She sat back, letting her shoulders relax and feeling the air hit her in the face.
Nick was telling her a story, while Glinda listened sitting beside him in the front of the carriage. Her two bags of luggage and his own gear made her unable to ride in the back, but she didn't mind much riding with him. He was easy to talk to, he stuttered some of his words—but only when he looked directly at her—she noted. When he was looking elsewhere his words came easily.
He mentioned that he was traveling through Loland before he had to settle down and get a job, to which Glinda asked how he was able to afford a trip. He replied that a friend of his generously helped him out but in return he would have to work for them when he returned.
"I couldn't accept the money at first, but then I had a change of heart and I couldn't pass off an opportunity like this." He told her, staring straight into the distance as he led the carriage through slopes and curves of the green road.
Then he asked her what she was doing that far south of Loland and she responded by telling him that she was on vacation.
"You are vacationing here, in Loland? This might be the most boring place in the land."
"It's peaceful and quiet." She said to him, and he shifted his face to look at her.
"It's not quiet w-where you are from?" He questioned beginning to stutter once again when he looked at her.
Glinda sighed gently, "No, it's loud and you can't see any stars at night."
"I c-can't imagine n-not seeing the stars. I grew up somewhere w-where there was only s-stars and I wished I d-didn't live there. Now I w-wish I never l-left." He confessed to her, looking at the horse in front of him.
"You don't sound like you want to work with your friend." She said softly and he nodded still looking away.
"No. I don't. I don't think I am either, I can't work with them and…" He took a heavy breath and shook his head. "Do you know what? This is m-making me feel like crap c-can we talk about something else?"
"Like?" She asked and he smirked.
"Like if you are g-getting as hungry as I-I am at the moment."
Just at the thought of food Glinda's stomach grumbled. She didn't remember eating anything recently. "A bit." She confessed and Nick nodded.
"I have some c-crackers somewhere in the back and…Well that's about it." He chuckled, looking embarrassed that he didn't have something to give Glinda to eat.
"Maybe we should stop to find somewhere to eat?" She said, immediately regretting what she had said when she remembered they were in the middle of nowhere.
"I don't know the terrain that well, but…" He trailed off, waving his hand to the distance where the only thing that they were able to see was more green.
She giggled, "You don't know, for all I know there could be a five star restaurant hidden in that shrub right over there." She told him, gesturing to one of the many shrubs scattered throughout the ground.
"Is it run by Mice? Can you imagine what the bill would be for us?" He joked, making Glinda laugh along with him.
"Okay, there is no place to eat, but there has to be something, berries or apples or something growing out here?"
"And If I'm correct that tree over there in the distance is an apple tree, we can ride over and rest underneath." He said, giving her an option and Glinda felt that it sounded better than a few crackers.
"That would be nice."
"Then that's our five star restaurant."
"I guess so." She smiled and he smiled back turning away, but Glinda noticed he was turning red again and it only made her smile to herself even more.
Glinda somehow knew he was not very used to talking to women and she also found that he had not made one comment about her beauty like many others had when they were interested in her.
It was a strange sensation, something that she hadn't felt for a long while. She felt as if she knew him her whole life but she hadn't known him for more than a couple hours. He was sweet, he was shy, and he was kind from what she could tell. Yet, she knew she could not trust someone she just met. She had barely talked to the young man and the last time she stuck close to someone she felt close to she had ended up being used and left for her best friend.
The blushing man cleared his throat beside her and he stopped the carriage near a few string of trees. He jumped out of the carriage and offered her a trembling hand. She took it gratefully, letting him help her get down. His hand was hot in hers and he pulled it away after another moment mumbling about getting 'the apples out of the tree'. She found the excuse to get away from her somewhat adorable as the apple trees were not in any way high.
He started looking over the tree picking only the apples he thought were ripe, and after having an armful of them he waved her over with his head, sitting himself under the grass. She paused for a moment, on guard, but then she shook her head over her silly suspicions. If he wanted to do something he could have done it any time, but still she made sure to keep her bag close to her.
She walked over to him and carefully lowered herself to sit on her knees. He offered her an apple and she took it and thanked him to which he gave her a smile before she bit into the apple.
It was sweeter than she expected it to be and it was simply wonderful to eat. She finished it shortly and Nick watched in awe as she began nibbling onto another.
"Wow, you were hungry." He commented taking a bite out of his own apple with a smile.
Glinda finished the bite she was on and smiled back. "I guess."
