Escape

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

It's summer all year round in Secretum and we always have something fun to do in the water at our house. When we get down to the water I lay out some towels. Pierce goes to relax in a chair for a bit so Aspen and I can have some fun.

"Want to go paddle boarding?" I say walking over to get the boards and paddles.

"Sure," we each grab a board and head out.

When we get far enough out that no one else can hear us, away from even the governments recorders, we stop and sit on the boards with our feet in the water. Aspen moves his feet so they are tangled with mine. The water is perfectly still all around us, intensely blue, the bright sun reflecting off the surface.

"I wish we could run away. To the Outside, just go and be together, and never come back," Aspen looks deep into my eyes, his voice full of longing.

"I know, we both do, but we also know that we'll probably never make it out alive, and I'm not willing to risk that yet, not until we are more prepared. And then even if we do make it out together, what about every other person stuck in this town, trapped by the government's Legem. If I'm going to risk my life, I want it to make a difference for not just us, but for everyone," I mean every word as I stare back. Fear shows in Aspen's face as he takes me hand and looks away, across the water.

"I love you, you know that right," he still doesn't look at me.

"I know, I love you too, and maybe one day we can get away," I respond as I grab his chin and force him to look at me.

He kisses my nose, "I dare you to jump in. Unless of course, you're scared of a little cold water!" a huge grin spreads across his face and I can see happiness reappearing in his eyes.

"I will if you will," I respond with a smile back at him.

We both stand on our boards and Aspen counts down from three. On one we both dive into the water, laughing hysterically when we resurface. Aspen presses his lips to mine, sufficiently muffling my laughter. Now I finally get the kiss Pierce interrupted earlier, and it is definitely worth the wait. I wrap my arms around his neck and Aspen presses his hand to the small of my back, pulling me to him, while his other hand hold my head in place. The kiss intensifies and his hand moves down to my thigh, pulling it up to wrap it around his waist. I happily oblige and follow with the other leg, his hands grip my thighs to support me. He traps my lower lip between his teeth and I stifle a moan. His lips move from my lips as he trails kisses across my jaw and down my neck. He sucks on the skin over my collarbone and his lips brush briefly along my cleavage before returning to my lips. I part my lips and his tongue explores my mouth.

I pull away reluctantly, "we should head back," I tell him, breathlessly.

Aspen groans and presses his forehead to mine, "but this is much more fun," he kisses me once more.

"As much as I would love to do nothing but this," I press my lips to his briefly, pulling away before he can take advantage of the contact, "we really do need to go in"

"Fine, but we will continue this later." He winks at me before kissing me once more.

"We'll see, Aspen" I smile and wink back.

When we return Pierce goes out surfing and we relax by the pool. "We need a plan," Aspen says quietly.

"What are you talking about?" I ask even though I'm pretty sure I know. I start to get worry because he knows as well as I do that the government could be listening to everything we say, especially at the mayor's house. We are too close to the house, still within listening distance. The only safe places besides the woods are the beach and my room. One of the guys working with us, Xavier, is a hacker and managed to "debug" my room from all listening devices.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Aspen looks at me, he said that way too loud.

"Yes, I do. And we will have one soon enough. But now is really not the time for this discussion."

"I know, but I'm sick of hiding." He looks over at me and I shoot him looks, this is not the place for these discussions.

"I know, I do too, and one day it will be different," I reach for his hand. I hope and pray his words aren't enough to spark any action from those listening to our conversation.