My aura rippled with discomfort. “You don’t mean that.”
She lowered her beautiful ocean-blue eyes. “No. I’m sorry.”
I licked my lips and tried another technique. “Are you an organ donor?”
“Yes.”
“Why did you decide to become one?” I brought her hand to my cheek and nuzzled her dainty, knuckles. I hadn’t shaved, and my cheeks were stubbly. What if my gesture of affection hurt her?
“To save a life.”
“I’m sure that’s exactly what other organ donors think when they sign up, too. That’s their exact purpose. They might pass, but they can help others live.”
“If it’s not my heart, am I still me?”
The question shocked me. I never expected her mind to go to such a place.
“Of course you’re still you,” I said.
“I’m not so sure.”
“Skye, a heart is just a muscle that pumps blood. It’s not who you are. It’s not who any of us are.”
“So, you’ll still love me even if I have someone else’s heart?”
“Of course I will. Without question.”
“Promise?”
“I swear.”
She almost smiled but not quite. I knew that she hadn’t exorcized everything that was bothering her.
“There’s something else…” she said after a sniffle.
She looked at me and took one of my hands in both of hers. It was the most proactive she had been since learning her diagnosis.
“I want you to promise me another thing, Severen.”
I didn’t like the plea in her eyes, turning her oceanic gaze stormy.
“What is it?”
“I don’t want to be hooked up to machines. If something happens—”
I didn’t want to hear this. “Skye–”
She didn’t even falter. “...and I don’t wake up–”
“That’s not going to happe–”
“I need you to let me go.”
“Skye-”
“I know Halo and Crux will fight it, but you need to be the pack lead and you need to do what’s right.”
The silence was thick in the air, even the constant beep and whirr of the machines keeping her alive seemed to quiet themselves with the tension brought by this conversation.
