Chapter Two, RAIN [POV CHANGE]
An amused huff left my nose as I smiled at this lanky man. "Well Wilson," I said as I looked to the hot bowl in my hands, "it seems like you've been roughed up pretty bad-" looking up I decided to tempt this man with this meal which needed to cool some, "-half starved to death I'm afraid". I smiled as I watched his eyes watch the bowl in my hands, "I don't suppose you have the strength to hold without burning yourself and I don't have anything you could rest it on at the moment." I breathed out, looking at the man whose shadowed eyes widened. "I assure you, I - I am per-" he winced as he tried to raise his arm, almost doubling over, his head meeting his knees.
There was nothing I could do but watch as his breath leveled once more and he looked to the bandaging, the neatness was well done but he was shirtless. He seemed almost upset upon noticing the fact that he was half naked in front of me as he made a movement as to cover himself up only to wince and grunt in pain once more.
"Wait-" I breathed and he stopped moving, "Here, stay still" and I put the bowl in between his legs, resting just before his knees and then I scurried out of the room. Quickly I grabbed one of the chairs I had whittled not too long before and proceeded to drag it across the hardwood flooring and then to the bedside.
Looking back to the man and taking the bowl from him, watching as he attempted to swallow whatever saliva that had collected in his mouth. His adam's apple bobbing.
I sat in the seat, looking to him as I lifted the spoon out of the bowl, it held a carrot and broth in the divit of the spoon. Carefully I directed it to his mouth which he took it into after blowing on it softly.
As his lips closed on the spoon his eyes light up, crashing closed as he was unable to subdue the moan of delight which caused me to giggle.
"I never thought my cooking was that good" a smile rested on my lips as I brought the spoon back to the bowl, dipping it into the broth. He hummed, swallowed and then spoke, "Goodness, that was wonderful. What is that?" and then he smiled. His teeth showed, straight and almost white. A small gap in between his front two teeth was something that caught my eye.
"Chicken-" I stopped "-well, turkey soup." I brought the spoon to his lips once more which he gratefully took in. "Closest I could get to chicken soup…"I breathed out, watching my hand as I brought the spoon to the bowl once more, hearing him hum softly again. "Well it's absolutely lovely, miss"
I could feel the soft heat against my cheeks as I smiled, bringing the spoon to his lips again but averting my eyes, looking out the window instead. As my hand retreated I slowed, just beyond the tree line, I could see the gathering of dark storm clouds. The faint light of lightning shone in the distance already. I stood suddenly, "Miss?" and placed the bowl on the chair.
My head turned to Wilson, "I'll be back." was all I said as I turned to the door, only to stop "W-wait! Miss! Where are you going?" there was a faint sound of panic in his voice and I turned to him. His eyes were wide, scared once more as his eyebrows knitted together. "Don't worry," I offered a smile, "I'm just making sure we'll have food for tomorrow."
The chill of bitter wind nipped at the exposed skin of my neck and sent shivers through my spine. The breeze from earlier had turned to strong gusts which whipped the branches on the outskirts of the meadow. I found myself pulling the shutters closed first, locking them together as the wind lifted the heavy flannel off of my back.
With a shudder I casted an angry glance to the rumbling in the distance, moving to the small smokehouse and knocking my shoulder against it, making an attempt to push it with all of my weight and- surprise, surprise- it didn't budge.
Sighing I met the last two shutters, viewing Wilson from beyond the glass. His head moved from looking to the bowl of soup to the doorway.
Deciding to give the guy a scare, I raised my hand to the glass and brought it back down quickly. He jumped, nearly falling over and then looked over to the window, his eyes wide before relaxing. "You scared the daylight out of me!" his voice was muffled but still heard. I smiled as I shut the shutter on him.
After lighting the small wax candle and setting it on it's hook I turned back to Wilson. "Now," I breathed, moving the chair and sitting in it, "How did you get that beat up?" A shaky breath left him "Well, while I was mining at night-" I cast a look which he sighed at, "Yes, a foolish idea, I know.-" his eyes became the same tired ones from earlier, "Something tore my camp to pieces and then I was chased here by those mad dogs" there was something in his voice, a waver that sparked a feeling in me.
The light of the flame made enough light for me to view the pained look on his face, "five years of work-" he rubbed the bridge of his nose as a broken sigh left him, "-five years lost. And I was so close-" his head dipped.
The haze of incoming thoughts that flooded my mind was difficult to understand as I looked at this man. "Hey-" My voice was unsure itself, "Don't worry about it. You can continue your work here" I felt stiff but my words felt right. His head raised, wide glossy eyes and lips parted slightly.
