Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy C Bennett Page B

glad of the feel of his hand firmly in hers. This was all so surreal she half believed it was a dream, and welcomed something real and solid to hold onto.
    Fane named many of the plants for her. Some of them she was familiar with, others she’d never even heard of. They soon discovered little wooden picks at the base of each plant labeling those neither of them knew. When they came upon an orange tree, Rapunzel breathed in the clean citrus scent with pleasure.
    “This is all so amazing,” Rapunzel said, rubbing a maple leaf between her fingers. “I haven’t ever touched a live plant before.”
    “You don’t ever have flowers or plants in your room?”
    “No. Mother says they can bring in unwanted germs.”
    Fane looked at her with horror, his eyes encompassing the plants that surrounded them. “Maybe we should get out of here,” he said.
    “No way!” Rapunzel laughed. “Whatever happens, this is worth it.” She turned a dazzling smile on Fane, and he returned it though the worry didn’t completely fade from his eyes.
    They spent more time exploring the plants until they came to the wide double doors at the end of the building. Fane ran his fingers around the edges of the door. “Huh,” he said. “No alarm here.” He glanced at Rapunzel. “Your mom must be unaware of the tunnel that leads from the house out here.”
    Rapunzel gazed out on the lush green lawn on the opposite side of the glass. She turned her head toward Fane. “I want to touch the grass,” she said.
    Fane shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Rapunzel. I mean, we’re already taking a chance with all the places we’ve been today.”
    “Fane,” she said, turning to fully face him. “I’ve spent my entire life inside my rooms. My entire world consists of that small amount of space. A few years ago I opened the window, even though I’d been warned it could harm me. But I had looked out for so long that the temptation was too much.” She shrugged and took a step closer to him, taking both his hands, trying to convey her feeling. “It didn’t harm me at all. And it gave me something to look forward to. It’s probably ridiculous to you that I would look forward to something as simple as opening a window, but it became very important to me.” She took a deep breath and blew it out. “But the grass.” She turned her head and looked out at the green expanse. “The grass has always been out of reach. I’ve spent a lot of time wondering about it, the smell of it, the feel of it, even the taste of it.” She turned her eyes back on him. “ Please .”
    “Okay. We’ll go out but only on one condition,” he said. “You’ve gotta promise not to eat the grass. It’ll definitely make you sick.”
    Rapunzel readily nodded, a smile lighting her face.
    “All right, then,” Fane said, giving her hands a little shake. “Let’s go meet the grass.”

chapter
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13
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    A re you getting hungry?”
    Fane’s question pulled Rapunzel from her fascination with the grass where she was lying, reveling in the soft, prickly feel of it beneath her, smelling the clean scent and basking in the warm sun that felt as if it cocooned her.
    “Are you hungry?” she asked.
    “Of course I am. I’m a teenage guy.” He laughed. Rapunzel wasn’t sure what he meant by his comment, but laughed anyway. The thought of the long trek back through the dim, dirty cellar made her cringe. That, and the thought of leaving the amazing grass and sunshine. She’d felt the sun on her face and arms before, but not all over her body like this. And the grass . . . it felt just as she’d imagined it would and smelled even better.
    “Let’s go eat, then,” she said, breathing in one last lungful of the glorious lawn before standing.
    Walking through the greenhouse, Rapunzel took deep breaths, trying to memorize the smell. They went back down into what Fane laughingly called “the dungeon.” The return trip was much shorter, and in