I ran as fast as I could to Mare's house in the Stilts. Once I received news of my mentor dying from a heart attack, I needed to see her. I needed to tell her about my being conscripted into the war. It would break her heart to know I'd be suffering the same fate as her older brothers. It was late and her family's electricity rations had run out for the month. The way was dark, but my feet naturally recognized the path that would lead me to her.

I finally made it to the front of her doorstep. Taking stone in hand, I threw it at the window to where Mare and Gisa both slept. Gisa would be deep in sleep but I knew Mare was a light sleeper.

"Mare!" I whispered. In seconds, the front door opened and there she was, slightly annoyed. Her deep, brown eyes sparkled in what little moonlight there was and her long, dark hair was messy from her tossing and turning in bed.

"Kilorn!" She looked surprised to see me. "What's wrong?"

Placing her hand on my cheek, my expression was one of despair. Her hand was small and soft despite our rough living conditions. This girl had been with me for my whole life. She had helped me survive a childhood of starvation, fought with me to toughen me up, and always had my back when we went out thieving. For years and years, I loved this girl hoping we would share a future together. She's my best friend.

But now she looked equally as afraid as I felt.

"My mentor died from a heart attack. Old age." My voice cracked. I placed my hand on top of hers. I heard her undeniable gasp. "I'm to be conscripted tomorrow afternoon since I'll be turning 18."

We stood in silence after that, looking at each other with fear. This wasn't the life I wanted to live. I was apprenticed as a fisherman. And now that was taken from me. The war has taken everything from me. And in a year, it will take Mare too.

"This isn't fair," Mare whispered, shaking. "There has to be a way out of this. You can't go to the war, Kilorn."

"I have to. All of the other mentors have apprentices already." Frustrated, I tell her, "There's no one else. All of the jobs are taken. I'm the odd one out."

Still shaking her head, her eyes glisten with tears. "There has to be another way."

Seeing Mare tear up breaks my heart, and I want to hold her and believe there's another solution. But there isn't one. This is a hopeless situation. I look at her calculating expression. Gears are always turning in her mind, but this time she won't be able to save me. There's no getting out of this. I pull her to me tightly in a hug and she hugs me back just as tight. She smells woodsy like the forest, but sweet. I allow myself to gently stroke her hair, grateful for her presence in this moment right now.

We don't say anything for a while and it's very quiet in the Stilts. Everyone is asleep, trying to get all the rest they can until tomorrow when work takes up most of their energy. It's a constant cycle. Wake up early, work, sleep. Repeat. Over and over, we struggle to make a living in our conditions because the Silvers don't care about us enough to help.

A deep feeling of emotion rises in me, knowing I'm about to be saying goodbye to the only girl who ever mattered to me. I'd waited years for the right opportunity to come up to express my feelings. Now is a better time than never. I may not get this opportunity again, and I regret not speaking up sooner.

"Mare." I gently pull away, still holding her. I use one hand to lift her chin up to me.

Her beautiful brown eyes gaze into mine. "I can find a way to get you out of this," she whispers. Her brows furrow, still thinking.

I kiss the spot where her eyebrows are creased in concentration, trying to smooth them out. There's no reaction from her for the action could be interpreted as platonic. But to me, I want to kiss her everywhere. I want to remember the feel of her skin, her curves before I'm taken away. You'd think that years of friendship would help with my memory, but I'd always been at a distance romantically.

"The harder you think, the more stress lines will appear on your face," I tease.

She gives me a sad smile. "It's worth it if it means I can save you. And maybe if I come up with something quick, they won't last."

"You've already got lines forming." My gaze trails down to her full lips.

"What are you talking about? Where?"

"Here." I bend down and press my lips against hers. Her eyes widen and her body goes completely still. She's startled, and I'm afraid I may have scared her off. Pushing herself gently away from me to look at my face, she asks, "Kilorn?"

