The Scared and The Scarred

Chapter 24

"Come on, try again." 

"No, I can't do it. This is stupid." 

"Come on, just try one more time." 

Luca sighed, re-focusing his attention on the small acorn that lay in the palm of his hand. 

He stared for a moment before squinting at it, and then letting out a very loud, frustrated noise. 

"I can't do it, Celia! This is pointless!" He said. 

"Here, I'll help you." I laughed. 

I placed my hand under his, and focused on the acorn as well. 

"Look at it, what do you see?" I asked him.

"An acorn." He said in a bored tone. 

"No no no." I replied. "When you really look at it, the details, every speck of dirt, every line. You have to take it all in. You have to focus on the feeling of it in your hand. Feel the energy in it, the life." I told him, nodding at it.  

"Now try again." I said quietly. 

He looked at it again, but differently this time. A few seconds passed, when finally, a small crack began to form. Slowly, a small green stem grew from the crack, and grew a small leaf. 

"I did it.." He whispered. "I did it!" 

"I knew you could do it." I laughed, giving him a quick kiss. "Come on, lets go see what everyones up to." I said, grabbing his hand and pulling him away from his desk and down the halls. 

Two weeks had passed, and they had been amazing. Everyone was getting along great with Belle, and me and Luca were much closer now. We had promised each other we would stop worrying about all the 'what-ifs' but also that we would both be careful, now aware of the dangers that surrounded us. 

We hadn't had any more incidents since my attempted kidnapping, but we were careful to never let our guard down. We had increased the number of guards around the pack house, and the border was patrolled twice as often. Training was now much more intense, but everyone seemed to be doing very well. 

We found Nick, Belle, and Alice in the kitchen. Alice was at the stove making pancakes and Nick and Belle were seated at the island. Belle smiled as we entered the kitchen. 

"He did it guys!" I said proudly, displaying the sprouting acorn in the air for them all to see. 

They all put their arms in the air, cheering, and Luca and I laughed. 

"Here." Said Alice, handing Luca and I each a plate of pancakes topped with butter and syrup. 

"Thanks Al." Luca said, pulling me out the door. 

"Where are we going?" I laughed, trying not to drop my food. 

"Theres a picnic table near the garden, you'll love it." He smiled. 

We sat at the table, eating our food in silence. 

"Hey look." Said Luca, pointing to the edge of the woods where a small red fox was sniffing around. 

"Wait here." I smiled, leaving the table. 

I approached the fox, careful not to frighten it. Once I was directly in front of it, I crouched down, extending my hand towards its little face. 

It gave my hand a quick sniff, and I softly petted its head. 

Now that I felt it trusted me, I scooped it up into my arms and walked back to where a stunned Luca sat at the picnic table.