Crystal Falls

Chapter 3 Lost No More

"Lucious!?" I practically yelled, with a shocked looked on my face. I sat straight up, my vision just coming back to me. "It is you Lucious, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is me Ezra.", he says with a smile, sitting next to me. "My family is here as well."

"I thought..." I say, with tears coming down my eyes," I thought you were dead."

Lucious looks me in the eyes, while holding my hands with a tender and serious tone in his voice.

"I thought we were going to die. I thought you and your family weren't going to make it out alive either." I notice a heavy weight seemed like it was pressing down on his chest while he was trying to speak.

"I thought I was never going to see you again Ezra." He grabbed my hands tighter. "When me and my family drove off, we drove for nearly an hour. It was the longest hour of my life. Seeing all the dead lands and no blue birds and no sounds of bugs chirping made it even worse."

I pull my hand out of his hands, which is pretty hard considering the grip he has. I try to calm him by brushing his hands and hair. "Why did you turn back?" I knew deep down in my heart why.

"I turned back for you." My heart skipped a beat, while he took my hand and caressed my cheek. "My family and I both just knew that we couldn't leave you, or your family. So, we decided to turn around and drive back, but we couldn't go back the way we came." He has a stress in his voice.

"Ezra, the rebels have become more aware of where people go and they will track you down from your prints and follow you. We couldn't let that happen. So, we drove through the country side, through the destroyed lands and trees." Disgust in his voice, as he spoke.  "It was a horrible sight. I thought there would be more free, untouched, undamaged lands, but there weren't."

He stops talking for a second, looking down to the rock ground. He tries to catch his breath from remembering the sight. I could tell it bothered him deeply. It bothers me as well. If it didn't bother us, there would be something wrong.

I take my hand and lift his chin up, our eyes meeting.  "Tell me what happened to you and your family," I say with a sincere tone in my voice. "I know it's difficult, it was difficult for my family, and still is. That time when we thought we would never see your family again, who cared for more than just materialistic things. We thought almost all was lost when we were separated in a blink of an eye, seeing your family ripped apart from ours. That took it's toll on us. We had to be strong, like you all are. We found a small area of land among the dark plains, and have been trying are best to stay unseen by the rebels."

I stop talking for a second, looking up at Lucious and say, " Seeing you here startled me."  I say to him, confused.  "Not in a bad way.  How can you be here Lucious? Where is here, exactly I still don't know the answer to that. My family and I have been through these lands a few times and not once have we thought about going in these meadows. We should have, and maybe we would have found you earlier."

I am a crazy girl, I think, while I let out a sad giggle. Here I am again, giggling, at a time I don't need to be.  I am though, because I am so happy to see Lucious alive, and safe.  Sad, because all this time I thought the worst.

I still don't know where I am, except that I am enclosed inside rock walls, and there is a pathway leading to a few different areas. It's not pitch black, so I can tell that much from glancing beyond him for just a moment.  I think back to the flower I remember seeing.

"What about the flower?" I say confused. "I remember colors and a myst, but that's about it."

Lucious puts his finger up against my lips, "sshhh...", leaning towards my face and puts his lips on mine. I kiss him back. Oh I missed the touch of his skin, and the warm embrace of him. I can tell he missed me too, his hands on my head, like he was holding the most delicate flower in the world. It is true, I am like a flower to him, I think smiling.  My arms wrapped around his shoulders.