Bear and Fox. [REVISING]

••part one••

I snuck around the corner of the old, rusting truck. My heart began to race to the beat of the crackling fire. I looked around and saw nobody was here: just me.

The fire left the junkyard with an orangish glow against the dark of night. The fire crackled quietly and bits of fire rose to join the stars in the sky. The fire seemed to stretch on yards above my head, like it was reaching to dance with the moon.

A poem popped into my head:

Shining against night,
Casting a gleam or two of light,
There to help me find my way,
There to help me run away,
My fire, the one in my heart,
Like the one I made in the park,
Guiding, guiding, but never good enough at hiding.

It was a poem by Bear. His poems always seemed to weasel their way into my head at the most random times. But I didn't mind. After all, he was a beautiful poet.

I quietly dashed to the other side of the open area, before grabbing a large sheet of tin. I hastily picked the tin from the ground, and was stopped when I saw the first star of night. My shoulders slumped down and I was drawn into the dim light of the star.

Stars dancing with the moon,
Only visible from Earth's room,
She moves to give each star a kiss,
Kissing away their gloom.

I've found that I repeat the poem every time I see any star. Stars show that even billions of miles away, they can somehow find a way to be the light during the dark of night.

I stand a few moments more, lost at the sight of stars beginning to pop up everywhere. I wish I would've paid attention to my dad when he used to point out the different constellations. I would be able to admire them so much more than I already do.

"Fox," I hear someone whisper, snapping me out of my blissful wishing, "Come on! He's going to wake up any moment now!"

I hoisted the tin above my head, and dashed to the woods. I was becoming breathless, but that didn't keep me from not letting my feet pound loudly against the ground. Light as a fox and quick as a bear. I felt Bear's presence behind me, not needing to hear his heavy breathing. We're going to be okay.

"Dang heathens!" I heard the old man yell in his overdramatic country accent. I heard a gun shot, as I reached the wired fence that surrounded the junkyard. I heard the bullet make contact with my left forearm, before I felt it. I threw the tin over the fence, before hoisting myself over. I jumped from the top, landing in a roll with him right after. I picked up the tin sheet, and began running further into the woods. The man has given up by now, he always does.

I slowed to a walk, before catching my breath. The piece of tin stuck out about 6 feet in the front and back of me, only making the weight almost unbearable. As we got to our tree, I laid the tin against it. Before dropping to the green and yellow grass. I rip a strip of my jeans from the heel of them, before tying it around the wound in my arm.

"You alright?" he asked me, finally getting to the tree. I nodded my head before standing up. I began climbing up the tree, leaving the tin for him to pass to me. I made it to the top, before looking around at the space we occupied. I bent down and pulled the tin sheet up the rest of the way. I carried the tin, before wedging it above the only place remaining without a covering.

He climbed up the rest of the ladder, sliding off his backpack and tossing it to me. I unzipped the pack and saw a few items of food and two dirty, chipped cups. I looked up at him, smiling.

"Put that aside, we've got to get that bullet out of your arm." He said, reaching for my arm. I pulled my arm out of his reach, making eye contact with him.

"I'm fine." I said pushing a piece of matted brown hair out of my face. He shook his head at me and grabbed my arm. I didn't yank it from him, this time. He untied the ripped denim, sitting us down, and examining the damage.

"It barely grazed your Radius, the bullet just cut through skin." He said, relief flooding onto his face. I didn't know what that meant, exactly, but if it only cut through skin that's good. He eyes sparkled with joy, covered by only a thin layer of sadness.

My adrenaline finally began to wear off and the exposed wound began to throb. The wind lightly brushed against it caused me to inhale in pain.

Bear quickly grabbed a spare shirt that we usually wore when we went to the store. We only wore it because it was huge and we could hide the backpack under it to steal stuff. We never stole more than we needed though.

"Great. So, I'll get supper?" I asked him and he nodded at me. I stood up and grabbed the backpack, tossing him a sandwich that was wrapped in plastic. I took one for myself, before we both dug in. I was soon finished with it and he finished right after me.

"Tonight is your night." I said pulling out everything in the backpack. I began to put them away in various wooden crates or in metal cans. My back was turned towards him, but I could feel him smiling. I pulled out the old rag and began to wash off the two cups.

"Can we go on a hike tomorrow?" I said, shaking the cups to get the water off of them. He shuffled around, before lighting another lantern. I felt him right behind me and I turned to face him. He wrapped me in a hug and I squeezed him back.

"If that's what you want." he said and I smiled quietly. I let the cups drop into the wooden box, which I labeled 'Dishes' with an old paint pen I found. I pulled away from him, not turning to see his face.

I lowered myself so I was sitting at the doorway of our house in the trees. One week down, only a lifetime to go. I found my eyes wondering back to the stars and I felt a chill run down my back.

Bear sat beside me, quietly. I let my feet dangle, and I laid my head on his shoulder. He pulled me close to him and I began to mentally chant about the meaningless wishes I wish upon the stars. I wrapped my arms around his waist, as the first chill of night blew upon my arms.

"I've been meaning to ask; why do you stare at the stars so often?" he asked me and I felt my throat knot up. He wouldn't understand, not ever. I sighed, comparing the brightness of the stars to the moon.

"Looking at the stars is the only way I'm able to keep from drowning." I tell him, not looking at his expression. I don't think I'll ever be able to be completely honest with him. The past hurts too much and I did too little to fix it.

Maybe one day I'll work up the courage to be able to tell him my real name. Just maybe.

•A•N• Hello Everyone!! I'm finally getting to revise this book. I've been meaning to for a while, but I was never able to really find the time. So here's the first chapter of the revised version of Bear and Fox. I wanted to do a little thing where Bear is a poet, but my poems are terrible. So hopefully this might help my poetry improve some. I don't know yet.

I love you guys!! -Kammy xx