CHAPTER 486: THE GUY FROM MAPLETON

Evaline:

The morning after the rain was the kind of morning poets wrote about.

Cold.

Fresh.

Crisp enough that every breath felt like sipping cool mint water.

I woke up to the soft glow of dawn filtering through the curtains of the camping van, the quiet breathing of the girls around me, and the lingering scent of night’s rain and pine.

It was a few minutes past six.

"Ugh... why are mornings legal?" Ria groaned as she sat up, her hair sticking out like a startled owl.

Selene yawned so wide her jaw cracked. "Because the moon goddess hates us."

Mallory stretched like a cat. "No, because the goddess rewards early risers."

I snorted. "Yeah, that’s why she gave us all dark circles."

But even with our whining, there was something soothing about waking up with your friends on a cliff that smelled like rain-soaked earth and wet leaves.

We changed, packed our bags, and cleaned the vans. The girls moved like zombies... the boys, surprisingly, were worse. Noah nearly brushed his teeth using sunscreen. Rowan put on mismatched shoes. Kyros burned his tongue on hot tea and insisted he was fine while clearly dying.

At seven thirty, two men from the rental company arrived to pick up the vans. We handed over the keys, took one last look at the cliff view, and piled into the cars.

By eight fifteen, we were back in the town for breakfast.

We picked one of the coziest-looking cafe on the street. And fortunately, it was already open for business. It welcomed us with warm light, brick walls, fresh pastries, and hot drinks.

The moment I tasted their honey-butter pancakes, I nearly moaned.

Two cups of hot chocolate later, Mallory and I stepped out into the street to wait for the others while they finished the last of their drinks.

It was then that we stumbled onto a scene that made us both freeze.

"Um... Eva?" Mallory whispered, grabbing my cardigan sleeve.

"Yeah?"

"Are... are you seeing what I’m seeing?"

I nodded slowly.

Because how could I miss it?

Right across the street, in front of a small bookstore, a tall young man was being cornered by three older men.

And not just cornered.

Pushed.

Intimidated.

Surrounded.

The boy looked like he was trying to apologize his way into shrinking out of existence.

"Sir-please-I really didn’t mean to bump into you-" he said in a soft, almost trembling voice.

But the man in front of him shoved him again.

The young man wasn’t a fighter, that was clear.

He wasn’t even standing like one... he was standing like someone used to staying unnoticed.

His hands clutched a stack of thick books to his chest... books that looked important.

A pair of thin, round glasses was slipping down his nose.

His brown hair fell over gentle hazel eyes.

He had a small healing bruise near his jaw.

His clothes were simple but neat, giving him almost a nerd’s vibe.

Soft.

Gentle.

Not meant for confrontation.

"Watch where you are going," the man growled.

"I-I said I was sorry-"

"And what good is sorry, huh?" another sneered, grabbing the boy’s collar.

Okay. No.

Absolutely not.

Mallory muttered under her breath, "Nope. Nope. Over my dead body."

And before I could even react, she stormed forward.

I followed instantly.

"Hey!" Mallory called out, her voice sharp as ice. "What do you think you are doing?"

The three men turned.

Their eyes raked over Mallory dismissively... until they saw me next to her, arms crossed, jaw tight.

One of them scoffed. "This isn’t your business."

Mallory tilted her head. "Oh? That’s funny. Because it looks exactly like our business."

"Yeah," I agreed calmly. "Considering you are ganging up on someone who’s already apologized and wants to leave."

The boss-like guy glared. "Stay out of it."

"No," I said.

The boys inside the restaurant would come out any second... but honestly, Mallory and I didn’t need them.

The man tugged the boy’s collar again. "This runt needs to learn manners."

That was it.

I stepped closer, voice low and steady.

"Let him go."

Something in my tone must have worked because they hesitated.

A moment later, Rowan’s voice rang from behind us, hard and cold.

"Is there a problem?"

Kyros and Noah were right behind him.

The three men immediately stepped back, hands up as if they were the victims here.

"We were just talking to the kid."

Rowan’s eyes sharpened. "It didn’t look like talking."

Kyros took one step forward. "Leave."

They left.

Fast.

And then all eyes turned to the boy who’d been cornered.

He stood absolutely still.

Clutching his books like they were life support.

Eyes wide behind his glasses.

Mallory crouched to pick up the book that had fallen near his feet.

"This yours?" she asked gently.

He nodded quickly.

"Y-yes... thank you."

His voice was soft.

Really soft.

Like he wasn’t used to being listened to.

He adjusted his glasses nervously, shifting his books.

"I’m so sorry," he said, bowing his head slightly. "I didn’t mean to cause trouble."

"You didn’t cause anything," I assured him. "Those guys were jerks."

His hazel eyes met mine... and that was the moment something shifted.

He didn’t look afraid anymore.

Still shy.

Still hesitant.

But something warm flickered - gratitude, maybe?

Or surprise that someone helped him.

"Thank you," he said again, softer this time. "Really."

Mallory introduced herself first.

"I’m Mallory. And this is Evaline. And those idiots are our friends."

"Idiots?" Noah gasped. "Excuse me-"

"Not now," Mallory snapped.

The boy smiled. It was small but genuine, the kind of smile that made people around him smile too, warm without trying.

He shifted the books again. "My name is... Charles."

Charles.

The name suited him.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yes," he said quickly. "Just... embarrassed."

"You don’t have to be," Mallory said firmly. "Those men were picking on you."

Charles lowered his gaze, his cheeks slightly red.

"I... tend to attract that sometimes."

My chest tightened.

He wasn’t weak... just gentle.

A soft person in a world that wasn’t always kind to soft people.

I could understand him because I was just like him until last summer.

Rowan stepped closer, calmer now.

"You live around here?"

Charles nodded. "Yes. I volunteer at the Mapleton Library on weekends. I was just picking up some books to return."

Of course.

He was exactly the type to volunteer at a library.

He looked at all of us with a warm, grateful smile. "Thank you again," he whispered, clutching his books.

His gaze shifted to me for a second before he turned around and walked away.

And for some weird reason... I couldn’t shake the feeling that I would see him again.