Jack took advantage of my silence. ‘I have wanted to do that for a while, you know?’
I could not look at him. ‘I didn’t know.’
Jack analysed my expression. ‘You look upset.’
I took a deep breath. ‘I’m confused.’
‘What is there to be confused about?’ he asked. ‘We’re best friends, right?’
‘Yes,’ I confirmed, still averting my gaze.
‘And we care about each other?’
I nodded. Did he know how much I really cared?
‘So, I reckon we could make a go of it, you know?’
My eyes darted upward and I stared at Jack. His eyebrows were raised and his expression was keen as though he expected me to say something.
I thought about what it might be like to be Jack’s girlfriend. What would change? We already spent every waking moment together. I supposed that Jack would want to kiss me more. Yes, the kiss was nice. What else did a girlfriend do? Would he want to touch me? Had he wanted that for a while? Perhaps he had fantasised about it before.
The thought of Jack being with another woman was unbearable, but I could not stop him from moving on if I was to reject his advances. But I did not want to reject him because I cared about Jack as more than a friend, more than a brother.
But I needed to find my family first. No distractions. And if Helena had been damaged beyond repair … No … Jack would not have my full attention. He deserved better than that.
I went on my toes embraced Jack tightly. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said, my voice muffled by his jacket. ‘I can’t. Not now. Not yet.’
I pulled away and saw the disappointment in his face, but he did not look surprised, ‘I thought that maybe-’ he broke off.
‘What?’ I pressed.
‘I thought maybe you felt it too,’ he said, his ears pink.
‘It has nothing to do with how I feel about you,’ I said, my cheeks burning scarlet. ‘It is not the right time, that’s all.’
‘Are you sure that’s all?’ he asked.
‘I’m sorry,’ I said again.
He seemed frustrated. ‘I’ll wait.’
‘For how long?’ I asked.
‘As long as it takes.’
Chapter Eleven
Flamethroat
It was late afternoon when Flamethroat came into view, with it’s many turrets and towers sparkling in the late afternoon sun. There was no wall around this city, as I been accustomed to seeing around big cities.
The thing that shocked me most, as Jack and I walked down the sloping hill was the grass. It was red, orange and yellow, it was not dying or dried out but healthy and luscious.
‘It’s so vibrant’ said Jack, looking around. Even the leaves on the trees were orange, as though autumn had come early.
‘Like fire,’ I said with a small smile.
Jack smiled and found my hand as we took the winding road that led into the valley. He entwined his fingers in mine and squeezed gently.
‘Let’s find this Martinez character,’ he said.
Jack and I wandered down the streets of the glimmering city. It was absolutely breathtaking. Autumn leaves scattered the pavement, buildings were clean and rose high into the sky, their windows sparkling in the sunlight. Everything seemed to have an orange hue, as though the town was bathed in a warm ray of sunlight.
People walked about at a leisurely pace, smiling and chatting. Many wore elegant robes of burnt umber, with a red tree emblazoned upon the chest and back.
The people here were stranger than those in Concord City or Frost Arch or indeed anywhere I had ever been. What was stranger still, everyone seemed to be accompanied by an animal. Not regular animals, like dogs, birds, or rats. No, I had never seen these kinds of animals before in my life.
A woman passed and I saw that she had a cinnamon ferret perched on her shoulder that was jabbering away in rapid French. I stared after them and the ferret seemed to have noticed me gawking at him, because he said ‘pas d'ame,’ in an undertone as they walked away.
Jack’s head turned this way and that as he took in our surroundings.
‘This place is strange,’ he said with wide eyes.
‘Why does everyone have an animal with them?’ I wondered aloud, ‘And why could that one talk?’
Jack shrugged and stared at a man who had a leash in his hand but nothing on the end of it. Instead, the collar floated above the ground of its own accord. As they passed, the invisible animal on the end of the leash started barking at us.
‘Sorry,’ said the man as he passed. ‘He’s just a puppy.’
Jack and I slowed to a stroll and observed everything more carefully.
A little girl rode on the back of an astronomical bird the size of an ostrich, which ran down the street very fast. A teenage boy sat on a bench while a golden fish swam around his head in thin air.
‘They’re amazing,’ I breathed, completely in awe.