Page 88 of The Order: Rise of the New Empire

Fresh air.

Taking a step outside, the dirt collides with my bare feet, my smile growing at the energy coursing through the Earth.

"I will wait behind the door," he snaps, slamming the heavy metal door with little to no care.

Hearing nothing but the wind rattle what I can only assume are tree branches, I take another deep breath.

So, this is what the outside world smells like-

"Forest?" Xavier's voice whispers, all of my focus pulling away from the sweet smell of freedom.

Only a little bit ahead of me, I scramble forward, tripping over something large and warm, my body nearly slamming into the ground. Feeling his bound hands grab my body before I can hitanything, his energy floods his veins, his warmth something I have never felt before.

"I'm sorry," he whispers. "I was sitting down-"

"Xavier?" I say with utter shock, reaching my bound hand toward his face, feeling until I have found his mask strapped to his face.

"Who else would it be?" he jokes, keeping his hands on my arms.

"He's still watching us," Xavier whispers, keeping his voice down. "I can sense it."

Wanting nothing more than to see his face, I regrettably slip into Melanie's husband's mind once more.

"Turn away,"I urge, confident he has looked away.

Tearing off Xavier's mask, he lets out a gasp, clearly shocked by the adjusting it takes to be outside after so much isolation.

"You're beautiful," he whispers, my hands pausing their actions, my cheeks flooding with red.

What did he say?

Confused by the emotions coming over me, I take a seat on the ground before him, now nervous to take off my mask.

"I'm sorry if that was too straight forward-"

"I have an idea of you in my head," I smile, cutting the boy off. "Over the past few years, I have formulated this grand picture of you, one that has brought me comfort, even on my worst days," I sigh, reaching for the bottom of my mask. "It was not that you were too straightforward," I admit. "It's that I fear you might be better than what I could have imagined."

Pulling up the bottom of the mask, I keep my eyes closed, nervous to pry them open.

Slowly prying open my eyes, I blink back the haze, startled to see his pair of golden blue eyes watching me, the face before me one even the loveliest dream could not have conjured up.

Light gray curls and a warm smile that is far from unnerving, he has a perfect set of teeth, the kindness in his eyes filling me with a warmth I can now, never shake.

Staring at him in disbelief, I lower my hands down, clinging onto his own as we both stare at one another in utter disbelief.

"See," he whispers. "I'm not scary," he admits, both of us cracking a smile.

Reaching my hands forward, I touch his face, rolling my thumbs over his cheeks.

"You're real?" I question, a relief I never knew I needed to feel washing over me.

"As real as you, Forest," he whispers, gathering my hands in his own.

Taking a look around, we are surrounded by a metal cage, a thick forest crowding the space beyond the fence.

Completely closed in, I look behind me at the metal door Melanie's husband's back turned toward us, the Call effective in every way it needed to be.

Looking toward the ground, grass and dirt welcome us, wildflowers sprouting out of the earth.

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