The Circle

8 | Crazy

"Lux!"

I walk past the clearing and smile at the statue, and then continue making my way through the woods. The clearing is full of tiny purple and blue flowers with tiny daisies in between them, which cover the grassy floor. I've never seen so many flowers growing in one place before, and the sight of it is stunning.

The tips of my fingers caress the moss-covered trees, relishing the golden rays of sunlight warming my legs. The cut off jean shorts provides little protection against insects and weeds, but the tickling of the tall grass against my calf and thigh seems almost like a gentle caress. It's a feeling I've come to know over time.

"Lux! Goddamn it!"

I step onto one of the stones, barely paying attention. I've made my way down this path too many times to count -- I could've found my way through the trees blindfolded.

Tiny birds and animals run around the woods and my lungs greedily inhale the sweet summer air as I walk forth.

"Lux, wake up! Come on."

I hear the running water and my blood spikes with excitement. I'm close. Voices filter through the trees and I break into a run, barely containing the electric joy in my veins. I just need to turn around this corner and...

"Lux!" Someone shakes me ferociously.

They're going to dislocate my shoulder.

Everything hurts. My muscles ache; they burn.

I gasp and my eyes snap open, panic coursing through every nerve. Instincts kicked into place, overdrive. Some unknown strength pushes me into a sitting position and I double over deliriously, arms reaching towards the air, reaching for something. Where's the statue? Where are the woods?

It feels freezing, my body feels like a punching bag made of ice. It hurts. Prisms of colour proud behind my eyes, and a wave of nausea drags me under. 

"Hey, hey! Calm down!" Alec grabs me by the shoulders and forces me to still. His face looks ashy and tired, and there are black circles under his usually vibrant eyes.

"What happened?" I croak out, then look around. Thick blankets cover my body in a cocoon at the living room of our house. The roaring fire crackled on in the fireplace, but it did nothing to warm the deadly tendrils of cold under my skin.

"We found you in the woods about twenty minutes ago. You're hypothermic, you were nearly frozen to death out there," Alec's eyebrows are so far pulled together that there's barely any space between them. He reaches out a hand and brushes back a strand of humid hair out of my face. "God, Lux. It took us more than an hour to find you, I had no idea that you were in the woods."

"We?" 

Alec stands from his crouching position my my side and steps aside.

Nicolas and Kaia hover over me, their twin blue eyes stained with worry. Bronte is perched near my feet at the foot of the sofa, her face serious, a frown darkening her lovely features. Selene and Lucas peer from near behind the sofa, only their expressions visible, and even Selene looks shaken up.

I twist my head around so I can look behind me, and my body screams in protest. It's like I'm being stabbed with a thousand daggers every time I shift positions. Kit stands near my head; I meet his eyes upside-down. The blue depths are laced with concern, and a frown graces his features. His hair looks disheveled and there are mud stains on his gray v-neck t-shirt. A dark patch of dirt darkness his cheek. Kit's eyebrows are pushed low over his eyes, and the intensity of his gaze makes it hard to meet.