Restart Again: Volume 2 by Adam Scott (hardest books to read txt) 📕

lap. “Oh, go on. I didn’t do anything. You’re the one who actually talked to her; I just convinced you it was a good idea.”

“That’s not what I meant,” I said, pushing off from the crate to stand directly in front of her. “You saved me last night. I’m not sure I could’ve continued on that way for too much longer; hiding from all the painful memories was killing me. Inside at least.” I reached out and took her restless hands. “I couldn’t have talked to anyone else about it. Only you.”

Out of options to distract her focus, she looked up into my eyes. “I’m not sure what to say,” she murmured as her cheeks flushed.

“You don’t have to say anything. I just want you to know how important you are to me.” I gave her a reassuring smile. “I’m not sure if it was my fate that brought you down to the dungeon or I finally had a bit of good luck, but I think it was the best thing that could have happened to me.”

A smile spread across her face as she nodded quietly in response. I held her gaze for a moment, pausing to think. Something felt wrong. Her happiness was plain to see on her face, but there was some aspect of her expression that seemed off. Behind her glistening amber eyes, she was holding back another emotion. My gut registered it before my brain did. I could feel the same emotion in the pit of my stomach, where I had learned to suppress all of my other feelings: it was longing.

My lingering guilt surged down to bury the sensation in an automatic response, but this time, the longing fought back. I know how she feels, because I feel it too. I stepped forward and pulled Lia into a tight embrace, holding her close against my chest. Whatever guilt I would dwell on later would be worth it; the only thing I could focus on in the moment was how much I needed her.

Lia wrapped her arms around me and hugged hard enough to pop a joint in my back. I did my best to crystallize every detail into one perfect memory: the faint smell of mint on her hair, the warmth of her body pressed against mine, the sound of her breathing, the flutter of her heartbeat. Though it only lasted for a moment, I knew I would remember it no matter how many lives I lived.

Eventually, my rational brain overpowered my rush of emotions. With a final squeeze, I picked her up from the crate and spun her around, stopping to set her standing gently on the ground before me. I pulled away slightly, leaving one arm around her torso as I rested my chin on top of her head. “We should head inside soon. I need to find something to eat, and I should probably apologize to your father for giving him a hard time.”

I felt her nod into my chest in agreement, but as I moved to walk past her, she grabbed my hands and pulled me back. Her head pressed more firmly into my chest as she wove her fingers between mine and took a deep breath. After a moment her fingers loosened and she nodded a second time. “You go ahead. I’ll be right in.”

“Of course,” I replied. While I walked along the well-worn path towards the house, I considered reaching out with Detection to check on her. There was a large part of me that wanted to make sure she was okay, but her comment about privacy in our previous conversation stopped me. If she wanted me to be there, she would have asked me to wait.

Hana was preparing lunch in the kitchen when I entered the house, with Marten nowhere to be seen. “The food will be ready in just a moment, if you’d like to wait at the table,” she called out, turning to see who had come in. “Oh, Lux. Is Lia coming as well?”

“Yes, she’ll be in soon,” I answered with a smile.

A wrinkle of concern crossed her forehead. “Are you feeling well, Lux? Your face is quite flushed.”

“Oh, yes. I’m fine,” I replied, feeling my cheeks redden further. “The physical exertion certainly gets the blood pumping, and it is a bit chilly outside today.”

The worry faded as she turned back to the food. “Yes, it is unseasonably cold today, don’t you think?” There was a new inflection to her voice that sounded almost patronizing, and I assumed she hadn’t believed my excuses. “Lia was quite something, wasn’t she?”

“Lia?” I asked, confused. My brain was too slow to follow immediately, given the recent events, but it caught up quickly. “Oh, yes. She learns quickly and seems to have a real aptitude for it. I’m sure she’ll be besting me, given another few...uhm, another few months of…” My train of thought derailed as I caught movement from the corner of my eye.

At the far wall of the house, a window was lined up perfectly with the kitchen to display where I had been standing with Lia just moments ago. She was still in the same spot, and I watched as she oscillated between a radiant smile and a furrowed brow while speaking aloud to herself. The burning in my cheeks intensified and spread to my ears as I fell into an embarrassed silence.

Hana hummed merrily to herself as she finished preparing our lunch, a stew made from the familiar blue tubers served with crispy bread. Lia joined us soon after the meal was served, saving me from the lull in conversation. They chatted about local gossip while I enjoyed my food quietly and savored the opportunity to regain my composure. Once our bowls were emptied, Lia and I returned to the dirt arena for a meditation session.

The time we spent at the Corell homestead flew by far faster than I had hoped it would. After the forced hiatus of our nightly sparring sessions, the hand to