Forbidden Territories

Chapter 14: A Great Idea

Zach continuously lit up little sparks of hope. These little moments with him, moments of silence and peace made the confusion and fear more tolerable. I cherished the bright smiles he had given me, the soft kisses, and the caresses on my skin. 

Maybe that's what life was, after all. These balances between good and bad. Good things that make you want to push through and take a deep breath while coming up with a plan on how to conquer the obstacles. It wasn't meant to be easy. I wasn't superhuman. So far from it, actually. 

I've been feeling so small and fragile, except when he laid his eyes on me. It was like he saw something that I didn't. Even if I was to stare at my own reflection in the mirror, I couldn't find exactly what that was. And maybe it didn't matter. For now, it was okay. He caught me when I fell or took care of me if he already found me on the floor. I could count on him. 

The blue sky was replaced by burning colors of red and orange. We laid on the blanket, our legs tangled together and his arms wrapped around me. I was drawing small patterns on the side of his neck with my fingertips and every so often, he turned his head to press his lips to my forehead. I could've laid right there with him forever. Nothing could touch me there. Nothing could hurt me. I was safe. I was protected. I was cared for. What more could I ask for? 

"I don't want to be a party breaker but maybe we should go before it gets dark," Zach whispered into my hair as he dragged his fingertips up the length of my arm. 

I didn't really want to go but I knew he had a point. It was getting dark and we still had a short walk until we would reach his motorcycle and that wasn't the best idea to do with no light to see. 

"Okay," I replied and turned my head to look at him. 

He leaned towards me, his lips gently brushing over my own before he rolled over and got up, dragging me to my feet by my hands in the process. 

I leaned down and picked up the blanket from the grass before neatly folding it and made my way to the yellow treehouse to return it to its rightful place. I placed it on the couch before I climbed down the ladder and closed the lid. Zach was waiting for me right by the tree, his hands in his pockets like they normally were and a small smile on his lips. I could get used to that. All of him. 

"Come on," he beckoned me and held out his hand. I linked my digits with his own and he playfully tugged me over the meadow and back to the trail leading away from this place. We walked in silence after that, focusing more on our steps as the night was catching up with us. As we neared the rock, Zach let go of my hand and gripped the tree trunk for easier descend then turned towards me again. I was standing on the edge and all I could really see at that point were the dimly lit outlines of our surroundings. 

"Let me get you down here then I'll turn the flashlight on my phone," he said and held his hands out. 

I hesitated for a bit but I trusted him completely. My fingers wrapped around his and he gripped them firmly as I took the big step and landed on the ground next to him. 

"Didn't know you were an adrenaline junkie," he commented and I could hear the playfulness in his voice. 

"Shut up," I chuckled and waited by his side until he pulled his phone out of his pocket and turned on the light. 

"Much better," he said, his fingers sliding into the gaps between my own once more as we continued our way. 

We walked a few more minutes in silence until I decided to break it. "You know, you never took me to your apartment," I said and glanced up at him before rerouting my gaze to the floor again to see where I was going. But it wasn't me who needed to watch where I was going as less than a heartbeat later, Zach slipped, his feet kicking in the air for a moment but he managed to catch himself the last second before he would cause another earthquake.