Her hand flies to her mouth, surprised. I don't know how she can be shocked at my feelings. I feel like the whole village, including her family, has known about my obvious interest in her. I've got the approval from her parents and older brothers. There's no way she hadn't thought of us eventually marrying at one point. There was no one else in this village that I had ever looked at romantically, and neither has she. We've only ever shared compassion and care for each other.

"I'm sorry," I mutter. I resist the urge to kiss her again. She looks so adorable when she's confused.

To my surprise, she kisses me back softly once. Twice. Again. I look at her after every kiss, trying to gauge her reaction.

"Kilorn," she starts. "I don't know how to feel right now. I'm a mess of emotions."

"Trust me," I mumble. "I feel a lot of things too."

"But, this doesn't feel wrong."

Taking that as acceptance, I kiss her again. And again, and again. My lips move against hers naturally, and she sighs when my tongue flicks against her bottom lip for entrance. She invites me in, our tongues meeting and exploring unfamiliar areas. I feel like I'm exploring a different part of her, a part that I've been longing to find. She tastes nice.

We go on like this for a few more minutes until I'm kissing her with despair. My touch grows frantic as I run my hands through her hair. I don't know when the next time I'll see her again, if I'm coming back. Mare returns my kiss with just as much passion. Her hands are against my chest, too hesitant to roam elsewhere.

We move into her living room on the bottom floor. I'm sitting on the couch and she sits on my lap, straddling me. It's very dark and her parents are fast asleep on the floor above us. I never imagined we'd ever be in this position. She has her arms wrapped around my neck as she kisses me deeply. My hands rest on the back of her thighs, right underneath her bottom. I'm afraid to go past that despite my hard-on.

"I don't want you to go," Mare whispers.

I nod. "I don't either." We kiss some more, and I rub her thighs slowly.

Mare starts to grind against me slowly and I look at her, shocked.

"You're massaging my thighs." She looks away, shyly. "It feels nice."

My dick presses between her legs, throbbing. I know she feels it too. Our senses are heightened, being in the dark. I slide my hands up so that I'm firmly grasping her butt and she tenses up.

"Is this okay?" I ask quietly, kissing her neck.

She nods, moving against me and throwing her head back so I have more access to her neck. I move slowly down to her shoulders and collarbones until I'm at her cleavage. I hear her suck in a breath. Using one hand to slip beneath her shirt, I find her nipple and rub it with my thumb. I pull her shirt down with my teeth so I can take her other nipple in my mouth. Swirling my tongue around, she lets out a small moan and we both freeze. The house is dead quiet.

"You have to be quiet!" I hush her, exchanging positions. I have her lying down on the couch now.

I can sense her glaring at me in the dark. "I can try."

I pull her pants off in the dark, and feel for her clitoris. I find it through her panties and start rubbing gently at it. I can smell her sex coming off her and feel how wet she is. Her panties are damp and the fact that I'm turning Mare on turns me on. Her smell makes me feel woozy and I can't think straight. I just want to put my mouth on her and make her feel the best she's ever felt.

I kiss the inside of her thighs and feel her shiver. "I want to taste you. I want you to feel nothing but pleasure tonight."

In response, she widens her legs for me. I take off her panties, and start licking at her clitoris, stimulating her. She clutches my hair, pulling me closer. She tastes so good. She feels so nice. I want to do everything to please her. I eat her out like she's the last meal I'm ever going to have. She bucks and thrashes against my mouth, unable to control her urges. I've never seen Mare so unresisting.

I slip a finger into her, feeling how tight and wet she is for me. My dick throbs wanting to be inside of her but not yet. I pump my finger in and out of her, hearing her quick breathing and feeling her fingers tighten in my hair. I curl my finger to find her G-spot and she squirms underneath me, letting out little moans now.

Taking my hand out, I hold it over her mouth to muffle her moans while I continue licking every sensation. I put my tongue inside of her entrance and switch to sucking gently on her clit, using my tongue to flick every so often.

