Second Chances || Thomas McGregor

T E N

Charlotte opened her eyes after a few minutes having her nerves run wild. It was probably a little weird considering they have only met just a few days ago and now they were cuddling like a married couple.

Looking around Thomas' living room she found a large oak bookcase laden with books varying in size and shape. Lifting her head from the man's shoulder she limps over to the case. "You should rest Charlotte, your leg still needs to heal," Thomas voiced, concerned for his new neighbor.

"I'm fine Mr. McGregor, just looking about," she replied running her hand over a spine of an old looking classic. "Ugh! Why did I have to buy a house with crazed rabbits."

"You regret moving here don't you," the girl whipped her head towards Thomas with so much force that it appeared she might have gotten whiplash.

"No, no don't take it personally. I love the house, the company that I keep, and the views of this place. Truly, I love it here. It is just I do not like rodents running about sabotaging my house. They are too smart for their own good." Finishing with a sigh the girl hopped over to the window viewing the youth of the day. "Hey, I got an idea." And with that Charlotte scuttled through the living room and towards the front door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Thomas chased after the girl afraid she was pushing herself too hard.

"You see that tree over there?" The woman pointed off to a distant tree beyond the role of a small hill.

"Yes... anything special about it?"

"Why yes. You see that is where I am going to relax. We have been inside too long" And with that the girl grabbed onto Thomas' shoulder for balance and pushed him forward.

"Well... I guess we can walk over; we can bring some food as well if you would like? I did promise to take you on a picnic," He wrapped his arm over the shoulders of the young girl and steered her over to the kitchen. Thomas went through a cupboard that held different loaves of bread that he preferred. Whole wheat, white, and sourdough bread were stacked in an orderly fashion.

"Wow, you sure are organized," Charlotte commented from across the room. She whipped her finger against the stoves counter space finding not one spec of grime anywhere.

"Well yes. Everything has a place. Organizing also helps stores you know," He stood up with white bread in hand, "I used to work at a toy store and was the head of the store for a while. I wanted everything perfect. When the store opened for the day I used to do this pre-check where I would review the cleanliness. There was this time where I actually got a straw out and drank from the toilet-"

"Oh my gosh no you didn't!" Charlotte interrupted laughing beside oneself.

"It's not that funny," Thomas laughing a little at the girl's hysteria. Going to the fridge, he took out sliced chicken meat from the night before and whole grain mustard. "I was thinking we could have chicken sandwiches. Sound good?"

Trying to control her laughter she nodded her head. Once he was done he went upstairs to find a blanket so they could sit for a while under the tree. Once he packed everything in a woven basket, Thomas went over to his neighbor and helped her out of the house.

The sun's rays highlighted the features of his companion to the point where she looked like she was glowing. Her damp brown hair shined and her natural highlights appeared to be pure gold.

Her skin was extremely pale besides the right side of her face, which seemed to be healing well. It was less blood red and more of a pink color. The scabs were still in place but should keep the raw skin underneath nice and safe. The richness of her caramel eyes made her seem not of this world. The girl beside him walked with grace that it would look as if nothing has ever happened to her leg, that she was still whole and hearty.