The Lightning Tree (The NI Revolution Trilogy Book 1) by Lene Fogelberg

Author:Lene Fogelberg
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Fiction & Literature
Publisher: Dedaun Publishing
Published: 2022-03-28T16:00:00+00:00

30



Fauna

It is set in motion, and there’s no going back.

A loose stone must roll down the hill. A seed in the soil must break open. A bird pushed out of her nest must spread her wings. A caterpillar must become a chrysalis and then a butterfly. A tree must learn to fight.

Motion, growth, change is the law of survival.

31



FLORA

I ring the doorbell below the oval brass plaque that reads blumenfeld. Only a few seconds pass before Aaron opens the door and pulls me inside.

“Did anyone see you?” He swiftly locks the door behind me.

“I don’t think so. Why?”

Aaron pushes his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “Just being cautious, I guess.” He avoids looking at me, but I can see that his eyes are red and a little swollen.

I reach out and touch his arm. “You alright?” I can feel him tremble through the soft fabric of his shirt.

He stiffens and shakes his head, trying to keep his emotion in check. “How do you do it, Flora?”

“What?”

“Go on with your life.”

I shrug. “I don’t know. You just have to, I guess.”

I know it sounds lame, but it’s the truth. When your dad disappears, when your sister gets struck by lightning, when you find dead schoolmates in trees, you still go on living, even though a part of you feels like your life has been pushed off the road you were supposed to be on.

I can tell that Aaron feels untethered the way I do right now as he wipes his eyes with the back of his hand. I wish I had a brilliant explanation for how I’m going on after what’s happened, but I don’t.

He nods and says, “Well, thanks for coming.” His voice breaks.

I wrap him in a hug. “It’ll get better,” I whisper. His arms tighten around me, like he hasn’t been held in a long time. As we cling to each other, we sway back and forth a little, and somehow it isn’t awkward.

“Flora?”

Carl appears on the stairs.

Aaron and I untangle from each other in a millisecond. I smooth my dress, and Aaron pulls his hand through his thick, brown hair, both of us acting like we’ve just been caught making out or something.

Carl’s still wearing the Phillies cap. “I was worried about you.” He takes my hand and pulls me into the hallway. For an instant I worry that he’s upset finding me hugging Aaron, but instead he says, “I can’t believe they searched your house.”

“Oh. Yeah, I know. They didn’t stay long, though. They just went through every room looking for you.” I stop and exchange a conspiratorial smirk with Carl. “And then they left.” I’m amazed at how natural my hand feels in Carl’s. “I can’t believe you climbed out my window like a total pro.”

He shrugs like it was no big deal, then squeezes my hand as if to say I’ve got you. Everything will be alright.

We find Aaron in the living room. Carl lets go of my hand and I instantly miss him, miss being gotten.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.