(ON HOLD/BEING REWRITTEN) De Salute Mea- Safety From The Darkness

Chapter 22

( WARNINGS: Self doubt, language )

A sudden, loud sound fully stirred Steve from his waking state. He opened his eyes and sat up, looking around. That's right, he was sleeping in the cave next to Alex... He glanced down at his side to find she was not there. His mind went to the worst possibilities and his head shot around the cave, not seeing her anywhere. Only one of the blond twins, who sneezed again. 

"Oi, morning sleepyguy."  

"Where's Alex?"

The boy looked back down to the contents on the floor in front of him and his hands moved back to pouring liquids and items into the brewing stand before him. "She went with Charlie to find resources and some food." Steve relaxed some and leaned his back against the wall. 

"So you're Riley, then?"

"Right-o. Charlie usually does the potions but he doesn't trust me to go instead."

"Why not?"

Riley chuckled as he held a bottle up to study. "He didn't want me to burn the forest down. Which, of course is an exaggeration on his part." He added when he saw Steve's reaction. "I would've only burned half of it." He grinned with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"And put Alex in danger?"

Riley looked back to Steve with an annoyed look on his face. He wasn't accustomed to people taking his jokes the wrong way. "If you're implying that you think I take pleasure out of setting people on fire, you're wrong." Steve just looked outside the cave at the morning sunlight shining in.

"Besides, I doubt she would have gone with me, anyway." Riley muttered under his breath.

"Why do you say that?" Steve asked, turning back to Riley, who was focused on his brewing task. "She and Charlie rather hit it off while you snoozed half the morning away. They reminded me of- nevermind. So they set off together and left me here with you." The young blond whipped his head to the side to remove his hair from his brown eyes and continued with his work.

Jealousy filled Steve's emotions. So they hit off, huh? He bit his lip and stared with an intense gaze at the trees outside. Silence rang into their atmosphere, a cold, uneasy one where neither of the two men wanted to speak. Finally, when Steve felt like he was going to burst from his envious fury, Riley spoke up.

"So, ah, you wanna talk?" He asked, sparing himself a quick glance at the man before his eyes moved back to his current project.

Steve's head snapped to Riley with a cold glare. "About what?"  

"I didn't seem like you were sleeping well last night. You may have been in a deep sleep, but that's when the real nightmares emerge. The ones that can only arise then or else you'll awake from the terrors."

"What the hell are you going on about?"

Riley sighed. "No one goes through the things we do without nightmares. I haven't slept right since my village burned to the ground."

Steve's traumatizing memories and questions flashed through his mind's eye, and his gaze moved to the ground.

"If you don't wanna talk about it, fine. I get it. It- it hurts. But having someone around to talk with helps. I doubt I would have been able to cope without Charlie there with me, and vice versa." Riley looked up at Steve with a look of soft concern. Steve found it hard to believe that the young man was kind to a person like him, even when he continued to snap rudely.