[ONC2024] Everyone can read minds except for Ethan Langdon. And Ethan Langdon has the dumbest (and cutest!) thoughts Lukas Hoffmann has ever heard.
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Lukas Hoffman's life in Brambleburg is about as boring as you'd expect for a town where everyon...
It's close to dawn when the rain lessens to a light drizzle. The sky turns a faded pink as I take the path leading to the lake.
Ethan sits by the lake shore, face pressed to his knees. I'm so relieved to see him that I feel like all my bones have shattered and turned to jelly.
"Hey. I didn't want you to go." My voice cracks with exhaustion as I kneel down beside him.
It sure seemed like you did. Ethan tips his head back, pressing the heels of his palms beneath his eyes. "What are you doing here, Lukas?"
"I was worried about you. It was raining hard and I thought you got lost. I couldn't find you." I gulped, taking in a shaky breath. "I'm so sorry. You're stuck here and it's all my fault."
"I'm not stuck here," Ethan says quietly. "I left Brambleburg last night." You were out looking for me?
"You left?" I shake my head in amazement. "You found your way out of here and you...you came back?"
He smiles sadly. "I came back." I couldn't leave the way things were...with you.
"Ethan, I—"
I reach for his hand, tangling my fingers in his once I know it's okay. How do I say this? I've never had to voice a thought before. And my feelings are such a jumbled up mess that I can barely pick out each strand myself.
"I just—" I swallow. "I only said you should leave because I was worried you'd get trapped here. And I felt really bad cause I knew you wanted to travel the world. I should've told you the truth about Brambleburg from the beginning."
"That everyone here has been stuck their whole lives?" Ethan stares down at his hand in mine. I'm surprised he doesn't think I'm lying.
"Um, yeah...but there's more. We all have telepathic powers. And uh, I swear I was trying not to listen to you at first, but it got more and more difficult to ignore. Especially when you were, um, thinking of me," I rush. "And then we started hanging out, and I got to know you better, and...um. The truth is I-I...."
"Wait, hold up. Telepathic powers?" His eyes flick to mine, not catching up to what I'm trying to say.
"Mind reading, yeah." I absentmindedly run a thumb along his cold hand, trying to warm it. "You're the only person I've ever met who doesn't have it."
"You're kidding," Ethan deadpans, blinking drizzle off his lashes. Light rain patters through tree branches and drips on us.
"No, I- uh, just think of something weird." I pause till there's an image in his mind. "You're thinking of a pink cow with a unicorn horn?"
His face moves from confusion to shock to abject horror.
"I'm sorry! I know that sounds like an invasion of your privacy. I mean, it is invasive." I tug at my wet T-shirt. "But I can't really turn it off...everyone here is used to their thoughts not being private."
"You're telling me everyone's been reading my mind the whole time I've been here?" Ethan's voice raises into an embarrassed squeak.
"Not on purpose...but yeah," I admit.
"But I- that's...just—" Ethan's eyes widen as realization hits. What the fuck, I've been having such pervy thoughts.
I snort at that. "Yeah, they were pretty bad."
"No!" He turns beet red as he tries to protest. "It's not like that, I—"
"Ethan," I say.
"It's not—" He shakes his head, blushing furiously. Rainwater flies off his curls, showering me in featherlight droplets. "I don't even like you!" Oh my god, I love him.
"You really are an idiot." I tighten my grip on his hand and pull him in. "I love you too."
Ethan's eyes go wide and his mind short circuits. His cheeks are dappled with freckles and rainwater that glints in the pinkish hue of dawn. And I've never wanted to kiss him more than in that instant.
He can't read my mind so I ask, "Is this okay?"
Ethan answers by pressing his lips onto mine. All the times I've imagined it and seen him picture it don't even compare to the real thing. It's still chilly and rainy and his lips are cold but they're perfect.
His frigid nose glides against mine, wet curls dripping rainwater over my neck. His hands wind in my hair, pulling me closer. My knees dig into the soft earth, grass staining my palms as I lean over him.
He leans back against the riverbank, canna lilies surrounding his curls like a flower crown. The scent is sweet and intoxicating. Drizzle patters on the surface of the lake in a gentle rhythm. Soft fingertips brush the side of my jaw, as light as the raindrops falling over us.
And he tastes like rainwater and verbenas.
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