I hope I can get there before her. It was hard sneaking out today, but she seemed pretty set on meeting tonight. I'm not sure what she's up to, but I have to make sure she's not getting herself into trouble again. She always seems to be getting herself hurt one way or another. -sigh- ...Where is she though? She should be here at the tree we're always at...
"Adira!"
I don’t think it’s a good idea to shout this late at night, but there shouldn’t be anyone nearby. If she's not at the tree she should at least be around. After all, she's the one that called me out tonight.
"Adira! Adira!"
I pause for a moment, waiting for an answer...Hm. She's not...Ah! I knew she'd! This is why I can't let my guard down around her. Recovering half the wind she had knocked out of me by her sudden pounce, I look up at her as I'm pinned down, a big grin shown on her face.
"Adira! -cough- Were you here all along?"
She giggles and gets off me, standing up to dust herself off. I stand and dust myself off as well.
"Yeah. I saw you coming and thought I'd surprise you."
"Well, you certainly did surprise me. You got me."
I smile and extend my hand towards her. She presets her head to me as I pet her gently, not wanting to mess up her pig tails. Removing my hand, she lifts her head. A smile still spread on her face. I start heading towards the tree, a couple feet away, and sit, lying my back against it and feeling a nice light breeze. There’s a nice chill in the air. Fall will be over before long.
“Adira?”
She flinches as I call her. She’s been standing in the same spot for a while with her back towards me.
“What are you thinking about?”
Her head lowers and she begins fidgeting with her fingers.
"Umm, today, uhhh..."
Hm? It's rare for her to hesitate like this. She's usually so upfront. Another breeze passes though the tall grassed meadow as I wait for her to continue on. When she speaks again, her voice is low. Almost a whisper.
"It's..."
She stops fidgeting and looks straight at me quickly with determined eyes. I almost fell myself give a light flinch at their intensity.
"It's my birthday today!” she blurts out while I stare in awe.
"...That's...it?"
I try to hold back a laugh, finding her actions very unlike her. Should it really be such a big deal to say that? I watch her expression. She almost looks...embarrassed? I've never seen that expression on her. She catches me staring, pouting her lips before turns her head away.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to laugh. I just didn't think you'd say that, the way you were fidgeting so nervously. But in any case, happy birthday! You should have told me sooner though. I'd have brought you a present."
Looking back at me, her face now relaxed, she walks over to sit next to me.
"I don't need a present. I just want to share some time together."
She hugs her legs to her chest and leans her head on my shoulder.
"But we can do that anytime."
"But you wouldn't have known it was my birthday if I hadn't called you out today. And because it was my birthday, I wanted to spend time with you."
"...Alright. I kinds see what you're getting at. So! What's it like to be seven finally?"
"Well, it's the only time of year where I'm only one year younger than you, so I'm a little happy, but so far, it hasn't felt any different....However..."
She falls from my shoulder and lands on my lap, extending her legs, her smile reappearing.
"I'm glad I could use it as an excuse to see you."
She looks up towards the sky and I gaze at the stars with her.
"I already told you, you don't need an excuse. As it is, I hardly see you. Having free time at all is hard to come by, so I’m happy to see you whenever I can.”
I look down and gently brush her bangs back. She looks at me, catching my eyes. I can see a traces of doubt in hers, but she presses her face to my stomach, nuzzling against it. It really does feel like we can only find peace where we’re beside each other. It’d be better is she could act spoiled like this all the time, but it's really not in our nature.
“We still have some time before we have to go back. What do you want to do?"
"Just rest. I'm tired of running around today. My birthday party was nice, but I wish I could have just relaxed today."
I look down at her as she closes her eyes, seeming to be asleep.
"I'll wake you up when we have to go then."
"No. I want you to talk to me. What did you read today?"
"I thought you wanted to rest?"
"I am resting. It's just fun hearing you talk. Even though I don't understand most of the stuff you talk about, you talk about your books so excitedly. It's like those feelings get transferred to me as well."
I sigh with a smile.
"Alright. Let me think for a sec."
She nods her head, waiting for me to speak again. While I'm thinking, I hear the sound of leaves crunching from the inner part of the forest, whereas, we sit at the edge. I look over, seeing if something appears. If it were one of our parents, they'd be coming from in front of us through the meadow, and it can't be an animal. The sound of the footsteps are lengthy and don't stop...They're coming closer.
YOU ARE READING
Our Peace Robbed
AdventureThe journey of a young boy who witnesses the kidnapping of his childhood friend. He sets out to find her with the help of the men who had rescued him, before he himself was kidnapped. And thus his new life begins as he trains to become a super soldi...
