an Everlasting Pursuit

thirty five

Three days passed full of fleeting moments that blurred all together. Piper had dragged me into a routine of having breakfast on the porch with her every day so far. We had kept the chatter rather open and non-personal, but today, I decided I needed her help with something.

"You keep fidgeting. What's going on?" She wondered, sipping her coffee.

I groaned. "Is it that obvious?"

She snorted, nodding as she set the mug down. "You cannot hide your emotions very well."

I frowned, wishing that I truly could because it would've saved me a lot of hassle growing up. Sighing, though, I shrugged my shoulders and stared down at my tea.

"I want to get your advice on something..."

Her eyes narrowed. "Something... bad?"

Rapidly shaking my head, a small laugh escaped my lips. "No! Not entirely bad... Potentially... No, just fun. Nothing bad."

"Okay..." She hummed. "What is it?"

"You know Asra is keeping me at a distance... Well... I tried to escape, tried to run, but he caught me." I began, just as her eyes bugged out and her mouth opened to protest. "I know, I know, stupid me, I get it. Basically, he caught up to me, and wouldn't let me leave when I wanted to. He explained to me the concept of no-man's-land and rogues, and threatened me it would be my demise, so don't worry, he already beat you to that."

She huffed, crossing her arms. "I would not say that..."

"Sure." I smirked. "Anyway, we got a bit... heated. He told me I was a claimed female, yet I would be nothing more than a thorn in his side. Then he said I would get bored with this place with no meaning and go running to him, like cat and mouse, before spinning around and asking me about my bleed. He left a package on my door that night full of pamper products!"

"That's so cute!" She squeaked.

I shot her a look that quickly had her lips sealing shut. "It's all part of the game."

"Game?"

"The cat-and-mouse game." I nodded, sipping my tea. "He sees this as a game, a challenge. He thinks I am going to bail out and run away."

"But you're not." She gave me a pointed look.

"I'm not." I agreed. "I realised that life is good here. I could live here freely. I just... I need to one up him."

"And you thought... I would have some ideas." She finished.

I nodded. "Yep."

"Well, Miss Ailia, you have come to the right place." She grinned.

I licked my lips with anticipation, eager to hear what she had to say...

***

"Are you sure about this?" I grumbled.

"Ailia... Is the sky blue?"

I made a point of peering out of the nearby window. "Of course."

"Then there is your answer!" She beamed.

I sighed, running my hands down the too-short dress she had forced me into. Now... this morning... when I thought about going to Piper for advice, I did not expect practical nudity to be one of them. But by the time she had dragged me into her room and locked the door behind her, I had no choice.

"Oh, come on! It's going to be priceless!" She giggled. "All the chicks do this in the movies!"

"What's a movie?" I muttered.