Lucian smiled back, he kept up with Leviās pace as they rounded another curve in the beach. āI get it,ā Lucian began, taking what Levi had told him. āMagic, other worldsā¦ itās a lot to take in. Feels like it all got thrown at us without any warning.ā He chuckled softly. āButā¦ I think thatās whatās got me so interested. Ever since I was little, I always felt like there was something more out there. I just didnāt know what it was.ā
He paused, turning to Levi looking thoughtful. āYouāre right about the others, theyāre probably dying to see whatās out there, and yeah, they donāt always think things through. But maybe thatās why itās good weāre here too, you know? If theyāre going to go diving headfirst into the unknown, then theyāll need someone to keep them grounded. Someone like you.ā
He put his hand on Leviās shoulder. āI know youāll look out for them. You always do. And no matter what happens, weāll always have each other.ā
Lucian paused, searching for the right words for what he was going to say next. āAs for me?ā He chuckled, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. āHonestly? Iām kind of excited.ā He hesitated, then added, āEspecially afterā¦ well, after the dream I had this morning.ā
He hesitated for a moment, then continued. āI was standing on this giant mosaic of my mom, like a stained glass floor. It wasā¦ surreal. And then these voices started asking me questions. Questions about my fears, about what I wanted most in life. They kept calling me āyoung prince,ā which, I meanā¦ I know how weird that sounds. But it all felt so intense, like it was leading up to something important.ā
Lucianās eyes drifted out to the horizon. āThen I had to faceā¦ well, a shadow of myself, I think. It was huge and terrifying, like it was made of all my doubts and fears.ā He let out a small laugh, shaking his head. āSounds ridiculous now, but it felt so real. I was fighting it, Levi. And somehow, I won. I think it was trying to show me something about myself. Then, I woke up back on the beach.ā
He rubbed the back of his neck, nervous after having said all of that. āI know it sounds strange. But after that dreamā¦ I feel like I have to see whatās out there. Like Iād be missing something important if I didnāt.ā