From Dusk to Dawn

Chapter 16

Once Marley had reached Sawyer, he dropped to his knees before beginning to inspect her for wounds. "Are you alright? You're not hurt anywhere, are you?" He asked, looking into her eyes.

Smiling, Sawyer nodded softly. "Yes, I'm fine."

Marley nodded to himself in relief before reaching for his pack. "We need to get you better," he said, beginning to dig through it in search of potions. As he continued to rummage through it, not finding anything that he deemed useful, Sawyer said his name, trying to get his attention but he ignored her. Continuing to look, he suddenly pulled out a potion and faced Sawyer again. "Here, drink this," he said softly, while holding it out to her.

"Marley—"

"Drink it," he said again, raising it higher and closer to her lips. "It'll act as a painkiller for a little while until we can get you properly treated."

"With what?" She demanded, throwing him off guard as he froze. Once she saw his reaction, Sawyer sighed before pinching the bridge of her nose. "Marley, all you have is stuff to defend against the woods and its effects, you're not going to be able to heal me," Sawyer explained, watching as his shoulders noticeably dropped. "If anything, I'm better equipped with potions to heal both you and myself."

Marley was silent for a moment before glancing back up at her. "But Sawyer," he finally said softly. "I want to help you," Marley finished, the look in his eyes taking her by surprise. She wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Marley you are helping me," she said once she'd recovered, reassuring him. "You have been all along, you managed to find me and chase away that silhouette just now."

He chuckled cynically. "I didn't chase it away, Sawyer," Marley said, sounding downtrodden, lowering Sawyer's spirits. Suddenly he dug his hands into his hair, breaking eye contact. "I wasn't even able to find you until now, hours later! You've been missing for so long that I was beginning to worry that I wasn't going to find you at all!"

Sawyer gasped in shock. "What?"

Marley clenched his teeth, not looking at her. "When the ground collapsed out under you and you fell, I was terrified because even after yelling for you, I didn't get a response," he said, going on. "The thoughts in my head kept tormenting me, tearing me up inside. Knowing that there was a possibility that you might not, that I might not—" Marley added before looking away, cutting himself off, saddening Sawyer.

She wasn't sure initially but upon closer inspection, saw that he was shaking, breathing hard. Feeling bad, she hesitantly raised a hand before taking a deep breath and putting it against his chin. He gasped in shock before she turned it toward her so he was forced to look into her eyes, his own wide. "Hey, I'm okay, aren't I?" She said softly, smiling. "And I'm not going anywhere."

He stared at her in silence for a few seconds before gritting his teeth. Pulling out of her grip, he shook his head before replying with, "that's not the point, Sawyer." Her smile dropped as he again appeared troubled, maybe even ashamed. "I put you in so much danger, you could've died, twice, and it's my fault."

Sawyer narrowed her eyes sympathetically. "Marley it's not your fault, I did this on my own and I knew the risks, so don't blame yourself," she said to him, trying to get him to see. "And you're risking your life every second you're out here because of me, I didn't ask you to do that, and I can say with confidence that I'm grateful. In the beginning, I didn't fully understand what I had signed up for when entering these woods, and frankly, I still don't, but you did, and you still came after me knowing I would be in trouble. But now that we've made it this far, and now that I've been able to learn as much as I have along the way, you don't always have to worry about protecting me anymore."