Nicolas’ fingers were wrapped around Ryan’s yet again as they stepped through the darkness.

  It was close to four-thirty in the morning, meaning they didn’t have a whole lot of time before the sun came up.

  “Can the kako see in the dark?” Nicolas asked as they cut in between two buildings.

  They had begun walking along the water, heading the direction they’d walked last time. However, this time they had continued forward, where they came to what appeared to be some kind of factory: Ryan had called it the treatment plant.

  “I’m not sure, I’ve never met one,” he said, answering Nicolas’ question.

  “I don’t think you’d want to,” Nicolas laughed as he remembered the kako from the train. Those dark, coal-colored eyes, and the hissing voice of a serpent. He also remembered his other kako encounter, in the crowhouse.

  “Welcome to Charimone, Eklek boy.”

  The words sounded weird in his head; like it wasn’t something he actually remembered, but rather, something he thought with his own mind. The way memories of dreams feel different than actual memories.

  The buildings on both sides of them created a shadow, so large it submerged them in darkness as they continued forward. A thin layer of clouds covered the night sky, orange moonlight glowing through the clouds like a nebula.

  “Where are we going?” Nicolas asked as they came to a spot where the sewage treatment plant ended, and a forest began.

  “You’ll see,” Ryan replied as they stepped into the trees.

  Up ahead, Nicolas noticed a dark shape laying on an old stump. At first he thought it was a shadow, until it stood up. Two small, circular yellow eyes beamed up at them, its face striped with gray and black feathers.

  Nicolas and Ryan both jumped backward in fright, startled as the creature revealed a five-foot long wingspan, stretching its striped wings out through the darkness. The owl blinked its glowing eyes, before flapping its wings with a powerful force, lifting it into the sky and filling the silent night with the low hum of flapping.

  Once the noise had faded into the distance, Nicolas’ heartbeat began to slow back down, and he glanced at Ryan. They both looked at each other for a few moments; before erupting into laughter.

  It was a kind of relieved laugh, like a ‘thank goodness it was just an owl’ type laugh, but it felt really good. It was like all the anxiety and worry he’d felt since passing through that mirror, all seemed meaningless for a second: Like that bubble of calmness, the bubble that popped when Sam died, had been resurrected for just a moment.

  Nicolas realized then that he and Ryan had moved closer to each other; so close that their shoulders were touching.

  He moved away quickly, a flash of awkwardness washing through him. “So,” he began, “do you even know where we’re going?”

  “Somewhere Kevin told me about,” Ryan replied. This kind of surprised Nicolas, since he rarely ever saw Kevin talk to anyone.

  “When?”

  “I don’t remember,” Ryan replied. “Time’s weird in there.”

  This seemed like a believable answer to Nicolas.

  “There,” Ryan pointed forward, toward a glowing light ahead. It was bright; like a star had fallen from heaven and landed on the forest floor. Nicolas and Ryan moved toward it, and as they got closer, it started to look bigger.

  It was a rock, about the size of a truck tire. It shimmered in the moonlight as if it’d been covered in white and yellow glitter.

  He never knew something as simple as granite could be so pretty, but it was. The moon reflected off the shiny, quartz pieces like diamonds buried in stone.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Nicolas asked.

  “Yeah,” Ryan agreed, but his eyes weren’t pointing at the rock. Instead, he was looking through the forest; as if he was searching for something.

  He must’ve spotted what he was looking for, because before Nicolas knew what was happening, Ryan was moving again, pulling Nicolas behind him like a dog on a leash. Up ahead, was another glowing speck of light, and when they got closer, he saw that it was yet another unnaturally shiny granite boulder. This one was smaller, and less ball-shaped than the first one, but it was still quite large.

  This time, Nicolas noticed the third light without having to have Ryan show him.

  “It’s like a trail!” he gasped, the thought of them following a trail of sparkly rocks through the forest seeming like something straight out of a fairytale, filling his heart with a rush of dorky excitement.

  The next rock was even smaller, almost the size of a softball. It rested on top of an old, fallen tree, embedded into a crack as if it had been placed there by a person.

  But by who? he wondered, but immediately had a different question: And why?

  “Is granite usually so shiny?” Nicolas asked. The stone reflected the moonlight into his eyes like a diamond, or a piece of glass. He’d never seen granite do that before.

  “I don’t think so.”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Nicolas glanced around the forest, searching for another rock. At first, he didn’t see anything, but as the clouds moved, more moonlight fell onto the forest, and another faint glow illuminated through the distance, like a star appearing through the clouds.

  Nicolas and Ryan both started moving at the same time, as if it were a race.

  When they got to the stone, they found that this one was much bigger than the other one. The top was flat, and the left side pointed outward slightly, so it looked as if it could tip over and fall at any minute. However, upon further inspection, Nicolas decided that a good bit of it was probably buried partially underground.

  “That way,” Ryan said, pointing left.

  Nicolas followed him as they walked through the forest in what felt like a random direction.

  “Are you sure you know where we’re going?” Nicolas asked, wincing as a spiky plant grabbed his leg, snagging him and leaving a white scratch on his ivory skin.

  “About seventy percent sure, yeah,” Ryan replied as he stomped on some of the briers so Nicolas could get through without hurting himself anymore than he already had.

  “Geez, sounds like pretty good odds,” Nicolas said sarcastically. “Doesn’t that mean we’re also thirty percent lost?”

  “Not lost, just on an adventure.”

