Part 10 (1/2)

A rumbling chuckle echoed from behind me.

”What's so funny? It is harder to navigate at night, you know.”

He reached across the tree that lay between us and tucked the fallen strand of my hair back behind my ear.

”We aren't cocreating,” came his voice, huskier than his laugh.

”Huh?”

I had trouble remembering what we'd been talking about. All I could manage to focus on was how close he was to my face and how his hand lingered.

”You're doing the creating, I'm just along for the ride.” He waited with his eyebrows raised and a crooked little sideways grin on his face.

”I'm creating this? No, I wouldn't,” I said in disbelief.

”I know I'm not creating anything at the moment. I'm having too much fun watching what you're coming up with all on your own.”

”Oh.” I could feel my face becoming hot. The night air, that moments ago had been so cool, was now uncomfortably warm.

”Maybe you made the route difficult so that I'd have to a.s.sist you up over every obstacle?”

”I wasn't thinking at all!” I sputtered.

”I know. That's what I'm enjoying about it the most,” said Trevor.

”You what?” My voice sounded high-pitched and screechy. As I finally got myself untangled from Trevor and the tree I was straddling, I stepped back and noticed the new lettering that glowed white against the black of his T-s.h.i.+rt: I REJECT YOUR REALITY AND SUBSt.i.tUTE MY OWN.

I plopped my forehead into my hands. ”Okay, Lowry, I get it, you're messing with me. I'm not completely used to this lack of hostility between us.” I braved a peek and said, ”I don't remember how wea”I mean the past-life Elliot and Trevora”were with each other after we learned each other's darkest fears and failures. Even though I don't remember it, I have a strange feeling that things between us got a bit better. Maybe we found some hope to hang on to.”

I wondered how big hope could actually grow.

”I don't remember either,” he said. ”But if we base our a.s.sumptions about us on what we actually know, you do realize that it's not pretty.”

He kept his tone light as he said this, but I knew he wasn't off the mark.

”You're right.” I plopped down next to him. ”It's crazy.”

I glanced over at Trevor's tousled hair. I impulsively reached up and ran my fingers through the silky black strands and squeezed my eyes shut, internally bracing myself. ”It might be possible that Ia”that I wanted you near me.” I didn't dare peek at him as I made the admission.

I felt his warm breath in my ear. ”If I promise to be near you, do you think you could create an easier path up to wherever it is that you're taking me?”

My eyes popped open. His face was unreadable.

”I can do that. Yeah, I can definitely do that,” I said, grabbing his hand. I had no idea what I was doing, but I decided I didn't have to think about it. Within moments we found ourselves spiraling into another Delve, hand in hand.

a a a My vision came into focus and I found myself staring up into the canopy of a mature maple tree. The sun was directly overhead and the wind was blowing just enough that bits of light danced everywhere, like water bugs shooting across the surface of a pond.

Lying there, I felt calm. I couldn't remember the last time I hadn't felt dead or dying on the inside. It was like finally breathing after being underwater.

I could feel the cool ground supporting the length of my body. Spa.r.s.e blades of gra.s.s tickled the backs of my knees. My head was propped up on Trevor's stomach, slowly rising up and down in time to his breathing.

”Do you like it better over here? Not so hot, huh?” came Trevor's voice.

I turned my head and saw Oliver's bench gleaming in the hot sun.

”Yeah, this is better,” I said, remembering how we'd sat in the bright white sun all last week, getting to know the very worst things about each other. It was almost as if we'd let the sun bleach away our personal shortcomings.

”What made you think to come over here?” I asked.

”I'm not sure.” He paused long enough that I wasn't positive he would continue, but he did. ”It was your face, I think. Your cheeks were so red and flushed; I was worried that you might pa.s.s out from heat stroke. Then who would I talk to while hanging out at the local cemetery?”

I'd spent enough time with him now to know that the teasing sound in his voice would correspond to a twisted little smirk near the corner of his mouth. It was thrilling to finally be able to know some of his nuances.

”Thank you,” I said, returning to the comfortable silence we'd been sharing. There'd been so many words and tears over the last week. Now it was a quieter time.

The sky was bright blue and the clouds were exquisite. They were billowing and pristine as they rollicked across my line of vision. When they pa.s.sed across the sun in just the right place, they appeared illuminated from within.

”Do you think it looks like that?” Trevor said.

”Do I think what looks like what?” I asked.

”Heaven.”

How could one word invoke so many mysteries?

”It seems just like I always imagined Heaven. These really are the kind of clouds a Heaven would exist in,” I said.

”That's what I was thinking, buta”” He sucked in a deep breath. ”I think that would be too easy. I used to believe that clouds were a fine place for Heaven, until I understood that people could fly above them. It sort of ruined it for me.”

”Did you stop believing in the afterlife?” I asked, a hint of reservation in my voice.

”Not sure exactly. I guess I always figured there's a place that you go, but I stopped thinking of it being in the clouds. It seems childish to think that way.”

He hadn't asked anything else, so I allowed him to ruminate.

”Where do you think he is?” The questioned ripped raggedly from the depths of him. He wanted to know about Oliver.

”I don't know, Trevor. I don't know the answer to that any more than I know where I'm headed after what I've done.” The words skittered shakily, fear catching in my throat.

A cloud pa.s.sed over the sun, leaving Oliver Lowry's bench cool, black, and lonely.

a a a There was hardly any disorientation as we came out of this Delve. We were getting used to hurtling around on the s.p.a.ce-time continuum. I was still holding Trevor's hand. We weren't sprawled across each other on the ground. I wondered if that was significant at all. Were we gaining some control?

”Well, that was interesting,” said Trevor.

”It's all interesting, but what do you mean exactly?” I gave him a tiny nudge in the ribs, still unsure if he recognized the humor in my voice when I was teasing him.