"WHAT! You're twenty ?!? I thought you were like .. twenty-three or something?" Afia gasped. Merlin narrowed his eyes, "yes ? I literally told you that, the day we met?" Afia's eyes grew wide in shock,"NO, you did not! You said you were in your 'early twenties'!" Merlin, still cool, retorted, "yeah I just turned twenty a week prior." Afia clenched her jaw, "That's NOT what your 'early twenties' means! Your not even legal to drink yet!"
Merlin took another sip of his martini, "oops ?" Afia rubbed her temples and her head hung low in frustration, "Yeah, fucking oops." Merlin set down his glass and folded his hands together on the dark oak table, looking directly at Afia and searching for her usual aloofness. "My age isn't a problem, is it?" Afia looked back up and saw the sweet sincerity in Merlin's soft blue eyes, "No, of course not. I just think it's funny that I've spent this whole time thinking you were like six years older than me when really it was only two." Afia smiled and laughed lightly at her stupidity. Merlin smiled in relief, "Afuu, the war is over. Who cares about age these days, anyways? I see fifty year olds with eighteen year olds sometimes, it's not a big deal." Afia looked beyond Merlin's head, over at the snowy peaks surrounding them. "It's all so beautiful." she sighed. Merlin smiled at her, "I know, it really is." he unfolded his hands and brought his right one to rest atop hers as she continued to take in the lush view. "How did we end up here, Merlin?" she wondered aloud. "The same way as anyone else: chance." he replied vaguely. "What do you think they're called?" she asked. "Wow, you're just full of questions, huh?" he shook his head and laughed. "I'm asking just as many as anybody else is right now." She furrowed her eyebrows at him and pouted childishly. "They're called The Alps, Afuu." Her smile grew to her ears. "I've learned about these before in like high school!" She almost shouted. Merlin reached up to cover her mouth. "Remember." She nodded, scared of the intense look in his eyes as he stared at his hand over her mouth and the slope of her eyebrows as they tilted downwards and the wideness of her shocked eyes. He licked his lips, almost getting lost in the image playing in his head, only interrupted by Afia's muffled "Merlin!" he turned around to see what she was pointing at and saw the cloaked figures shuffling towards them, the fur in the hoods of their coats blowing in the cold snowy air. He grabbed her hand and yanked her up from her seat at the table and started practically dragging her in the opposite direction as the silent figures. Their feet clumsily treaded through the thick snow as fast as they could, tripping only a couple times before they reached the small shack not too far from their quiet little table. Merlin, still holding Afia's hand, tugs open the door from the rope handle that barely stayed attached to the door on a good day. Somehow, the door stayed intact and they flailed into the small shack and looked for their weapons held in the small back room. "Merlin!" Afia called again, trying to snap him out of his primal focus on their survival. He didn't stop running towards the back room, however, and only returned her cry with a short grunt that kind of sounded like it could be a word in some circumstances. Afia understood him though, "We don't even know who they are!" She yelled desperately as Merlin grabbed the largest rifle they had and started rummaging for bullets. "They don't look good, Afuu." he curtly responded. "Maybe they're like us!" She yelled back, trying to get him to look at her and stop loading the gun in his hands. "They don't look good." he repeated, stronger. "They're not coming any closer." She yelled back, peering out the small glass window at the front of the shack. "What if they're good?" Merlin finally paused and looked back up at her, "What if they're not?" His blue eyes were cold on her warm brown ones. Afia shivered. "Okay, then grab the gun, but don't just shoot them, Merlin, please." She pleaded him, hands resting on the rotten wooden windowsill. He put down the gun. "What do you want me to do?" Afia cried, "I don't know!",the panic rising in her voice. "Okay, I'm sorry, do you want to go try and talk to them? I'm still bringing the gun, though." Afia nodded, tears in her eyes. "Okay, Okay, were okay, love." He slowly stood up, holding the rusted rifle in his right hand and walking towards the door. On his way, he used his left hand to grab Afia's and pull her away from the window. He took the chance to look out himself. The people in the coats were standing ominously still just ten feet from the front door of the cabin. They're faces seemed to be covered in dark fabric and even further hidden by their low hanging hoods. "Afia." Merlin snapped her out of her trance. "Im going to go out and talk to them, you're going to stay in here, safe."
Her eyes quickly opened, "No, I-" Merlin stopped her, "Im going to be armed, I'll be ok, but I don't to risk anything happening to you, no matter what." Afia pleaded with him through her eyes, "Merlin please be safe, just talk to them, see if they're good." Merlin nodded "Okay, I promise." He grabbed the rope handle and slowly opened the shack door, never letting his eyes leave the mysterious duo standing before him. He stepped into the snow and carefully shut the door behind him as well. He looked back at Afia's scared expression through the window and motioned for her to move to the side where the mysterious people could not see her. She obliged and stepped out of their eyesight but remained close enough to the window that she could see Merlin's snowy silhouette outside the door. Merlin looked towards the coated strangers and saw the one on the right reach into his pocket. "I'm armed!" Merlin shouted in panic, but the figures didnt even flinch, their motions eerily fluid. He grabbed and raised his rifle as quickly as he could but he was too late. The loud bang caused Afia to recoil and cover her ears and eyes then realize and open them back up. She blinked and saw red on the window before blinking again and seeing a metal ceiling. She was laying down and drowsy, but she turned her tear-stained cheek to her left to see a wide eyed, open mouthed, still Merlin in the chair strapped next to her.
