Villain's Second Heart: Trapped in A Fantasy Novel (BL)-Chapter 69: Fall For You

"The hell are you doin’!" Deek screeched at them from across the farm. "You’re kidnappin’ the old man!? Just leave him somewhere he can’t get back! I’d have done it a loooong time ago but he’s too damn heavy!"

Ezra smiled, ignoring Deek’s words and simply waving at her. With Cliff still firmly on his back, he dipped into the woods.

He navigated down a trail made by animals that descended deep into the forest. The stamped-out foliage and animal tracks provided an easy way to move through the quiet wood. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"Take a right up here."

Ezra reached a fork in the road and veered to the right.

"Does Rav never take you out? With his magic he -"

"I’m not going anywhere with that damn narcissist!" Cliff howled, wriggling around so much Ezra nearly lost hold of him.

"Don’t talk about that foul-mouthed ingrate to me."

"Not a peep," Ezra promised.

He continued to walk through the forest, though the terrain became more treacherous - cliffy, with the trees growing closer together as their branches fought for dominance over the area.

It wasn’t long before Ezra could hear it - the faint sound of rushing water from deeper in the wooded valley. He perked up, and Cliff noticed.

"Still need directions?" he huffed. "Keep right of that rock up ahead. It’s a smoother way down."

Ezra agreed happily, and they continued their adventure. He wound around the rock and found another small trail. He took it down for another few minutes and once they rounded a bend, they finally saw it.

The waterfall was massive - far bigger than Ezra imagined. It roared with life, cascading down from a jagged cliffside covered in moss. The water caught the afternoon light that peeked through the trees in a crisp collage of light, splitting into ribbons of silver and sapphire as it tumbled down into the pool below.

The air here was thick with moisture, cool and crisp - a stark contrast to the heat of the morning trek. Here, nature unfolded its wonders in a million different ways, activating every one of Ezra’s senses.

Ezra exhaled slowly, his breath stolen by the sight.

"Beautiful, ain’t it?" Cliff grunted, his voice quieter than usual, almost reverent.

Ezra adjusted his grip on the old Ferin, shifting his weight slightly. "Yeah," he admitted. "It is."

’I’ll bring Oberyn here, someday,’ he thought to himself.

"Want to get closer, Mr. Cliff?"

The sound of the waterfall was deafening up close. Ezra took careful steps forward, carrying Cliff toward a flat rock near the water’s edge that was surrounded by wildflowers.

He knelt carefully, letting Cliff ease himself onto the rock.

For a moment, the old man just sat there, staring. The ever-present scowl on his face faded away - almost like a distant memory. He looked like a different man. His eyes were brighter - wider. He breathed in slow, measured breaths, and his pose was relaxed. He even closed his eyes as he soaked in the splendor.

Ezra didn’t say a word - he preferred to let the old Ferin take it all in.

"I used to come here all the damn time," Cliff muttered finally, his voice rough but lacking its usual bite. As he spoke, his shoulders stretched out as if for the first time in years the weight of the world was no longer crushing down upon him.

Ezra settled beside him, resting his elbows on his knees. He watched as a few birds flitted near the waterfall’s edge. Their wings caught droplets of mist and left shimmering trails in the air as they flew on by.

"Glad you could see it again, then," Ezra said simply.

Cliff let out a gruff chuckle, shaking his head. "Kid, you don’t know when to quit, do ya?"

Ezra just grinned. He stretched his legs out and let the cool mist of the falling waters invigorate him.

"Not a chance, old man."

"What’d you say your name was?"

"Ezra."

"Hmph. And that other one you had with you the first time. The blond kid. What’s his name?"

Ezra’s eyes lit up. So the old man did remember him after all.

"Oberyn," he said, the word soft on his lips.

"Hmph."

They sat in silence for a while - Ezra wasn’t trying to press his luck. The moment was enjoyable enough without the comfort of small talk.

Finally, after some time, Cliff began to open up.

"This was my wife’s favorite spot. Right here, on this rock. The same spot you picked."

"She had great taste," Ezra smirked. "This is a beautiful spot."

Cliff exhaled. "I haven’t been here since she died. Hell, I couldn’t have if I wanted to. Wasn’t long after that I lost my legs."

Another period of brief quiet before Cliff spoke some more. He seemed more comfortable stating things into silence over having a full-blown conversation.

"I proposed to her here. Told her...Lennie..."

The words were hard for him to speak without getting choked up. Somehow, the grizzled Ferin pushed through.

"Lennie, this was the place you made me fall for you. And this...is the place I want to see every day for the rest of my life...our life. Together, until the end..."

"That’s beautiful, Cliff."

"She was."

Whether Cliff misheard what Ezra said or was simply lost in his own world was unclear. The goat Ferin’s eyes were wholly unreadable as decades of memories flashed through him, moment after moment.

The good times. The calm times. And the bad.

Ezra saw a notification.

[Quest Complete!

Reward: 10FP

Current FP: 40/100]

He brushed it aside. That wasn’t the most important thing right now. Giving this moment to Cliff was.

"Never thought I’d see this place again," Cliff said, his voice low and quiet as he ruminated. "Ezra, from one man to another...I guess it’s a thank you."

"My pleasure," Ezra responded. "I’m in no rush to get back, Cliff. Want to hang out here for a while?"

"I’d like that. And you - bring that boy of yours here sometime, Oberyn. It’d...it’d be nice to know some other young couple can find peace here. The way Lennie and I did."

Ezra shifted anxiously. He and Oberyn weren’t quite a couple...at least not in the strictest sense. But he agreed. The thought had already crossed his mind.

"I will," Ezra smiled. "But I’ll need a story to tell. So, old man...why don’t you tell me about Lennie?"

The final crack in Cliff’s wall - his reluctance fell away.

They chatted for hours before they finally returned back to the farm.