She could feel the warmth on her skin before she opened her heavy eyes. It was a comforting feeling that she wasn't used to, thick sheets wrapped around her body and a soft mattress beneath her.
The early morning light shone in through the thin curtains making Liesel smile at the warmth on her arm. When she turned her head towards the window she was met with a face of thick feathery hair. Max.
His head was resting on hers where she lay snug under his arm in his embrace. He was sleeping soundly, he wasn't shivering or shaking from a nightmare anymore, he even looked more muscular and not like he was starving.
Liesel stretched her arms and legs, wincing slightly from the ache still in her body. She simply had no desire to get up and pull back the curtains to take in the view from her new home, no wish to go get breakfast, nothing but to lay beside the only person in the world who she loved and loved her back.
After a while of soaking up the moment she brushed the hair from Max's eyes and kissed his rosy lips. As she expected, he stirred slowly then found her eyes immediately.
"You're awake." He said to her before decorating her face with morning kisses. She let out a loud giggle until he stopped and mirrored her blissful expression.
"Good morning."
"It is a very good morning waking up beside you." He examined the healing scratches on her face and the blood soaked bandage on her arm before turning to get out of bed.
"Where are you going?" As she did the night before Liesel reached for Max and pulled him back desperately.
"To get you fresh bandages for your wounds." She looked down to her arm, it must have reopened through the night.
"I'm just going to the bathroom, I'll be ten seconds." He saw the anxiety in her body, the pain in her eyes. She had lost her parents and he was the only person she had left in this world. He kissed her lips so she instantly relaxed and he pushed her back against the cloud-like pillows.
When he came back from the bathroom he fixed her arm with new bandages being as gentle as he could.
"You'll have to be careful, this can't open up again or it will never heal." Liesel nodded, she wasn't planning on doing any running for her life today.
Max quickly got washed and dressed in the bathroom before joining her back on the bed. He was dressed in a white, long-sleeved shirt and brown slacks and used his hand to sweep his fluffy hair back. Liesel leant in to hims, resting her head on his chest, kissing the bare skin that was visible through his low neck line. He shuddered beneath her. He smelled so good, so clean and masculine which was a big change to the dust and cold sweat that usually clung to his body.
"Do you want some breakfast?" She hadn't realised she hadn't ate in such a long time. It was no wonder her body was as tired and beaten as it was.
"I'd love some." She got out of bed slowly, minding her fragile body. Max came rushing to her with clean, ironed clothes and helped her change out of her borrowed hospital ones. They had probably come from some unfortunate girl who died that same day.
"Where did these come from?" She questioned as she stood with her back to Max as he lifted her shirt over her head. She couldn't help but blush. They had never seen each other skin to skin before, never gotten any further than their passionate kisses before bed.
Carefully, he slid down the thin fabric of her trousers and held her legs to keep her steady as she stepped out of them. Her skin was lit on fire as his hand wrapped around her knee and glided down to her ankle.
He seemed to linger a second longer than he intended, absorbed in the intimacy of the moment. Her skin was chalky and soft but there were bruises that blemished her like paint stains on a blank canvas. Max tore himself out of the moment and stood back up to face her back.
"Frau Hermann put them in the wardrobe a while ago for if you ever arrived." Liesel turned to him but kept herself covered up with her arms. She watched Max's eyes widen but he never looked away from her face. This made Liesel inwardly smile at the effect she had on him. Freeing one arm she took the clean underwear from the pile of clothes and sharply, Max turned to face the door.
"W-what would you like to eat?" He stuttered. Liesel smirked at his modesty.
"Anything, I'm so hungry I could eat a feast." She chose a pale pink dress and hoisted it over her head quickly, trying not to move her left arm that was in the process of healing. Her hair was a mess but she saw a brush on the dresser and quickly ran it through, it was still untidy but it would have to do until she could bathe.
"I'm ready. