"... So do you feel like talking about it now?" I sighed slowly before looking up from my side of the empty plate that had been filled with breakfast and meeting Seto's gaze.
"... Yeah I guess." I answered timidly. He leaned forward a little as I went into depth on the entire flashback, from going home from school to running into the two guys to my house being burned to the floor and finding out that my mother had died. I told him every small detail, even what I was feeling at each moment.
After I finished, he closed his eyes, looking like he was imagining something.
"I'm sorry, that must have been hard on you." He murmured. I rested my hand on the proximal phalanx of his forefinger.
"I-It's ok though, I mean it's not your fault." I assured him. He opened his eyes and stared down at me with those huge lustrous brown eyes.
"But still, no one should have to go through something like that." He gently protested. I let my eyes cast to the table, shifting awkwardly and not answering. "Besides," He added, making me look back up.
"Mm?"
"You've been through worse; you're not gonna let a few bad dreams get in your way, right?" I blinked slowly a few times before nodding.
"I-I guess...?" He gently scoffed.
"You guess? That's your best answer?" He teased lightly, gently prodding me in my middle. I squeaked in pleasant surprise, springing back.
"Hey!" I yelped, chuckling. He gave me a pleasant smirk, softly poking me again and making me giggle in laughter for the first time in forever.
"Yesh?" He asked innocently (=^3^=).
"No don't!" I squealed, laughing and dodging him as he tried to tickle me. I rolled and managed to avoid him trying to jokingly catch me before he managed to grab the scruff of my shirt. I yelped, still grinning as he lifted me up to eye level, looking amused and entertained. I gave him a fake pouty face, making him chuckle inwardly. He set me back down on the table before saying, "Soo... Do you want to try something to take your mind off the flashbacks?" I glanced up at him with interest.
"Like what?" I questioned.
"... Hide and Seek?" He suggested. I smirked eagerly.
"Sure!" I chirped excitedly. So what if kids play it? It'd be a lot funner I think if the hider is around my current height.
"I'll give you three minutes." He decided, picking me up by my waist and setting me down on the floor before leaning forward and basically face desking. I looked around and sprinted off in one random direction as Seto verbally counted, and I headed into another room. I looked around before I spotted a potted plant with lots of leaves all around its small stump. Perfect, I thought before running over to it. I managed to scale up the side of it when I heard the Sorcerer stop counting, reaching the time limit. I ducked behind the plants thick green foliage when I heard a chair squeak as he got up. His already faint footsteps faded,and I was left with a period of apprehensive silence.
I waited for what felt like an hour when he approached the room I was in, and started looking around. I stayed pure silent, with my back against the plant. I don't think I used to be very good at Hide and Seek normally, but this was a great spot.
A while had passed, and no such luck for the Sorcerer. One time however, he had knelt down and rummaged through the cabinet next to my hiding place, which gave me an anxious feeling. It was almost like trying to hide from someone who was trying to hurt me.
But I knew Seto wouldn't hurt me, on purpose for sure.
My head started swaying a little, and I yawned a few times. I was getting really sleepy. Mainly because I was starting to feel cold again. I shivered and folded my arms over my chest, letting time fly before I heard Seto say in some other part of the house, "Alright... You win, I give up." I stumbled out away from the plant, sliding down the side of it before wandering into the dining room, right as Seto also walked in from another doorway.
"Oh, there you are." He sighed in relief, crouching down and offering his hand. I eagerly clambered on to it, still shivering. He widened his eyes in surprise as he sat down and cradled me.
"... Why are you so cold?" He asked, affectionately rubbing the top of my head. I folded my arms again and looked up, sitting down.
"W-well when-whenever I'm a-alone, since-since I can't produce my-my own body heat," I chattered, curling up against his cloak. "I-I only have so long by myself be-before I..."
"... Before you freeze to death." He finished in a low voice, giving me a sympathetic look. "That's why you thanked me when I found you in that log, I was keeping you alive?" I nodded, yawning quietly.
"Yep." I sighed, no longer cold. "And I think that since you've been keeping me with you so much, I've kinda grown less immune to the cold." He shrugged.
"Not too much I can do about that, being concerned for your health... Speaking of health, sorta, where were you hiding?"
"That plant back there next to the cabinet you looked in." He gave me a look with mixed emotions of humor, surprise and mock irritation.
"Ah, I knew I should've looked there!" He exclaimed, grinning. I giggled a little, snuggling up against him to make sure I didn't feel cold anymore. "Hey..." I looked up as he started talking. "It shamefully took me this long to realize, but I don't know your name. What is your name?" I blinked a few times in surprise, as the small fact had been failed to be recognized by me as well, before I answered quickly.
"My name's Aurora Darwington."
YOU ARE READING
Project Micro
Fantasy(collaboration of It's Not the Exterior that Makes the Beast by @Wildstar_Wildheart ) Wildstar and her friends were having enough trouble with the D. I. E., a lab group that experiments with projects like Project Macro and Project Micro, but one you...
