Starring at the all too familiar green door to the apartment she had lived in most of her life, Willow debated with herself if she should walk in. Missing her family, wanting to see them, but still afraid of the pain she would have to go through in leaving them, knowing that in only in a few hours her mom would get the call about the accident, made her question her decision.
The whole day yesterday after what happened with Fahima walking in was spent on trying to keep herself occupied with being in the garden with the others playing games. Ending with her getting her ass beat by Tuma and Jack in poker and losing her lair of mint chocolate. Today she has just stared at her bedrooms ceiling until Jack gently rubbed her shoulder letting her know it was time.
"Go inside Willow" Jack said softly as he looked at her from her side.
"I...I don't know if I should," she said hesitantly her hands trembling until he slowly reached down and took her right hand. The spell the door had over her was broken and she looked at him, seeing the understanding in his eyes as he waited for her decision. "What would you do?"
"I would already be in there, but this isn't my choice, this is yours." he mumbled his eyes shifting from her to the door. "Reapers aren't recommended...allowed to seek out our family, but I done it many times throughout the years. Especially with my little sister who now has a family of her own." Willow looked at him surprised, as this was the first time, he even mentioned siblings or his family for that matter.
Her palms grew sweaty, and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze as she reached out to open the door, only for her hand to pass right through it. Surprised, she pulled it back and stared at it as if it were some foreign object, her gaze shifting from the hand to the door.
"Another reaper thing?" She mumbled, seeing Jack nod out of the corner of her eye. Taking a deep breath, she walked through the door right into the small well-known kitchen with the round dining table in the middle with the three chairs. One with a leg shorter than the others from when Peter broke it. Everything was as when she had left it, the health magazines on the small living room table her mom liked to read, to Peter's Spider-Man blanket just thrown over the couch as always.
But nobody seemed to be home.
Confused she looked around, letting go of Jacks hand while doing so.
"They're at the grocery store, thought you might like some time to pack some stuff before they came back," he put his hands in his black jeans pocket, leaning back on his feet while looking around. Gulping, she looked down the hallway filled with pictures from her childhood, before finally getting the guts to walk to her bedroom.
Willow cautiously pushed open the door to her room, expecting everything to look different. But the room seemed frozen in time, as if she had never left. For some weird reason she had expected things to have changed just as much as her life had, but nothing had.
The walls were still adorned with posters she had cut out of magazines of her favorite movies, and a collection of postcards from places she dreamed of visiting. A corkboard near her desk displayed a chaotic collage of memories, like concert tickets from when Iris mom had taken them to see the lord of the rings concert as her and Iris always at least once a year held a slumber party watching the movies, or the pictures with her friends and a faded drawing from her little brother of them both. The shelves that lined the wall was covered with souvenirs from the flew places they had been and, on her desk, her new running shoes sat in their box, untouched.
Nothing even seemed out of place, a panda from the zoo sat on her bed between the other teddy bears, looking slightly newer than the one in the mansion making her wonder if they went out and bought it to make it look like nothing was missing.
"How?" she said more to herself, sliding a hand over its head.
"We have people on the island that specialize in these sorts of things, so everything you may take will be replaced to make sure no question will be raised," Jack said standing in the door looking at her, like he didn't want to invade her space like the first time he had been here. "It's the same people that will cause the accident, some of them even helped in mine." he mumbled finally walking in as Willow headed to the wooden closet to find the suitcase her mom had bought for when they went to Sweden to ski last winter.
Not really thinking she just packed down stuff she hadn't taken last time like a photo album from the time she had been into photography, since she wasn't allowed to take her phone that wasn't on the nightstand where she had last seen it. And other stuff like her expensive headphones her mother had bought her last year for the iPod Jack had gifted her. But most of the items seemed nearly pointless at this point.
Raiding her closet for clothes, still not used to the fact she wasn't the one filling her closet at the island she found a small blue box in the back. Crouching down, she opened it, seeing old diaries and a old teddy bear with a green ribbon given to her when she was 15 years old around the time her grandparents died. The sight of the bear brought a rush of warmth to her chest, familiarity, comfort, and a sense of safety. Jack took the teddy bear from her hands and inspecting it. "Why do you still have something like this?"
Willow took the bear back from him, placing it carefully in her suitcase, her voice a bit distant as she replied, "Because I do, it meant a lot to me, I got it from-" Her voice trailed off, unsure who she actually got it from. But something told her it was a special person, and it was too late now to ask her mom. With a sigh, she closed the suitcase just as the familiar sound of the front door banging indicated her brother's return.
He took her suitcase.
"Are you ready?" His hand reached out for hers, and she grasped it without hesitation, allowing him to lead her out of her bedroom and down the hallway.
"Mom, can I take one of the pears?" Peter asked, already rummaging through the grocery bag while their mom placed the rest of the groceries in the fridge. He munched on the pear as he sauntered over to the couch and turned on the TV, unaware of Willow standing silently in the middle of the room.
"When are Willow coming back?" he yelled over his shoulder, unknowingly causing Willow to whimper softly as she clutched Jack's hand. She knew that Peter couldn't see them due to something Ian had done, as otherwise he should be able to just like she had. But Willow had to admit to herself she had hoped it didn't work as it hadn't with her.
"I think it's on Friday," she yelled back closing the fridge and Willow got a good look at her. She looked healthier than last time Willow saw her, the warmth in her eyes and the spring in her step was back, though soon again would be gone. Jack had promised her that he skewed Peters memories a little about what happened that night that jerk attacked. Only Darlia and Ian could erase memories completely, but reapers could hide their memories from someone as long as they don't look for them or something didn't trigger the memory to come back, which she hoped it never would for Peter.
"I can't do this," she squeaked as she took a step back, holding a hand over her mouth. "I can't-" Before she finished the sentence Jack pulled her in and held her close while the tears rolled down her face, threatening to never stop. She kept repeating those words over and over and each time she said it, Jack would hold her a little tighter.
"It's okay, I know" he whispered in her ear before kissing her hair.
"I'm scared, I-I can't do this," her words came out in broken syllables, only interrupted by tears and whimpers as she held onto him like he was the only thing keeping her on her legs while watching her mom going over and join Peter on the couch.
"I will protect you, you can count on it," He mumbled rubbing her back as she buried her head in his chest. "Willow, we have to go, I'm sorry but we have to," he croaked, his arms shivering around her. She shook her head against his chest, not even able to look at her family.
"Willow?" She heard a soft voice say and as Jack pulled away, she realized he teleported them back to the island and into Fahima's bedroom. "Oh sweetheart, come here" Fahima said with a warm smile, opening her arms for Willow, who rushed into her embrace, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry Willow, I truly am for causing this," Jack croaked, and before she could tell him he wasn't the reason he vanished.
Crying, they moved to the bed when a young dark-haired BustyrÃa quietly entered the room and placed a phone on the bed. "Jack informed me you would be with Miss Fahima, they will call you when the deed has been done." he said with a soft voice, his eyes shone of understanding.
Fahima reached over and took the phone and handed it to Willow, still with an arm around her shoulder. Cradling the phone in her hand she awaited the call.