The Young that Grows

Chapter 4

The current king was a good one, with a good reputation and a fine use of his power. People often liked to call it the Golden Age because of how much the kingdom's wealth was improving. Poverty rates were going down and their were more jobs than ever! Or so you would hear... Lew had turned 16 just earlier that year, and he already was forced to have two jobs to support his family. His mother was too weak to work and his father could only balance so much. His sister was to be married soon, and that was a celebration they were all looking forward to. Secretly, Lew was excited to have one less mouth to feed. As the boy passed by a stall, he eyed the expensive jewelry with disgust. There was no point in having those stalls, only royals could afford such luxuries nowadays, and they would never come down to the market. They thought too highly of themselves. Sometimes, for fun, Lew would imagine what a royal snob would do if they suddenly had to work two jobs to stay alive. Skip sleep to fit in more

hours. Do house work and chores. Sometimes, it made him smile to think that he could do things they could not. "Fresh bouquets! Freshly picked, straight from the garden," a nearby store-owner called. Lew eyed the selection, grimacing a bit at the sight of a happy couple browsing it. Every couple lew saw felt like they were making a mockery of him. He had never felt something as deep as love, or as pure as a crush. Not even l**t. Girls just never caught his eye, even when he was in schooling with a few nobles' daughters. He yearned to fall head over heels for someone, maybe even to have his heartbroken. He decided something was better than nothing at all. It was only a few years until he turned eighteen himself, and then he would be expected to marry. For now, though, he would enjoy being single, and he would enjoy needing no one at all. Mentally, Lew made a note of how much he could spend right then. He still needed money for the family and other necessary items, so he couldn't go crazy. He separated the coins in his head, planning out how he would spend every last cent. He would have two silvers to spend on his little endeavors and the rest would go towards food, clothing, and bills. While he was thinking, he paused in front of a fruit stand. The apples taunted him, and the man running the stand began to notice his interest. The man picked up an apple and held it out, the glint of a possible sale shining in his eye. Lew's stomach grumbled audibly, causing his ears to heat up out of embarrassment. Gingerly, the boy took the apple, trying to seem like he wasn't has eager as he was." That'll be three silvers!" Lew's eyes widened out of shock, and he nearly dropped the apple. " What?! Why so expensive?!" "There's a famine up north and my farm is donating, I've had to raise my market prices to account for the sales lost," the man explained tiredly." Now, three silvers."

"I don't have three silvers,"Lew mumbled. The man rolled his eyes and gestured to the bag. You seem to have a lot more than just three, this'll be nothing, kid," he insisted. The dark-haired male debated with his inner demons. He badly wanted the apple, but he couldn't afford to be one silver down when it came to bills. He sighed and moved to return the apple to its pile. The man grabbed his wrist, stopping him. "Nah, you can't put it back. Your filthy hands have been all over it." "What?! Can't you just wash it!" Lew yanked his hand from the man's grip, still clutching the unwanted fruit. The man shook his head. " Kid, there's an illness going around, I can't simply wash sickness away. Now, are you going to buy the apple, or do I have to get the guards for stealing?" Lew gaped, horrified that such a horrible salesman existed. He couldn't even sell his products legitimately, so he had to rope naïve buyers in and

even sell his products legitimately, so he had to rope naïve buyers in and trap them?! Oh, if the boy wasn't so much smaller than the man, he would fight him right there in the market. " I don't have three silvers!" Guards it is," the man said nonchalantly, as if that wouldn't screw up the younger man's life until the end of time. The salesman drew in a breath, about to shout for all to hear. And who would they believe? A shop owner, or a scrappy little kid? Suddenly, Lew jumped at the feel of a hand on his shoulder. He almost thought it was a guard, but the grip was too soft. Someone dropped a small bag of coins on the ground at the man's feet. Lew turned slightly, but the face of the new man was blocked by his hood. Make it two apples, keep the cha e." The shop owner's eyes widened, and he picked up the bag, counting out the coins. " Ten silvers?!" Lew's mouth fell open and he glanced between the stranger and the salesman. The grumpy old scammer quickly pocketed the money and handed the man a second apple. With a nod of his head, the hooded man led the boy away. Once they rounded the corner into an alleyway, Lew scrambled away from the man. The stranger's hood cast a shadow over his face. Lew sighed, deciding he probably shouldn't be too wary of someone who just paid off a scam artist. However, he was still careful. This town was high in crime. One minute someone would help you buy an apple, the next they're mugging you to make up for any money they lost in the exchange. But he would still give him the benefit of the doubt. "Thank you for that back there." The dark-haired male rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Lew flinched as the man stuck out his hand suddenly. Slowly, the boy reached over and shook it, surprised by the strength behind the man's grip. " I'm Lew." The stranger reached up and pulled back his hood. The boy sucked in a breath, surprised to find a kind-faced boy not much older than he. There was a stunning smile on his face and eyes as green as the trees. " Hi, Lew!"

