That was horrible.
As if the fire hadn't been enough to ruin her Thanksgiving. Inhaling deeply, she closed her eyes as she leaned back against the door. What had she been thinking. She knew good and well about Tara's distaste for Eric... for ALL Vampires and yet, she didn't think twice about inviting her over. She loved Tara like a sister and for the life of her, she couldn't fathom why Tara couldn't just accept Eric. He had never done anything to warrant her snide remarks. Sookie had been appalled by Tara's blatantly obvious display of discontent for him.
She understood how it might be uncomfortable to eat around a Vampire... she had experienced it herself. But did Tara really have to be so rude. She knew Tara and her were in dire need of a VERY long and thorough conversation about Eric... Surely, Tara would try harder if she realized Eric loved Sookie... wouldn't she?
Shrugging slightly, she makes her way to the kitchen and sighs as she begins to put away the leftovers. Covering the food with foil and sliding it onto the shelves of the fridge, she was reminded of how unfamiliar this place was to her. Sure, she had been to Eric's house before. Several times, actually. But this wasn't home to her... Tears swelled up in her eyes as she recalled how her house... her home looked. She hadn't yet been inside... but the outside was blackened and the kitchen was clearly in need of being replaced.
She didn't know what was worse... the image of the house in flames, as she had seen them just two nights prior after a long night at work... or the results of those flames.
Placing the last of the leftovers in the fridge, she closes the door and rests her head against its cool metal. She had to be strong. Hunter depended on her for it. But somehow she was struggling to find that strength within her. The destruction to her home had left her... shattered. She knew everyone would expect her to be the same cheerful Sookie she had always been... and she would try... for their sakes. But she knew in her heart... this holiday season was going to be hell for her.
Normally, she would be setting up there Christmas tree right now. The night of Thanksgiving marking the beginning of the Christmas season. In all the years she had lived with her Gran, they had always gone on Thanksgiving night, after dinner and gotten a live tree... a tradition that had held steady for eighteen years... until last year...
The reminder of her first Christmas without Gran only further broke Sookie's heart. Nothing could have prepared her for that experience. Jason had tried his best to make up the difference... but he was never good at the things that reminded Sookie most of Gran... the baking... the decorating of the tree...
Sighing loudly, she moves from the fridge and starts to fill the sink with dish water. She couldn't do this... she wouldn't allow herself to wallow.
Get it together, Sookie.
She would do whatever it took to make this Christmas special for Hunter... for herself. This was her first Christmas with Hunter... hell, with Eric, for that matter. She knew he probably didn't celebrate the holiday and was actually nervous about asking if she could decorate his home for it. But the image of Hunter curled up with Sky on the couch, sobbing into the puppy's fur, filled her head and she knew she had to. She hated seeing him so lost... scared. She wanted him to know that no matter what, she would be there for him. She loved him... not only because he was her cousin... but because, in a way... he was like a son to her.
The images of the fire... it's destruction... Gran... and Hunter were overwhelming her. The tears in her eyes swelling up and over, streaming down her cheeks. Her hands moving over the dishes in an almost automatic way as she cried...
That's how Eric found her, when he returned home. Sobbing as she scrubbed the last of the dishes. It pained him to see her like this. He was always discomforted to see her "leaking", as he called it. He quickly and smoothly made his way across the kitchen and pulled her to him.
"Shh"
His cool voice whispered against her ear as his hands rubbed along her back in a soothing motion. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, his mere presence easing some of the anxiety she was feeling. He had that affect on her. For a while she had thought it was the bond. But those weeks without her memories... without their bond... it didn't matter. Eric had that affect on her. Her heart had ached for him... for the loss she felt... even when she didn't remember him. She loved him and standing there with wet soapy hands, she was once again reminded of how much she did.
He knew better than to inquire about what was bothering her. He knew she was shaken up by the fire. She had taken the threat to her very existence so lightly and reality had smacked her in the face for it. Nonetheless, he hated to see her this way... hated the way it made him feel... the bond giving him insight to her emotions...to the pain she was feeling. His big arms scooped her up and carried her into his bedroom. He laid her gently onto the bed, before sliding in and pulling her close. Her sobs, wetting his shirt as he held her. The tears never ending until she was pulled under by the darkness of sleep.
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