The Fallen |BxB| ✓

24 | Same as You

↞[Luke]↠

"Liam! Liam, God fucking damn it, open your eyes!" A series of slaps struck my cheeks. My consciousness dwindled, and the feminine voice faded in and out. A numbing heaviness weighed down my body.

"He's alive," she said with a relieving sigh. "Raph!" she shouted.

The weariness was clearing, and I felt my back inches deep in wet, gritty sand. Twisting to my side, a grunt escaped my lips. Moving around was difficult, as if my joints were interlocked. I blinked a few times to adjust my eyes, but they stung and watered around the edges.

"Liam, thank God, you're okay! I mean..." She paused and grabbed my hand, trying to pull me up. I didn't put a drop of effort as she hauled me with ease. She continued, with a hint of a smile on her lips, "I knew you'd make it."

A pulse of ache spasmed in my temple. I brought my hands to my head to press it down. "Where am I? What happened?" I asked her through the pain and half-closed eyes.

Her green eyes studied me with curiosity. "Is Liam having memory loss?" A flash of concern crossed her face, and a small crease formed between her brows.

"W-who?" I muttered through the pain.

"No, Laura, he's dramatic." I noticed the male standing beside Laura, a few feet away from us. His arms were crossed over his chest, and lips tightened together grimly.

Laura. The recollection of her name brought back a train of previous events. Fuck, Ken was still in danger, and I was... dead?

I looked back at Laura. Her parted lips sealed when our eyes locked, and her eyes widened. "Can you stand?" She released my hand that I had forgotten she was still gripping. Laura opened her palms in front of my face, too close. Then curled her middle finger and thumb inwards. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Uh... three? Wha-where am I?" I looked around through the dusky cast of the sky. We were near a seashore in a place that I had never seen before. Instead of loose golden sands, there was stable brown soil beneath me. Patches of grass grew in vast distances, and the area in front was covered with thick forestation. The sound of crashing waves repeated behind me, and cold water sprayed my back.

"We're at a crossroad," said Laura. She straightened up on her knees in front of me like a parent explaining something to a child. "Think of this place like a bridge. It connects us to the other planes."

"Why does it look so familiar?" I asked her. Maybe I am dreaming. This can be a nightmare. It didn't help that I was so cognizant.

"Because crossroads aren't material. They're like—" Laura formed a path with her hands. "—an incorporeal echo of your mind. Multiple threads of thoughts and imagination coalescing into an order. This place is not stable. Especially with so many people traveling together."