Under the Shadow of the Moon

Chapter 51

Trae skated past the abandoned house at the end of the street again, the moon glowing above him just after the sunset. He had to be certain that he hadn't imagined the entire thing he had seen the night before. It was easy to believe his mind had created the entire vision, tricking him into seeing an explanation for why he was being pushed away from the others. For why they were hanging out without him. When he had woken up in the grass, his mind was a spinning mess, frantically shuffling through thoughts as he had made his way home, desperately looking for a different explanation for what he had seen.

Any of his hopes fluttered away from him when he made it back to the house. He zipped down the sidewalk, watching the door open. This time he watched Lloyd walk out, carefully surveying the street around him. He froze when he saw Trae.

Trae stopped right in front of him, kicking up his board and catching it in an angry grip. "What the actual hell man? Why didn't you tell me what was going on?" Trae's tone was frustrated and louder than normal.

Lloyd looked confused, his eyes squinted and his eyebrows furrowed.

"The war. I know there's a war going on. And I know you guys are the 'bird kids'. I know you are, I saw you guys last night, don't even try to deny it. Why didn't you tell me?"

Lloyd tried to find something to say, shifting in the doorway of the Refuge House. "What would I have said?" He said finally, his voice breaking.

"You could have said anything, I would have understood." Trae's grip on his board tightened, his knuckles turning white and the grip tape cutting into his fingers.

"Telling you would have put you in danger," Lloyd answered without missing a beat.

Trae paused, trying to gather his thoughts. "How?"

"The DoSD asked us not to say anything."

"So you're working with the DoSD now," he exhaled sharply. "Why? You guys—none of us—we never agreed with the government, why are you working for them?" His voice rose again.

"We didn't have a choice. Besides, at the end of all this, we'll have some say in things. We'll be able to change things." Lloyd sounded tired.

"This whole situation is insane," Trae said, running a hand through his hair, shaking in frustration. "Where's Luna? I need to talk to her."

Lloyd sighed, his shoulders dropping. "She's at the park."

☆★☆

Trae sat down beside Luna on the park bench, keeping a small space between them. She was curled up against herself, her arms clamped over her legs and her chin between her knees. She was staring at the lake, directly across from the same spot Trae had found her crying almost a month earlier.

"Trae..." her voice broke. She hadn't even looked at him. "I screwed up. I screwed up so badly..." She hid her face from him, tears dripping off her jaw. "I should have told you, I'm so so sorry..." The sound of her broken voice was like an axe hacking through his heart.

"Luna..." his voice was soft as he reached out for her hand, uncurling it from her knee. She jerked away from his warm touch, staring out at the water. "Luna..." he repeated, his voice even softer as his hand dropped back down. "This isn't your fault."

She paused, finally looking up into his eyes, tears glossing her cheeks and weighing down her lashes. She whimpered at the sight of him. "I'm so sorry," she sobbed. "I wish it hadn't turned out like this."

"It's not your fault, I don't blame you." He wanted to reach out again and touch her, to assure her he wouldn't leave again, but he didn't. He couldn't. Instead he slid closer to her, turning his gaze away from her and formulating his next words.

"You should," she answered bitterly, forcefully tugging on a lock of her hair.

"Well, I don't, okay?" He pulled her in for a hug. Her eyes widened, but after a moment she settled against him, dropping her feet to the concrete and her hands into her lap.

"Trae, I'm so sorry." Her voice came out as a heart shattering sob. "We treated you so badly, but I promise we only did it to protect you. A war is coming, and I don't want to see you hurt. I promise it was only to protect you. Trae I—"

"I know, Luna..." He entwined his fingers with hers and stared down into her broken brown eyes. "Nothing will happen to me, I promise. I'm so sorry about the way I reacted, I had no idea what was going on. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said any of those things..."

"It's okay, it's not your fault you didn't know." Luna's eyes darted across his face, as if taking in every feature, or avoiding his eyes. "I promise I'll keep you safe."

He laughed lightly. "And I'll keep you safe. I swear it on everything I have."

She smiled, leaning her back against his chest. "I'm so sorry Trae."

"I am too. I promised I would never leave you the day I found you by this lake, and I promise you I will keep it. I won't leave, not again, not ever."

"Do you promise?" Her words were a whimper.

He placed a hand under her chin, guiding her face to his. "I promise."

She closed the gap between them, wrapping her arms around his neck and sliding closer to him as their eyes fluttered shut and lips connected. I love you.