Reminiscent Hearts

Chapter 4

Sara opened her eyes squinting slightly as she saw that the sun had just started to come over the horizon. She rubbed her eyes as she sat up, when she glanced down she noticed that she had be laying on Garu's arm. She looked up at the male as he was smiling warmly at her,"Well good morning sleeping beauty, and just as my arm was starting to go numb."

She looked at him confused as he placed a hand on her head and ruffled her messy hair. She let out a small noise of complaint as she looked around,"Garu, where are we? We're not on the main road anymore-"

"An announcement came over the radio, supposedly there's a place nearby with other survivors. Supplies, food, somewhere where we'll be safe for a little while. Its a prison though, I didn't know how you'd feel about that but its safer then walking about in the car." Garu replied as he took a bite from a granola bar he had at hand. One hand on the wheel holding the food, and the other rubbing the back of her neck in a calming and comforting manner.

Garu handed her some water and a couple of granola bars, as she ate at it quicker than he had expected. He chuckled a little to himself before he took a breath and turned serious. He hesitated for a moment before speaking,"Sara, I need you to be honest with me about something before we get to the prison."

Sara cocked her head to the side in a confused manner, causing him to glance away with a slightly red face that she hadn't noticed,"Of course, what is it?"

He let out a sigh biting the corner of his mouth,"Do you still have feelings for me?"

she was surprised and shocked by his sudden question, almost thinking he was joking,"W-What do you mean Garu?"

His golden eyes met her emerald ones as she knew how serious he was,"I mean, do you still have feelings for me? Do you still..love me." His last couple of words unheard by her as they both turned away from one another. 

She was silent for a couple of minutes, as Garu started to curse himself mentally for asking something so stupid.

"I still love you Garu," Sara's words caught him off guard as he turned and looked at her, his eyes asking why as her own seemed empty and..sad. He hated to see her like that, it made him want to make her happy, see her smiling and laughing.

She pulled her jackets closer around her as she felt insecure and unsure about whether she should say more, for all she knew he could furious that she felt that why. Sara tried to look away but Garu grabbed her chin gently as he turned her head, asking her to look at him. She didn't fight him as she followed where his hand guided her to look, and instead of anger she saw something else. She wasn't sure what it was, but it was gentle, sweet..loving almost the longer she looked into those golden pools of color.

Garu removed his hand as he held her close to him, laying her head on his shoulder as he drove. Sara had closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around his, but not in a restraining manner so that he could still operate the methodical rhythmic process of shifting and operating the car. She felt him press his lips against the top of her head, and could hear in a hushed whispered tone,"I love you Sara, and I promise I'll protect you and always be here for you."

She had closed her eyes for a moment before Garu asked her,"Why? Why do you still love me? I thought you had moved on.."

"I tried to, but you know better than anyone that I don't know how to handle my emotions, I don't understand them. I always loved you Garu, I just kept it bottled up and hidden away. Just like all my other emotions, I thought that if I could push it away and hide it, then it wouldn't matter, it wouldn't bother me or anyone else. I managed to keep my best friend by doing that, and I got to have both of the people I loved most in my life." Sara spoke with quiet and unsure words, fearing she would say the wrong thing and end up hurting him.

"I still love you Sara, and you should know better than anyone else that I could never hate you either. Mad maybe but you know that I never stay mad at you for long." Garu's reassuring smile calmed her anxious and shaky mind,"I promised Arlien that I wold keep you safe and I will. I'm not going to let this new world hurt you or take you away from me. Not while I'm still standing anyways."

Sara nodded her head feeling relief and peace since the beginning of the end. She felt safe, and not out of touch with the world, as though she could see clearly again. Although her love had died, she knew he was watching over her. She never knew that the two of them had made a pact to protect her if anything happened to either them. She smiled as she played with the fabric of Arlien and Garu's jackets, as she knew that Arlien was watching over both of them and protecting them. 

When she looked up to see through the windshield, they had rounded a bend in the road and suddenly had come face to face with an impressive stone and cement structure. Both of them sat up in their seats as Garu reached for his pistol under the seat and tucked it under his shirt. Sara nodded her head mimicking him as they came closer to the imposing and formidable structure,"Looks like we're here."

Sara nodded her head as she grabbed his hand holding it tightly. Garu squeezed her hand in reassurance,"I'll protect you, I promise."

The story was just beginning..