Tower of thorns Tower of Fangs Volume 5 chapter 12

 

Chapter 12  The Boy at the Lake

The wilderness had become unbearable. At least according to Eemil. Three weeks had passed since the Chosen arrived in Elyria. Three weeks of monsters. Three weeks of mud. Three weeks of sleeping on rocks. Three weeks of watching idiots die because they thought they were heroes. Eemil was already tired of all of it.

The forest stretched endlessly around him. Dark. Ancient. Silent. Every day looked the same. Trees. Rivers. Ruins. Blood. Survival. The only thing keeping him entertained was avoiding people. Especially the other Chosen. Most of them were annoying. The rest were dead.

Eemil preferred both options. The sun had already begun setting when he found the lake. It appeared suddenly between the trees. A perfect mirror of silver-blue water hidden beneath towering pines. For the first time all day something beautiful. Eemil approached quietly. The forest was unusually silent. No monsters. No birds. No voices. Just water.

Then he saw the light. A pale silver glow drifting downward from the sky. Eemil froze. His first thought was that he had finally lost his mind. The second thought was that maybe dying of exhaustion wasn't so bad after all. Because the figure descending from the heavens was the most beautiful person he had ever seen.

Long black hair flowed behind her. Hair so dark it seemed to drink the evening light. White fabrics drifted around her body. Silver ribbons floated through the air like living moonlight. Her skin looked impossibly pale. Almost luminous. And her eyes even from a distance looked darker than midnight itself. Eemil forgot how to breathe.

The figure landed softly beside the lake. Bare feet touched the grass. The world itself seemed to sigh. Flowers bloomed. The water rippled gently. Even the wind slowed.

Eemil stared. His heart began beating strangely. Fast. Too fast. Something warm exploded inside his chest. His stomach felt weird. His face felt hot.

What was happening? He didn't know. He only knew one thing. She was beautiful. Absurdly beautiful. The most beautiful girl he had ever seen. No contest. Not even close. The figure sat beside the lake. Then slowly removed several layers of flowing outer fabrics. Eemil immediately looked away. Then immediately looked back. Because he was an idiot. The beautiful stranger stepped into the water. Silver ripples spread across the lake. Long black hair floated behind her like liquid night.

Eemil's heart nearly stopped. She moved gracefully. Almost dreamlike. Swimming slowly through the water beneath the fading sunset. Everything about her felt unreal. Like a spirit. Or a goddess. Or some beautiful mistake the world accidentally created. Eemil could not stop staring. He knew he should leave. He knew hiding in bushes and watching a beautiful girl swim was probably questionable behavior.

But his legs refused to move. The stranger emerged from the water. Moonlight reflected from pale skin. Black hair clung to a slender body. The stranger pushed wet hair away from Eemil blinked.

Then blinked again. Then blinked a third time. His brain stopped working. Because the stranger was not a girl.

Not even remotely.

Eemil stared.

The stranger stared at a floating moonlight fairy. Completely unaware he was being watched. Eemil stared harder. Still a boy. Definitely a boy. Without question. Without debate. One hundred percent.

A boy.

Silence.

Then:

"...what?"

The word escaped his mouth. Very quietly. The stranger didn't hear him. Eemil continued staring.

Because surely he was mistaken. Maybe not. Maybe yes. No.

Definitely not. Still a boy.

The realization hit him like a falling tree. And for some reason it made him angry. Not at the stranger. At reality itself. Because reality had lied to him.

A few moments ago everything made sense. Beautiful girl. Immediate attraction. Normal. Understandable.

Now nothing made sense. The stranger was still beautiful. Annoyingly beautiful. Infuriatingly beautiful. That was the problem. Nothing changed.

Eemil still couldn't stop looking.vHis heart was still racing. His stomach still felt strange. His face was still hot. The only difference was now he was confused.

Very confused.

The stranger sat beside the lake. Moonlight reflected across dark eyes. A tiny red dragon hatchling suddenly climbed onto his shoulder. The stranger laughed. A soft sound. Bright. Gentle. Happy.

Eemil immediately hated it. Not because it sounded bad. Because it sounded nice. Far too nice. Everything about this person was nice. The way he smiled. The way he moved. The way he looked at the tiny dragon. The way he seemed genuinely happy doing absolutely nothing.It was irritating.

Eemil folded his arms. Scowling. The stranger laughed again. Eemil's stomach performed another strange flip.

"Stupid."