"You guess—sheesh it's getting cold out here." He said with a slight shiver. "Do you mind if I start a fire?" He asked and she shook her head, feeling the chill herself. He pushed himself up to stand and Glinda watched as he broke off branches from a few of the trees, gathering them together and coming back to where she was.
It didn't take him longer than a couple of minutes to get a fire started and when it did he warmed his hands over the growing fire. Glinda moved closer to the fire and felt the warmth of it immediately and she shivered because of it.
Nick looked her way.
"I guess I was much colder than I thought." She said with a shrug, Nick scooted himself closer to her, much to Glinda's surprise, but she didn't move back. His arm quivered as he moved it up her shoulder. She couldn't let it happen, so at the last moment Glinda smoothly moved to the side and his arm dropped to his side in disappointment.
"I-I'm s-sorry m-miss—" He began but Glinda quickly interjected.
"It's not your fault. I'm…I just don't know you and…" She didn't finish instead she shook her head, her hands playing around with her unfinished apple in her lap.
Nick seemed to understand and kept his hands to his side, looking into the fire.
Glinda continued to nibble on her apple. Every once in a while looking up to see Nick picking at the apple still in hands, or fixing his cap on his hat.
"We should k-keep going. I want to find a t-town before night comes." Nick's voice broke through the silence.
Glinda knew from the way he wouldn't look her way that she had embarrassed him. She didn't mean to make him feel bad, he seemed like such a sweet man, but she didn't want him to continue what he was doing. She was in Loland to find Elphaba not to find a man.
"Let's hope we find that five star restaurant so we can get a proper meal in." She expressed with a smile and it seemed to make him happy.
One meal wouldn't hurt anyone. Eat, say goodbye, and continue looking for Elphaba.
"And w-we could go t-together?" He asked hopefully.
"How else would we go to eat?" She said playfully and the corner of his lips turned up, beaming at her.
"I would v-very much like t-that m-miss G-galinda." He said with joy, turning bright red in the face.
Glinda couldn't help but echo his joyful smile. She wasn't promising him anything else but a meal.
Then her mind went blank, the smile never fading from her face from fright. She must have misheard him when he said her name. He couldn't have called her what she thought he did because few knew her actual name. Above all, no one in Loland would know her or her name.
She began to calmly move away despite not being sure what he had called her. He noticed her change of mood and that she had begun to move away. His face went blank and he stared without focus and her heart began to beat quicker, pushing herself up to her feet. He reacted quickly, standing when she did. Her hand came to her bag but he was quicker at grabbing it. Glinda raised her other hand instantly and it came down on his face, causing him to let go of her arm. Again she reached for the pistol hidden in her bag and she felt it, gripping it and pulling it out. She fought to pull the slide back on it, an error on her own account for not spending time to learn how to use it. Her pause gave Nick enough time to throw her down on her back. A few words rushed out of her mouth in a flurry but nothing happened. Stupid magic. His body was crushing her to the floor and he struggled to wrestle the pistol out of her hand.
"Stop! I'm not trying to hurt you!" He yelled, panic in his eyes. Glinda didn't listen to him; she only knew that she needed him off of her. He took the pistol from her hands and he threw it off to the side trying to calm her and make her stop fighting.
"Glinda, please, you know me!" He tried again to make her stop kicking.
She did not know him.
"I love you and always have so please stop this. I want to help you!" He whispered his words, dropping his head next to her ear.
"Get off of me!" She growled trying to free her hands from their place on her stomach.
"It's me, it's me," He breathed, pulling his head up so she could see his face. "Look at me, it's me. I would never harm you." He said as softly as someone who was pressing her to the ground could say. He kept looking at her but Glinda refused to look at him. She fought to get him off of her, terrified and in tears.
"I would do anything for you." He continued talking.
"Get off of me!" Glinda shrieked, panting loudly from the energy she was using to fight him off.
"I'm afraid you'll leave if I do." He said nervously, "I don't want you to leave me, I don't want to be alone again. I waited for you….for years. I waited."
"I don't know you!" She yelled, trying to reason with him.
"You do! You always knew me, you didn't recognize me, but you always knew me. I always worried for you, I always loved you and tried to find a way to get to you but there was always something in the way, but now there is nothing stopping me from you, and I—" His words caught in his throat as her knee found the spot she had been trying to hit for the past minute. He rolled off of her and Glinda used the time to scramble herself up, grabbing her bag and finding the glinting metal in the grass. Glinda pulled the slide back and pointed it at the man on the ground. Her body trembling from fright.
"Glinda. It's me," he gasped, looking up with sad eyes. "It's me…Boq."