Part 1
Susan has violet eyes... one of the Sins has violet eyes... oh God, what if she's trying to trick me again...?

How long he had been in the hospital no longer mattered to Nathan as he kept his eyes locked with Susan's. He could feel his blood running cold again, as if he was still stuck in that freezer, and as far as he was concerned, he may as well be. His heart raced, but he tried to hide his rising panic, especially when Susan looked at him in confusion, those violet eyes staring back at him inquisitively.

"Nathan?" she asked, searching his face. "Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost..."

"I'm fine," he croaked, knowing he'd said it too quickly when Susan's brows knotted.

"You don't seem fine. Is it something I said?"

"No, nothing you said." Dread filled Nathan. Was it legitimate fear or mere paranoia? He couldn't be sure, and that uncertainty made it worse. "Why were you waiting for me to wake up again?"

Susan opened her mouth, perhaps to repeat that she had been worried about him, but then slowly closed it again, lips pressed thin and turning down in a frown. Her face turned an even deeper shade of red, and she tucked a few loose strands of her hair behind her ear while she rose from her seat. She wrung her hands together as she shuffled towards the door. "I told you why," she said quietly, looking back at Nathan. For a moment, it looked like she would say more, but she again turned away, walking out and leaving him alone in his room.

It took a few seconds longer before Nathan allowed himself to relax, and even then his shoulders were still tense. "I'm losing my mind," he muttered to himself, closing his eyes while he sank back into his pillow and took several deep, calming breaths. The longer he thought about it, the less sense it made and the more guilty he felt. He had never really paid attention before; maybe Susan's eyes had always been that color. It wasn't like with the angels, who all had oddly colored eyes to begin with. Though rare, violet was a color that occurred naturally in humans, and he shouldn't have panicked the way he did. If she had been the Sin, then he'd just tipped his hand and let her know he knew. Alone as he was at that moment, he could have put himself in a lot of danger revealing that. On the other hand – as the case seemed to be – his abrupt suspicion about Susan's motives for waiting for him to wake, that it couldn't simply be that she was worried for him, clearly hurt her feelings. Her reaction said everything: she had been worried, but he hadn't believed her.

"I'm an ass," Nathan grumbled, rubbing his hand across his face before he opened his eyes and sat up again. He was only half-surprised he didn't start when he saw Gabriel standing in the corner, watching him intently, and smiled despite himself as he stared back. "Is it bad that I'm getting used to you appearing out of nowhere?"

The angel gave him a bemused smile in return and shook his head. "I used the door this time, but I suppose you didn't hear me." The smile faded. "But I feel as if I've missed something important. What happened? She was very anxious when you were brought in unconscious."

Nathan groaned and rubbed his hand across his face again. "Stupid panic attack. Probably half to do with my social phobia, half to do with the fact that she has violet eyes." He looked across at Gabriel. "One of the Sins has violet eyes."

"I wouldn't know, but I don't doubt you," the angel said with a shrug. "Though I have to ask how you came to this information."

"Back in the warehouse, I was tricked by one of the Sins disguised as Micah. His eyes shifted from gold to violet after he'd locked the door."

"Disguised as Micah..." Gabriel echoed quietly, looking out the window for a moment before he turned to Nathan again. "He mentioned you were wary of him."

"I didn't want to make the same mistake twice," the writer admitted with a shrug. "I didn't want to hand that kid over to the Sin again." He paused. "How is he? The boy? Is he alright?"

Gabriel smiled and nodded, moving beside the bed. "He's fine and back with his mother." He touched Nathan's arm. "You'll be able to leave soon, now that you're awake. I'm sure the doctors will be pleased to see you conscious and in good health."

Nathan groaned and wrinkled his nose. "I'll be pleased to get out of here. I've spent way too much time here as is." He raised an eyebrow. "How long have I been here anyway?"

"About two weeks," the angel told him casually. "It's almost Thanksgiving. Alton wants to have everyone over for a good meal and to discuss the, um, rewrites he had to make." Gabriel smiled brightly. "Are you in?"

Thanksgiving. Nathan didn't hear much after Gabriel mentioned the holiday coming up. It was almost Thanksgiving, and he hadn't gotten in touch with his family since moving. Had it already been so long? When the rest of what the angel had said registered, he turned and gave him a halfhearted smile. "Can I get back to you on that one? I want to see what my folks are up to first. I sort of promised I'd be home for Thanksgiving, though I am lacking a car now."

"Oh." Gabriel didn't seem shocked so much as worried. "Well, get back to us when you know. Alton will want to plan accordingly." He moved away from the bed and towards the door quickly, as if there was something more he wanted to avoid. "I'll let the doctors know you're awake."

He left before Nathan could ask any questions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The third time the call went to the answering machine, Nathan left a message.

"Hey Mom, Dad. It's me, Nathan." He wondered if he was hiding the disappointment in his voice well enough. "I was just wondering what plans are for Thanksgiving. I know I haven't called in a while..." He tried to keep it brief, mentioning his lack of vehicle and the difficulty he'd have getting back home for the holiday without a ride. He promised he'd try, but he really needed to know what their plans were before he stopped by. He didn't want to show up only to find they had decided to go out this year. He left his number (even though he knew they already had it) then hung up before moving towards the couch and sinking down onto the cushions.

"Maybe I should email them too," he wondered out-loud to himself. It wasn't typical for his parents not to answer the phone, and they were usually home around this time of day. Unless things had changed. Nathan thought they might have at least told him, but then, they had no reason to. He'd hadn't lived at home in a long time, and they were no more obligated to tell him of changes in their routine as he was to tell them of changes in his.

Then again, they hadn't called him since he moved either.

Before he could linger on that thought, his phone rang. Nathan quickly answered it, hoping it was his parents. "Hello?"

"Hi Nathan. It's Alton."

"Oh. Hi."

"You sound disappointed."

"I'm waiting on a call from my parents..."

"Then I'll keep it short." He heard Alton clear his throat. "I wanted to know if you'd like to join me for Thanksgiving. Just a small gathering: you, Gabriel, Micah. I invited Enya and her brother, and they both said they'd come. I think Susan will be here too."

Figures, Nathan thought. "I don't know... that's what I'm waiting on from my parents: Thanksgiving plans."

"Well, give me a call when you know. You know I'm almost always available."

"Will do, Alton."

"Goodbye, then."

"Later."

After he hung up, he check his phone, just in case: no missed call. Thanksgiving was only a couple days away, and any travel plans he'd need to make would have to be done today. He had to decide.

I wish I could get a hold of my parents and get this taken care of, but is it worth waiting? Why haven't they called at all in the two months I've been here? Granted, I haven't called them either, but still...

Should I wait or go ahead and make my plans?