Just Between Us

Chapter Four

Mason Wyatt. 

I should have known it was him. Next to Jonathan, he's the most talked about among the girls. And now I know why. It's not his athletic ability, his incredible intelligence, or sense of adventure - all things I've discovered that he has. It's what I now see is his charming good looks. 

All things any normal Bowling Green High School girl would already know, but we've already established that I'm no normal high school girl. 

Instead of seeking out the high school boys, I'v done a pretty good job of blending in and being preoccupied with my travels.  

Alexis would probably have my head right now if she found out that I was stuck in the 19th century with Mason and didn't know it. Fortunately and unfortunately, she'll never find out if we can't even make it through this first night together. 

"Follow my lead," I whisper to him as we begin to approach the outskirts of town. 

We had been in the woods for so long, we hardly knew when sun had set on us. Stealing clothes now would be our best bet but we aren't going to be able to get them from a store. Security in America isn't at its peak but a couple of strangers walking through town wearing stolen clothes just screams guilty. 

But luckily, I've come across this problem one too many times. And some housewife or daughter is bound to neglect her chores. We pass enough homes when we finally strike gold with clothes left on the line. 

"What are you doing," Mason gasps.

I turn to hush him which is a mistake. His bronze eyes are watching me carefully and my breath hitches in my throat. 

C'mon Emily, I force myself to turn around, Survive. 

One second, I'm standing there with him breathing down my neck. And the next, I'm Amelia - stealthily chasing down the clothes that might just be our early salvation. My heart is thumping so hard, I don't just hear it - I can feel it throughout my entire body. You've done this before, I tell myself, just breathe. 

There's no light in the house, no one is awake. I pull a dress for me off the line and a pair of trousers and a white shirt for Mason. The clothes are dangling over my arms but I'm not ready to leave without a look around for anything useful. 

There's no spare change lying around because that would be too easy. But on the porch, there's a stool containing a couple rusted nails and a large blade. The nails are useless, but the blade I knew would come in handy. I sneak it on my person just before turning away and running back to where I came from.

When I return, the air is heavy on my shoulders. His eyes are wide. He's shaking his head. I can't stand the feeling of needing to defend myself. "Look," I start, "You don't get to tell me what's right or wrong. You just have to follow my lead. We're in between worlds here. Out of your element and into mine."

He opens his mouth to say something, but he pauses. He looks at what's in my hands realizing my mission was an easy success. cans me again from head to toe and lets out a sigh. "Okay." 

I throw the pants and white shirt at his feet, instructing him to change. Then, I sneak off into the trees to find a secluded place for me to undress where he won't see me. 

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

He's forming his judgements about him, but I need to be forming his trust or else I'm a goner as soon as we're back. Stealing clothes and other immoral imperfections that come on my adventures aren't the way to do that. It was obvious that he didn't like it and that made him unsure of me. I never even wanted to go to the homecoming dance for this very reason and now, I'm praying we get back as soon as we can before he hates me.

The homecoming dress I adorned now is buried behind the tree. When I come out, he's pulling the oversized white shirt over his head which I can't help but laugh at.

"Okay, okay," He put his hands up with a smirk on his face, "No need to humiliate me any further. "

That makes two of us Mason. 

It's not the dress. The dress fits almost rightly on me. But it's the way he's seeing into my deepest darkest secrets when he looks at me that gets a heated rise out of me. It feels like I've just walked inside from being out in the sun only now realizing I've been burnt by it. 

And if I'm going to return home unscathed and not burnt by Mason Wyatt, I knew I had to bee more careful. 

"Sorry," I force my smile to dissipate, "I didn't think to check if it would even fit. I almost never do."

"Well, it seems to work out for you," He looks down at my dress and then meets my eyes again, but the playfulness is gone. In it's place is a look of curiosity and confusion again, "How many....How have..."

He's trying to come up with a list of questions but this isn't exactly the easiest thing to comprehend. I frown because I have confirmation that no one should ever know about it because no one can handle it. 

Don't get me wrong, I've thought about telling Alexis, my brother, or even my parents. I've thought about telling my one day husband if I'm every lucky enough to have one. But standing here in front of Mason, I know for sure that no husband would stick around with centuries of baggage like mine. 

"I thought you said let's get food first." 

I pull out the knife I took from that family  and hold it in his sight. 

"You're joking," He says, his words so mistakenly full of hope.

"How else are we going to eat," I shrug, "I don't see you have any bills from this century in your pocket so we've got to do what we got to do to survive."

"So..." He looks around, "We go hunting?"

"We go hunting." 

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Alright so Mr. Perfect isn't adapting too well, now is he? 

Can't wait to introduce some of my favorite characters in the next few chapters :) I hope you guys love them as much as I do! 

xoxo

Daisy Reed