Under the Shadow of the Moon

Chapter 47

Luna opened her eyes, stretching out in the sleeping bag. The fabric was scratchy and uncomfortable, but she had gotten used to it after sleeping in it for a few days. It was early, the sun still making its way to the edge of the world.

The others were stirring too, ready for a small surprise they had planned for Lily. Lloyd had gone out in the middle of the day, slipping out of Base Camp and down town to the closest place he could find for a card. He had picked out a gift, a silver locket in the shape of a lily, a small pink zircon stone in the shape of a rose on one of the petals, a few days before when he and Colin had met up with Trae in town. In it, he had put a miniature of the picture they took together on their first date, and the last picture Lily had with her mother and little brother.

They had all written long notes for Lily on the card Lloyd had bought, trying to cram everything on just the one.

Lily woke up to all her friends singing her happy birthday. They all looked tired and on edge, but they were still trying to be happy for her. Lily laughed, sitting up in her sleeping bag.

"Happy birthday, Lil." Lloyd said, taking her hand and helping her up as she rubbed her eyes.

"Aw guys, I can't believe you remembered..." Her eyes glossed over and a few stray tears threatened to spill.

"Of course," Luna said, handing her the card. "We couldn't forget something like that."

Lily took the card with a broad smile on her face. "I love you guys," she said, hugging Luna.

"We love you too, Lil." Lloyd kissed her cheek.

☆★☆

Luna ran her fingers through her hair, tossing the mess behind her. In celebration, they had decided to go out for ice cream, making sure they kept their heads down. Trae was there too, and he was trying to get to know Sylvia a bit better, but his worried gaze hardly left Luna.

Her shoulders were tense and she had a feeling something bad would happen at any moment as they sat in front of the small ice cream shop. Nerves ate away at her and her skin tingled at every sound she heard.

She felt a hand on the small of her back, rubbing circles on her skin. She relaxed a little at Trae's touch, sneaking a glance under the table for the bag Lloyd had brought with their weapons just in case. Sighing, she looked around the table, over crowded with chairs that didn't quite fit at the one table. Lily and Lloyd were laughing, Razaia was openly flirting with a flustered yet oblivious Colin, Harper and Sylvia deep in a conversation, Trae saying a few things across the table to Lloyd and Lily about the coming school year... and herself, isolated from the party, her own terror and anxiety eating away at her. Everyone around her looked so normal, so carefree. But she could tell that the tension in her shoulders was present in everyone else's around the table. They were all scared, all worried, but they weren't letting it get to them, not the way she was. They were all right in front of her, yet she felt so far from them. Her hands started to shake, and she took a short breath to calm herself.

She put her hand over the one Trae had lain across the table, entwining their fingers. His hands were soft for a basketball player, the color of his hands still a few shades darker than her own, even without a tan. She looked up at him, the moonlight catching him at the perfect angles and making him glow like an angel. His eyes were almost pure green in the light, the brown washed out by the glittering moonlight dancing across his face. His freckles stood out against his skin, his dirty blond hair looking almost as silver as the stars.

Trae blinked, his lip curling into a sideways grin. "You're staring," he said in a voice almost purely playful. He touched a finger to her nose, bringing her out of her reverie. She hadn't realized she was staring at him.

"Sorry," she winced, trying to match his tone. "Focusing on something helps me relax."

He smiled, gently stroking her cheek with a fingertip. "I know."

Luna looked back around her friends. The moon cast a soft glow around the table, and washed out the color of Harper's hair. The golden glow around her had faded to a shadow, and Luna wondered if Trae had noticed.

Lily had a bright smile on her face, and Luna wondered for a moment when the last time her birthday had been celebrated was. Luna tried a smile of her own, but she couldn't keep it steady. She looked back over at Trae, who's bright eyes were filled with worry as they watched her. His lips were pulled into a tight smile. Her neutral expression fell into one of dejection.

"Trae..."

He put a hand on her shoulder, lifting her chin with a finger. "Luna, I've known you for as long as I can remember. What is it? I know something's wrong."

She plastered a fake smile to her face. "Nothing's wrong, I-I promise. You don't have to worry." Her voice wavered.

"No, see that's a fake smile," he said, running his thumb over her bottom lip. She shivered, subconsciously moving away from him. He dropped his hand onto the table with a sigh. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Just... tell me how I can help."

"You are helping." She laid her head on his shoulder, tightening her grip on his other hand. I love you...

"Are you sure you're okay? You seem really tired. Actually, you all do."

Luna slouched further into the chair, hugging her arms around herself. "I'm alright," she gave him a small smile.

He sighed again. "If you say so, I believe you."

Her smile widened.

"So anyway," he changed the subject. "How come Harper is here right now?" He flicked his gaze to her.

Luna shrugged, looking up at him. "She wanted to come, I wasn't going to stop her."

"Luna, when's the last time you slept?" He stared deep into her eyes.

She sighed. "Probably a few days ago," she muttered.

"Luna, please. Get some sleep. Please, you look like a zombie."

She nodded. "For you, I'll do anything."

He touched her nose again. "As would I for you." He looked back up across the table. "So guys, what do you think, do you think that there's going to be a war?"

Luna stiffened. The others seemed to pause, each person looking in a different direction. Lloyd kicked the duffel bag.

"I-I don't know," Colin stammered. "I think anything could happen."

"Did you hear that they're thinking of pushing back the start of school to early winter because of the dangers in certain parts of town?"

"Are they really?" Harper responded, looking up.

"Yeah. I've also heard that if there is a war they might renegotiate the treaty that split the population. We might get to all live together again."

"Really?" Luna sat up, staring at him. "Where did you hear that?"

"It's been floating around," he responded with a dismissive wave. "Someone from the DoSD was posting about it."

"Interesting," Luna replied, trying to suppress her smile.

"Wouldn't it be amazing to be in class with Harper again?"

"Yeah, with all her sarcastic and passive aggressive comments that piss teachers off," Luna responded with a scoff.

"Imagine her in Mrs. Greenfield's class."

"Mrs. Greenfield would hate her."

"Mrs. Greenfield hates everyone," Trae responded with a snort.

"That is true."

Trae wrapped his arm around her. "Are you going to finish that?" He pointed to her cup of ice cream. "I'd be happy to take it off your hands."

"Here," she smiled, pushing it to him. "You paid for it anyway."