Lips like Morphine –
~ Chapter 1 - Gray The Rescuer ~
"Stupid old man," Gray mumbled as he made his way down the cobblestone pathway leading to the beach. The blue-black sky glittered with winking stars that seemed to tease him. He was so exhausted with today's work; new shipments came in from many different towns which meant double the work for Gray and his grandfather, Saibara. It was half one in the morning and he was making Gray drag himself out of his cosy bed to test out a fishing rod that would be delivered at midday.
Making his way down the stone steps that led to the soft sandy shores of Mineral Town's beach, Gray headed for the wooden planks of the pier. He let out a grunt as the planks creaked and groaned as the sea water sloshed against it. Sitting down on the edge, he examined his craftsmanship in his two hands. The fishing rod had been purple, at the request of the client, decorated with stars and the name "Lanna" engraved in fancy writing down the edge, which had really been a pain to do. Although, the client had offered a lot of money for the item, so he couldn't complain that much.
He thrust his arm forward toward the black ocean in front of him, the line hissing as the fine wire unravelled. A faint 'plonk' was heard that suggested the lure had embedded into the ocean waters.
'Not much to do now…' Gray mused to himself; the only sounds were the waves gently beating against the pier and sand. It was incredibly soothing but it didn't help Gray's exhausted state. He felt his eyes slowly sinking shut, but then he snapped out of it; a tugging on the line rousing him from his sleepy state. He gripped the rod with both hands, his knuckles turning white with the effort, before giving a hard jerk in the opposite direction. The line stubbornly clung to whatever it had hooked on despite Gray's mighty tugs.
"What the hell is on this line?!" he quietly hissed to himself, his light brown hair lightly shadowing his blue eyes. He gave one final tug, the fishing line heaving the object out of the deep waters and right into Gray's chest. He let out a grunt as the object smacked against him, effectively knocking the wind out of his lungs and sending him to the floor.
"Ugh…" Gray groaned. His UMA hat lay on the pier a few metres away; the impact must have thrown it off his head. His chest and overalls became soaked with sea water as it leaked from whatever lay on his chest. It was pretty light. His baby blue eyes peeled open to glance at what had taken so much effort to pull out of the sea.
Gray looked down to see black hair spilled out over his chest, pale hands that dangled at his sides and a young girls cheek pressed against him. Not moving and not breathing. It took his brain a few seconds to register what exactly he was seeing here. The end of the fishing rod hooked on her loose purple shirt.
Gray was up in an instant, laying the young girl gently on her back and brushing her hair off her face. His big calloused hands cupper her pale face. 'Her skin is freezing…' he thought as more worrying thoughts swam through his mind, his heart rate quickening to a thundering pace. 'Okay, keep calm, Gray. You can do this…' Pulling on his knowledge about CPR, the guidelines came to mind.
'Step one: Attempt to wake the victim.'
His hands moved off her face to her shoulders then gently began to shake her awake. "Come on, wake up! Please wake up!" he desperately cried but alas, she didn't show any signs of waking up. Fear knotted in his heart again but he shook it off.
'Step two: Begin Rescue Breathing'
Gray got to work immediately. Tilting her head back, Gray bent his head down and put his ear near her mouth. 'Crap, no breathing!' Gray pinched her nose with his index and thumb, and then inhaled a breath full of ocean air before slamming his lips into the girls, forcing the air into her mouth and down her throat. His eyes caught sight of her chest rise but then it fell as the air escaped. Gray repeated the process a few more times before he searched his brain for the next step.
'Step three: Begin Chest Compressions'
Gray quickly interlaced his fingers together then pushed the heel of his hand down on the unknown girl's chest. He continued to give compressions for about a minute then paused to repeat the breathing process. As his lips landed on hers again to shove a load of air into her lungs, the air suddenly rushed back up her throat and into Gray's. Gray pulled away quickly, filling his lungs with the sea air as he gazed down upon the girl. She started choking and spluttering water from her throat whilst trying to gasp in oxygen.
Thinking quickly, Gray knelt behind the girl, pulling her up into a sitting position to help get the water out. After a few minutes, the girl sat there heaving air in while Gray silently rubbed her back and held her upward. Without his UMA hat to hide his face, Gray felt really nervous all of a sudden. He didn't like people seeing him without his hat; it made him feel vulnerable. He felt like reaching behind to grab it but the girl was more important right now. He wasn't that selfish.
"Um… are you alright?" Gray whispered. They'd been sitting here in silence with his arms wrapped around her, just the sound of their breathing and the ocean waves ringing out. He leaned forward a little to take a look at her face. He felt his cheeks heat up at the sight of her. She had gorgeous, deep, ruby coloured eyes that reminded him of the precious gems he often came across in the winter mine. Her heart shaped face was framed by her long black hair, although it seemed wet now, it was still pretty.
"I-I'm f-fine thank you…" she replied back, her voice still ragged from the rough salty water. Her eyes were red around the edges, as though she'd been crying. Gray let a small smile form on his lips. 'Thank God she's alright. I did it,' he thought as a sense of pride and protectiveness overcame him. It was then that Gray came to realise she was leaning on his chest, her head resting on his shoulder. His cheeks heated up again, painted a scarlet colour. He'd never been this close to a girl before; they all thought he was weird and anti-social.
"We should get you to the Harvest Sprites… do you need any help?" he asked, faint blush still present on his cheeks at their close proximity. The girl blinked up at him, her throat still sore from the water. She, too, had noticed their closeness and was grateful for it; sea water was cold, the boy was not. It was as simple as that. Well… that and he was quite cute. The girl thought for a moment. 'Should I say, "No, I'm fine" Or, "Yes, I would be grateful"?' Well she didn't want to seem like the typical damsel in distress.
