Chapter two: Connecting souls.
Without counting days I knew she was here for almost a full week now. And I had to admit, even though I always thought I'd rather live alone for the remaining years of my life, she was not half as annoying as I expected a young girl to be. As a matter of fact she fulfilled every chore I burdened her with, and always with a friendly face. Not a smile, no she seemed too troubled for smiles. But friendly she was. We spend a lot of time together, sharing meals and the bed, but there were not many words spoken between the two of us. I noticed she got a little nervous every time we headed for bed, so I usually waited a few minutes so she could pretend to be asleep when I emerged. It seemed to work for the both of us.
Hunter had gotten a liking for her too. Every morning he would come into the bedroom to greet the girl, not me. She would giggle softly and scratch him behind his ears before she rose and got ready for the day.
This morning was no exception. I heard Hunter's light feet come closer. He stalked her on her side of the bed and softly whined for her to wake. She did. Slowly she sat up and moved her hand to his head, petting him gently.
'Morning little friend,' she softly whispered, not knowing I was already awake. It was like this every morning. I was a very light sleeper and even the softest sounds woke me up. It was fine, I was all I knew.
'Let's get ready,' she whispered and got out of bed, Hunter following her suit. I stretched myself and watched her side of the bed. She was a small figure, not as fragile as she had been when she had gotten here, but still she was slim. Sharing the bed had been a little strange for me, since it had been years since I had shared my bed with anyone, but I did not mind the girl, who was a woman in fact, but I tried as hard as I could to see her as a girl. A girl who needed to get back to wherever it was she came from. Deep in my soul I knew I would not mind if the truck to take her would never arrive.
That afternoon the sky was a grey, not letting the sun come through entirely. It meant we could work in the garden, this time our body's less covered against the burning sun. It was hot still, but wearing less clothes made it a little better then other times.
'I think this one is beyond saving,' she told me from her spot between the strawberry plants. I turned my head and saw her. It was the third time in a few days she surprised me with her passion to work as hard as she could. She could have been sitting around, waiting for that truck to arrive, but here she was, working as hard as I was, getting her hands dirty in the burning sun.
'It just needs a new place, fresh dirt and more water,' I told her. She watched me for a second and then got back to work. A few minutes later I saw she was pulling her tank top from her upper body, revealing a red bra. I had to bring myself back to my current chore. She was growing on me. Odette.
As strange as her name, she was completely lovely and a joy to be around. She was kind to the animals, did not mind the hard work and she was gorgeous in a natural way. Why was she here? After the first conversation about her arrival here we had both danced around the matter. Maybe we needed to revisit it soon.
However she was nice and kind, she was never really careless in her ways. She always seemed in thought, almost as lonely as I was. Only Hunter seemed to get her so smile, but even then the smile faded soon enough. What matter had she faced that had made her so thoughtful, so sad?
That evening my curiosity got the best of me. She knew I liked the peace and quiet here and she respected it, not asking me questions if not completely necessary. This time I would be asking questions.
'You seem to have found your way around here, Odette,' I said during dinner. She looked up, meeting my eyes cautiously. She swallowed her bite before she answered me.
'Yes, I think I have. Did I do something wrong?' she added the last part, unsure why I had asked her the question. It was endearing.
'No you did not.' She nodded quickly, taking another bite. I watched her intensely.
'Why are you here?' I then continued. She placed her fork down. I saw I made her nervous.
'I told you last week. I got lost.' I chuckled. That was exactly what she told me, but I needed more. I needed the entire truth.
'Tell me more than. How did you get lost. How did you end up in the outback of Australia, while being born and raised in Amerika, Odette.' I saw she eyed the door once. Had she committed a crime in America perhaps?
'It is a long story and it is late. Maybe the truck arrives tomorrow and you are wasting time listening to my boring story.' I licked my lips. She was really something else.
'Come on Odette. Try me,' I said. The words I used were kind enough, but I saw my voice made her doubt talking back. She sat a little straighter and took a deep breath.
'I used all my savings to get here, Australia. I needed to get away from home. I thought starting over would heal me, make things easier. But I was wrong. I walked for days, weeks even before I came onto your place. I had hoped to find work or something, but of course that was not as easy as I had thought.' I let her words sink in. Why had she left her home?
'You have a work visa?' I asked her. She shook her head. Ah so that meant she was here on a vacation visa, and would become an illegal if she was to work here or stay longer then the visa allowed.
'Was your home such a bad place?' I continued. I saw she shut herself down at that question. I had hit the source of her pain, that much was obvious.
'Look I really appreciate everything you are doing for me, and have done for me. But talking won't repay you and I really don't feel like talking about it.' She stood and cleared her side of the table before she took a glass of water and headed out. I finished my dinner in silence.
After a few hours she still had not joined me inside and I walked onto the porch to find her there, on the floor, watching the sky.
'Everything alright?' I asked her. She kept staring at the sky. I saw tears down her face. Maybe I had pushed her too hard too fast.
'I apologize if my questions were too bold. It was not my intention to hurt your feelings,' I told her. She remained still, and mute. It made me sink down, taking place next to her.
For what felt like the hundredth time this week I was admiring her features. Her long locks, trapped in a ponytail and her face, golden from the sun and her features so delicate.
'My parents died when I was seven.' Her words came as a surprise. Fresh tears made their way down her cheeks, but they did not kept her from speaking.
'I went from foster home to foster home, after no family was able to take me in. It was horrible. I turned eighteen a few weeks ago and decided to leave everything behind. I need a new start in life. A better one. A fair one,' she told me. She spoke softly, gently. It was something in her way of being that made me stay there, next to her.
'Maybe one day I will have something like this. A farm. My own animals and garden. Taking care of myself. I will work hard for that.' Those words made me feel something I had never felt before. It was not pride, not contentment, it was something I did not instantly recognize.
And then I said something that even surprised myself.
'If you like it here so much, then stay.' She turned her head, watching me curiously, cautiously.
'I thought you did not want me too,' she said. She swallowed deeply. I took a deep breath. I knew what I had said. But that was before I had seen her work and life around here. That was before I started seeing her as a woman. A very fine one at that. She had everything in her to appealed to me. A part of me wanted her to stay here, with me.
'You have proven that you can work hard and fast. You are not completely irritating to be around. And you know when to shut it. You can stay if you want.' She seemed genuinely surprised. Her smile did not went unnoticed my me.
'I would- I would really love that.' She dried her tears and brought her gaze back to the sky.
'You still don't mind me living in your house, and sleeping in your bed?' she then softly inquired. I cocked my head to the side.
'As long as you keep making the bed you can sleep in it,' I joked. She smiled a little smile. Of course I was kidding. I would have hated for her to sleep somewhere else then beside me. I knew I was a lot older, scarred and not easy to be around. But maybe, just maybe, there was a slight chance she would feel at home here. With me. It would be good enough for me.
'Let's get to bed, it was along day,' I said, moving to stand. She followed me soon enough. It was when he lied in bed, after a few minutes that I felt her turn and scoop a little closer towards me. There was no touching involved. But the gesture meant a lot to me.
Maybe there was hope for her. And me