Finding A Ghost (Completed)

Chapter 16

Surprise update!!! I wasn't happy with the last chapter, it being shorter than I wanted and I felt a little cheated out of a good update so I wrote another one for you! Enjoy!

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**| North's POV |**

Luke's eyes flickered over the garden with curiosity as his hands played with the ends of his long braid, needing something to do with his hands. I was still waiting for him to cut his hair but he was determined to have it grow down to his feet for some odd reason. His eyes sparked with excitement as he took in what he would deem as nature's playground.

I thought he would like this place. Sang used to love it here too.

After all the sparring yesterday, I decided I couldn't continue being an asshole to Luke. It wasn't fair to him and I knew how he became when people drew away from him.

I couldn't keep pushing him away. Not any longer.

"Why are we here?" he asked.

I shrugged and glanced around, taking in the unfamiliar yet very familiar garden. This place was called Schulgarten—School Garden. The flowers seemed to cover the spectrum of the rainbow, planted all over. Cobblestone mapped it's way through the gardens. There was even a little cafe to relax at, and a little bridge going over a small stream with lily pads and ducks in it.

"Come on," I said and led him to where I used to meet with Sang. The spot was hard to find, which was why it was a little gem. It was a grass area with an old massive beech tree expanding up into the sky, creating a huge shaded area covering the green grass. There weren't many people in this particular area just because they rarely made it past the hedge mazes in their explorations.

I went up to the tree and rested my hand against the bark as Luke's wide eyes took in the massive tree.

"I used to meet Sang here often," I said, still facing the tree. My memories came surging forward and I swore I could hear her soft laughter. I looked up to a branch that was a few feet higher than me. I could picture her sitting on the branch, swinging her little feet as she looked down at me.

I smiled because I used to always yell at her to get down. It would hurt if she fell and I didn't want her hurt more than she usually was. She tried to hide her pain well but I knew she had hurt as much as I did.

Was she hurting now? Or did she get away from it all? I just wanted to know she was safe and healthy.

Alive.

"North?" Luke said softly, standing next to me, giving me a sad knowing look. He knew I got lost in my memories. He did it often enough.

"When the first time I saw you climb a tree, I nearly died. All I could see was Sang up in the tree. She fell off once. She didn't get hurt badly, just a sore ankle. She did this weird roll thing off the tree and she was back on her feet in moments, laughing it off. But it didn't stop me from yelling at her."

"That's why you finally talked to me? Because I reminded you of Sang?" Luke asked. "All that work I did to get you to talk, to break your silence and it took me climbing a tree and reminding you of Sang to get you to talk? Damn, I should have done that sooner."

I snorted and ran a hand through my hair. "Everything reminded me of her. I never really stopped thinking about her. You guys helped. The Academy helped. But I just kept seeing her."

I turned and sat on the dry ground. Luke settled in next to me.

"What was she like?" he asked, his brown eyes curious.

I smiled, remembering the light in her eyes despite the shit she faced. "Adventurous. She wanted to see everything. I chased her around this whole fucking city as she explored every nook and cranny. And she saw life in everything. Her life was so fucking shitty and she never once complained. She understood the moment she saw me that we were cut from the same cloth, but unlike me, she was able to move past it."