One World Away COMPLETED (Book I)

Snoeshore

No...

"Heather... It's me... Your best friend..."

"No... Flaubert... No... Just-"

"Heather? Snap out of it!"

I snapped to reality like a brittle stick, Flaubert disappeared.

"Hello! Hearth to Heather!" Pepper was waving her hand across my face.

"Wh-what? What happened?"

"I left Sam and the cart with you on the bench in the mall's food area to pick up something. And when I returned you were sitting down alright but you wouldn't stop staring in one area like a possessed Hearthian." Pepper said. Arms crossed, lips pursed, right foot tapping impatiently. Not a good sign.

"Sorry, k? Look something... Triggered." I couldn't think of a word to say after I told Sam I would never say that name again.

***

We brought the groceries back home and Pepper offered me a tour of Snoeshore.

I said yes of course and Sam just stayed at the house.

"Why do you guys call it... Snoeshore?" I asked Pepper.

"Come on, I'll show you." She said.

She brought me to a part of Snoeshore that had no snow at all.

"For some reason, one part of this place has snow and the other has a beach and they're connected even. The snow here never changes and so does the sunny shore." Pepper explained.

Many little kids and adults were swimming and making sandcastles. Some were eating ice cream or sunbathing.

"Great place." I said.

I went to a nearby ice cream stall and was surprised to see the owner.

"Sam?! You work here?!" I said in disbelief.

"Yup. I do. Pep never told you eh?" He said.

"Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you. He must've teleported here like always." Pepper said.

"You want a flavor? Or an icescream pop?" He said.

"Hmm... Mango? I guess."

"One of my favorite flavors." He said.

He just levitated an ice cream scooper and scooped two scoops of some yellow mango ice cream into a cone.

"Here you go. 1 silver coin" He handed the icecream to me.

"I'll pay for her seeing as I haven't told her about the currency in this place." Pepper said flicking two silver coins at him. "One strawberry icescream pop for me too please big brother."

When I tried to bite the ice cream it shrieked.

"What the-" then I understood... Ice scream. Wow.

I bit it anyway. It stopped screaming. That's when I started enjoying it.

"Gettit? Ice scream? The kids love it." Sam said flipping a coin in the air.

"Come on, there's this place I know you'll love." Pepper said licking the last of her ice pop.

"Really? What does it have?"

"Secret. It's here in the sunny part of Snoeshore."

"You're fast." I said. "That icepop was gone real quick."

"I'm used to it." Pepper said throwing the stick into a trash can.

"You mean, used to eat." Sam said. His usual grin grew bigger. I'm sure he wanted to see what angry expression she would throw at him this time.