Rhink One Shots

Welcome to the Jungle | Part 5

Warning: mention of a dead animal.

The Calm

Rhett sat in silence, leaned against a tree. Everything around him was so silent, it almost seemed fake. But it wasn't. At least he hoped it wasn't cause in front of him a sleeping Link laid on the ground.

He couldn't really see the dark haired, just the silhouette, but somehow he could imagine it. The peaceful expression on the dark haired man's face. Probably the only time Lincoln looked like that, angelic and calm.

From time to time, Rhett could hear Link mumble something. He wasn't able to make out actual words, but he hoped Lincoln was having a nice dream. The blond couldn't help but smile at the soft small voice he was doing. Those times were rare, that's why the blond tried to pay extra attention when they happened.

Link woke up when the sun was ready to rise. The blond had to pretend he didn't spend the last few hours completely hypnotized by his sleeping figure. Now that he actually thought about it, the action seemed almost creepy. Looking at someone while they slept, completely unaware of the attention. Rhett could feel his cheeks warm up. With a small cough, he stood up.

- Slept well? – the taller asked, looking at the horse as he recomposed from the blushing.

- Who sleeps well in a world like this? – the dark haired answered in a sleepy voice, making Rhett's heart tighten. He wasn't sure if the reaction was at the adorable voice or the words the other man spoke. Actually, Rhett wasn't sure why there was a reaction at all. He sighed, shaking his head at his own self, and walked closer to the horse.

He grabbed the leash and led the animal closer to Lincoln. The dark haired splashed some fresh water on his face. – You ready? – Rhett asked as he observed the dark haired. It still wasn't this time he'd see Lincoln's completely clean face.

- Yeah. – the dark haired nodded and put his bow on his back. – C'mon. – he commanded and slowly started walking, still limping. Rhett just stood in place. – Rhett? – he turned around after some steps.

- Get on the horse. – Rhett looked him in the eyes. He figured going softly wouldn't really lead to anything, so might as well just show his leader behavior and have more chances of convincing Lincoln to get on top of the horse.

- What? No. C'mon we should get going.

- You're going to make it worse for your ankle. I'm okay, I can walk.

- I can walk too!

- Charles! – the blond interrupted Link before he got into another sentence.

Lincoln looked at him almost in disbelief. – Don't "Charles" me. I'm fine. Let's go, we're losing time!

- Listen, we have a horse and you are hurt, so just get on okay? If we want things to go well when we're back at the camp, then you should be at your best. – Rhett sighed.

Rhett could see Link struggling with his own self. He didn't want to let his pride down, the taller understood it, but he was being stubborn in vain. After a couple more exchanged words, with an annoying sigh, Lincoln finally got up on the horse. Rhett broke down his serious expression and smiled at the dark haired as he commemorated the victory. Link just rolled his eyes and commanded the horse to move.

The blond kept one of his hands on the leash. Not that he didn't trust the dark haired and was afraid he'd run away... It was more a matter of safety. He trusted Russ, but in case the animal had some type of wrong reaction, Rhett would have more control over it. At least he convinced himself of that.