Those Who Wait Book Novels & Stories

Not breaking. Waiting.

Fearful. Waiting.

He thought: the bench has been waiting since Ellie drew it. He thought about all the honest elements waiting — the corner step and the kitchen hatch and the corridor sill in the school and all the honest elements in all the honest rooms still waiting for the attending bodies that would confirm them. He thought about the waiting as the preparation — the room waiting for the person the way December waited for the light. He thought: the honest element waits without impatience. He thought: waiting is part of the preparation. He was glad. End of Chapter Two Hundred and Forty-Three

He became the person Elijah had seen from the beginning, the person Elijah had trusted existed even when there was no evidence, the person Elijah had waited for. The waiting had been the thing. Elijah had waited. Through the contract and the months of proximity and the distance and the apology and the key and the proposal and the wedding and everything after, Elijah had waited. Not passively—actively, choosingly, with the full force of his attention and intention. Elijah had waited by staying. Elijah had waited by showing up. Elijah had waited by refusing to accept the Ice King as the whole story.

A city that has been whole. Holding itself. Waiting — not desperately, not with the held-breath quality of the cities we have helped — but waiting the way things wait when they know what they are waiting for and trust that it will come. "It's been waiting," Neva says. "Yes," I say. "Not in distress," she says. "Not damaged or deteriorating or under pack interference. Just—" She pauses. "Waiting for the right Warden. The way the cartographer's chamber waited. The way the warm stone waited. The way the city of Caldenveil waited."

And at the heart of it all stood Willow & Ink. *** The bookstore looked… perfect. Alex stood just outside the entrance, arms folded, though the gesture did little to mask the restless energy running through him. His gaze kept drifting down the road—again and again—as though sheer willpower might make the car appear faster. “They’ll be here,” Amara said softly from beside him. He exhaled. “I know.” But knowing didn’t make the waiting easier. Behind them, the others had gathered naturally, as if drawn by the same invisible thread.

“They’re doing everything they can.” Lily swayed. Aaron’s arm came around her waist instantly, firm and unyielding, holding her upright as the world tilted dangerously. “Can we see her?” Lily asked desperately. “I’m afraid not right now,” the nurse said. “You’ll need to wait here. A doctor will update you as soon as the surgery is complete.” Wait. The word felt cruel. They were directed to the waiting area, a wide room lined with identical plastic chairs that offered no comfort and no privacy. Lily sat stiffly, hands clenched in her lap, eyes locked on the double doors at the far end of the corridor.

I wait patiently for Keith to show up. We'd made plans to go watch a movie tonight and I must say , I'm looking forward to it. We'd texted back and forth in the afternoon, and he'd suggested that we go out for a movie tonight. Now here I am, still waiting for him. I know that he's a bit late and I have no doubt he might be tied up at work. I just hope he'll be able to make it because if he doesn't, no doubt I'll be a little disappointed but I'll still understand. He is a busy man.

The moment they landed, she abandoned them. "Go by yourselves. I need to find Nora first." Ignoring their calls behind her, she rushed straight to the gates of Northbridge University. She waited there for an entire day, but she never saw her husband or daughter. "Nora Duncan? There isn't anyone by that name in this year's medical school cohort." The student volunteer welcoming freshmen looked at her strangely. "Ma'am, did you remember wrong?" Marissa's mind went completely blank. How could that be? Nora Duncan had clearly been admitted to the clinical medicine program!

"The King already has men watching me. Kill me, and you die today too." My hand shook. The blade trembled against his skin. Then, a bell rang from the end of the street. A long, drawn-out voice called through the rain. "The King's word has come—" Sebastian smiled. He didn't see Charles standing behind the royal herald.