"No, I'm fine," she stated, giving him a small smile. She saw Gray nod his head, looking unsure, before he moved away to grab something behind him. His outstretched hand reached his UMA hat that lay in the sand. Just then, he froze on the spot; a purple ring caught his attention that lay next to his hat. Figuring it must be the girls; he snatched it, along with his hat, and then placed it in his overall pocket, making a mental note to give it to her when they reached the Harvest Sprites house.
She felt another smile light her face when she saw a hat being placed, rather quickly, on his head. He then stood up, his overalls soaked with sea water.
"Um… it's this way," he mumbled, his hand pulling the cap over his eyes. He went over to the sand, seemingly to look around for something, leaving her on the pier planks. Placing her hands on the splintery wood, she attempted to stand on shaky legs. Her jeans and long purple t-shirt clung to her frame. Her whole body shook but for the most part, she managed to take a few, very hard steps toward to the end of the pier and Gray.
Gray turned back; the fishing rod must have fallen into the water when she smacked into him. He turned around to tell her to wait for a few minutes while he waded in and retrieved it, but the girl's legs had decided to give way. He jumped forward and caught her steadily in his arms before she hit the floor. The same fear raced across his heart as when he found her.
"Hey! Are you alright?!" he questioned. The girl was pretty light and it didn't take much effort to keep her up, what with all his blacksmith training. His muscled arms wound around her back, keeping her close to him. The girl let out a nervous chuckle.
"Guess I need your help after all…" She smiled again, her own arms coming up to wrap around his neck. Her legs felt like jelly. 'She must be still in shock,' he concluded. Gray smiled back faintly, his cheeks blushing again. He moved his arms around, one to rest at her back and the other hooked around the back of her knees. With one sweep, he held her in his arms; bridal style.
"W-weren't you looking for something..?" she breathed, her eye lids suddenly becoming heavy. It was really relaxing being held in his arms; heck she didn't even know the guy!
"I'll come back to get it later. We need to sort you out now. …My name's Gray, by the way… What's your name?" he whispered, his shyness peaking out again. He wasn't good at making conversation. His brown fringe lightly brushed over his eyes when he looked down; it made him look… kind of cute. The girl suddenly tensed up. What was her name? Come to think of it, she couldn't remember anything before she woke up a moment ago. Strange…
"I-I don't… remember…" she muttered, deep in thought. It was then that she felt her limbs become heavy, as if they were made of lead. She felt like she was drifting on clouds; it was so relaxing. Maybe she could just shut her eyes for awhile…
Gray continued on, "You might have hit your head or something. Try not to think of it now. This place is called Mineral Town anyway... it's pretty quiet around here…" He trailed off when he took notice of the fact that she had drifted off into a deep sleep. 'She must be exhausted,' he thought, making his way through the empty town streets. Someone was sure to freak out and make a scene if they spotted the local blacksmith carrying a soaking wet stranger. As if the locals here didn't think he was weird enough.
The town centre square was empty, as you'd expect this early in the morning. Gray wondered what time Harris, the local police officer, came out to do his rounds across the town. It wasn't like he was doing anything wrong here, but he'd rather not deal with all the fuss right now. He slipped past Carters Church and strolled along the dirt path. The moonlight rained down upon them as they neared a small hut. It looked like a large mushroom, with a green roof, surrounded by shrubs. Gray would have to crouch down in order to fit inside. Out of the entire town, minus his grandfather, Gray was the only one who friends with the Harvest Sprites and they were some of the few people who saw Gray lower his guard all the way down.
As gently as he could, Gray tapped the door with his foot, seeing as his arms were occupied by the young girl. The young blacksmith waited for a few moments when the door opened, a grumbling little sprite peeking through the doorway, clad in an aquamarine jacket.
"…Gray? Do you have any idea what time it…?" The little Harvest Sprite trailed off when his eyes rested on the sleeping girl. "W-who's this?! What happened!?" he spluttered out, swinging the door open and hurrying toward Gray as he kneeled down.
"I was testing a new fishing rod out and it hooked into her shirt and pulled her out of the ocean. She's so light," he explained, concern lacing his voice. "She was talking before but then she fell asleep. I don't think she has any broken bones," he explained, his grip on the girl loosening to allow the sprite, known as Aqua, to get a better look.
"Hmm… bring her over there; she can stay here for the night," Aqua stated, disappearing inside for a moment, leaving the front door open.
'Over where?' Gray pondered, looking around. His blue eyes then landed on a hammock that was barely visible through the thick cloak of bushes and shrubs. Walking over, Gray gently lay her down on the green fabric, taking care to put her down slowly. He then stepped back as he heard small footsteps approach. He turned around to see Aqua and some other Sprites he had seen a few times.
"It's alright, Gray. You best get back to the Inn, we can take care of her," Aqua insisted, his small hands pushing at Grays legs.
"Okay, okay I'm going. I have work in the morning anyway," he replied, walking around the Sprites and back down the dirt path. He just hoped Anne or someone was still awake to open the front door for him. Before disappearing completely from sight, Gray turned back around to glace at the girl once more before rushing down the path toward them again.
"Wha-?" Aqua began but was interrupted by Gray.
"I forgot to give you this; I think it belongs to her," he answered, producing the ring from his pocket and handing it to the Sprite. "I best get going now," he muttered to himself, before hurrying once again down the path. The thought of the forgotten fishing rod flashed across his mind once again before he inwardly groaned. The Inn would have to wait a bit longer; a trip back to the beach was needed.
Aqua turned to his fellow sprites, "We'll keep her with us until she wakes up," he announced, then looked at the ring that had been placed in his palm. It was a black stone surrounded by silver metal…
To be continued…