Dear lovely lunartic readers,

I'm amazed at how much love you all showed me last chapter. From the bottom of my writing heart, thank you! Know that I cherished every single comment and it was a big motivator in getting this next chapter up as quickly as possible.

Love,

LLC

Now without further ado, Chapter 25.

THORNE

A few months ago, Thorne would never have imagined spending his Saturday afternoons doing anything but getting ready for whatever fun event he had planned for later that Saturday evening. On this blisteringly hot and humid afternoon in early August, he was somewhat cursing himself for having shown just a little too much enthusiasm at the idea of accompanying Kai and Cinder on their outing. But Cinder was restoring a 1964 Aston Martin DB5. How could he have turned that down?

Unfortunately, he hadn't quite grasped just how much the classic car was nowhere near working condition. Where Cinder said restoring, anyone else would argue that her definition of the word was loose: it was more like rebuilding. Hence, why he was now warily searching through piles of other people's crap at a junkyard.

"How long are we going to be stuck here?" he asked Kai, wrinkling his nose at the smell. It was more of a heated rubber smell, which was much better than a heated garbage smell, he supposed, but the sun was blinding and he was unhappy about the farmer's tan he would probably have tomorrow.

Kai cringed and wiped his brow before turning over a scrap of metal, revealing a stack of deflated tires—bike tires. "She wants a timing belt."

A rat scurried by them after they unearthed the next pile, making both of them jump and then pretend that they hadn't been startled. Thorne cleared his throat and stepped back to examine the entire junkyard. Cinder was more than a hundred feet away, hunkered over another pile. She had grown tired of Kai and Thorne's "glacial" pace and decided to continue searching on her own. Kai had warned Thorne not to say anything, because Cinder had only reluctantly agreed to allow them both to come with her.

Though things were going well between the two of them, she was used to operating solo. Kai, on the other hand, was having trouble getting used to being by himself all day. Still trying to figure out his next career path, he had a lot of extra time on his hands. Not that Cinder really minded—she was lighting up like the moon these days too—but Cinder had a job and Kai didn't. Thorne loved it because he got to spend more time with his best friend, but Kai struggled with feeling useless and without a purpose. He was a new man though, without Rikan Corp. The air of hopelessness that used to cling to him had evaporated.

Thorne grunted and pulled off his shirt, depositing it on top of a pile with a flick of his wrist. It was too dirty already for him to care if it got more crap on it.

"Thorne!" Kai hissed, looking scandalized.

"What? It's probably a hundred degrees out here."

"Cinder is coming back here. Look." He pointed at Cinder, who was indeed making her way back.

"Kai, if Cinder's going to be hanging out with us she's going to have to get used to the real me."

"You're the one hanging out with us."

"That hurts, Kai. Bros before—" he cut himself off and flashed Cinder a charming smile as she approached. "Can we go already?"

She was empty-handed and glum. "I guess we'll have to leave sooner or later. You guys have any more luck than me?"

"Unfortunately not," said Kai, taking her hand. "We'll find something useful soon, I'm sure."

"How can you even hold hands in this heat?" asked Thorne. Cinder and Kai just grinned at each other. "Don't go all lovey-dovey on me now," he warned. But he gave them some privacy and began the long walk to his car.

He would be basking in the glory of air-conditioning while Kai and Cinder continued searching.

Kai told Thorne about his idea a week later, when he burst into Thorne's house at 11:00 A.M. on a Tuesday. Thorne, eating brunch and catching up on his social media feeds, nearly fell out of his kitchen barstool when the front door slammed shut. He was not used to having visitors at this hour; though he enjoyed it, he was still getting used to having Kai come over during traditional work hours. It was such a stark contrast to the Kai that he practically had to drag away from his desk for the last two years.

"I've got it!" said Kai, plopping a thick stack of papers down on the kitchen counter.

Thorne swallowed his food. "Someone's chipper."

Kai came around the counter and sat in the barstool next to him. He took Thorne's cereal bowl away and slid the stack of papers into the vacant spot in front of him. He scowled at Kai, but Kai just placed a hand on top of the papers. "I'm starting my own non-profit!"

Thorne reached across Kai and retrieved his bowl. He held it protectively in his hands. "Exciting stuff."

"Could you show more enthusiasm? This is the start of something big. I can feel it."

"I said it was exciting stuff," he replied, then spooned some cereal into his mouth.

"I want you to be my business partner."

