This place

6.

After  a long and exhilarating ride on Ferrari,Raphael and I arrived at some forest. It had long pine trees and tons of bushes. I closed my eyes as the cold harmattan whooshed past us. I opened my eyes again and stared at the view that was in front of me. The place seemed desolate,yet strangely magnificent at the same time.

"This is it." Raphael said while getting off Ferrari looking like some Arabian prince.
I,on the other hand, got off the horse feeling weak,looking like some madwoman. My hair was a total mess.

"Woah are you okay Opal?" Raphael asked meekly while holding my left arm. When he did the latter,I moved my arm away.

"Yeah I'm just feeling weak,but I'll be alright. I'm no damsel in distress you know."

"Just trying to help. Anyway,tell me if you need anything."

"Yeah I will. When I do." I said while pulling myself together.

I watched Raphael taking some objects out of some old worn out sack which was tied to Ferrari. He took something almost similar to a net.

"What is that?" I asked leaning against a tree.

"This is a hammock."

"May you please pass it on?" I asked politely.

He threw the heavy net-like object in my direction. Ever since I was a young child. I realised that if I didn't do anything myself,nobody else would magically appear and do it for me. That's the reason why I acted a bit offish in front of Raphael. It all started when my father left us. He and my mother were always having brief arguments. My father always told my mother that he would leave,yet my mother wouldn't hear any of it. Thus they fought anyway. My father then began a strange habit of leaving for a maximum of 3 days occasionally. Then he never came back.
He kissed my forehead one day and told us that things would work out in the end and that he loved us. That was the last time I saw him. So I asked myself if he loved us so much,why would he leave us? Why did he leave us in poverty? Why didn't he at least send his hugs and kisses? I had so many questions but I didn't even have an answer to one. When you're a fatherless child, you sometimes feel unloved and lost. You sometimes pin the blame on yourself. Or perhaps it was just me.

I immediately tied the hammock to the trees. It was tough,but I managed.

"Done."I said with confidence.

"Already?You're a tough young woman aren't you?"

"More than you'll ever know. More than you'll ever know."

I had realised that there was only one hammock and there were two of us. Which meant one of us had to sleep on the cold,wet grass and I hoped that it would not be me.

"You only have one hammock."

"Yeah I noticed." Raph said .

"You're the one who set it up,so I'll just sleep on my blanket" Raph said with a brown, fleece blanket in his hand.

"No I'll sleep on the ground. I seriously don't mind." He looked at me with a questioning look on his face.

It seemed like he questioned my decision,so I just took the green, fleece blanket that was on the hammock and I laid it neatly next to Raphael's. I felt a bit uncomfortable with the idea of sleeping next to a stranger,but for some strange reason, I wasn't afraid.

"You're a very interesting woman you know." Raph said while sitting on the brown fleece blanket. I just smiled.

"My parents taught me better than this. You can seriously sleep on the hammock. I don't mind."Raph said apologetically.

"I don't mind sleeping like this either. Just relax" I said while putting myself to sleep.

Raphael stood up and got something from the sack. Pillows. I really wanted one,but I was too afraid to ask.

"Don't be afraid to ask. I won't bite" he said while handing me a rough,but plump green pillow.

Again I just smiled. It was like he was reading my mind. He put it under my head and I decided to rest.

"Where'd you get all this stuff anyway?"

"What stuff?"

"The blankets and pillows."

" I made them myself out of animal skin,animal hides and a bunch of other stuff."

"Creative man. Well,thanks and good night."

"We pray before we go to sleep. Right Ferrari?" he said while looking over to Ferrari who was lying down on the pile of hay Raph set up for him. Ferrari then neighed.

"Okay" I said,wondering why he was so perfect.

We then closed our eyes.

"Dear Heavenly Father
We thank you for this wonderful day and for the gift of life. I thank you for Opal who has given me hope and I thank you for this place. May you please keep us safe and protect us from the many dangers which await us. Help us to do what's right and help us to respect each other. We know you'll provide,because you can do the impossible. We thank you for everything.
In name of Christ Jesus I've prayed
Amen"

"Amen." I said

Ferrari neighed again as if he was saying Amen as well. Raphael and I both laughed.
Our only source of light was the moon. It's incandescent like glow shone on our faces. Raphael seemed to be at ease. He seemed happy. His hair looked wild,but he still looked angelic. Perhaps it was due to the horse ride. I fixed it for him.

He smiled.

"Is someone warming up to me? " he asked with a smile on his face.

"I'm just being human man." I said while poking him with my index finger.

He looked at Ferrari.

"It's the least I could do." I said before dosing off. I'm sure I even started snoring.

"If you can't beat them join them." I heard Raph say before snoring louder than me. I was really hungry,but our snoring roared louder.
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If you are still reading now. Thank you. Look after yourselves and don't ever forget your worth. You were made in God's image and God is not a God of mediocrity,inferiority or inadequacy. You are perfectly and fearfully made. No fears and no tears.🌟2 Timothy 1:7🌟

Love n.m.m