  Nicolas laughed, though it came out as more of a giggle.

  He knew they had made it to their destination, even before Ryan had confirmed it.

  In front of them, sat a mountain of rocks and gems, reflecting the moonlight like glass in a tide pool. The whole pile of boulders seemed to almost glow with white and pink and gold crystals.

  “Wow,” Nicolas whispered, not sure what else to say. It was breathtaking. The tallest rock, which poked into the air like a flag, stood at least ten feet up, where it split into two. And within the hollowed crack, the rock sparkled with millions of white and pink quartz.

  “What is this place?”

  “Kevin called it Neverland,” Ryan replied.

  “It’s magical.”

  There were many different flat spots on the rocks, which looked perfect for picnics. Most of the rocks were bigger than Nicolas was, which didn’t exactly say much, since he was practically built like a twelve-year-old, despite being seventeen.

  However, most of the rocks were almost Ryan’s size: Some even seemed to connect together like clumps of shimmering, magical modeling clay.

  “How do you think he found this place?” Nicolas asked, wondering how it was possible for someone to find something this breathtaking.

  That was when Nicolas remembered that he and Ash also had their own secret, special place.

  Was this Kevin’s crowhouse?

  “I don’t know, he didn’t tell me.”

  “Do you think he’d mind you showing me, though?”

  “No,” Ryan replied. Then hesitantly, he added, “He said I could.”

  The thought of Ryan and Kevin talking about him made Nicolas feel strangely bashful.

  What did they say about me?

  “So, Kevin knows we’ve been sneaking out?” he asked, the thought suddenly coming to him.

  “Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that,” Ryan laughed awkwardly. “Apparently he saw us that second time.”

  “So he told you, but not me?” Nicolas asked, trying to imagine the scenario in his head.

  “It’s… kind of complicated. We were talking about something different, and he ended up bringing up how he saw us sneaking out again.”

  “What were you two talking abo—”

  “Want to climb up?” Ryan cut him off.

  “I- yeah sure,” Nicolas replied, trying to shake the growing confusion rising in his mind, and the thought that maybe, there was something Ryan wasn’t telling him.

  They moved toward the rocks, which twinkled in the darkness.

  They climbed until they found a nice flat area to sit.

  Ryan sat down on the flat surface, and Nicolas followed his lead, sitting crisscross, unlike Ryan, who had one leg pulled toward him, with his knee pressing against his chest, and the other stretched out across the stone. The forest around them sang with nocturnal forest dwellers; frogs and crickets; a small mouse shifting through the briers, an owl somewhere in the distance.

  “So, what now?” Nicolas asked after just listening to the wilderness for a while. It was like a natural lofi song.

  “I’m fine with just this,” Ryan replied. “Just us, and the big wide world.”

  There was a weird, tingly feeling in his chest at those words, like his heart decided to beat reverse for just a moment.

  Just us.

  ***

  The sky had turned to a masterpiece of gold, blue, and white as the morning sun slowly got closer to the horizon. It hadn’t even shown its head yet, but already the sky was starting to change, and the darkness was disappearing.

  Nicolas and Ryan had done this multiple times by now, but still, he never got used to the euphoric feeling that came with sneaking out, or the strange feelings Ryan made him feel.

  They successfully snuck into the apartment building without being caught by Kevin or Ash, at least it appeared that way. Kevin was nowhere to be seen, and Ash was asleep still. Normally, Ash was up pretty early in the morning, but Nicolas guessed the constant darkness, and inability to really tell the time was why they’d recently been sleeping later than usual.

  This day was no different. Nicolas and Ryan snuck through the front door, seemingly unnoticed, and Ryan quietly slid the door shut, allowing the darkness to swallow them once more. Nicolas had mostly gotten used to the claustrophobia by this point, but only because he knew that before long, they’d sneak out again. Nicolas rubbed his eyes, which felt so tired that it made the night with Ryan feel like a long, beautiful dream. He remembered pulling all-nighters before, but never remembered being this sleepy.

  “We should probably get some rest,” Ryan whispered, the exhaustion making his voice sound deeper.

  “Yeah,” Nicolas replied, without anything to add. He and Ryan stumbled through the darkness, almost tripping like drunkards as they made their way to the bed, where they had both been sleeping.

  “Do you think it’s weird?” Nicolas asked quietly as they both lay on the sheetless mattress. “Sharing a bed, I mean.”

  “Do you think it’s weird?”

  Nicolas didn’t know how to answer that. Sure, it made him awkward, but did he think it was weird?

  “Yeah,” Nicolas replied, then he smiled slightly. “But I’m weird too, so I guess it’s okay.”

  “Everybody’s weird, " Ryan replied, and Nicolas could hear a smile through his voice. “But that just makes us cool, and I think you’re the coolest.”

  Nicolas smiled bigger at the compliment, though he didn’t really believe he was cool. “Doesn’t that just mean I’m also the weirdest, then?”

  “Shh,” Ryan shushed him, touching his finger to Nicolas' lips gently. “You’re just the coolest.”

  Nicolas’ heart was speeding fast now, pumping blood through his face like he’d just publicly embarrassed himself, only, this feeling was anything but bad.

  What’s happening to me?

  Nicolas didn’t say anything after that. Instead, he just closed his eyes, letting his emotions spin him in circles like he was high, as he drifted to sleep with Ryan’s hand still in his; both of them ignorant of the tragedy that would soon shake their lives.