Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 130275 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130275 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
He was my mirror in every way.
We hung, suspended in the moment, air crackling around us. In this moment, an incredible urge took hold of me. The laughter, the color, the love that had been launched in the very air around us heightened everything. I wanted to seize life. I wanted to reach out for it and never let it go, live it while I was here, happy and healthy and wrapped in gratefulness. Grateful for my health and this boy who held my heart so carefully in his cradled palms.
Cael’s bright eyes spoke of the same need. I laughed again as I took in the sight of us. Cael’s wide smile graced his face once more. He had a tiny dimple that appeared. I hadn’t seen it before. I hadn’t seen him smile so big. It was perfection, his dimple …
That seemed to match mine too.
“We’re a mess,” I said and tried to brush away some of the powder from our clothes and skin. It didn’t help. We were caked in a smorgasbord of colors.
Cael’s head tipped to the side. “You look like the Aurora Borealis,” he said, and my breath caught in my chest. We did. Both of us. Another memory I would treasure for a lifetime. Especially as Cael had been there with me then too.
Cael slipped his hand into mine. “Let’s go back to the hotel, Peaches.” He silently led me from the secluded alcove and into the streets as this new aura danced around us. Residual laughter could still be heard in the distance from the ghats. This city, where life met death, was a marvel. It made life not feel like such a scary place. Because that’s what I had been—scared of living after Poppy’s passing. Terrified of my small, comfortable life changing. But life did change. That’s what Varanasi taught loudly and out in the open.
Life changed. People changed. That was the journey of humankind. One that we had no choice but to embrace.
I went back to my room and showered, still smiling at the colors smothering the clear water as it circled the drain. When I was clean, I put on another white outfit. I left my damp hair down and in loose curls and joined the rest of the group in the rec room. Cael was talking to Travis. He was still smiling, still energized.
And I was still madly, hopelessly in love with him.
“You look at him like I looked at Jose,” Dylan said quietly, suddenly appearing at my side.
“Dylan …” I said, when my heart fell. I didn’t want to cause Dylan pain or discomfort through my relationship with Cael.
Dylan shook his head. “No. It’s a good thing, Sav. It’s …” He swallowed. “It’s beautiful to see. It gives me hope too, you know? That maybe one day I could have it again.”
I threw my arms around his waist and held him. “You will. I know you will. You’re too amazing to not have it again when you’re ready.” Dylan kissed the top of my head.
“What have I told you about kissing my girl, Dylan,” Cael said, humor in his voice. I stepped back from Dylan when Cael playfully pulled me into his arms. He immediately cocooned me and kissed me on my cheek. I was filled with instant warmth, and that static that had risen between us was still there—stronger, if possible. Dylan jokingly rolled his eyes.
“If everyone is ready, let’s head down to the river,” Mia said. All the group was squeaky clean after the earlier celebrations, only a few patches of faded color staining our skin, that I felt would take many more showers to dispel. Cael kept me wrapped tightly in his arms. Even the weight of that show of affection seemed easier for him today. I wanted to hold on to this side of Cael for as long as I could.
Lights flickered in the streets as dusk set in. It was peaceful, quiet, after a morning and afternoon of chaos. You could almost feel the sanctity of the festival thickening the air with every step you walked, only building when we reached a ghat and sat down upon the steps just to watch and drink in the culture. To observe a world far removed from our own.
“People will spend the evenings going to temples for Pooja,” Kabir explained softly. I was in awe at the peace around us. At the quietness. I leaned my head on Cael’s shoulder and let my body absorb the stillness, the religious significance of this city to the people who have traveled here for an array of reasons. I became lost watching people move in and out of the temples. The sound of religious music filled the air, and I watched as holy men performed rituals on the stone steps we sat on. I saw how much this festival meant to them in their hearts and souls.