Hidden Hallows

I walk around him and begin to openly look him over and to my surprise, he lets me do it with a smirk. When I come to a stop in front of him, I look up to him again and say "To be honest... I met someone in my time that looks so similar to you and yet... you two are completely different. It"s hard to explain."

He looks a little surprised before saying "Hmmm... do I look like him?" I shrug and say "Yes and no. It"s confusing." He slowly nods his head and watches me closely as he asks "Can you really be cut by a piece of paper?"

I look at him in surprise before bursting into a fit of laughter and saying "Oh, yes. Would you like to see?" He quickly shakes his head and nervously says "That"s not needed. I just want to know how... fragile you are."

I frown at his choice of words as I say "Fragile isn"t really the word I would use to describe me. More like... a weed. Yeah, a weed. I can get stepped on and broken but I always make a comeback." He looks at me with surprise before chuckling.

Shock fills me when the plants around us turn towards the noise. His laughter is bright and filled with true joy, making my heart and insides instantly warm. He gives me a large, warm smile as he says "Well, I guess it"s a good thing I like weeds."

I find myself awestruck, at a complete loss as I stare at him without words to express what I was actually feeling. I struggle to breathe in as he looks down at me. His smile slowly fades but the warmth still lingers in his eyes as he looks my face over. Like he"s taking in every inch of my face and memorizing it.

He moves closer and for the life of me, I can"t look away from his eyes. I"ve doubted it over and over if this is really the Kian I know but now I know... the soul looking at me through these eyes are indeed the same person.

What happened to him? Was... was it me? He stops right before me and continues to look my face over as he whispers "I don"t know why... I don"t know how... but, I feel like I know you. Like my soul knows yours... which should be impossible. I"m drawn to you and even though I know I shouldn"t say this or do this... I don"t want to stop."

The things he says are true... Since the very first time I met him, he felt familiar. My soul recognized him, even if I didn"t. It"s like an invisible force is pulling us together, even as I fight against it and try to deny it.

He slowly lifts his hand up to my face and gently touches me as he says "You"ll disappear in a full moon"s time... back to your world and I"ll never see you again but I still don"t want to stop. Tell me I should stop."

He gives me a look that has my chest constricting as my heart beats wildly as if it"s trying to run to him. My stomach flips and clenches as I look at him with confusion, despair, desire, and longing. So many emotions are running through me and I don"t even understand half of them.

I struggle to say "You should stop... I should stop. We should both stop..." In the end, his forehead presses against mine as he closes his eyes. He takes a deep breath that has me shaking but before I can catch my breath, his lips brush against mine in the softest touch.

I vaguely notice the wind picking up around us like we"re the center of a tornado because my focus is solely on the feeling of his lips. Like a feather... He slowly leans back and opens his eyes. We lock gazes and I feel it... My control slips.

I lean forward and kiss him, surprising both of us but it doesn"t take him but a second before his arms wrap around me, instantly deepening the kiss. This time I close my eyes and fall into whatever this it.

I don"t fight the warm feeling, the desire, or the way he makes me feel. I just let go as he steals my breath. His large hand slides to the back of my neck, pulling me in closer as my world feels like it"s spinning out of control. It"s like his arms and lips are the only things keeping me grounded...

Suddenly, someone gasps, instantly breaking the moment. I pull back and look over to see a servant staring at us with wide eyes. The wind dies off and I can"t help but wonder what it was and why it was happening.

"Soul recognition..." The servant says before slapping her hand over her mouth and running away. I go to follow her but Kian gently grabs my arm and shakes his head "no" at me. I look back to the servant but she was already gone.

I turn back to Kian and awkwardly clear my throat as I mumble "What did she just say?" Kian shakes his head again and says "We need to speak to Queen Cara, now." He gently starts pulling me back the way we just came but I can"t help but look down at the hand pulling me.

I pull my arm away and stop. He quickly stops and looks back to me with confusion as I ask "Why do we need to speak with Queen Cara and why do you always touch me like I"m made of gla.s.s?" He looks back to the castle then back to me before saying "We can"t talk about this out here."

He gently grabs my arm again but I pull my arm away again as my frown grows even more. "Why are you acting as if I"ll snap in half?" He frowns and licks his lips as he says "Forgive me" He then pulls me to him and scoops me up.

"Woah woah woah! Put me down, now!" I say struggling in his arms but he completely ignores me as he says "Just stay still for a moment. I"ll put you down once we"re inside."