Sunrise

It was barely dawn, the forest air cool and crisp and a hazy blue tint to the still early morning woods. Calm and eerie, that's how it could be described. Charlie however, was anything but.

Her breath came in ragged gasps. Stumbling on the uneven ground, she ran through the forest. Tripping on a large root Charlie fell forward, scraping the palm of her hand on the harsh bark of the tree she steadied herself against. How did she get into this situation? Alright, she knew. It was her fault. She had been the one to run, the one who couldn't defend herself without her crossbow. She'd panicked though. Having landed a great right hook he had let go of her arm, and without thinking she had bolted in the opposite direction. Miles had told her she needed to learn hand to hand, and sword skills. He was right, of course.

She heard the crunching of leaves behind her. Turning around she saw her pursuer.

"You didn't get very far." He commented. She could hear the smile in his voice. It pissed her off. Taking the fighting stance Miles had taught her, she balled her fists and prepared for round two. Likewise her opponent shifted his weight and brought up his fists. Miles had always told her not to attack first. She'd pointed out he always did, but he brushed it off explaining for 'her' it was better to start on the defensive. Find the enemies weaknesses, their openings, and then go on the offensive. Personally Charlie thought Miles was just too hot headed and impulsive to actually follow his own advice. Unfortunately so was she.

Lunging forward, Charlie gave several quick jabs. Her opponent easily blocked her initial attacks. Side stepping the hit aimed at her stomach, Charlie elbowed him in the face. She heard him grunt in pain. Putting some distance back between them she tried to catch her breath. He glowered at her, she couldn't help smirking. If he thought he'd take her down he was wrong. Now it was Charlie who was blocking, using her forearms to deflect his blows. She leapt back, when he tried to knee her in the gut. She'd been surprised she had been able to avoid it considering how fast and unrelenting his attack was. Unless, he was going easy on her. That ticked her off.

Going back on the offensive, Charlie uppercut her opponent which he dogged, putting enough distance between them for her to send a roundhouse kick his way. He moved back just in time though, making Charlie growl in frustration. A few more jabs and they were back up in close quarters. Giving her the chance to hook her ankle around his and make him loose his balance.

His hand shot out though grabbing her wrist and yanking her down onto the forest floor with him. Before she knew it Charlie was pinned beneath him. Both her wrists were held down by his large hands and her legs were useless from her current position. And she did not like this position. It was worse than last time.

"Aaaaand, you're dead." He smirked down at her. With a surge of indignation Charlie wrenched one of her arms up and the other down; his balance now compromised, she bucked sideways flipping them. Head-butting him, their foreheads colliding roughly, he let go of her with a sharp hiss of pain. Miles had told her head-butts weren't a good move, and she could understand why now. Her head was pounding. She'd be feeling that for a while. Scrambling away Charlie found herself breathing hard, and heart pounding. She could also feel her face burning, no doubt beet red at this point. She hopped he'd chalk it up to exhaustion.

"Was that really necessary?" He asked, sitting up and rubbing his head. She couldn't believe how unfazed Miles seemed.

"You were going easy on me," she accused, blue eyes narrowed. Miles shrugged.

"Wasn't sure you could handle it," he smirked. "Seeing as how you ran off like that." Charlie felt a new wave of heat across her face, this time from embarrassment. She didn't really know what to say to that. Yes she had ran. Their first round had ended up almost the same; they'd ended up on the ground, her pinned beneath. And that's when it happened. Charlie had started to feel her focus waning, started feeling her body heat up and her heart began to pound. She started feeling light headed and she knew that if she was under him for much longer she'd lose all ability to think! So she had to run. Luckily he hadn't pinned one of her arms and she had been able to shove him off with a right hook. She wasn't sure what was wrong with her. Maybe she was just tired.

"I panicked." She muttered.

"Well, that's why I told you, you need to learn this stuff." Miles pushed himself up from the ground and brushed himself off. "You're great with a crossbow, but you will end up in close combat one day." He walked towards her and she couldn't help noticing how her previously slowing heart sped up a bit. Offering his hand, he pulled her up. She muttered a thanks. "You did good today. Come on." They headed back to camp. Aaron and Maggie were still asleep when they got back.

The sun was just rising; yellow and orange light brightening the cool blue wilderness. Charlie hadn't actually watched a sunrise in a long time. She'd just never had the time really, too worried or anxious to even think about it. It was the start of a new day, the start to… something. Charlie wasn't quite sure, but it made her smile.

"What are you smiling about?" Miles asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"The sunrise," and she couldn't help but notice he smiled a bit too.

A/N

Thank you guys so much for all the reviews! And for the spelling help :D As always feedback is much appreciated.

Quick question for the next chapter though. How would you feel about me changing their relationship a bit? Reducing any 'squick' factors? :3