As Felicity and Gavin made their way to the parking lot where his truck was parked, the world around them seemed to hold its breath. The sun hung low in the sky, casting long shadows that stretched across the asphalt like fingers reaching for the fading light. A fiery blend of orange and crimson painted the horizon, the colors bleeding into the quiet air and giving the scene an almost surreal stillness.
The parking lot was nearly deserted, its emptiness amplifying the faint, ever-present hum of distant trafficâa soft, unchanging rhythm that hinted at the ordinary world still turning somewhere beyond this moment. For Gavin, however, normalcy felt like a distant memory, slipping further away with each step.
He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, glancing sideways at Felicity. She was still fidgeting with the oversized hoodie he'd made her wear, tugging at the hem as though it might magically transform into her gown. She looked uncomfortable, irritated, and entirely out of place, which somehow only made her stand out more.
Dare he admit she looked better in a dress? It definitely made her more beautiful, but he couldn't think that way, and he definitely wasn't going to tell her.
"You've got to stop pulling at it," Gavin said, his voice low as they walked toward the truck. "You're going to rip the thing."
"I don't care," she muttered. "I look ridiculous."
Gavin sighed heavily. "Just deal with it, all right?"
Felicity shot him a sharp glare but didn't reply. They reached the truck, and Gavin clicked the key fob to unlock it. He motioned for her to get in, but as he opened his own door, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye.
He froze, his hand tightening on the door handle.
"Gavin?" Felicity asked, pausing with one foot inside the cab. Her voice was cautious, her tone shifting from irritation to concern.
He didn't answer right away, his gaze fixed on the far side of the parking lot. Beneath the shadow of an old oak tree, a figure stoodâstill and silent, half-obscured by the dim light filtering through the branches. It was too far away to make out any details, but there was something wrong about the way it stood. Its body didn't shift or sway like a person casually standing around. It was unnaturally still, as though frozen in place. Watching.
"Is that..." Gavin started, his voice trailing off.
Felicity stepped away from the truck, her eyes snapping to where he was looking. The moment she saw the figure, her entire body tensed, her hands curling into fists.
"Get in the truck," she said sharply, her voice cutting through the quiet. "It's one of them. A shadow agent."
Gavin felt a chill creep down his spine. His breath caught in his throat as he stared at the figure. Even from this distance, its presence felt wrongâlike the air around it was heavier, colder.
"Why isn't it moving?" he asked, his voice tight.
"They don't need to rush," Felicity said, stepping closer to him. Her eyes stayed locked on the figure, her jaw clenched. "They're patient. They know we're running."
Her words didn't make him feel any better. In fact, they made him feel worse. His grip tightened on the door handle, his knuckles white. The figure hadn't moved, but somehow it felt closer, its shadow stretching unnaturally long across the pavement.
"No," he said sternly. "I'm not going to be afraid of the boogeyman. It's daytime now, and I'm going to show this person... or whatever it is, that I'm not a coward."
"Gavin, this is not a trickster. Get in the truck. Now," Felicity said, her voice rising slightly.
He hesitated, his eyes darting between her and the figure. "Why? It's not even moving."
"That's what makes it dangerous," she snapped. "They don't have to chase you to be a threat. Their presence alone canâ" She stopped herself, biting her lip. "Just trust me."
That was asking a lot. But as much as he wanted to argue, the oppressive weight in the air and the trickles running up and down his back were enough to convince him. He climbed into the truck, and Felicity followed, slamming the door behind her. Gavin turned the key in the ignition, and the engine roared to life.
He glanced once more toward the oak tree. The figure was gone.
"Where did it go?" he asked, his voice sharp with unease.
Felicity scanned the parking lot, her expression grim. "It's still watching. They always are."
A knot formed in Gavin's stomach as he shifted the truck into reverse and backed out of the parking space. He glanced at the mirrors repeatedly, half-expecting the figure to appear again, but the space where the shadow had been remained empty. Still, the sensation of being watched clung to him like a sticky second skin.
As they pulled onto the main road, Felicity kept her eyes fixed on the rearview mirror, her hands gripping her seatbelt. Gavin glanced at her and tightened his jaw.
"What do they even want?" he asked, breaking the tense silence. "Why are they after us?"
"They're after you," she said quietly, her gaze not leaving the mirror. "You're the threat to Morgana. If they eliminate you, Camelot has no future."
