Faith Unbroken, an Outlander Fanfiction

Cold Day for Hunting

"Come. We are going hunting." Jamie smiled at me. Kaeden was already ready to go with his rifle. I nodded, picking up mine as well. After some distance into the wood, we began splitting up. Jamie and Roger went one way while the others split on their own as well. Kaeden and I were left to our own hunt as well. We stayed silent for a time before he finally spoke.

"Ye've been quiet the past two days. Will ye just talk to me, woman?" Kaeden groaned, stopping in his tracks. 

"About what, Kaeden?" I sighed, stopping as well.

"About John Gray. About ye two. About what he said to ye. I know ye were with him. That's not hard to see." His arms folded across his chest. 

"Kaeden-" My eyes darted to his face. He was hurt but not sad.

"It's ok. Yer not in the wrong for what happened. I was gone." He sighed, holding his hand up to get me to stop talking.

"He came to tell me he loved me. That's all." I stared at his boots. 

"And? Do ye love him?"

"No... I love you." My eyes met his again. 

"Did ye love him?"

"Maybe... But that doesn't matter now. You're here and I want to be with you." I took a few steps towards him. He took the same amount backwards. 

"I won't say I'm not hurt... I just need some time." He began walking again, around me this time. We continued to hunt around, catching on a few squirrels and rabbits here and there.

"Kaeden." I stopped walking and sat on a fallen tree. He stopped walking and sat next to me.

"I'm really sorry." His eyes focused on the field in the distance. 

"Hush." 

"No, I-"

"Faith, stop talking." I finally looked where he was looking. In the field was a pack of buffalo. We both grabbed our guns and snuck our way towards the tree line. I lined up my shot, waiting for Kaeden to fire first. He let his trigger go then I fired as well. Both of our shots stuck one of the large animals. The brown animal fell over while the others took off. Kaeden and I made quick work of figuring out how to take the animal back to the land.

We continued our silent trek back home with our kill. I couldn't think on anything other than how to fix things with Kaeden. He was clearly hurt by my relationship with John. But how could he be mad. He wasn't here. To everyone, he was dead. To me, he'd moved on. He wasn't coming back to me. It'd been so long since he'd promised to come home. I'd lost him, our child, then Murtagh. I wasn't in my right mind, I guess.

As we walked, I stared at the back of his head. His brown hair had grown since last I'd seen him. His short, curls brushed his collar now. The curls thickened with the new length. His shoulders seemed wider, broader. Even under his tunic and coat, I could see the muscles rippling with each pull of the large animal across the ground. He seemed like a giant with his height and size now. Someone who could snap a normal human in half with his bare hands. His breathing was heavy, no doubt from lugging the beast behind him. God, I wanted him. I wanted to run my fingers through his hair and drag my nails across his back. 

"Stop." His voice interrupted my unladylike thoughts.

"What?" I questioned, darting my eyes back down to the beast between us. 

"Stop staring at me."

"I wasn't."

He let out a small sigh and stopped walking. "Faith, I can feel yer eyes on me. I ken yer staring at me." Kaeden stopped walking, dropping the ropes that pulled the beast behind him. I stopped walking, releasing the ropes in front of me as well. His eyes found mine.