A Month Of Kaider

Twenty Six: Bless The Library

Cinder wakes up with fear running through her veins.

She doesn't know what woke her up until she goes to wake Kai and finds his bed empty.

It'd be nice if Kai had just gone to get a glass of water or something but alas, Cinder knows that it was Levana, again.

There's a part of her that wants to laugh, a part of her that wants to cry, and a part of her that wants to punch a hole in the wall. Thankfully, she decides to do none of the above.

Instead, she doesn't hesitate to throw on joggers, a vest top, a hoodie, and the boots Kai had bought her. Quickly grabbing her phone and keys, she slips them inside her pockets and locks the door behind her as she leaves.

She pauses once she gets outside.

Levana wouldn't be stupid enough to take him back to fake-Rikan's house so there's no point going here. Gritting her teeth, Cinder tries to think of anywhere else she can look. After standing in the same spot for so long that she starts shivering despite the hoodie, she starts to move.

She ends up briskly walking towards the field from yesterday. She hadn't even had a chance to ask Kai why he'd gone there, simply assuming that it was to get the information he'd told her.

Her boots softly drum on the stone pavement as she hums to herself, trying to get rid of the silence that looms around her.

"Oh, blazes," she mutters as she reaches a dead end, knowing that she must have taken a wrong turn somewhere but unfortunately having neither good enough navigation skills nor a good enough memory to remember where.

"Forget this," she declares, running forwards and launching herself at the wall.

Luckily, she manages to grab onto something, pulling herself up so she's sat on top of the wall. She almost laughs, realising that she's at the edge of the very field she was trying to get to.

"Beat that, stupid wall."

She braces herself before pushing with the palms of her hands and jumping, bending her knees as she lands and rolling to one side so she doesn't break her ankles. It's not the most graceful of landings but she's injury-free and nobody's watching so Cinder doesn't care.

"Now, where's that stupid shed?" she asks herself, starting to walk.

Walking doesn't last long.

She starts running after a minute of silence, wanting to hear the wind noisily rush past her ears.

She's so engrossed in the sound of the wind that she doesn't realise she's crashed into someone until they're both on the floor in a heap.

"Cinder?"

"Kai?"

The two of them untangle their limbs and pull each other up.

"Are you okay?" Kai asks.

"I should be asking you that, what happened?" Cinder pulls him into a hug.

Kai pulls back far too quickly for her liking. "We can't talk here, come on..."

"Think again," Simone drawls, shining a flashlight onto them.

Or rather, crossing her arms as the two men behind her shine flashlights.

Kai groans but Cinder just steps in front of him, scowling.

"You are absolutely annoying," Simone declares.

"Well, I'm not just going to watch while you try to marry my boyfriend, am I?" Cinder hisses.

"How cute," Simone says dryly.