She stares at him, patiently waiting for him to awaken. She couldn't take her eyes off of him, afraid that he would get hurt or somehow disappear.

Chad's eyes start to flutter open and he looks around the room, slightly confused. Beatrix chuckles, catching his attention. She takes his hand in hers and gives him a smile. "Hey."

"H-Hey." Chad chokes out, throat dry. Beatrix hands him a small cup of water and helps him sip it.

"Better?" She asks as she puts it back down.

Chad nods, a smile forming on his lips. "Yeah."

"How do you feel?" Beatrix questions, playing with his fingers.

"Right now? Good." Chad answers, staring at her. "Always good with you by my side."

"You're like this because of me." Beatrix let's her eyes fall to the floor. "All of this happened because of me. I brought them there, I set this up and everyone got hurt because of me and—."

"You couldn't control their actions." Chad starts, tightening the grip on her hand. "It was bound to happen, none of this happened because of you. It wasn't your plan or intentions to get us all hurt. This isn't your fault. At all. You did the right thing. Never—Never ever blame yourself for that."

Beatrix hums as she takes in his words, it wasn't her fault...none of it was. She wipes a stray tear off her cheek as the night replays in her head. Chad sits up and pats the empty space next to him. "Hey, Hey, it's okay, come here."

Beatrix stands and takes her place on the bed, Chad wrapping his arms around her securely. She lays her head on his chest, he whispers soothing words to her. "It's okay. Everything is going to be okay."

In that moment, Beatrix knew that with him, her life might just be okay. It won't be as fucked up because every time, at the end of it all, he would be there with open arms to comfort her, to be there for her...to love her. She loved him—No, No. She loves him. More than herself. She's in love with him.

"Chad."

"Mhm." He hums, running a hand through her hair.

"I love you." She says, softly.

"I love you too." He responds, immediately.

"No." Beatrix shakes her head. She lifts her head up to face his. Now eye to eye. "I'm in love with you. As in, whole heart belongs to you. I didn't want to fall in love with you or tell you because of how messed up I am. I didn't want to hurt you the way everyone in my life was hurting me.You have no idea how much it hurt, deep down to hold this in and then seeing you with-with Liv and then after today. I don't want to take love for granted. Especially not ours. I was afraid of being the one who fell in love. I-I was so damaged to a point where I didn't know how to truly react to love. I still don't, but I love you, Chad and I know that's never going to change. You are worth it for me and I'm sorry about—."

Chad cuts her off with a kiss, his soft lips against her own. She never felt anything softer. The kiss was like a fresh breath of air. It was so refreshing and it made her feel so good.

The kiss was gentle, yet intense. It hangs in the air and all they want to do is pull in closer to one another. The moment was so real, so meaningful as it came to an end, she couldn't help but feel guilty as she thought about her dead friends and mother, she quickly pushes it down. It wasn't the time to be insecure, to rethink everything. If anything it was time for her to live. That's what they would've wanted.

"I love you so much more, Bea." Chad whispers against her lips. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you. For the longest, you've had a place in my heart no one else has ever come close to obtaining. I've literally been in love with you for three years, I was just waiting on you."

Beatrix let's out a low laugh. "Sorry for taking so long."

"You were bound to come to your senses someday. You have no idea how long I've waited for this." Chad teases. Beatrix laughs again and tilts her head up to pull him back into a another kiss.

In the heat of it all, she found her stability. She found her home. It was a place in his arms, under his touch, the sound of his voice, his bright eyes and beautiful smile. He was her stability. Her home and she wouldn't change a thing. Not ever.

"I have a lot to tell you."

"Start off with the most important."

"Billy Loomis is my father..."

"What the fuck?! Maybe I should rethink us." Chad jokes, groaning when Beatrix slaps his arm. "I was kidding."

"Losing you isn't a joke to me."

"It isn't to me either, sorry." Chad pouts and Beatrix pats his cheek.

"Smart boy."

The rest of the night, Beatrix laid her head on his chest, Chad listening to her ramble on. He loved the way she smiled and joked as the talked, trying to stay away from the negative topics.

Eventually, Beatrix fell asleep, listening to the sound of Chad's steady heart beat. She was very content and so was he. He had his girl in his arms and that was currently all he needed.