Dark & Light

~Chapter Fourteen~

(This track "Annihilation" by Arn Andersson is really touching, I'm totally addicted to listening to it, and I thought it went well with the emotions in this chapter, so feel free to play it as you read. <3)

Chris's POV

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Paige and I have been able to grow in trust with each other in the weeks we've been together so far.

But its been hard. We have our limits, our boundaries, that once crossed, could change us forever. We don't mention it too much, but we are both well aware that the emotional bonding that's inevitably taking place between us is changing us and making us vulnerable. I'm sure everyone is conscious of this at some point when they're in a relationship trusting someone, but it makes for a shaky relationship with us. For some reason, I think Paige in some ways is more damaged emotionally, internally, than I have ever been myself. It may be that I've decided to try to let go of the pain. It hasn't really worked entirely, of course-pain has become my constant companion, and I'm used to it-but I don't know, originally, I think the pain Paige has experienced in her past was of the very keenest kind. It broke her on the inside, driving her to the point where she probably ended up feeling like a bare shell of a human being afterward.

I have to admit, my curiosity for who she was in the past and where her parents or family are, as she is only seventeen years old, does get the better of me a lot. But I always try to chill when it comes to the intimate questions. Paige is a fragile being, and I know taking my time with how far I try to bond and connect to her is key to not letting her break, and not seeing her fall apart. As I'm sure she has before, in a way where she tried to be put back together, but there were still fragments of who she was left and lost. Fragments that resulted in gaping holes in her heart and soul, stripping her of much of her identity.

But today we're hanging out at the park. It turns out Paige loves the park, or so she says, so we finally have gotten to going there for a date, or whatever we would call it if we actually called ourselves boyfriend and girlfriend.

Paige isn't ready to do that yet. She says we're just friends or something. Which we are, to be honest.

For now.

We're sitting in the gazebo just talking and hanging out, when she gets a notification on her smartphone. She takes a look at it, and her face falls.

"Chris, maybe we should cut today short. I'm sorry."

"What? Why?" Disappointment wells up in my chest.

"I'm sorry. Something's come up."

"Okay, well, I'll text you."

"Alright, great. I'm really sorry," she says with a sad smile.

"Its okay."

I walk out of the gazebo and down the sidewalk, wondering when I will see her again. Paige seems to want to keep our times of hanging out as few and as far in between as possible. Then I remember I could ask her to come hang out at Greg's Garage for a special event this Friday night. She'd enjoy coming, I think, so I head back to the gazebo where she was. She isn't in there anymore, nor anywhere near the sidewalk. I do a 360 around the park, but then hear some scuffling from above.

I look up to see finally where Paige is and what she's doing.

Paige is calmly climbing one of the biggest trees in the park!

"Paige, what in heck are you doing?! Come back down!" I yell, freaked out.

She looks down at me briefly, sighs, but continues climbing.