The Other Side - A Jamilton Fanfiction

Chapter Thirty

"I thought I'd find you up here," I said, closing the door behind me with a soft click. I hid my hands behind my back, keeping what I was holding from his view.

Thomas looked at me over his shoulder and offered me a friendly smile. "You know me so well."

I crossed the length of the library to join him. His arms were resting on the metal top rail as he leaned against it. The wind was rather strong, blowing Thomas's hair back into the room. He lifted his chin to receive it, closing his eyes and smiling widely to himself.

"How're you feeling?" I asked as I placed my arms against the metal too, mirroring his position. It didn't feel like it was enough to say, but I couldn't think of anything else.

"Ehh, still hurts a little bit when I walk, but I'll live. I've suffered through worse you know. What about you?"

"I'm not the one who got stabbed with a sword."

"Yeah, but you were still affected by it."

I laughed, though I didn't feel like it, and rested my chin on my hands. "I don't know. Still kinda worried I guess? But it doesn't matter."

"Matters to me."

I focused on the waving branch of a tree far away to keep the tears from my eyes.

Thomas touched my arm gently. When I looked up at him, he smiled. I couldn't help but return it.

"Oh!" I quickly exclaimed, remembering myself. "This is for you!" I thrusted the rose towards him, warmth pooling in my face.

Thomas stopped for a moment, apparently confused. "Alex," he said softly. "That's so sweet of you. Where did you find this?"

"Earth."

"You went back to Earth?"

"Yeah. Philip and I went this morning. I saw this and I thought you'd like it." I didn't disclose to him that the rose was the reason I had gone to Earth in the first place.

"Thank you Alexander," he murmured, accepting the rose and running his fingers gently down the petals. My heart leaped at the absolute sincerity in his voice. He looked back up at me and his smile widened before turning back to the open sky.

Was it enough?

I took a step closer to him as discreetly as possible. "Didn't you say once that you could read the stars?"

Thomas sighed deeply. "I was waiting for that to come up. Yes, Avions learn the stars like a second language."

"How does that work?"

"One thing that separates Avionerra from the other regions is our belief that the stars were the first beings that Divinity created as opposed to Peritum. Long story short, Divinity sent them to the sky because they were too powerful and she's a bitch and—"

"Thomas!" I exclaimed, taken by surprise. "Isn't she your god?"

"She's not real Alexander. Anyway, apparently when Divinity created them, the stars had the ability to see the future. When you reach out to them, they can tell you what's going to happen. It's bullshit though—excuse my language."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because there's no such thing as fate or destiny. What's the point of life if you're just forced to follow a path that anyone could walk down? Life's about choosing, about writing your own future. Plus, the stars only give you vague cryptic stuff that belong in fortune cookies."

"Oh," I said, following it with silence. "Well, what does that one say?" I pointed to a nearby star.

"That's Vega, right?"