THESE HIDDEN WINGS

[78.1] TO HIM

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"Have you brought me what I asked for?"

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THE BASKETBALL SCORED perfectly into the hoop, my eyes following it as it bounced out of sight.

My gaze shifted to the boy in the middle of the court who made no move to retrieve it instead, turning around so suddenly I had to duck, my back against the white hallway walls, breathing in softly my heart thudding against my chest, the fear of being seen clawing at my chest.

It was just total bad luck that above all places on Kingsland Harvest could have been in this instant, he chose to be here.

What sort of messed-up coincidence was this?

I shook my head glancing down the hallway for a sign of David but when nothing happened I could feel myself eye-roll. I wondered if he knew he was alone there or if was he simply too invested in The Cube to see that I was gone.

I had an option, I could scramble down the hallway back to David, pick him up, and leave or I could stay here and see what Harvest was doing this far away from everyone else.

Everyone on Kingsland seemed to know that Harvest was a loner but this seemed way too secluded even for someone with that kind of label.

What was I getting myself into? How many bad decisions could I make in one lifetime?

My breathing slowly adjusted and after a few more seconds I decided to peek through the glass windows on the door, noticing he had only turned to face the bleachers, his tone low but seemingly sharp,

"If she said it then there isn't much left to discuss," he grunted, folding his arms, "inform Ambrose of his part in the matter-" he said stiffly, and my eyebrows creased moving slightly to see if there was anyone else in the room with him but before I could do anything he suddenly stopped.

My heart seemed to freeze with him, my eyes trailing down to his fingers and the rings that lined them as he tapped his arm. I could see his jaw momentarily click before taking long strides toward his black coat that lay by the benches, grabbing it, and putting it on.

"Have you brought me what I asked for?" he suddenly asked, fixing his coat before turning around to me.

I stood outside the glass door looking at him wide-eyed, mind searching for ways he could have known I was here. 

I decided I was going to play along with this part because I had been caught twice now already. I looked down at the pendant that I had been fiddling with in my jacket pocket for a second before looking back at him, his vibrant blue prison's staring right at me.

In that instance, I was kind of glad I had the pendant for an excuse.

I didn't know how else I would have been able to explain to him that he had caught me for what felt like the billionth time spying on him.

I took a deep breath out digging inside for any loose courage, building it up within me. I opened the door to the gym and took a step in but froze a second later when what felt like a strong gust of wind blew right by me, the loose curls in my hair blowing up at the sudden rush.

My eyebrows creased even though still imprisoned in his, before slowly turning back to see what it was that had moved so fast by me.

Nothing.

I could have sworn something had just passed by.

I turned around looking for what could have caused that, my eyes sweeping the full length of the room but coming up short.

There was no one there with him. My eyes landed on him, but his eyes had never left me, still standing beside the bench.

Who had he been talking to if he had been all alone? Was he some kind of crazy nut?

I felt uncomfortable at this thought only because the last thing I wanted to do was to be in one of the many rooms in the cube with a convert who could not only control minds but was also slightly crazy.

Nope, thinking that way would do nothing but stress me out further.

I needed to get out of here.

My lips pursed, clenching my fists before walking straight towards him. He tucked his hands in his jacket casually as I approached, his eyes settling down on me when I finally stopped a good foot in front of him.

Glancing at him for a moment, I pulled out the trinket, holding it out to him as it rested on the palm of my hand.

He looked down at it and then at me momentarily before taking it, his thumb rubbing against the front part just for a second before he tucked it safely in his coat pocket. 

He didn't say anything after this, gingerly walking past me and out the door.

I turned as he left, my eyebrows creasing at the action. It seemed all too sudden to me. Did he know I would be here? Scratch that, what was What is he doing here? Scratch that again, where was he going?

I speed-walked toward the door to catch a glimpse of where he was headed, curiosity suddenly spiking through me, but there was no one walking in the long hallway which seemed impossible.

I walked further out still searching but not understanding why I wanted to know where he had gone, eventually finding myself by the cube, David's form coming into view.

He seemed to be now studying the structure of the building turning around only moments later,

"Can you imagine how much glass it took up to build the entire thing?" he huffed, rubbing his chin momentarily, "and we haven't even started talking about weight support," he added, his eyes widening.

I looked at him in disbelief.

I doubt he even noticed I was gone for at least ten minutes.

He didn't seem to pay me any mind as he took a few steps farther away from the building ultimately drawing closer to me as he stared at it with awe.

"Magnificent," he stated.

I studied the side of his face as if waiting for a punch line but when none came, I caved in looking back up at the Center Cube before a smile dawned on me, finally taking a moment to appreciate the building and the sudden hope that lit within me.

"Yes, it is," I signed.

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Who was Harvest talking too? Btw, David is so clueless, bless his heart 🥹
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