TID short story ( Fanfiction)

Chapter 2

The four of them were staring at each other for a long moment. Jem had inhaled sharply, and Will did the same in his mind.

The boy beside Tessa was the first to speak up, looking a bit uncertain. "Magnus, is that, is that..."

Magnus bit his lip, and exhaled, breathing a very dreaded, "Yes."

"I don't understand," Jem said, his forehead creased. "I know that Tessa is immortal..."

The boy walked in front of Jem, studying him very closely. "You're Jem Carstairs?"

Jem, confused, only nodded.

"Are you sure?"

Will snorted. "I'm pretty sure that you'll at least know your own name."

The boy's eyes shifted to look at Will, and he saw hurt, longing and amazement flash across his eyes. His lips tugged into a smile, one that Will found quite similar to Jem's. He breathed, "Will.", before he pulled him into a tight embrace.

Will squirmed, and the boy pulled back, apologizing. "I'm so sorry, it's just that, I never thought that I'll ever see you again."

Tessa came to the boy's side, her eyes filled with tears threatening to fall. But she broke into a big smile at the sight of both of them, as if she was recollecting a very pleasant memory. "Oh, Will."

Although Will's heart was racing in his chest, he didn't quite feel anything for this Tessa. She was unfamiliar and foreign, looking more matured than the Tessa back home.

"I am feeling very, very confused," Jem scratched his head, and the boy chuckled, placing one hand on his shoulder.

"You don't recognize me?" He said jokingly while Tessa laughed softly.

"Not at all," Jem frowned further.

The boy laughed again. "Never mind. You can call me Zachariah."

Tessa wrapped her fingers around Zachariah's arm, still staring at Will with a thoughtful expression on her face. Will felt jealously flare in his chest when he saw her standing so close to the man, but he forced it down. Besides, he had a question on his mind.

"Tess, so you're really immortal after all," Will muttered, trying to memorise the exact colour of her eyes, the strands of her hair that fell perfectly on her face.

"I am," Tessa nodded solemnly. "I have lived for a long time, Will. I saw the world shift and change, along with its people."

"So you know everything that has happened then?" Jem inquired.

"Yes."

"How... How long do I have left?" Jem asked again in a soft whisper, making Will freeze in shock.

It was Zachariah who answered, a wistful expression on his face. "You need not worry about that, James. Rest assuared, you'll live much longer than you expect."

"No, no, no!" Magnus suddenly cut in, standing between the four of them. "Do you not realize that whatever you two tell them," he stopped to glare at Tessa and Zachariah, before continuing, "You're going to change the future?"

The realization seemed to dawn on the couple, and they exchanged worried looks.

"Exactly. Now the perfect plan is to send the both of you as far away as possible before you say anything that they're not supposed to hear."

"Like what?" Will asked suspiciously.

"Like you and Tess-" Magnus started but his eyes widened in shock and he clamped his own mouth shut. "Okay this is much harder than I expected."