Thorne nearly choked. "I'm sorry?"

"I've thought about it a lot. I even talked it over with Cinder. I want you to head up this non-profit organization with me."

Was Kai drunk on this Tuesday morning? He was so shocked at Kai's news that all he could do was stupidly blurt out, "But why?"

"You're smart, Thorne. You know a lot about finance even if you don't have a degree." He gestured around the kitchen. "Look at what you've built for yourself just by messing around with your stocks. If you would have asked me about this six years ago, I would have told you that you'd probably end up homeless."

"Thanks for that vote of confidence."

Kai gave him a light punch in the shoulder. "Come on, anyone who learns about your life thinks it's pretty unrealistic. And how sustainable is it, really?"

"If I were worried about finances, I could just get a job, Kai."

"But you won't. We both know that's not your style. You hate having other people telling you what to do. Isn't that right, Captain Thorne?"

Thorne frowned at Kai's use of the old nickname. Of course he didn't want anyone telling him what to do. Look at how far that had gotten Kai. He would not be marrying anyone he didn't want to, thank you very much.

"You're also great at persuasion," Kai continued. "You can talk your way out of anything. Just think of how you'd do in business negotiations."

"And I'm going to talk my way out of this conversation," he said, stepping down from the stool and taking his cereal bowl to the sink.

"Just take a look at what I brought over. I laid out some proposals, but I want your ideas. That's the bulk of the papers, and the rest of it is everything you've ever wanted to know about starting a non-profit."

"I like profit, Kai."

Kai's enthusiasm didn't waver one bit. "It's not like you wouldn't make any money! It's just that the extra money we make wouldn't be given to shareholders. It would be redistributed as resources for our projects." When Thorne didn't answer, Kai got off the stool. "Just…think about it, ok? I think it'd be fun to go into business together."

"We would murder each other."

He laughed. "Or we'd be unstoppable."

It took Thorne two days before he actually sat down and started seriously reading the pages that Kai had brought over. The page underneath the fancy cover page started out with a typed letter—of sorts—addressed to Thorne. He decided to call it a note, because the idea of Kai typing out a letter to him when he could just call him was rather strange. Kai spent a page or so detailing what he thought Thorne's strengths were and how they could be useful for this initiative. Thorne did not skim that section, as flattery was something he appreciated at all times. Kai then mentioned that he was willing to front the start-up money from his personal accounts. Well, at least he wasn't asking Thorne to do that.

Kai was asking Thorne to use his skills to help other people. Rikan Corp, under the influence of Jannali Blackburn, was about to do some sort of take over and end up letting millions of people go in Europe when they merged with a different company. It was one of the factors that had made it hardest for Kai to leave. Maybe if he had stayed, he could have helped save people's livelihoods. It was a bit of a boo-hoo sob story to Thorne, but Kai left him an open-ended question: "Have you ever wanted to help anyone?"

It was vague, and Thorne figured that if he ever did join up with Kai, they'd have to work on the way he phrased things. Kai might be good at finance and directing others, but he was not very good at convincing other people to do the things he wanted. Least of all Thorne.

Still, even if he tried to ignore it, the question clawed at him for the rest of the day. Lately, the only person he'd felt like helping was himself. It made him feel selfish, but he was used to that.

When he was lying in bed at night and his thoughts drifted back to the topic, he couldn't help but berate himself. It wasn't true; he'd done a lot to try to help Kai in the last two years. Maybe he didn't make big, showy gestures, but he'd been there for him while Levana slowly destroyed his life. No, he wasn't entirely selfish, he decided. He'd also found Cinder for him. Granted, that had been partially to get Kai out of his annoying, self-hating, depressed state, but it had to earn him some points, if there were ever a score card.

And then there was someone else he'd wanted to help: Cress. He stared up at the ceiling and wondered what she was doing in this very moment. Now that he was no longer hanging out with her, did she go to bed early? Had she already found another guy to cuddle up with before she fell asleep? Was she lying in her own bed in the bedroom without the door at this very moment?

He had taken advantage of her, starting with the way he'd tried to make it a game to coax out both of her personalities. But that had been before he had really gotten to know her. Even if he'd screwed everything up with Darla, he could recognize now that he had felt something when he was with her. The feelings had been foreign to him—a strange language he hadn't been familiar with. But it had felt natural to be around her. She had made him do things selflessly even if he hadn't noticed it at the time.

