With You

4

I watched as Otto finally left the room after sternly telling me several times not to leave the bed and when I resisted, he finally decided that it was fine as long as I didn't leave my room. He looked at me strangely the whole time, like I was unbreakable and also the most fragile thing on this earth.
     I decided to work on an art piece, but what to create? Suddenly Otto's face flooded my brain, his kindness and joy. I pushed away the thought. I will be married to him but I will not be attracted to him. I was hurt to almost beyond repair last time I had feeling for someone and I refuse to put myself through that hurt again. I decided to try and recreate the design found on Otto's men clothing. They were long garments, so colorful that I wasn't sure if I had all the paint to recreate them. The designs were intricate and detailed. It was such a vast comparison to my country's dress. The men wore dark blue, gray, and brown, while the women wore slightly more colorful clothing with reds, purples, and in my case, yellow. But we had few designs, mostly consisting of flowers.
     My mind wondered as I painted. I wanted to daydream about Otto but didn't allow myself to. Why did I keep thinking about him?
     *OTTO
    How did she do it? My mind was on little else when I left the house than my future wife. She passed out in my arms and then could smile and laugh not two minutes later. How could her own father beat her?
Even though I had spies to watch her over the last few years, I knew very little about my future wife. She seems like a fairly quiet, reserved person, but when she would laugh at my jokes, I saw a little spark inside of her, something that long ago was doused in sorrow, and was forced to become submissive. My new goal is to find the joy in her life that could get her to talk for hours without stopping, hopeful before we marry and share a bed, but if her father gets his way he will move the wedding up even early than he first propose when I arrived.
I nearly missed the Clinefield residence, my thoughts so filled with my little wife. I turned into the driveway, admiring the tall, dark fir trees that lined the drive. It was a slight walk to the house, which was small. It was clean and white, having two small puodens (small circle windows made without glass) in the front, and a bright yellow door. I knocked, waited, then knocked again. As I was knocking a second time, the door was opened. Behind it stood a man, who stood at the height of my shoulder and looked several years younger than me. His skin was tanned, not only from being a day labor, but also having been born with more color than most people in this providence, his hair not quite matching, blond hair falling into his eyes, before sweeping it back with his hand.
"I have a letter from Kalila to Pene." I told the man standing in the doorway.
"Who are you? Why isn't Kalila here? Is she alright?" the man said suspiciously.
"I am Otto, Kalila's betrothed, Kalila is unable to make it for unknown reasons and she is alright," I lied on the last two, not sure how close Kalila and this man were, "Now, may I please give this letter to Pene?"
"I will give it to her," the man said then suddenly goes, "BETROTHED! When, what, huh? I am one of her closest friends and she has never said anything, I didn't think she ever was going to get married. I am Edward, Pene's brother, I've known Kalila since we were children. Why has she never said anything?"
I was uncomfortable, not showing it of course, but nevertheless, uncomfortable. "She only found out yesterday, I was also under the impression she had known for years, like I."
"That poor girl, her life looks perfect until you get close, then you wish you never had." Edward muttered under his breath, causing me to pause.
"Never wish you had?"
"I meant it as we are not allowed to help her, she always forbid it, I am surprised she even sent you to give a message to my sister. She has never done that before."
My heart swelled at the comment, she trusted me enough to allow me to help her.
"I am determined to help her. I am taking her away from this place, I know that means away from you and your sister, but it's somewhere safe" I told Edward looking him dead in the eye.