He let out a bitter laugh. "Me? A threat? I don't even know how to fight. In fact, I barely know how to do my taxes."
"You know how to fight... very well, I might add. Don't you remember in the arena?"
"That was different." He shook his head.
"That is how we fight in Camelot. Besides, they are not concerned about what you know now," she said, finally looking at him. "They're concerned about what you'll become."
Her words hung heavy in the air, and Gavin gritted his teeth. He didn't know what was worse: the idea that he was being hunted for something he didn't even understand, or the fact that Felicity sounded so sure about it.
He tightened his grip on the wheel, his knuckles white. "What happens if they catch us?"
Felicity hesitated, the parlor of her face diminishing. "They'll kill me," she said finally, her voice steady but quiet. "And they'll take you back to Morgana. What she'll do to you..." She shivered. "I don't even want to imagine."
Gavin swallowed hard, his stomach churning. "So, basically, we're screwed."
"Not if we stay ahead of them," she said firmly. "And not if I can find my wand."
He snorted, his fear giving way to frustration. "Your wand again. Great. Because you've been so helpful without it."
Her head whipped toward him, her green eyes flashing. "Do you think I'm not trying?" she snapped. "Do you think I don't know how bad this is? Without my wand, I'mâ" She cut herself off, exhaling sharply. "I'm doing the best I can, Gavin."
The truck jolted slightly as Gavin hit a pothole, his attention snapping back to the road. When he stopped at the red light, he glanced in the rearview mirror againâand his stomach dropped.
The shadow agent was there, stepping out of an alleyway far behind them. It didn't run. It didn't even hurry. But its deliberate, fluid movements sent a shiver down Gavin's spine.
"Uh, Felicity?" he said, his voice tight.
She followed his gaze to the mirror, her face going pale. "Keep driving. Don't stop for anything."
"What if it catches up?" he asked, his heart pounding.
"Let's pray it doesn't," she said, though her voice wavered slightly. "Just keep going."
Luckily, the light turned green and he sped ahead, leaving the figure behind, Gavin couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't over. The shadow agent might be out of sight, but its presence lingered in the back of his mind, like a cold weight pressing against his thoughts.
"Where are we even going?" he asked after a long moment.
Felicity hesitated, her hands fidgeting with the hem of her hoodie. "Somewhere safe," she said finally. "Somewhere I can figure out how to stop them."
"And if you can't?" Gavin asked, his voice quieter.
Her gaze shifted to him, and for the first time, he saw a flicker of doubt in her eyes. "I will," she said softly. "I have to."
The road stretched out ahead of them, long and uncertain, as the weight of their situation pressed down on them both. Gavin didn't know where they were going, but one thing was clear: the shadow agents weren't going to stop.
And neither could they.
* * * *
The truck rattled down a long, desolate stretch of road, the hum of the engine filling the silence like a barrier between them. The sun hung low in the sky, casting golden streaks across the cracked road, but the warm light did little to soften the tension thickening the air inside the cab.
Felicity sat rigid in the passenger seat, arms crossed over her chest, fingers gripping the fabric of her sleeves as if grounding herself. Her jaw was tight, her lips pressed into a thin line, frustration simmering beneath her skin like a slow-burning fire. She was too wound up to look at him directly, but she could feel Gavin's mood beside her, thick and heavy, radiating off him like heat from the engine.
She risked a glance out of the corner of her eye. His knuckles were white against the steering wheel, his grip so tight she wondered if he even realized he was doing it. His jaw clenched and unclenched in a slow, controlled rhythm, like he was trying to bite back whatever words were threatening to escape. His eyes never wavered from the road ahead, locked onto the horizon as if it held the answer to whatever was eating at him.
He was trying to keep it together.
She'd seen it beforeâthis quiet, brooding silence, the kind that made him look like nothing could touch him. But Felicity had seen enough cracks in that carefully built facade to know better. Beneath all that restraint, he was barely holding himself in check.
And so was she.
Finally, she couldn't take the silence anymore.
"You're angry," she said, her tone flat.
"No," Gavin replied, his voice clipped. "I'm as cheerful as a Disney character, but thanks for asking."
She rolled her eyes, turning in her seat to face him more fully. She wished he wouldn't say things that made no sense to her. What was a Disney character? "You've barely said a word since we left. Just say whatever it is you're thinking."
