In Stone

6: "We're not friends."

6: “We’re not friends.”

If Caia thought that shopping and spending some personal time with Caspian would make their strange, new relationship any less awkward, she was disappointed. Though they had spent all of the day together going through different shops and stores looking for a wardrobe for her little statue man, they remained just as polite and distant as they had before it started.

If anything, Caia buying him so many things at once only made Caspian more determined to be polite and kind without feeling. He was never once rude, she couldn't actually accuse him of doing anything wrong. He was a perfect gentleman all day. Yet somehow, there was still a coldness to him, almost a rudeness that was hard to see around his completely perfect manners.

He opened her doors, he carried the packages, he didn't ask for anything though he accepted her gifts with grace and humility. Yet it felt like he was just acting that way because he had to. It was as if he wished he could do all of this himself and resented her slightly for his need to rely on her.

Caia tried not to let it bother her, but found it impossible. Of all the strange things that had been happening to her lately, Caspian's distance was the only thing that got to her.

Caspian's clothes weren't so unusual as to attract a great deal of attention, but they were unusual enough that he did get a few strange looks. In truth, Caia got more looks than he did just because of the vibrant, almost childlike way that she dressed.

Being a statue meant that Caspian was already familiar with her world and how it worked. He may not have ever been a part of it, but he knew what it was and he wasn't overly awed by the things around him. Indeed, he only needed a moment to figure out something, then it was like he had been doing it all his life.

His competence and confidence were enviable. Caia, who hadn't been a statue up until a few days ago, was far more clumsy with things than he was. If Caia was the kind to be effected by someone being so completely better than her, she would have started resenting Caspian just based on that shopping trip alone.

Instead, she found herself in awe of him. Everything he did, he just did far more efficiently and confidently than she did. They left the house with Caia leading the day, they came back with Caspian unlocking her door and letting her inside as though it were his.

It took a few trips to get all of Caspian's bags. Caia hadn't held back while shopping for him. And while none of the clothes were designer or all that expensive, it all added up to being a great deal of money that she had used on him.

And it was worth it.

Caspian had already looked handsome in the clothes he had worn as a statue. Leather and cotton; the outfit had been simple and out of date for her world. He looked like an old fashioned warrior, and what girl wouldn't be effected by something like that?

But now he wore modern clothes. Jeans, a dark green shirt with elbow length sleeves, and boots that encased a pair of large feet. She had paid to get his hair trimmed so now it was neater and more stylish, and the way his hips moved in his jeans made her quite happy to walk behind him as he led the way through her own house.

Despite the makeover though, there was still something about him that was otherworldly. He still looked like a warrior, just one that was wearing jeans. The stylish shirt only enhanced the muscles across his chest that modern men didn't tend to have, and his new haircut only highlighted the strength of his face.

Maybe it was the way he moved. There was just something about the way he walked, the way he looked around any room he walked into, that spoke of a much greater awareness than others needed in the modern world. He kept his eyes out for attackers, he moved as though he was prepared for someone to strike at any moment, and no matter where Caia stood in relation to him, she had a feeling that he knew exactly where she was at all times.