Chapter 23 - One Way or Another

"Happy birthday to you!"

Mum had tears in her eyes as she blew out her candles. She was overwhelmed by the number of people who had turned up to her party. Everyone was there; Katie and Brett and their three kids, Dad's old house mate Branch, Aunt Adeline and her daughters (Lisa brought Jacob and their son, Alfie), all of Mum's pack, and, of course, Dad and us kids.

Colin hadn't been able to fly back but Cescie and Rickey came. They had recently gone on holiday to Al Simhara and returned a married couple! Mum was ecstatic, though a little miffed that she hadn't been able to be there. Her disappointment faded, however, when they announced that she and Dad were going to be grandparents! We were all very happy for the newlyweds, though it made me hope Rebecca and I would be able to make the same announcement soon.

Mum seemed satisfied with how she looked as an elder, though she complained about her back for the rest of the day.

Next to the cake was Helena. She had been talking about graduation since prom, and we were all very excited for her and her twin sister.

She grew up to look even more like Dad than before! She giggled and stepped aside so Lydia could take her turn.

Lydia was a vampire, unlike Helena, and she was immersed in red light the moment she blew out her candles.

I have to say, she looked a lot like Mum. She smiled modestly and stepped away from the cake.
She looked kind of preoccupied so I gave her a nudge. "You alright?"
"What? Oh, yeah, sure. Don't worry."
I wasn't convinced, but I turned my attention to Pippa, who was blowing out her candles.

She didn't change much, but I saw Lydia smile fondly out of the corner of my eye. My sister swallowed, nodded slightly, and stepped forward.

"You look beautiful." She told Pippa.
"You're not so bad yourself." She replied, blushing.
Lydia took her hand and cleared her throat. "I've known you my whole life, but my family and friends didn't even know you existed until a few weeks ago."
"Where are you going with this?"
"Just listen, okay? Look. I know I've told you before but I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else but you. So, uh..."

A gasp went round the room as Lydia dropped to one knee.
"Will you marry me?"
Pippa looked stunned. "Are... are you kidding!? Of course! Yes!"

The room broke into rapturous applause. Mum, Helena, Celeste, and Hazel rushed forward and threw their arms around the couple. Dad stood in the corner and wiped away a tear and Rebecca beamed up at me with that wide grin of hers.

I had to admit, I was a little teary myself. Lydia had gone through so much in the past few years and I was overjoyed that she didn't have to hide any more. I waited until the throng of people had dispersed before walking over to my sister and giving her a hug.

"Congratulations, Little Sister."
She laughed. "Not so little now, I'm going to be a wife!"
I smiled. "How about we all go out for a celebratory drink?"
A cheer erupted from the next room.
"Ha, I'll take that as a yes!" Rebecca chuckled.

                    

Mum and Dad decided to stay home with Hazel whilst we all went out. Hazel went to bed when they had finished cleaning up after the party and my parents settled on the sofa.
"You're still beautiful, you know that?" Dad said, pulling his wife closer to him."Oh, I don't know about that, but as long as I've got you I'll be just fine."
Dad smiled sadly and looked down at his lap. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. What if I don't have you for much longer? Vampires live a lot longer than werewolves, you know."

"Oh, Honey you don't need to worry about that just now. I know I've been complaining about my back but it's not going to kill me!"
"No, I know. But I've already lost so many loved ones. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Mum squeezed his hand. "Dayvid, we can worry about that another time. For now, let's enjoy the time we have left together. I don't know how long that will be, and I know I'll probably go before you, but we just need to embrace it."

Dad shook his head. "I can't do that Liza. I can't risk being without you."
And with that, he stood up straight, pulled out an intricate glass flask from his pocket, and threw it on the ground at his feet."Dayvid, no! What're you doing?"
Golden light rose from the floor, twisting around my father's limbs and crawling across his chest until he was completely aglow.

When the light faded, an old man was standing where Dad had been."Oh, Darling. You didn't have to do that." My mother gasped.

"I did, Liza. If not for you then for me. I wouldn't be able to live without you." He replied, embracing her.

We were all surprised when we returned home that evening to find Dad was now an old man, but we agreed it was a very romantic thing to do. I hadn't thought through what I would do when Rebecca was elderly and I was still in my relative youth. I could suddenly understand Dad's reasoning. Becca was my world.

                    

My wife and I decided to go for a stroll before dawn. It was one of our favourite things to do; Moonlight Falls is a whole different place before everyone wakes up.

We were minutes away from home when Rebecca took my hand and sat me down on a park bench with her. I shot her a confused look but she was staring straight ahead, seemingly oblivious.
"Jasper, I'm worried." Her voice shook slightly.

I reached for her but she shook my hand away. "What about?"
She sighed and turned to face me. "We've been trying to have a baby for months and months and still nothing. What if..." She swallowed. "What if I can't have kids?"
My heart sank. "Oh, Baby don't worry. These things take time!"
"No, Jasper. Think about it. Your parents have six kids for goodness' sake, but I'm the only child of an only child. Mum's not around any more but I know she had trouble having me. The evidence is there. I want a baby so much. Why won't it happen?"

She looked up at me almost pitifully. I had to admit, I was a little worried myself. I had no qualms with adoption but I didn't know how well Becca would cope if she couldn't have her own biological children. I tried to put my arm around her again and this time she didn't flinch.
"It'll be okay, Darling. We just need to be patient. If it makes you feel better we can go to the hospital today and have some tests done. Would you like that?"

She nodded and leaned in to kiss me.
"That's settled then. I'll make an appointment."

Becca picked nervously at her nails as I made a call to the hospital. I pulled her closer when I had finished.

"You know, if it's taking a long time to get pregnant, maybe we're just not trying often enough?"
She laughed, apparently back to her normal self. "You wish!"

                    

So, later that day, the two of us took a cab to the hospital. It was the same hospital that Rebecca and I, and out parents, had been born in. I only hoped that we would have our own child here in the near future.

Before we went in, I took Becca's hand.
"One way or another, we're going to be parents. Even if this way doesn't work out I'll still love you. We can adopt, or use IVF, or-"
She kissed me. "I know. One way or another."

And we went inside.