He scoffed, shaking his head. "Fine. You want to know what I'm thinking? I'm thinking this whole thing is insane."
"I know it's a lotâ"
"No, you don't," he cut her off, his voice rising. "You don't know, Felicity. You keep throwing all this Camelot, magic, destiny stuff at me like I'm just supposed to accept it, but guess what? I'm not you. I don't believe in this crap."
Her stomach twisted at his words, but she kept her expression calm. "I'm not asking you to believe everything right away. I'm asking you to trust me."
"That's the problem!" Gavin said, slamming his hand against the steering wheel for emphasis. "I barely know you. For all I know, you're just some crazy beautiful lady with a weird obsession with the medieval era."
Her cheeks flushed, both from anger and from his compliment. He thinks I'm beautiful? "Do you really think I would risk my lifeâand yoursâfor some fantasy?" she snapped. "Everything I've told you is real, Gavin. The shadow agents, Morgana, your place in Camelotâit's all real."
He let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah? Prove it. Show me something real, Felicity. Because so far, all I've seen is some bad smoke effects, rabbits in a field, and a lot of talk about a wand you lost."
Her chest tightened at the reminder of her missing wand. She had been trying to stay focused, to push past the nagging fear that she was losing control of the situation, but his words cut deeper than she expected.
"I'm doing the best I can," she said, her voice low and trembling with emotion. "Do you think I wanted to lose my wand? Do you think I wanted to be stuck here, trying to convince someone who clearly doesn't want to be saved?"
Gavin's mouth opened, then closed, as if he wasn't sure how to respond. She shook her head, her hands clenching in her lap.
"I gave up everything to find you," she continued, her voice rising. "My home, my safetyâeverything. I've been hunted, Gavin. Hunted by things you can't even begin to imagine. And I've faced all of that because I thought you were worth it. Because I thought saving Camelot was worth it."
Her words hung in the air, sharp and heavy. Gavin's expression shifted, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his face before he looked away.
"Maybe you're wrong," he said quietly.
Felicity blinked, caught off guard by the quiet bitterness in his tone. "Pray tell, what does that mean?"
"Maybe you're wrong," he repeated, his voice flat. "Maybe I'm not worth it. Maybe Camelot's better off without me."
The weight of his words hit her like a blow. She stared at him, stunned, as his grip on the steering wheel tightened.
"Look at me," he said, his voice growing louder. "I'm not a prince. I'm just a guy. A guy who's barely scraping by in school, who works a dead-end job and screws up more often than not. You really think I'm the guy who's going to save your kingdom? That I'm going to stop some evil sorceress or whatever?"
"Yes," she said firmly, leaning forward, placing her hand on his arm. "Because you're more than that, Gavin. You may not remember it yet, but you're stronger than you think. And whether you believe it or not, Camelot needs you."
He let out a harsh laugh. "Needs me? Right. Like I'm some kind of hero. I'm not, Felicity. I'm not anyone's hero."
The pain in his voice cut through her anger, and she softened slightly, her frustration giving way to something gentler. "You don't have to be perfect," she said quietly. "You just have to try. That's all anyone can ask of you."
He didn't respond right away, his jaw tightening as he stared at the road ahead. The silence between them felt heavy, weighted with unspoken fears and doubts.
Finally, he sighed, his shoulders slumping. "I don't know if I can do this," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.
Felicity reached out, hesitating for a moment before placing a hand on his arm. "You're not alone," she said softly. "I'll be with you every step of the way. But you have to trust me, Gavin. Please."
Gavin's eyes flicked toward her, just for a second, before returning to the road. He didn't speak, didn't offer any kind of reassurance, but something in his posture shiftedâthe rigid line of his shoulders loosening ever so slightly. It wasn't much. It wasn't an apology or an admission or even a truce. But it was something.
Felicity let out a slow breath, sinking back into her seat as the truck rumbled on, its steady hum filling the quiet between them. The landscape stretched endlessly on either side of the road, golden fields giving way to dense patches of trees, the occasional road sign flashing past in a blur. The world felt deceptively still, like the calm before a storm.
She didn't know how much time they had before the shadow agents caught up with them again, before the next fight forced them back into chaos. But for now, she would take thisâthis fleeting, fragile moment where neither of them had to run, where silence wasn't just a battleground but a place to breathe.
For now, progressâhowever smallâwould have to be enough.