The word slipped out automatically. The stranger remained completely unaware. Eemil glared harder. Which unfortunately accomplished nothing. Because the stranger somehow became prettier while smiling. That seemed unfair. Possibly illegal. Eemil hated it. The dragon hatchling climbed onto the stranger's head. The stranger laughed again.

Eemil immediately looked away. Then looked back. Then looked away again. Then looked back. This cycle continued for several minutes. Eventually the stranger stood. The dragon settled comfortably upon his shoulder. Silver fabrics drifted around him once more. Moonlight seemed to follow him naturally. The stranger glanced toward the stars.

A small smile touched his lips. Then he began walking into the forest. And just like that he was gone.

The clearing suddenly felt empty. Eemil remained hidden among the trees. Staring at the place where the stranger had disappeared. His chest felt strange. Uncomfortable. Restless. Like something important had just happened. He hated it. He especially hated the fact that he already wanted to see him again. Which was ridiculous. He didn't even know his name. Didn't know where he lived. Didn't know who he was. Yet somehow he couldn't stop thinking about him.

The black hair. The dark eyes. The smile. The laugh.

Everything.

Eemil groaned loudly.

"This is stupid."

The forest offered no disagreement.

Because unfortunately it wasn't. And somewhere deep inside his chest something had already begun. Something that would only grow worse with time.

Much worse.

This is a disaster

complete disaster

Though Eemil had no idea yet.

He only knew one thing.

Tomorrow

he was coming back to the lake.

  The Boy He Couldn't Forget

Eemil hated mornings now. Because every morning began the same way. He opened his eyes. And thought about the strange boy by the lake. The realization made him want to punch something. Usually Matias. Unfortunately Matias punched back. Hard. So Eemil mostly suffered in silence. Mostly. Not entirely.

Because by the third day he finally snapped.

"I saw the weirdest person."

Matias didn't look up from sharpening his knife.

"Congratulations."

Eemil frowned.

"No, seriously."

"Still congratulations."

The painted boy rolled his eyes. Nico sat nearby cleaning a hunting spear. Silent as always. Eemil pointed accusingly at both of them.

"Neither of you are listening."

"We are," Matias said.

"We just don't care."

That wasn't true. Nico was listening. Nico always listened. He simply didn't speak.

Eemil paced. Trying to explain. Failing horribly.

"There's this person."

Matias sighed.

"Here we go."

"He has black hair."

No response.

"Really long black hair."

Still nothing.

"Like absurdly long."

Matias stabbed a whetstone.

"Nico."

"Yes?"

"How long until he realizes he has a crush?"

Eemil nearly tripped.

"I do not."

Matias immediately laughed. Nico hid a smile. Eemil pointed again.

"It isn't like that."

"Then why won't you stop talking about him?"

Silence. Eemil opened his mouth. Then closed it. Then opened it again. Then changed the subject entirely.

"Anyway."

Matias groaned.

"That means yes."

"It does not."

"It absolutely does."

Eemil threw a pinecone at him. Matias threw it back. Harder. Nico watched quietly. His expression thoughtful. Because unlike Matias he was interested. Not in Eemil's obvious crisis. In the person causing it. A beautiful stranger appearing beside an isolated lake? That was unusual. Everything in Elyria was dangerous. Beautiful things especially. But unlike Eemil and Matias Nico had never actually seen him. Not once. Everything he knew came from Eemil's increasingly obsessive descriptions.

The long black hair. The silver ribbons. The strange beauty. The dragon. The lake. At first Nico assumed Eemil was exaggerating. Eemil exaggerated everything. But the more Eemil talked the more curious Nico became. Quietly curious. Silently curious. The kind of curiosity he never voiced aloud. Because every time Eemil mentioned the stranger, his entire personality changed.

He became distracted. Restless. Frustrated. Like someone trying desperately not to think about something while thinking about nothing else.

Nico noticed. Nico noticed everything. The next evening Matias accompanied Eemil back to the lake. Mostly because Eemil wouldn't shut up. Nico did not go.

Not yet. He remained behind at camp. But when the two returned hours later they somehow made everything worse. 

The first thing Matias said was:

"Oh, he's real."

Eemil looked vindicated.

"I told you."

Matias sat down heavily.

Still looking confused.

"No, seriously."

"What?"

"Why is he so pretty?"

Eemil nearly exploded.

"THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING."

The painted boy looked offended.

"That shouldn't be allowed."

"Right?"

"Right."