And then there was the night she'd told him about her childhood. The thought of her locked up in a small room for days on end still knotted his stomach the same way it did every other time he'd thought about it. He had wanted to help her that night. Powerless to do anything, he had just let her talk and cry. Maybe for once, he had been what she needed at that time. Maybe he had helped her in some small way.

One of Kai's random ideas had been to start an organization dedicated to helping burn victims, but Thorne thought maybe they could do something to help abuse victims. He grimaced against the pillow. Why was he even considering this? He shouldn't start an organization to help Cress. If he was even going to consider doing this, he should probably start an organization help himself. He was more screwed up than anyone. But that idea probably wouldn't fly with the Vision and Goals section of a non-profit organization that Kai had outlined.

He threw off the covers and sat on the edge of his bed. What was he doing? He looked out for himself and himself alone. His parents' attitude towards him had taught him that at an early age. It was his job alone to earn the respect of others. And he needed to be good at nonchalance and pretense, because if he let other people see any of his problems, they'd toss him aside too.

After giving his pillow a good punch, he slunk downstairs to pour himself a glass of wine. Beer was his choice of beverage for most occasions, but deep thinking that messed with his mind required a Malbec. As he sipped away, he realized that the last time he'd had wine had been with Cress.

That frustrating, strange, beautiful, soul-crushing girl just wouldn't leave him.

He needed a project that would get his mind off of her. There was one already waiting for him in the shape of the stack of papers from Kai. He should probably consider it. Besides, Cress would probably be proud of him if she ever learned that he was thinking about getting a real job.

Snorting, he took another sip. He couldn't believe he was even considering it. Then again, if he started an organization, he would be the boss. He would set his own deadlines, his own rules. He would make sure he had medical insurance, a retirement fund, options. He could keep his portfolio active in case the whole thing blew up in his face.

Maybe, just maybe, this non-profit with Kai could turn into something he would enjoy.

Maybe.

There would have to be some ground rules first. If he was going to consider it.

He pulled out his phone and stared at it for another five minutes. Then he finished his glass and started texting Kai:

I'm not saying I'm in, but I'm thinking about it. Let's meet next week to talk about this more concretely.

He pressed send and waited, before adding:

This has to be low-key. None of the drama from Rikan Corp.

And finally:

I'm not wearing a suit if we're ever in the news. In fact, I should probably be your style consultant from now on. You could use some tips.

The following week, he had his own idea, but it had nothing to do with starting a business with Kai. It came to him when he was scanning the internet for a more advanced subwoofer system for the Rampion. Now that she was getting her spoiler made over, he might as well overhaul some of her other features. His baby deserved the best.

The same annoying ad kept popping up during his google searches, which was even more annoying because it had absolutely nothing to do with cars. Google seemed to think that Thorne would enjoy going to the local Renaissance Festival that upcoming weekend. What a joke. But when he skimmed over it a fourth time, the image of someone else enjoying a Renaissance Festival popped into his mind.

Someone who loved dressing up a bit too much for her own good.

He hastily pulled up more information and went to the official webpage. This was not some sort of drunk party; this was organized costuming. It would take place Friday and Saturday, and there were two themes: Friday's was called Myths & Legends, and Saturday's was called Chivalry & Romance. Both nights concluded with a jousting tournament, but he knew exactly which theme Cress would eat up like her favorite ice cream.

Researching past festivals, he noted the kind of costumes that people wore. Biting down the desire to make a sarcastic remark, he grudgingly focused on the guys' outfits. One could go dressed as nearly everything, from a king to an ogre to a peasant to a warlock to a scribe. But one costume called to him more than others: a knight.

Yes, he would go as a knight.

But aces, how did an adult actually go about procuring a knight costume at a few days' notice? It was too early for Halloween, and he absolutely hated dressing up. He would need to think creatively for this one.

But if he went, he could casually run into Cress. It would be a non-threatening atmosphere. She would see that he was participating in something that she was interested in. Maybe she would find him dashingly handsome in his costume. Maybe she wouldn't see him as completely selfish anymore. Maybe it could even be considered a romantic gesture out of one of her movies.

Or, maybe she would try to burn him on a stake. One could attend as a witch, so that sort of thing would likely exist at this type of event.

He would need to swallow his pride to make this work. The idea of dressing up as a knight was already making him feel uncomfortable enough. Thorne was going to need back-up.

He called Kai. "Tell Cinder to request off work on Saturday. And call Scarlet and Kesley. I'm going to need your help with something."