"Kilorn," she gasps. "Please don't stop, oh, you're making me feel so good."

I begin to lap at her clit, still holding my hand over her mouth. She starts clenching her thighs around my face. She's almost close, I think, and I use my other hand to finger her faster. I want to bring her to ecstasy.

"Oh!" she cries out from under my hand. Her whole body starts quivering and her legs start shaking uncontrollably as she cums against my mouth. I press into her harder, wanting her to ride out her orgasm. She thrusts her hips against my face and I become more aroused. I need to be inside of her.

"I want to make you mine," I tell her as she comes to a finish.

"What?" she gasps, out of breath.

Kissing her, I tell her. "I want you to be mine, Mare. Can I have you?"

I take my pants and boxers off, guiding her hand to my erect dick. It's dripping with precum and her hands feel nice as she strokes me.

"We can't do it in the living room," she whispers. "It'll be too loud and someone might hear."

"We can't exactly do it outside either, unless you enjoy being seen by a random midnight stroller."

Thinking quickly, Mare exclaims, "The lift!"

"Your dad's wheelchair aid machine?" I ask incredulously.

"Yeah, it's more secluded and on the side of the house. He barely uses it, and it's not as paper thin as these walls."

Grabbing my hand, she leads me to the lift. It's a little box with a lever on the side of the house, but it works. There's a small slit of moonlight on the top of the lift's ceiling for the rope to slide through so I can see her a little bit better now. She looks flushed from her earlier orgasm and I'd do anything to see it again. I lie down on the ground, and grab her hips so she can ride me. Mare looks confused.

"I don't know how to…"

"It's okay," I reassure her. "Just sit on it, and I'll do the rest."

She hovers above my tip, moving slightly onto it.

"There you go," I groan. Squeezing my eyes shut, I pull her hips down the rest of the way until she's fully wrapped around me. Her inside feels amazing. She lets out a little whimper, and then we start moving. I pump inside of her, holding onto her hips while she bounces on top of me.

"Does this make you feel good?" I whisper to her, reaching to take her shirt off.

"Yes, yes, yes," she groans quietly. Once her breasts are exposed, she wraps both of her arms around them to cover, embarrassed.

I take both of her hands and hold them in mine. "Don't worry," I tell her. "You look beautiful."

I shift my angle so that I'm hitting her deeper and she whimpers, moving with me at a faster rate. Squeezing her fingers, I encourage her, "You're doing so well. Do what makes you feel good. I want you to cum again."

Mare starts riding me faster and I'm trying to keep up with her, trying to get her closer to orgasm. The moonlight hits her just right, and I feel like I'm looking up at a goddess. The way her perky breasts bounce with each thrust and seeing her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Her expression is that of pure ecstasy and I'm so relieved to be the one giving it to her. Her body is perfect and her curves are in all the right places.

"Kilorn!" she gasps. "I think… I'm going… to… cum… soon!"

"Yes, cum for me. Cum on my dick for me." I can feel myself getting harder as I get closer to my own orgasm. Grabbing her hips roughly, I start moving recklessly on my own. Her walls start to squeeze my shaft as we move up and down, and it makes a sloppy sound. Her panting and the smell of her arouses me more as I reach my own peak.

"Mare, I'm going to cum inside of you," I grunt. I thrust into her deeper and faster, and she lets out a little cry of ecstasy as her body begins to shake with her own orgasm. My seeds spill into her and my muscles tense as I shoot out my cum into this girl that I have loved for all my life. Her face is in pure pleasure, mouth set into an O shape.

We ride out our orgasms until we're panting and sweating. She collapses on top of me, exhausted. I hold her while our breathing starts to slow down.

"I'm so grateful to have you in my life," I murmur.

Mare smiles up at me. "I'll wait for you, Kilorn. If I don't find my way out of this, I'll be joining you in a year."

"Yeah," I sigh, remembering Conscription. "Maybe we'll both find a way out of it together."

All we can do is hope for the best.