Reclaim What's Ours | The Promised Neverland (Emma x Ray) |

A New Light

She stands high up on the chair. Her body wobbles just a bit more each time she stretches her arms out. As much as she would love to ignore it, there is someone right next to her who doesn't like that one bit.

"Emma," Ray called her name with a long groan - the same one he's been doing ever since they started days ago. His eyebrows were furrowed, annoyed at the scene before him. "Would you please hurry up and get down already?"

Ray made it well-known: his distress whenever she did this. He called her name over and over again in the span of a few minutes, such that she was able to know what he was going to say before he even opened his mouth.

With every time Ray asked that question, Emma would give a long, exaggerated sigh before responding, "I will, just tell me where to put the nail!"

Emma would wobble. She stood on the chair, looking like she would topple over at any minute, despite never actually falling over. Even though he knew that, Ray couldn't help but always have a protective hand behind Emma, just in case she ever does fall.

And it's not like Emma never noticed that...

She was thankful he was so worried about her. Little did he know... she wasn't worried at all about falling... because she knew he would catch her if she ever does. She believed that without fail. Whenever she peeked down at her side, he was always there, looking at her, after all.

"Move it a little towards the right," Ray told Emma as she was lost in her thoughts. As commanded, she slid the nail slightly to the right.

"Here?"

"Yes. There. Perfect," Ray replied.

She nailed it in. After doing so, she stood on the chair and gazed at her work. In the middle of one of the bunker's many bedrooms stood two people, staring at a perfectly normal wall - their hard work. This is one more wall fixed. One less hole in the wall for them to stare at.

With each one they fix, Emma couldn't be more proud of herself. A smile always rose on her cheeks each time they fix something up. Even now, she couldn't help but notice that she started smiling. They were actually doing it, after all. They were doing what she's wanted to do for so long. Slowly but surely, the shelter was being rebuilt. Even within the 3 days they've been there, it's already starting to look like what it used to.

Well... Being just like it used to is perhaps an overstatement...

But it's getting there.

"Emma," Ray called out to her once more, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Come on, get down from that chair already. Let's eat lunch."

She swiveled her head and looked at Ray. Ray, who standing there next to her. Despite being on a chair, she wasn't that much taller than him. He sure has grown a lot since they were kids. It felt like it was just the other day where she would be sitting next to him under the tree while he read his book. She remembers how she and Norman would always talk and talk and he'd get annoyed with how his alone time was interrupted. Secretly, she always thought it was amusing just to see his reactions.

He's no longer that kid. His features were more defined, his eyes were soft as they looked at her. His hands, which have been through a lot of training over these past few years, were rugged as one reached out to her.

Emma paused.

Reached out to her...?

"W-What are you doing?" Emma asked cautiously, unable to help her gaze towards his hand.

"What do you mean?" Ray asked as he raised an eyebrow. "I'm helping you down. Now hurry up and get down from there."

Emma pouted at his order. Even she didn't know why she was so reluctant to come down. It's just Ray. It's just his hand. But even though she kept telling herself that, she couldn't seem to do it.