“What happens now?” Aloren asked Jacob, pulling the coat she wore closer around her. “Any big plans?”
They leaned against the ledge of one side of the canyon in Taga, watching the first snowflakes fall. Makalos bustled around them, readying the village for winter.
“Tryouts are coming up soon,” Jacob said, then smiled. “The real ones. I need to get ready for those. And I’ll be helping to get the Shiengols out of August Fortress. Gallus is organizing that.” He paused, then glanced at her. “You?”
She sighed. “Explore your world, eventually. Forget about the past. And . . . and my brother. Live a normal life.” She turned to him. “I want to help Eachan somehow. I know he didn’t do very many good things, but he did save my life—more than once.”
Jacob nodded. The Fat Lady had gone to the tunnel to check on the man, but he wasn’t there. She guessed the Lorkon had taken him back to Maivoryl City.
“Tell me about the town hall. I . . .” Jacob paused. He wanted to tell Aloren how happy he was that she was back now, but he wasn’t sure how to say it. “I’m really glad you made it—I mean, I know you got hurt, and not just physically, but it’s nice that you weren’t hurt more and are here now. I had nightmares all the time that you’d died, and it was really awful. Aloren, I felt so bad for leaving you there! I promise, I’ll never do something like that again. You wouldn’t even believe how mad Gallus was. And . . . and I don’t blame him, because I missed—” he clamped his mouth shut, feeling a blush creep across his face.
Aloren laughed. “Oh, I can imagine how Gallus responded. He can get pretty intense sometimes.” She faced the canyon floor below them again. “It’s really good to be with you again. And Jacob, I missed you too. A lot. It was weird to me, how much. I mean, my mom has been dead for nearly six months now and I miss her too, but it’s different from how I felt while being in the town hall. I knew you were still alive—prayed you were—and held onto that more than anything else. I even wondered what you were doing more than I wondered about my brother.”
They fell silent for a while. Jacob mulled over what she’d just said. She’d thought about him! Probably as much as he’d thought about her. He sneaked a few glances in her direction—wondering what she was thinking now. A half-smile slowly crossed her face, showing her dimple, and a sudden warmth flowed through him. He remembered how irritated that little smile had made him when he first met her. But now he knew it would never annoy him again.
Her hand rested on the cement barrier near him. He looked at it, then glanced at her again. He almost—almost—put his hand next to hers, but hesitated, not sure how she would react. She pulled away when excited voices drifted toward them, her eyes lighting up. Jacob turned to see where she was looking.
“Jacob!” Matt called. “You’ve got to see this!”
Akeno was running toward them, without a limp! Matt ran next to him, and they were followed by Kaiya, Jaegar, and Sweet Pea.
Aloren laughed, then a solemn expression crossed her features. “About my brother and mom . . . I’ll always love them. I’ll always hope to find my brother someday. But there’s so much to enjoy in the present. Why stress over what’s been done in the past—the things I can’t control? And maybe he’ll find his way to me if I stop running all over the place looking for him.”
Jacob agreed, but then looked over the canyon again. How different his situation was from hers. Nearly everything depended on learning from what had happened in the past.
He smiled, put his serious thoughts away, and turned back to the approaching group. For now, he was content with simply enjoying the friendships he’d forged.
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