Kepler 52b - j.m + c.b

Corbyn dove into the water, his body moving through the water swiftly.

He was used to this. Jumping in the water to find something one of his friends threw down there to help train him.

The water was like a sanctuary, Corbyn felt more peaceful and at home when he was underwater.

He soon found the pendant his friend, Jack Avery, had thrown down.

It was a pendant Jack’s boyfriend, Zach Herron, had gotten him for their anniversary.

Corbyn picked up the meaningful object and swam back to the surface.

He climbed out of the cold water onto the warm sand, looking up at Jack.

“9 seconds. You can hold your breath for longer than that, right?”

Corbyn nodded. He got up and dried his hair. “Of course. I’m a lakelander of sorts. I can hold my breath for.. maybe 10 minutes,” he said, sliding his shirt back on his damp body.

Jack nodded and clicked his tongue. “Right,” he said. “Forgot. But you can’t carry logs.”

Corbyn shrugged and threw his pendant at him, starting to walk. “Yeah yeah,” he sighed, waving his hand.

Jack rolled his eyes. The two young boys began walking to Jack’s house, where Corbyn stayed 99% percent of the time.

Corbyn bit his lip. “Uh.. Jack, I think I need to head home,” he said. “We have some fish and bread at home. I really need to get back to Ashley and Jordan.”

Jack sighed. “Fine,” he said. “Don’t let the ice giants from Cotvianea get you.”

Corbyn rolled his eyes. “As if. It’s too cold over there,” he said. He walked away, to “home”.

He wasn’t actually going home.

Not yet.

Instead, he headed to downtown, to the Tree Of Neacra.

It was in the center of Neacra. One of its branches, that had a bunch of Neverfruits growing on it, pointed north towards the northern wall, which separated Neacra and Cotvianea.

The fruits were called Neverfruit because most people never got to see them, or taste them.

They supposedly tasted very sweet and would make anyone happy.

They ripened every 1,000 years, and in this year, 4070, it had been 1,000 years since it the fruits were ripe.

So, they would be ready this year.

On Corbyn’s birthday.

And boy was he excited.

Anyway, Corbyn slowly walked to the northern wall. He reached it and looked up.

The wall was covered in vines. It was made out of diamond glass, a glass so precious and shiny that it looked like a diamond.

It was tall, about 40 feet tall. Or more. Corbyn didn’t really know.

Corbyn bit his lip and looked around to find something to stand on so he could look over the wall.

Looking over the wall was illegal.

Anyone who looked over would be imprisoned and executed.

But Corbyn wouldn’t just look over, no, he would climb over and wander around.

So that’s what he did.

Corbyn found the familiar footholds and started climbing up.

He winced as his feet hit the cold, icy, hard ground.

He looked around at the familiar surroundings.

Tall ice sculpture things rose up from the ground, curling beautifully. Snow came down from the heavens, coating Corbyn’s bare shoulders and thighs.

Corbyn shivered and rubbed his hands together as he wandered around.

He, like everyone else in The Middle, was taught that Cotvianea, or as they knew it, The Right, was inhabitable. Too cold for human life. And the outsides of The Right were the warmest.

But that was wrong. There was a whole kingdom but they were all too blind to see it.

Corbyn shivered and turned back towards the wall. He climbed back up then back down, smiling when the warm sun hit his freezing body.

He quickly walked away. No one could know what he did.

He didn’t want to meet the same fate as his parents. Who got executed because they knew the truth.

Corbyn looked back at the wall, at the snow blowing behind it.

He started to wonder if there could be life in The Right. In the inhabitable.

Which wasn’t actually inhabitable.

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