SURVIVE (THRIVE: Book Two)

Chapter 29- Old Meets New

"Are you okay?" Aria asks as we start to approach Magnus' house.

"Yea, I will be," I state, trying to sound confident as I twirled the charm on my mother's necklace around with my fingers.

"Do you have a plan?" Pearl asks curiously as we make our way around a crowd of people swarming the textile shop.

"I think so. I'm just going to approach this like any other day and go from there. I feel like if it comes up naturally it will make the whole thing so much easier." I explain as we make it to his front door "Here goes nothing."

"Alright, good luck," Aria states as they start to go.

"Stick together, okay?" I ask as I watch them walk away.

"Will do." Pearl replies "We'll see you later." she smiles and they head off to the market. I can't help but hesitate, but eventually, I knock on the door. After a moment of waiting, Magnus' mother opens it.

"Tessa, good to see you dear." she smiles "Come in, come in." She motions as I walk into their living room.

"Good morning." I say politely "What's Magnus up to?"

"Cleaning up from breakfast, he should be out in just a minute." she explains, and suddenly, he comes out of the kitchen "Spoke too soon I suppose, I'll leave you to it then." she smiles as she heads to the back hallway.

"Hey, what are you doing here so early?" He asks as he comes up and kisses my forehead.

"I missed you since I didn't get to hang out last night." I smile happily, at least that wasn't a lie.

"I missed you too." he states "Since school was canceled, I was going to come to see you, but I guess you beat me to it." he laughs.

"Yea, I woke up a little earlier than I thought that I would." I say as I brush my hair back with my fingers "So, are you up for a little hike? I have somewhere I'd love to take you." I smile, and he immediately seems intrigued.

The sky is cloudy, but it doesn't seem like it's going to rain just yet. As we walk through the jungle, the trees give off a sweet fragrance. The northern path usually saw less foot traffic than most other places, so the ground beneath our feet is soft and grassy. We follow the trail for a while until we finally make it to the stone staircase that leads over the side of the rock wall that stands before us. As we carefully make our way up, we have to stop to catch our breath. This climb is longer than I had remembered. Still, just being out here walking is calming for me, especially since I'm getting ready to do something that's making my stomach churn. Finally, we reach the top, allowing us to see the beauty of the cove before us. The water glows like sapphire and turquoise and the rocks glistened in the mist. Further away, the breaking wreckage of the S.S. Lobelia sits lodged on the rocks across the bay. I have been here so many times before, but the sight of it still makes me smile with excitement.

"Welcome to Lolani's Cove," I state as I begin to make my way down toward the water. Magnus seems absolutely astounded by this place, and at that moment, I realize that this was his first time here.

"Holy shit..." he says in awe as he makes his way down "You've been here before?" he asks curiously.

"Yea, Nanea brought us here a few years ago," I explain. That wasn't a complete lie, she did after all. Kind of ironic since this place was named after her "Come on, I wanna show you around." I smile as we make our way toward the ship. After all these years, it's somehow still holding up, just a little more withered with age. As long as you watch your step, walking on it is still pretty safe. We make our way through the hull and up to the deck, stepping back out into the sunlight and feeling the ocean breeze on our skin. Magnus carefully makes his way across the deck to the railing, turning back to stare at the masts, then at me.