"A-are you serious, miss?" he asked, his eyebrows pulled together again but this time in uncertainty.
A faint smile crossed my lips as I spoke, "Yeah, I don't see anything wrong with it. I have plenty here and you're in a spare bedroom" I laughed softly.
His eyelids relaxed, drooping as a smile etched itself on his face. "Thank you, miss" was his only response and I casually waved it off, standing up and moved around the chair. "S'no big deal, bud. Now, get some rest, 'kay? I'll wake you for dinner" from the corner of my eye I could see him nod and then shift in the bed, laying down as I shuffled out of the room.
The light of the fireplace was enough for me to move around the main room. The shelves that lined the wall had specific things. One had cooking materials, ranging from spices to berries. Another shelf held bowls, spoons and forks. One had pots and pans, and two burlap sacks sat next to the shelves. One full of salt that took me nearly a month to obtain two years ago and the other was full of wild rice, or the equivalent here.
Plopping onto the bench in front of the fireplace, I looked into the flame. The crackle of the coal beneath the pot kept the soup hot, but that wasn't what we were going to have for dinner too. 'How could I make this better' the wind howled outside, rain finally began hitting the roof of the cabin. Softly I exhaled, shedding the flannel and finding myself sitting in my worn out tank top. Hanging up the flannel on the edge of the bench, I looked to the pile of wood in the corner.
Taking a log and throwing it into the pit with a huff, watching as embers flew up. And then an idea came to my head.
Reaching over to the shelves I picked a carrot, broke it up and then threw it into the broth. Next I took the bag of rice, the heavy bag was like that of the ones back in Minnesota. In fact, the rice was a lot like the rice from Minnesota.
The sound of the rain against the slope roof called as the wind shook the shutters. Through the slivers in the shutters I could see out into the storm, the heavy rain falling hard almost in sheets. A continued stream that looked more like a foggy, tilted waterfall.
'An hour and thirty minutes...' I thought, sitting back on the bench, leaning back. 'After that I'll wake Wilson up' I put my hands over my eyes, sighing deeply as I listened to the rain.
The sudden clap of thunder caused me to flinch, a yelp escaping my lips as my eyes darted around the dimly lit room. The flames were a lot lower and the smell of wild rice soup lingered in the air heavily, the aroma bringing me back to my old home for a moment. It took over the faint smell from earlier easily.
The groggy feeling of sleep rested in my eyes as I stood, dragging my feet to the fireplace and placing two logs into the cinder. The coals took the new fuel greedily, sparking a new, bright flame and illuminating the entire room. 'Now we've gotta wake Wilson' I thought, turning to the doorway of his room.
The candle was more than halfway burned, the wax melting down into the bowl that sat on the hook. It still bathed the room in a soft orange glow. Enough to see around in at least.
I looked to Wilson's form which still lay on the bed, his head propped on the pillow I had given him, his injured arm protected by his good arm. He looked peaceful, content. As if he hadn't slept in a long time, that or not consistently and soundly. His mouth was partially open, the tooth gap defined by the light, his mane of hair in the shape of a 'W' pressed downward, messed up slightly.
I felt bad. Having to wake him when he looks so peaceful. Slowly I approached, feeling worse as I now stood beside the bed and his sleeping form. He's an attractive person, I can't deny that. Strong cheekbones, sharp jawline, a shapely nose, and the light grazing of black stubble on the lower side of his face. I felt my face grow hot again as I observed him. 'Stop' I thought, still looking at him but now moving to meet his level. I brought my hand to his left bicep, nudging it softly as I whispered his name. He mumbled something incoherent and then his left hand moved to touch mine, his longer, slender fingers collapsing over mine.
"Wilson!" I spoke clearly, a 'normal' level of voice as his eyes popped open but he stayed still, as if trying to figure out the situation as his sleepy mind awoke.
Slowly his view drifted to his hand and then he jerked it away, gasping and then sitting up quickly. "I am so sorry, Miss! I-I didn't mean to- I" ''don't worry about it, Wilson." I interrupted him, raising my hands as I then shuffled out of the room to retrieve one of the thin graphic tees I had arrived with. When I reentered the room Wilson was sitting on the edge of the bed, his eyes fixed on the floor.
"Heads up" I threw the shirt at him before he had time to react, it hitting his torso and then landing in his lap. Tentatively he took it in his hands and I left him to get dressed, "dinner's done" was all I called back to him.