Nico listened quietly. Neither of them noticed. The conversation continued for nearly an hour. The stranger's hair. The stranger's smile. The stranger's dragon. The stranger's laugh. The stranger's eyes. The stranger's ribbons. The stranger's flowers.

The stranger's everything. Eventually Nico realized something. Neither of them were talking about him like a normal person.

Especially Eemil. Eemil talked about the stranger constantly. Every day. Every meal. Every conversation somehow returned to him. It became impossible not to notice. And impossible not to become curious.

Who exactly was this person? Days passed. Nico still hadn't seen him. But he listened. And listened. And listened. Eemil didn't know his name. Didn't know where he came from. Didn't know what he was. Didn't know why he appeared beside the lake every evening. Yet somehow he talked about him more than anything else in Elyria.

One afternoon Nico finally asked:

"Who is he?"

Which surprised everyone since Nico barely talks. The question quieted everyone. Because none of them knew. Eemil frowned. Thinking. Then shrugged.

"The prettiest person I've ever seen."

The words escaped before he could stop them. Silence. Matias stared. Nico stared. Eemil immediately regretted everything.

Matias burst out laughing.

"Oh, you're doomed."

"Shut up."

"The prettiest person you've ever seen?"

"Shut up."

"You said it like you were dying."

"I hate you."

Matias laughed harder. Nico remained thoughtful. The answer only made him more curious. Because Eemil wasn't the type to talk like that. Not about anyone. Certainly not about some stranger. Something about this mysterious boy had clearly gotten inside his head. The word annoyed Eemil. Beautiful. He hated how often he used it. Beautiful eyes. Beautiful smile. Beautiful hair. Beautiful laugh.

Everything was beautiful.

Why?

Why did a boy look like that? Why couldn't his brain stop noticing? Why couldn't he stop thinking about it? The questions haunted him. Every day. Every night. Every waking moment. It was ridiculous. The Battle Royale should matter. Survival should matter. Power should matter. Becoming a god should matter. Yet somehow the only thing occupying his thoughts was a strange boy sitting beside a lake.

Eemil hated it. He hated the way his heart raced whenever he remembered the stranger smiling. He hated how happy he felt simply watching him. He hated how disappointed he became whenever the stranger left.

Most of all he hated that the stranger was a boy. Because that complicated everything. His feelings made no sense. Nothing made sense. The more he tried to ignore it the worse it became. At night he dreamed about dark eyes. Silver ribbons. Black hair. A gentle laugh.

Then he woke up angry. Only to spend the entire day thinking about him again. It was torture. A very beautiful torture.

One evening Matias finally asked:

"So why don't you just talk to him?"

Eemil nearly choked.

"What?"

"Go say hello."

"No."

"Why?"

Eemil stared at him like he'd suggested suicide.

"What if he hates me?"

Matias blinked. Nico blinked. Eemil blinked. Realizing what he had just admitted. The silence lasted several seconds.

Then Matias started laughing so hard he fell over. Eemil wanted him dead.

"Shut up."

"You like him."

"I don't."

"You do."

"I don't."

"You literally just admitted it."

Eemil threw another pinecone. Matias threw three back. Nico watched quietly. Thoughtfully. Curiously. He still hadn't seen the stranger himself. Not yet. But now he wanted to. Not because of Eemil's obvious crush. Not entirely. There was simply something strange about the whole situation. A mysterious boy appearing beside a hidden lake. A dragon. Silver ribbons. And somehow turning Eemil into an idiot. Nico wanted answers. Though he never said so aloud. 

That night Eemil didn't sleep. Again. Instead he stared at the stars. Thinking. Thinking. Thinking. The Battle Royale. The future. Godhood. Power. Survival. All of it felt distant. Unimportant. A ridiculous thought slowly entered his mind. If he became a god he could have anything. Anything at all. Power. Glory. Kingdoms. Treasures. Anyone.

Maybe even 

No.

The thought immediately made him angry. Because the stranger wasn't something to possess. And because the stranger was still a boy. And because Eemil didn't understand any of this. He groaned into his blanket. The stars offered no advice. Far away beside the lake the beautiful stranger slept peacefully beneath the moon.

Completely unaware. And somewhere inside Eemil's chest the obsession continued growing. Quietly. Patiently. Like the beginning of a disaster. Elsewhere, Nico stared into the darkness.

Listening to Eemil mutter about the stranger in his sleep. For the first time, he found himself wondering what kind of person could leave such an impression.

The curiosity lingered long after everyone else fell asleep. Silent. Patient. Waiting. Soon enough Nico would go to the lake himself.