Wolfsbane

36. Cabin fever

"Sit here" Luca instructed. He pointed at the shag rug that was directly in front of the fireplace. I obeyed, playing myself in front of the fireplace. I ran my hands through my wet hair, pushing it back.

I drew my knees into my chest, rocking back and forth. I knew that I needed to conserve body heat.

I didn't even have the energy to argue, I just sat quietly, shivering in my undergarments.

Luca came back, he had changed out his wet clothes into a fresh dry pair. From what I could see the clothes were old, the shirt was a little bit too tight and the sweatpants were halfway up his calfs. He draped a blanket over my shoulders, wrapping it right around me tightly. He leaned down, gripping some firewood out of a cardboard box. He placed the wood in the fireplace, them pulled a lighter out of nowhere. He pressed it, a small flame erupted, he lit a fire.

We watched the flames grow, devouring the wood. I could feel the warmth radiating over my skin. The fire let out a soft orange glow, enveloping me in a sunset colored light.

I stared up at Luca, he was shivering. I could hear his teeth chattering from all the way down here.

I opened up the blanket, patting the ground beside me, there was always space.

"Sit" I said, he obliged. Sitting down right next to me.

I rested my head on his shoulder, closing my eyes. He pressed his head against mine, I could hear him sigh. He was still angry with me.

"I'm sorry" I whispered.

Luca ran a hand through my hair, he curled it around his fingers, letting it fall away slowly. He pressed a kiss against my forehead.

"You don't have to constantly apologize" he said "I was just worried, and I lashed out"

I heard the sound of rain beginning to fall. Heavy rain. I could see the water running down the window panes. This wasn't a good sign.

I heard a deep rumble, one which got louder and louder. I flinched involuntarily, to be fair it was more of a jump that a flinch. I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Melody?" Luca said, he squeezed my shoulder.

There was another rumble. I flinched once again. I felt Luca's arms wrap around my waist.

"You're afraid of the thunder?" Luca said, he sounded genuinely surprised.

I shook my head, adamantly. I wasn't afraid of the thunder per say. I simply didn't like loud noises.

That wasn't the same as being afraid of something.

"You can say if you are" Luca said, he ran his hands over my waist. "I'm not going to laugh"

He absolutely was going to laugh, I would laugh if I were him. All of the things in the world to be freaked out by and I had to feel uneasy due to a loud noise.

Thunder ripped through the sky again, this time the noise was ear shattering. I could swear that I felt the cabin shake a little bit. I literally hopped into Luca's lap, wrapping my arms around his back and burying my face in his chest.

"Okay" I admitted "Thunder might scare me just a little" I whispered. He patted my back awkwardly.

"To be honest" Luca said "I'm not such a big fan of it either"

I loosed up my hold on him. I raised my brows.

"Really?" I said. I found that incredibly hard to believe. Luca didn't seem to be scared by anything. He was probably just saying it to make me feel better.