RED PETALS ~epilogue ♡ EarthMix (White Thorns' 2nd book)

2.

- N'Mix? Mixxiw, can you hear me? - A tall boy named Earth woke up on soft grass, then stood up and the first thing he did was call out for a loved one. As he drifted off to sleep, nestled against the icy gravestone, he still held onto the deep belief that he would see him in a moment. Sadly, that moment never came...

Earth brushed the dew off his pants and looked up at the sky. A beautiful sunrise was spreading across the horizon.

- Is it morning? - He asked himself, surprised. He remembered that when he left this world, it was late afternoon.

- Is this what heaven looks like? - Earth wrinkled his nose in disgust. Well, he was expecting something much better.

There was nothing special about the place where he stood. He was in a meadow, but... this meadow was beautiful, literally covered with flowers. In front of him, he noticed a path made of white rose petals, leading towards the sun. He took a step forward, but stopped in concern.

- Mixxiw, where are you? - He turned in the other direction. What his eyes saw was the opposite of what he had seen a moment ago.

Behind him was a forest, untouched by any ray of sunlight. The trees were planted closely together, one after another, so that no one would even think of entering there.

What caught Earth's attention was a red rose growing at the base of one of the trees. The boy walked towards it without hesitation. To his surprise, he then spotted a path in the depths of the forest, also covered with rose petals, but unlike the previous ones, these petals were red.

Earth entered deep into the forest, stepping on delicate petals. He felt the cold and looked down at his feet, which had turned a scarlet color. He touched the liquid that clung to his skin with his finger and brought it closer to his nose. He shuddered in disgust, sensing a metallic scent.

- No, it's not possible...- He thought, but he was well aware that this was no ordinary paint. What's more, blood has such a specific smell and appearance that it's hard to mistake it for anything else.

Earth followed the path he had chosen, leaving bloody traces behind. Stuck in total darkness, he didn't know how much time had passed since he last felt the pleasant rays of the sun.

It seemed to him that he had been walking for a very long time. He also hoped that he hadn't gotten lost, as the landscape remained the same the whole time - a dark forest with densely planted trees.

At one point, the trees parted, and the boy's eyes were revealed to a meadow. He stepped onto a clearing covered with surprisingly white petals. In return, the sky gave him chills with its sharp red color...

In the middle of the clearing stood a maze, with walls made of rose thorns... Earth had a feeling that he should enter there.

- What kind of maze is this if the path is marked? - Earth chuckled inwardly, recognizing the hint. He noticed that at some turns, a single white rose was placed in the walls. Anyone would guess that it might mean something. Earth bravely pushed forward, ignoring the pain. The walls of the maze were very narrow, and he kept bumping into protruding thorns.

He walked for a while, feeling his strength draining... From afar, the place seemed much smaller. In reality, the path stretched on endlessly.

Earth took another painful step, his body covered in blood... He walked a little further and fell silent as he emerged into an open space. He looked up and screamed as if he wanted to get rid of all the pain that had been building inside him during all those years of separation.

In the middle of the open but small space, there was a huddled figure... Earth recognized the familiar shape and ran over immediately. Tears welled up in his eyes...

- Nong Mix! Is it you? - Earth wrapped his arms around the boy's body. The younger one didn't even flinch, staying in the same curled-up position.

- Mixxiw, babe... -  He tried to get inside the cocoon, turning the boy's hands so he would look at him.

- Oh! - Earth looked at his lover's hands and started crying even more. Mix was holding a white rose, its thorns painfully digging into his skin. Mix's eyes were fixed on the flower, as if he was in some sort of trance.

- Give it back to me! - Earth practically snatched the rose from the younger one's hand and threw it against the walls of that freaking labyrinth.

And what happened next was happening very quickly...

Earth didn't understand anything that was happening at that moment. Suddenly, the thorny walls began to crumble to the ground, the red sky faded, and a delicate light emerged from between the trees.

- Darling, I'm here... with you. - Earth embraced Mix tenderly, as if wanting to protect him from all the evil in this world.

***

- P'Earth? - A soft voice woke him from the darkness.

- Earth opened his eyes and realized that he was once again at the edge of the same forest as before, except this time he wasn't alone.

- Nong Mix! - Earth stood up from the grass and put his hands on the boy's shoulders.

- Are you real? - He asked with joy, looking deep into his eyes.

- I don't understand anything! Where am I? Oh, wow, it's so beautiful here! - Mix looked around, amazed by the colorful flowers.

- Mixxiw, I'm sorry... I can't live without you! I love you, you know that? - Earth gave him a gentle kiss on his lips.

- I love you too, P'Earth. I'm sorry for what I did, but I felt like... You were there, but it was like you weren't. I couldn't live like that, and now you appear here... Earth!!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! - Tears welled up in Mix's eyes.

- Shh... quietly... my love... everything's okay. - Earth put a finger to the younger one's lips and soothingly stroked his back in a calming gesture.

- P'Earth?! - Mix wouldn't give up.

- I'm making up for lost time. I'll never leave you again. We'll be together forever, and now come with me.

- Where?

- Towards the sun. I'm taking you where nobody has ever been before...

___