Zyukar

Zyukar t1_ixgq7zd wrote

Reply to [WP] There is a place. A place between places. It's an actual place but it isn't here nor there. Lost travelers are the only ones who can find the place. Staying for a night, safe from other places and other things, and nothing more. Except you. You were born in the place. by Horror_Librarian_133

The door opens so softly that I almost didn't notice the boy who entered. He catches my gaze, smiles, and shakes off the snow that's clinging to his winter coat. It's thick, but not thick enough, for the little boy shivers and wipes his nose shyly on his sleeve, embarrassed.

He makes himself comfortable on the smallest couch in the room, near the fireplace. The couch is a blue so light, so delicate, bright but not dominating, just like the colour of his eyes. I think that's why he likes it so much.

The tray sits ready on the countertop, and I carry it over to the boy, placing it between us. Cookies and hot chocolate, with two giant marshmallows in each cup. He plucks the white candy out first and sucks on it.

"You really shouldn't be coming here so often," I tell him, but in truth, I very much enjoy his company. He knows this too, so he just smiles at me through sticky fingers.

"But I like it here, and you like it too when I'm here. Besides, I don't have anywhere else to go... and you don't either, do you?"

"Well, I do live here, so this is where I'm supposed to be." I gesture around my wooden hut. Or my inn, if you will. It's small, but also a lot bigger than it looks. After all, it is, in theory, infinite. "You, on the other hand, have someone waiting for you at home."

That's what I say, but we both know it isn't true, because if it was then he wouldn't be here in the first place. Like all others who've passed through, he is lost, and like all others who've passed through, he found me. Not all those who stray from their paths wind up here, but those who do usually have good reason to. In this space, they can find safety from their travels, if only for a brief moment, and I'm responsible for maintaining this little haven.

Unlike the others, however, he came back. Multiple times. And I still do not know how.

The boy finishes off his hot chocolate and returns the mug to the tray. He stares into the fire, silent, swinging his legs slightly. Not wanting to disturb his thoughts, I work silently on cleaning up. There are no other travelers staying here tonight, so it doesn't take me long to finish up for the day.

When I get back to the fireplace, the boy seems to have reached a conclusion. He still does not look at me.

"Have you ever wanted to run away? From home, I mean." The question catches me off guard, but only slightly. I try to think of a reply, but he doesn't seem interested in knowing the answer.

"How do people find your home?"

"They get... lost. And they are in danger, usually. They can't find the path that leads to their destination."

"And if they get lost again? Can they find this place again?"

"Well, you're here, aren't you?"

The boy nods, seemingly satisfied with my explanation. "Okay, I get it now. When I'm outside I'm always lost. That's why I always find myself here. But when I am with you, I'm safe..."

"But you're not like me, so you can't stay," I finished for him.

"But there isn't a rule that says I can't visit every day, is there? I just have to leave in the morning, and come back at night." He stares at me with those bright blue eyes, which somehow remain animated like a rushing river, soft like the falling snow, wise like the one who wanders, but is not lost. "Maybe you can adopt me, and become my older sister."

The notion of having a younger sibling was unexpectedly funny. "Okay," I promise, and hook my pinky around his. It would be nice, I suppose, and it would make my life feel less meaningless.

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