{Here is the second chapter. I hope you enjoy it!}

An Autumn Breeze...

Chapter Two

Once again inside, Rosemary sat at the bar that split the Park's large, tastefully decorated kitchen into two sections. To the left of the bar was the dining area where sat a large oak table, exquisitely carved and decorated with lions at the feet of the table legs. Encircling the rectangular table was an orchestra of chairs, made of the same tasteful oak wood as the table but instead with lions feet curved out of the bottom of the chair legs and a lion's head was painted on the back of the chair. The seats and backs were topped with scarlet, velvet cushions with yellow beaded trim. Draping over the table was a thick table cloth made of the same velvet as the cushions. This, of course, was taken off whenever the family actually ate, and was simply for decoration. Along with the elegant table, a mahogany bookcase sat catty-cornered in the left corner of the room. A series of paintings and photos dotted the wall on the North end of the dining room, and a double sliding door took up much of the South wall of the room. Thick burgundy drapes fell over the doors and blocked out most of the light. This portion of the kitchen was lit by candles and a large silver chandelier overhead. The walls were a dark burgundy, and the floor was a thick cherry shipped in from somewhere overseas. By far, the dining area of the kitchen was the most respected room in all of the Park's house.

To the left of the bar was the more practical side of this large kitchen. It contained the usual kitchen appliances. Refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, sink, and so on. There was lots of counter space, as the counter tops were made of polished obsidian and the cabinets and drawers were all natural mahogany wood. The island in the center of this practical kitchen space housed the sink and the cabinets below that held cleaning supplies. The backwards "L" shape of the rest of the cabinets held silverware and plates and whatnot. The bar area connected with the long part of the "L" shape, forming an upside down "U".

Practical as it was, it was also very elegant. It had stone flooring composed of mostly limestone and obsidian but it gave you that rocky feeling and seemed to transform the room into a more elegant place. The kitchen itself was a large, exquisite room, and a great place to come to relax, so it was only natural that this is where Rosemary came to try and calm down.

She sat at the bar on the practical kitchen side with her back to the island. Austin worked silently behind her with only the occasional bump or small clatter of metal, like the sound of pots being tapped against one another. Rosemary couldn't bring herself to look at him. She'd made an utter fool of herself. She'd been so upset, she must have looked so ridiculously helpless. She was sure of it. With her covered in mud and drenched in rain and tears. Her only hope was that he didn't notice she'd been crying and simply thought it to be rain. She knew, somewhere back in the depths of her mind, though, that he was not such a fool to believe something like that. No, Austin was not that kind of ignorant imbecile, like most guys his age.

Rosemary had only lived in her uncle's house for 8 months now, but she'd known Austin since kindergarten. They'd always been good friends, but they were never really close. Not until the boys became sick and Rosemary moved in next door to him. They'd gradually grown closer, but it was a touchy subject when it came to their friendship. Some delicacies in their past kept them at arm's length with each other, but we shall not discuss that now...

After a few moments of waiting, practically holding her breath, Austin sat next to her and offered her a cup of hot chocolate. That same gorgeous smile was plastered to his face, but his eyes held much concern. When she looked up, Rosemary saw that concern in his eyes, and she immediately felt guilty. He'd been so worried about her. She must have given him quite the scare as well. She wouldn't talk, and she was covered in mud. She must have looked like a lunatic! As these thoughts washed over her brain, she saw his smile fade just a tad. The cup you idiot! Take the cup! She thought harshly to herself.

Rosemary lifted her hand to take the cup from his hand and found her fingers twitching and her hand shaking a bit. She drew in a quick breath and summoned herself to stop the shaking, but he'd already noticed. He brought the warm cup to her fingers, and used his free hand to wrap her frostbitten phalanges around the cup. Not letting go of the mug himself, he slowly moved the brim to her lips and helped her tilt it slowly so that the sweet, warm drink slid into her mouth. Her eyes flickered to him as she sipped it slowly and he smiled back at her encouragingly.

After a few good gulps from the cup, he slowly helped her lower the cup to the bar. The whole time she was drinking, his right hand had stayed wrapped around the handle of the mug, and his left had stayed on top of her hand, holding her fingers to the cup. Now that the mug sit steadily again on the counter top, and Rosemary looked a little healthier and stable than before, he withdrew his arms from around her the way that they'd encircled her. Rosemary wished immediately that he hadn't moved. Some part of her longed for his arms around her again. She looked at him and prayed this longing didn't portray through her expression.

