Insight (Web of Hearts and Souls #1)(59)

Landen was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs, dressed in a royal blue shirt and brown khaki pants. He politely told Felicity and the others that we wanted to walk and would be there soon. Their understanding was undeniable. We had been alone for less than an hour that day, and it was easy to see that, though we were an admired couple, no one would desire to bear our burden.

We walked in silence for a while, lost in the last few days. With each step we took, I could feel the dread building inside me. When my breathing became measured, Landen hesitated, then stopped walking. I could feel his concern as he tried to understand why I was so upset.

“I’m fine, just not so good with crowds,” I thought, looking around for an escape.

Relief came over him as he heard my simple explanation. “It’s not going to be like it was at home. They know what your insight is, and they’re going to do whatever it takes to make you comfortable. If it gets to be too much, just tell me. They’ll understand,” he said as his eyes tried to catch my gaze.

“Landen, I just don’t think I can go and smile and have a party. I just lost one of my friends, and I don’t know if the rest of them are safe or not. I can’t block that out and the emotions of the crowd at the same time,” I said, stumbling over my words while trying to hold back tears of grief. I turned away from him so he wouldn’t see me struggle. He quickly circled me, not allowing me to hide anything from him.

“Look, there’s nothing I can say to take all of that away. No one is asking you to forget them. This ‘celebration’ is just a way for you to meet your family, a family that you should already know,” Landen said, cradling my face.

As I looked in his eyes, I felt a peace come over me, and my body relaxed as the calm took over.

Landen smiled as he felt the tension leave me. “I don’t want to go either. I want you all to myself. It feels like we’re never alone, awake, anyway,” he said as he looked across the field in the direction we were walking. He looked like he was listening to a distant conversation. “I can feel Rose’s intent from here. She wants to guide us. Right now we need to be guided if we’re going to be strong enough to bring your friends home safely,” he said quietly.

I glanced across the field at the distant hill, then back at Landen and nodded. As we began to walk, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him. When we reached the top of the hill on the south side of our house, Landen pointed to where my parents’ house was. You could only see the rooftop behind the hills around it. Their home was to the left, and his parents’ was to the right.

Landen explained that not only had our fathers been close friends, our grandfathers had been as well. For generations, the Haywood and Chambers families had lived side by side, the only two families with generation after generation of travelers. Even the women were fierce explorers. Others came to learn from them—some only trusting them to carry them home to visit the ones that were left in other dimensions.

We walked in the direction of his parents’ house. I assumed the party was going to be there, but I wanted desperately to see my mother’s home. The next hilltop revealed the home in which Landen had been raised. It became clear to me that porches were a way of life in Chara. The house was large, two stories, and white, outlined with wide porches and long columns. White lights outlined the bottom porch as well as the pathway to the front door. Music was playing, and laughter surrounded the house. There were several cars parked along the road just before the house. This “small group” of friends and family was larger than I’d expected.

A tiny figure ran toward us. It was Libby. My fear dissipated as soon as she fell into my arms. We couldn’t even say hello before she began to rush over her day, telling us about everyone she now had as friends, her beautiful room, and how much she loved it all here.

“So you didn’t miss me at all today? I see how it is,” I teased.

“Willow, I was with you, too, you can’t see me sometimes, though,” she said as she slid down and ran toward the house to announce our arrival.

Glancing up at Landen, I could sense his despair. He wanted nothing more than for me and Libby to be safe, and at that moment he saw that as an impossibility. He grinned at me, then guided me toward the house. I took a deep breath and squeezed his hand as we climbed the front steps.

“Don’t be scared,” he whispered into my ear, kissing my neck softly. He was putting off a blissful emotion, giving me a blanket to hide behind.

We walked through the front door, and I noticed that his house was so much different from ours. Everything was white and very bright, the walls accented the rooms with a light teal blue, and even the floors were a light wood color. Flowers decorated the banister and the doorways. No one was in the house. They’d all gathered in the back. Landen led me through the living room to the double doorway that opened to the back of the house. As we opened the doors, an eruption of applause began.

The group of family and friends was close to two hundred people. Heat filled my cheeks and my ears. The spotlight couldn’t be more uncomfortable. My mother and father stood in the front of the crowd, smiling up at us. My mother was glowing in a silver dress, her long hair was curled and her happiness unmistakable. Ashten, Aubrey, my father and mother proudly walked up to the porch where we were standing, which had been transformed into a stage.

Ashten began a heartwarming speech. “Aubrey and I, along with Jason and Grace, are pleased to introduce each of you to Landen and Willow, the newest and youngest couple of Chara.”