The Society

Chapter 19: Love

HALE

Ella wanted to be alone for a while. I got her text as I was leaving the club; she said that she needed some time to clear her mind, and wanted a few hours to clean herself up from the night before. I gave her the space she needed, but was antsy the entire time I was away. I ran aimless errands about the town, trying to distract myself between the old bookstores and odd eateries of downtown. Parker met me at a coffee shop for a while, and he helped take my mind off things—he was rather entertained to hear what happened with Jax. He was also very aware that my favorite way to deal with tough situations was with humor, and he was quite good at doing so.

As the sun began to hang low in the sky, I headed home to shower myself. I yawned as I opened the front door; the lack of sleep and events of the last 24 hours were starting to take their toll. The house was quiet, and I crept up the stairs in attempt to maintain the silence. I didn't want to pressure Ella into company if she didn't want it, so I thought it best to keep my presence under wraps. But when I reached the second floor landing, I was surprised to see her walking towards me from down the hall. Her hair was slightly damp and scrunched into waves. She wore a short slip dress that looked like an oversized t-shirt, but on her it looked like couture.

"Hey," I said quietly, my voice raspy and tired.

She gave me a small smile, but there was a look of sadness behind her eyes. Then without a word, she snaked her arms around my back, bringing me into a hug. I hugged her back with a gentle ferocity, wanting to squeeze her as tight as I was able.

"Els," I whispered into the top of her head.

She pulled back slightly and looked up at me. "I missed you so much."

The sweetness in her voice melted my heart. I cradled the side of her face in my hand, caressing her soft skin with my thumb. "I missed you too, Els."

I took her hand and led her back down the hallway and into her room, shutting the door behind us. I sat down on the bench at the end of the bed, and Ella took a seat sideways on my lap, linking her arms around my neck.

I looked up at her, trying to read her eyes. She was strong, but I could see the emotions leaking through out of exhaustion—she appeared more tired than anything else. Her blue eyes had turned dull grey, and her eyes resisted opening every time she blinked.

"You hanging in there?" I asked, my hands caressing her back.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Ella said, laying her head down on my shoulder. "Just feeling a little cooped up, actually. I haven't left my room today."

I paused to think for a minute, then patted her on her back. "Tell you what, toss on a sweater and meet me downstairs. We'll go on a little adventure."

***

"Hale, where on earth are we going?" Ella called out from behind me as we hiked along a small dirt path in the dull dusk lighting.

"Somewhere I can't believe I haven't taken you yet!" I shouted back chuckling. I readjusted the backpack I was carrying, and paused a moment so Ella could catch up. I extended my hand to her as she came up next to me. We continued on, and the path began to gradually get wider, and the trees around us thinned.

"Are you ready to see something that's nearly as beautiful as you?" I asked.

Ella blushed, but her expression faded into one of awe as we fully emerged into a large clearing. We stood near the shore of the lake, but it had twisted inward to form a small cove that was nearly swallowed by the forrest. It was cut off from the view of the lake, secluded into it's own little lagoon. A piece of the hill we had climbed over had broken off to form a little cliff and overhang on one side of the inlet, and it created a little cave in the water below. Vines and vegetation spilled over the edge, bringing to life a waterfall of greenery that nearly grew down to the surface of the water. On the beach, there were a few cabanas set back near the tree line. Everything was concealed from the view of the rest of the world, and it was as if we had entered our own little universe.