Elysian House: A Light In The Dark [Sequel]

Chapter 8

Getting out of that room was way too easy. I was getting way too used to breaking locks lately and I wasn't sure how I felt about it. And how was I doing that anyway? Where was this passive strength coming from all of a sudden?

The talk I'd overheard unleashed so many questions inside of my head. Like who were they talking about? What were they talking about?

Why were they talking like something really bad was coming?

The courtyard was full of life since it was only Saturday. People filled the rec rooms too. It was like a party here and when I went to cut through the crowd, a voice called to my attention.

"Glasses!"

I wanted to groan. Right now, Luna was the last person I wanted to talk to.

She was too much when you were in a pissy mood. Not to mention she brought a whole party with her as she walked. Anywhere she stepped, a fan club followed with raised mugs and boisterous voices.

When she approached with her group, I wished I had changed into jeans so I could stuff my hands away in my pockets.

Luna had a bead necklace around her neck, a smudge of red lipstick against her cheek and her hair had glitter dotting the surface of her black hair, making it look like she had a galaxy on top of her head. She looked like she was way too calm for this kind of gathering, though. Her eyes remained unclouded and I knew she was neither high nor drunk, just entirely calm, cool and collected.

"Where you off to? Going to kick around the soccer ball a bit?"

I shake my head. "No. I'm..." I flounder for words.

Luna actually notices my hesitance and some sort of look of concern falls over her face. She pulls the beads from around her neck off and hands them off to some random guy that is laughing it up with some girl that I didn't know either.

"Hey, why don't you guys go on for a bit? I'll catch up," Luna said to the group, causing a few of them to frown and groan. But she doesn't pay them any attention, and grabs my arm and pulls me away from all the noise and the lights.

We end up by standing in the shadow of the dorm building, where the sun would usually fall against in the mornings.

Luna stuffs her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket and stares at me, like she's expecting me to say something.

"What?" I finally snap under her pressuring gaze.

"Okay, you're bugging out. I just wanna know what's going on is all. Relax."

Should I tell Luna? I didn't know her well at all, I've only gotten drunk with her once before and only spoken to her a handful of times. But I was drowning here and on the verge of breaking down. Too much was going on, too many questions swarming in my head. I just wanted to talk to someone, anyone, about this. I'm not sure Luna is the best person, but before I knew it, I felt myself giving in.

So I told her. Starting from the beginning. Everything Del and Skye had been talking about. At the end of it, Luna looks thoughtful. Locked in her own brain for a long minute.

Finally, she says, "Huh."

"That's it? That's all you have to say?" I ask.

"Well, I mean... I kind of know Riley, Viola, Olivia and Jasmin already so I'm just a bit desensitized to them. But that last part about Snow and Ricky returning... now that is interesting." Luna clicks her tongue, and then leans against the side of the dorm building, to watch a group of teens sit around a table together and loudly sing along to Billy Joel while it plays through the speaker of the mess hall.