He simply smiled at her in that gorgeous way he does, and he sat down on the stool, (one of three) next to her. If he'd seen the longing, he surely didn't react to it. Rosemary sat, wrapped in her own jacket, and his, still shivering, but slowly warming up. Once she felt confident enough to, she parted her lips to try and speak. Out in the yard minutes ago, the most she'd been able to mutter was "Really, are you sure?" and even that was barely even acceptable as a mumble. Now, to try and speak formally with her longing for his touch, with his smile shimmering over her like the golden sun. His blue eyes reminding her of pictures she'd seen on postcards of the ocean, and his natural blonde, straight hair swept over his forehead, barely out of his eyes... It was almost too much...

This was insane. She'd known Austin for nearly 12 years! And now, in this moment, she found it hard to speak to him. Not because of the cold, or the embarrassment. Because she could simply not get over the fact that he looked so dang gorgeous! Had she seen him before? Yes, of course. Really paid attention to his features? Yes, she had. But had she ever seen him like this? Not ever! She wondered absently why only now she noticed all of the little gorgeous features about him. As she looked at him, in his sweatpants and thin white t-shirt (which was what he'd obviously slept in), she saw the tan muscles nearly bulging out of his clothes. His body looked sun-kissed and blessed by the heavens. So perfect... So fit... So...

"Rosy?" He spoke her childhood nickname (that they'd developed in grade school) with such suave, smooth elegance, (tinted with concern), it nearly made her topple over out of her chair. His eyes shimmered with concern and his facial features were pulled into a tight frown.

Immediately, her cheeks burst into a deep shade of scarlet as she looked up from where she was staring at his muscles to peer into his deep blue eyes. She hadn't even realized that she'd been subconsciously gazing at his hunky features. Now she felt even more foolish than before. Her lips trembled as she tried to speak some rational explanation for her odd behavior that was not only embarrassing as well as a little creepy.

"I... Uh... I wasn't..." She closed her eyes, knowing she was doomed, and waited for whatever teasing comment was sure to come.

Much to her surprise, his strong hands grasped either of her arms and stopped her swaying motion, (when she hadn't even realized she was moving). When he spoke, his voice was full of concern, which caused her to pop open her eyes. "Are you OK? Maybe you should lie down." His expression was troubled and he seemed terrified that something bad might happen. "Here." With barely any effort, he picked Rosemary up, bride-style, and was already carrying her up the stairs and laying her on her bed.

The blush that had painted Rosemary's face a brilliant scarlet only a moment before was now a blazing hot flame of embarrassment. Her eyes widened as he began pulling the coats off of her and tucking her under her blankets. She tried to push his hands away but he wouldn't hear of it.

"Don't!" She practically yelled at him. This caused his eyes to widen a bit and his hands to freeze in motion. "I... I mean... I can do this myself..." She continued to blush.

He smiled at her dreamily and spoke quietly with a touch of sympathy. "But this is what friends are for. Isn't it?" He raised one perfect, bushy eyebrow.

She couldn't help but smile back at him. He was Austin after all, the kid she'd played with on the playground and had made mud pies with in the summer after a long rain. Looking back, Rosemary realized that they hadn't just been good friends, they'd been great friends. Now, looking at this man, she could hardly remember the boy that she'd go fishing with or have accompany her to haunted houses when she was too afraid to go alone (even though she was still too afraid to go alone). The blush faded from her cheeks as she thought to herself, It's only Austin.

"Yes... Yes I guess it is..." She said weakly and yawned loudly.

"Sounds like someone is tired, maybe you should rest." He said, his smile fading a little as he observed her overly-pale skin.

"No!" Her eyes widened suddenly as she grabbed at his hand and pulled him into a sitting position on the bed next to her. "You'll just leave while I'm asleep!"

She clutched to his hand like a small child holding the hand of the nearest adult, afraid of being abandoned or getting lost. He looked down at their hands, and how their fingers fit perfectly in the spaces in between the other's knuckles. When he looked back up, a small hint of a blush had spread pinkness across his cheeks. His smile came down on her ten-fold like a thousand rays of the sun. Slowly, he shook his head as he spoke.

"No. I won't." He leaned over her so their faces were merely inches apart, smoothed away a stray strand of hair, and kissed her forehead. Finally he pulled away so he was again in his sitting position. Now, a deep scarlet hinted both of their faces. "I promise." He spoke the words solemnly, almost like he were vowing to never leave her side.

"O-ok." She stuttered. Smooth. She thought to herself. He just said the sweetest thing you have EVER heard, and you respond with "Ok". God you're an idiot!

He smiled and told her to close her eyes, (of course she faithfully obeyed), and turned off the lamp. He pulled the blanket up to her ears, whispering "Sweet dreams" as he did so. And then she faded off into a restful sleep, all the time, his fingers never leaving hers...

{Please review of PM me if you have any comments or suggestions. Again, I apologize for any fluency issues of mispellings. I wrote this at 3 in the morning when I hadn't slept in almost 4 days. Anyways... :D }