The Fallen |BxB| ✓

12 | His Only;

↞[Ken]↠

I shone the flashlight into the woods, sifting through the trees, hoping things were still the same as before. Three small deodars surrounded a giant conifer, their leaves drooping down like green webs of a spider. They were naturally arranged into a compact triangle with the fir in the center. My lips curled in a victorious smile. "We're here!"

"We're going off trail‽" Luke yelled and pulled my arm back, making me stumble onto his chest.

"Ow! Trust me, will you?" I dragged him with me, walking past the triangle formation. From the way Luke was staring at his marks back at home like they were the most horrific and twisted thing in the world, I knew Yuuri had scrapped into his head. I could only hope that this would make things better for him.

A healthy amount of distraction can't harm anyone.

"Fine, fine," he mumbled beside me.

The trees scattered, revealing a clear path as moonbeams swathed the grass and tips of leaves in pale blue and white. Our soft footsteps got lost in the murmur of flowing waters when we passed the last cluster of trees and stood in a glade. Releasing Luke's hand, I turned to him and beamed. "Welcome to my brooding area!"

Luke's eyes twinkled as he walked past me. "Damn..."

"Discovered entirely by yours truly. I know, this place is awesome." My eyes fell on the evergreen lone Willow tree sitting by the river's edge. It's elongated leaves gently swayed in the winds, some snapping from their stems and rushing downstream.

Luke had already made his way beside the tree. His palm pressed on its bark as he gazed into the ribbon of clear water. "How did you find this place?" he shouted, then bent forward. "There's fish here! And..." He perked up again and turned to me an amused expression. "Can you smell that?"

"Yeah!" The glade was belted with an abundance of Chokeberry bushes. Even in fruiting stages, few had tiny flowers, white petals bared, revealing slender anthers tipped with red dots. They were heavily perfumed with an intoxicating wine-like scent. I plucked a few red berries as I walked to Luke, extending my palm towards him, I said, "Chokeberries."

He picked a handful from my palm and examined one between his fingers. "Edible?" he asked and sniffed the berry. "Fuck. That's a strong aroma."

"Yep, they're kind of bitter, though."

He popped it in his mouth, chewed a little, and scrunched his nose. "That and sour."

Laughing a little, I dropped the rest on the ground and grabbed Luke's arm to pull him on the grass with me. Though wet and frigid, the turf felt soft. Adjusting himself on his elbows, Luke laid with his legs carefreely sprawled in front of the river. I crossed my legs and leaned back, balancing on my palms. Watching the low ridges of ripples in the crystal water, I realized how little had changed, yet in the dynamics of a few months, nothing remained the same. Luke's warm presence in the cold grassland reminded me of his words from hours back. "Talk to me."