Dancing Between The Hearts- Tylia and Theo

Chapter 01

"Tap, tap, tap," Oleander's flat shoes echoed as she jogged through the corridor. She brushed sweat from her brow, too tense to think, worried about something unknown. Her heart raced fast, and she held her chest, wishing for ease. Oleander saw rain pounding each drop against the glass window, but she had no time to mind the weather.

Her husband called a moment ago after she had gone to the restroom, urging her to return quickly. His voice was choked as if holding back sadness, but Adam didn't share the details.

"Please, please, please… Please don't let anything bad happen to them," she whispered, sounding like she was praying to God.

As she approached the room, she saw everyone cast their heads down and slumped to the chair outside, hinting at their sadness. There were no words, only the sound of the rain outside.

Halt.

She was speechless.

"What had happened?" she asked herself.

Adam, leaning against the wall, pushed himself up and hurried to his wife. "Olean," he called.

Oleander stared at her husband. She could see his eye bloodshot, stained with tears.

"Tell me what happened?" she demanded. There was no patience in her voice.

"It's over now. The baby didn't make it," Adam said, his voice breaking.

Oleander felt her legs go weak. Her son, Logan, reached to grab her before she fell to the ground. They help her to the nearest chair. "I want to see the baby," she said, trembling.

Logan and Adam helped Oleander into the room. Inside, Matthew was hugging a breathless baby. He heard someone coming and turned around. "Mom," he called.

"She fought so hard. But she was so small, she was fragile," Matthew grieved.

Oleander nodded, sobbing. She tried to control her sadness but failed—the sorrow painted an atmosphere. She wiped her tears away.

Oleander closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. After a moment, she felt relaxed. She said, "I want to have a moment with the baby alone."

They agreed, thinking Oleander wished to cherish the final moment with the baby, so they left the room.

Oleander stepped further and approached the baby's crib. She glanced at the baby, who seemed like she was sleeping. Her cinnamon-brown hair was barely there. Now, she was alone with the baby and had something on her mind. Oleander knew hope lingered quietly, like an unspoken promise.

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ: ☽ :･ﾟ✧:･ﾟ✧

Memory flooded back to the years before she got married. She was a young researcher who joined the expedition, searching for medicine herbs for their research.

It was a dense forest situated at the edge of the world. Humans seldom entered it unless they obtained a permit from the village chief who managed it.

Hunters are completely prohibited from entering, yet a few illegally do.

"Huff," Oleander panted, exhausted after hours of walking in the forest. She had been separated from her group.

Seeing a large root nearby, she approached it, sat down, and rested for a while.

In her hand, there was an empty water bottle.

Thirst.

Oleander rubbed her dry throat. She gazed up at the sky. It was still daytime, but the forest remained shadowed. Only slivers of light broke through the gaps in the leaves.

"Crackle, crackle."

She heard the sound of hushed crackles. She narrowed her eyes and tried to spot where the sound came from.

"Crackle, crackle." Here comes again. It was from the nearby. Oleander feels anxious, afraid it might be a tiger looking for prey.

"Help."

Oleander felt like she heard a faint human voice asking for help. She rose to her feet and slowly approached the source of the sound.

She gasped. I was a wolf trapped under a poacher's snare. The wolf was unlike any other. Its snow-white fur glimmering with a crescent shape on its forehead, and its golden eyes reflected pain and desperation.

She thought for a moment. "Should I help the wolf? Will the wolf me after being freed?"

Oleander gathers her courage. She said, "Please don't eat me after you are free."

She hoped the wolf understood her. She moved close and studied the snared trap before successfully freeing it.

Once more, she was hit by the realisation. It was a rare three-tailed wolf.

She gasped and took steps back, inches away from it, before promptly turning around and taking her steps to run.

The wolf chased and jumped before her. As a result, Oleander stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Don't eat me. Don't eat me," she pleaded.

The wolf moved around her, who was terrified. Then, it faced Oleander.

"Human," the voice made Oleander flinched.

In a trembling voice, Oleander begged, "Please, don't eat me. I just saved you."

"Is that all you care about? I have no desire to eat you, tasteless!" the wolf snorted.

"Look at me!" Oleander heard the wolf angry, and slowly, she lifted her head as their eyes locked.

She plucked her courage and asked, "W…who are you?"

"Kanar, the forest god," the wolf said as Oleander repeated, "Kanar, the forest god… oh my goodness. Please tell me I am dreaming,"

"Snapped it, human. You're not dreaming!" Kanar said. She was annoyed by her attitude.

Kanar opened her mouth and said, "I just wanna show gratitude. You saved my life. I will grant you one wish."

"A wish?" Oleander surprised.

"Yes, you hear me right. When the time comes, call upon me and pray in the name of Kanar, the forest god."

And just like that, the wolf disappeared, replaced by the distant voices calling her name. She safely found her way out of the forest.

⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒

Back in the hospital, Oleander kneeled alone. She knew it was time to claim the promise that Kanar granted her.

With a trembling voice of hope, she began to whisper her prayer, "Dear Kanar, the forest god. Help me, turn my poor grandchild's fate."

After she prayed, the room fell silent for long. Kanar did not answer.

But.

Oleander heard a sound that made her gasp—a tiny, clear cry. The newborn, thought to be lost forever, was breathing once more. Tears streaming down her face.

Oleander whispered, "Thank you, Lord. Thank you for helping."

Lovingly, she gazed at the completely healthy baby. The door room burst open as all her family entered, led by Matthew.

"What happened? The baby… baby is alive?" Matthew claimed. Everyone around stared. The baby kept crying, and Oleander stirred the air, "Hey, someone called Quinn here. She needs to check on the baby."

Quinn was a doctor who attended to the baby. She was also Mattew's sister.

"I called her right now," Lydia said, as she was the first one to respond to her mother.

After that day, Oleander shared her extraordinary prayer and the unfolded miracle. Filled with gratitude, the Jackson and Rogerson families embraced this blessing.

After a few days at the hospital, Lilian and the baby were allowed to return to their house. The maids and the twins greeted their arrival joyfully and laced with the twin's excited voice.

"Mommy, mommy, I want to hug the baby."

"Mommy, why baby always sleeping?"

"Wow, my sister is so cute."

"I want to play with my sister."

The twins' voice chatted endlessly and filled the room lace with the warmth of excitement.

"Alright…Alright…baby needs enough sleep, and mommy needs a rest. Let's play outside and come back after a while. How about that?" Matthew said as he gently suggested to the twins. 

"Daddy, daddy, what's the baby's name? Is it going to start with the letter 'A' like ours?" one of them asked curiously, their tiny voices filled with anticipation.

Matthew bent his knees, squatted and faced the twins. He lovingly held their hand and said, "If her name was a little different from yours, is that okay?"

Amelia answered immediately, "It is okay as long as her name is as beautiful as hers."

Her twin agreed with her answer and nodded vigorously.

"If that's so... your mother and I have decided. We will call her Tylia. What did you think?"

"Wow, it is a lovely name," Amelia said delightfully. Her brother also responded the same way. They jumped with joy as everyone in that household's mood lit up, mirroring their happiness.