Hi everyone! I'm not too sure what exactly happened that messed this chapter up so badly when I posted it the first time. But I fixed it, so here's the corrected version.
Their silence lasted for a long time. It seemed like their conversation was going to end there, but then it didn't.
"I just don't understand. What did I do?"
Malon was confused. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean I don't get it. There has to be a reason why they picked me, right? So what is it? What did I do to deserve this? What did I ever do to deserve so much pain and responsibility?"
The words came spilling out of him uncontrollably. The tears and the quaver in his voice returned. He seemed like he was on the verge of breaking down again.
"What did I do to make the world hate me?"
"Oh Link! You didn't do anything to deserve this. What happened to you was out of your control. Whatever made the goddesses choose you, it wasn't your fault. This wasn't some kind of divine punishment for something you did. It wasn't your fault."
Finally, she had gotten him to surrender. He leaned against her, burying his head into her shoulder. He had never allowed himself to cry like this, to just release everything so completely. It made him feel vulnerable, but he knew he was safe with Malon. She would never judge him or feel responsible for his pain. She would listen to him with endless compassion.
They stayed like that until the sun began to set. By then, Link had started to feel better. But it was different from when he had simply distracted himself from the pain. For the first time in years, he felt like he might actually get through this. He might actually have a chance at living a normal life again. Before that day, he had dismissed the idea completely. Nothing about him was normal anymore, so how could he ever live normally again? Yet here he was, living peacefully on a ranch with his best friend.
"Are you okay?" Malon asked him.
For the first time in years, he answered that question with total honesty. "I don't know. I wouldn't say that I'm okay yet, but I feel like I might be one day."
"That's good."
They could hear the sound of hoofbeats coming closer in the distance. Talon must be coming home. Malon stood up and stretched her arms.
"Well, let's get out of this field. I don't know about you, but I'm starving." she held a hand out to help him up.
He accepted her hand and let her help him up. Hand in hand, they went inside with a better understanding of each other. Malon had suffered so much after her mother died, and she could never talk to her father about it. She had to work through that pain on her own. Now that she had healed her own heart, she would start healing his. Fixing his broken spirit would not be easy, but they would do it together.