Kingdom Amongst the Moss Later Scene

This is an excerpt from my novel I'm working on, Kingdom Amongst the Moss (if you haven't, you might want to read my first chapter I have posted). This is a  scene later in the book. Short background info: Amy is the main character, who is currently suffering from PTSD and depression. Gunther is her love interest and Veeti is his brother and her friend. PLEASE comment if you can with honest feedback--I'm trying to find out a lot! Thanks!

“Laugh!” Gunther stood and grasped my wrists in his hands, tugging me to the middle of the wooden floor. I slipped in my sandals as he twirled me in circles, thrusting me into a blur.

“Gunther!” I cried, watching the sun melt into snow.

Veeti followed his brother’s example, popping up from the sofa, tugging at my shoulders. Gunther handed me to Veeti; his long, lanky body supported my weak frame as he gripped at my arms, chortling all the while.

“Getting dizzy, Amy?” Veeti shouted over the whizz of the rippling world, caught up in the swirl of innocence. “Gunther, your turn!”

Veeti took me by my shoulders and twirled me around, allowing my sandals to glide across the hard wooden floor. Gunther caught me in his arms. Slipping me out of his hold, he embraced my wrists in his palms, dragging me as he jogged backwards. I felt myself slide downward as Gunther spun me under his arm, and he caught me, sneaking his hand on my back and pushing me back up. A breath of air splashed in a wave over my face, and I drank down the fresh, crisp air.

Veeti laughed on the sidelines. “What a dance!” He leaped forward, tugging at my braid and undoing the hairband. The strands of darkness unraveled, frizzing in the undetermined swirl, spreading and staining the picture. Soft feathers of hair licked at my skin, spreading warmth. I tripped over Gunther’s feet, falling into his shoulder. Gunther hoisted me up from him, laughing.

Where did the world go then? Had it hid behind the curtain, or under the sofa? Perhaps it snuck into the sink and suffocated as it swam down the drain? I couldn’t see the world anymore. A haze had overcome my eyes, blanketing my vision with beautifully convoluted colours and untrue shapes. The world had disintegrated, ashes spurting and disappearing, flames of innocence and exhilaration extinguishing reality. Gunther and Veeti, their touch, their voices, couldn’t be real. They had to be imagined.

Gunther’s face loomed in front of me, tightened into a jubilant smile. Veeti laughed in the background, voice adorning the newborn air.

I couldn’t believe myself. A force bubbled in my chest, screaming with a miracle. A laugh tumbled out from my lips. A laugh. A laugh. A laugh. Bursting with birth, my laugh danced, waving a flag of as pure as the stars. The elements charged at the air, and the air embraced my laughter in a tight hold.

“Amy?” Gunther halted, tipping with the spin. “Amy?”

“She’s laughing!” Veeti hooted.

“Dear Lord, she’s laughing!” Gunther joined in. The radiance of his beaming cheeks blinded me. “Amalah Ayoub is laughing! It’s a miracle!”

The two engulfed me, my vision still impaired. All I could do was laugh. I gripped Gunther’s shoulder, attempting to balance myself, emitting chortles all the while. Veeti clapped me on the arm, eyes glittering with mirth. Gunther, beside himself with joy, brushed the locks from my face.

“Oh, your hair’s a mess! You look so dizzy, so dizzy!” He stated loudly, jollily. He took up my bony shoulders in his hands. Wild mirth danced in his air. “Oh, God, you’re smiling! It’s a real smile!”

“Oh, Amy!” Veeti grasped my shoulder, gently shaking me. “Oh, Amy, what a fantastic dancer! And what a laugh, what a smile!”

“I don’t know why you haven’t done it before, Amy! You have a brilliant laugh, a lovely smile!”

My answer to his statement was simply laughter. I tilted into Gunther, throwing my arms around his neck. Reaching out a hand for Veeti, I pulled on his shirt, slipping him into my embrace.

“Thank you,” I laughed my building gratitude. “Thank you so much.”

“When was the last time you laughed?” Gunther lifted his head slightly, eyes level with mine.

“The last time I laughed?” I trailed off into thought. “April. Seven months ago.”

“Seven months ago? Gunther smile twisted into a gawk, eyes torn. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. I remember perfectly. But you…” I tightened my hold. “Have brought it back to me. Thank you, thank you!”

I buried my face into both of the boys’ shoulders, suppressing a sob, allowing it to twist into a laugh. Tears gathered between my lashes, but I batted them down.

I loved those two boys at that moment. I still do, but love had never been so blatant until that moment, so sure and so loud. Love played its symphony at that moment, sounds controlling the earth, leading all into what had become foreign and lost to me. I loved them.

Love. As Veeti writes it. (Different handwriting font)

Love. As Gunther writes it. (Different handwriting font)

Love. As I write it. (Different handwriting font)