Lew blinked, severely confused. Not moments ago, this guy had been the most intimidating person on the street, with a deep voice and an aura of authority. Now, he was standing before him, biting into an apple and grinning like an i***t. "I'm Darryl!" "Uh, okay. That's cool," Lew said, struggling to think of anything to say. 'Well, I really appreciate that, I'll have to pay you back some other time though-" Darryl waved his hand, shrugging. 'Nah, don't worry about it. It's only a few silvers." 'Right," Lew hummed, holding his own apple as if it were poisoned. Darryl finished off his happily. " So, where were you headed after this," the stranger asked, tossing the core into a nearby trash can. " I'll walk you there." "Thanks, but I'm fine," the boy responded, turning to go. " You've helped me enough, I don't want to trouble you more." He started to walk away when

Darryl waved his hand, shrugging. "Nah, don't worry about it. It's only a few silvers." "Right," Lew hummed, holding his own apple as if it were poisoned. Darryl finished off his happily. "So, where were you headed after this," the stranger asked, tossing the core into a nearby trash can. " I'll walk you there." " Thanks, but I'm fine," the boy responded, turning to go. " You've helped me enough, I don't want to trouble you more." He started to walk away when suddenly, Darryl gripped his wrist a little too tightly, causing the boy to yelp. " Ow, what the heck?!" He looked over his shoulder and froze. Darryl's soft face had hardened and his eyes could turn anyone to stone. It wasn't a suggestion."

'You could've just told me someone was following us," Lew grumbled. Darryl shot him a pointed look. " What! I'm just saying you didn't have to be so dramatic!" "I'm not being dramatic! I'm just trying to keep you safe," Darryl whined. The two walked down a few darker side streets, the setting sun casting shadows and making it appear to already be night. Lew couldn't believe how stupid the whole situation was. He couldn't afford an apple and now he was walking down an unlit street, no witnesses in sight, with a stranger. He figured if he ended up getting robbed and murdered, it would be a good story for his family to tell. "Wait, where are we going?" Lew questioned, coming to a stop. " You never even asked where my house was!" "Oh," Darryl gaped. " Guess I forgot about that part." The shorter male pinched the bridge of his nose. " You forgot about That's a little important, don't you think?!" "Sorry," the stranger trailed off, his eyes latching onto something behind them. He grabbed Lew's wrist. Ow! Again with the touching!" The peasant complained, yanking away, but his gaze followed the other man's. He caught a glimpse of a figure disappearing around the corner. He put a hand on Darryl's shoulder, feeling fear creep into his veins. " Um, why are we being followed exactly?" "I have a few guesses, but I'm not too sure either," Darryl mumbled. " Just act natural and we'll try to lose them." Slowly, the two resumed their walking. They didn't talk, but Lew still clutched onto Darryl's arm. The boy began to notice the buildings around them thinning, and he figured they were reaching the outskirts of the town. Had they really been walking for that long? Or had the marketplace always been that close to the edge of the capital?

Suddenly, Darryl took a sharp turn and told Lew to start running. He grabbed the smaller man's hand and directed him on a windy route past parts of the city that he'd never seen before. Lew heard footsteps following them, closer than he might've liked. He frowned when Darryl suddenly jumped into a trellis and began climbing the wall of a house. The strange man looked over his shoulder and held out a hand. " C'mon! Start climbing or this guy's gonna catch us!" Lew was bewildered to find that Darryl was smiling wildly, like this was the most exciting thing to him. Was being chased by an unknown threat really so thrilling to him?! Nevertheless, he grabbed his hand and began climbing himself. They reached the roof of the house and Darryl immediately forced Lew down right as the pursuer rounded the corner. The guy looked around, obviously confused. He stomped his foot and cursed, thinking he'd lost the two. Lew noticed that Darryl was staring very intently at the guy's face, perhaps trying to place where he'd seen it before. The shorter male took into account the man's tall, refined figure. He must've been a solider of some kind. He was fairly young as well, strawberry blonde hair filled with curls and a his face very youthful. Why was someone roughly their age trying to catch them? 36 The man let out a growl and ran down an alley, maybe thinking they'd headed that direction. As soon as he was gone, Darryl pulled Lew to the trellis and they climbed down. Lew turned to head back into town, but the taller man advised they avoid that for a little while. "He could still be around, it's safer to just wander around the outskirts for a little while," Darryl advised. Lew was hesitant, remembering he still had to get back to his family and make dinner. The two approached a small grove of trees on the edge of the city. They climbed a little hill and came to a stop Lew At the top of the hill, there was a lone maple tree, it's leaves a brilliant orange hue, and the branches blowing in the autumn breeze. Gently, the two settled in the grass blow the spectacular tree. From the top of the hill, the two could see a decent portion of the city. As the darkness began to blanket the sky, lights flickered to life. "This is a lovely little view, isn't it?" Darryl hummed. Lew nodded in agreement. There was an awkward silence, which the older man tried to fill with a few ice breaker questions like, "What do you do for a living?" "Me?" Lew stopped to think about his answer. He'd only just met this kid, should he really give away so much information? Oh, what the hell, why was he even trying to hide anymore. " I clean tables at a cafe in Town Square, and on the weekends I help out at the orphanage." "Really," Darryl whistled. " You are quite the saint." "It's nothing." Lew shrugged, smiling a little. "They needed the help and I needed the job, there's nothing more to