The next day, Aiya woke up to see the morning light pierce through her bedroom blinds. She sat up slightly only to be reminded of her sprained ankle by a sharp pain. She sighed as she tried to uncover her leg from her restricting blankets. Making her way off the bed, she was surprised to see Soren sleeping on the couch in the other room. She remembered him taking her home and being put to bed but she assumed he left. Her father must of insisted that he stayed the night. She quietly closed the door between them so she could have some privacy, even though he was clearly out of it.
With in a few minutes, she completed her mourning ritual of hygiene. Dressing never came easy to her for her fashion sense was pretty weak. Hesitating on either dress nice for Soren or wear something casual, she rummaged though her closet. Her foot still ached but she could apply some pressure on it unlike the night before. Coming across her favorite jeans and jacket she quickly gathered the other necessary garments for her outfit. The jeans were snug get loose in the right areas so she could run around in them. This made her feel slightly more comfortable before going to see Soren. She quickly put her disobedient hair into a messy bun. It was her style, and she never liked trying to hard in the morning. She did put a little more effort into her hair than she usually did though. After checking herself over for any other problems she might have, she carefully opened the door to see Soren still sleeping. His arms wrapped around the cushion while his hair gently swept over his face. She didn't want to wake him. He just looked so perfect. He was so angelic compared to the old ugly couch.
She knelt next to him carefully not trying to wake him or hurt her ankle. Resting her head against him she listened to him sleep for a brief moment. At any other time she would think of this as weird. In romance movies you would always see a girl watching her lover sleep and think "Who listens to people sleep? What a psycho". This time though, it was actually more pleasant than what romance movies show. His breaths were deep and warm, making her feel jealous of the small pillow in his arms. While listening, she also caught a glare in her eye. Slowly moving her eye to investigate where the glare came from, she noticed her camera sitting on the table. Her fingers quietly grasped the glossy object and pushed the 'view photos' button. The current photo was of a white figure curled up against something.
Squinting her eyes and turning the camera she noticed it was her sleeping in his chest when they were walking back. Most of the time, her pictures turned out horrible. This picture actually looked nice. She felt him shift slightly under her making her move away from him slightly. He opened his eyes and inhaled deeply. Seeing Aiya there made him grin lazily "good morning." She smiled and said "Good morning, I thought you left last night"
"Your pop said he didn't want me riding my bike through the valley at night. Plus I didn't mind"
She rolled her eyes and quickly shifted her position. Her camera still lay on her lap, catching Soren's eye. "Sorry about the picture, I couldn't help myself." She blushed slightly making her cheeks turn a bright red again "Your not to bad at taking pictures, I just wish you had a better subject." He laughed and grabbed the camera to look at the photo. "I think it's beautiful…" She smiled and quickly looked away to hide her expression. A bright flash cause her to blink and look at his direction. A grinning Soren with her camera on snap shot caught her blushing moment. "Hey!! Don't! Give it back" She reached for her camera only to be pushed away by his long arms. "Why you look cute when your blushing." He said while continuing to capture pictures of her distress. Launching her body over him to grasp her camera he caught her and said "Watch out for your ankle, do you ever want it to heal". She reached her hand out to his which was flaying beyond her reach. "I don't care, I rather be cripple for life than have pictures of me." His hand snaked around her waist and prevented her from moving any higher. "Fine, only on one condition. I get to have one picture of me and you." The room seemed silent for a moment while she thought about the request. "Fine, deal" she said reaching for her camera only so see it move further from her. "I want to take it though." He said firmly. She hesitated but complied moving off him "Okay fine, one picture though.." He grinned and sat up with her and wrapped his arm around her "On three, smile okay? Not just a half smile". She rolled her eyes and looked at the camera waiting for his dreaded picture. He fixed the camera on them and aimed the lens. "Okay, one …two….". There was no three, only his lips on hers. Her surprised eyes made the picture priceless. When the flash finished he released her and only held but the biggest grin of satisfaction on his face.
"Your such an ass…"
He finally left after a long breakfast with her father. Her father suspected something was going on between them but did not want to know any details. After doing a couple chores that her father never did, she ended up taking her bicycle out for a ride. She was slightly in pain from her foot but it was not sprained that badly. The bike squeaked as it made its way through the dirt road in the valley. The large tree slowly began to appear in her sight as she finally rode deeper in the valley. When she made it to the three, she leaned her bike against the tree. She wished she had a kickstand like normal bikes, but she never took time to get one. Climbing up to her tree she felt her cell phone vibrating. She decided to get to her spot before she checked her phone. When she finally got situated she opened her phone to see a text message. "Hey are you at the tree?" She hesitated about telling him where she was. She really needed some time to think. She sighed when she felt her self opening a new message to type. She always felt guilty when she never answered a text. "Yeah" was all she said back. In the matter of seconds she got a reply. "I'll meet you there".
She decided to relax while she had a moment to herself. This whole situation was new to her. It felt like it was going slightly too fast for her. She needed some more time. Time was her enemy though. He was right about that, they didn't have that much time and it would be more painful for them if she wasted it. Is it what she really wanted though?
Looking down to the root of a tree, she spotted a shiny object. The light reflected off its edge in small beats making her eyes strain to see it. She carefully climbed down the tree to investigate the light. As she got closer she realized it was a perfectly round handle. Moving some vines around the tree she then discovered a old wooden door. The door was brown and red with earth rotten edges. She tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge. The tree's roots have surrounded the edges. After several moments of prying roots away she was finally able to move it open slightly. She gripped the handle with both hands and with one final pull it opened. It was completely dark inside but it looked like it got wider as you went deeper. She hesitated but her curiosity got the best of her. She took off her bag and laid it by the door so she could fit in the tiny door. The cold ground made her nervous as she crawled deeper in the hole. For about a moment, she was about to turn around but when she moved her arm to gain balance she fell in a deep black hole that felt endless.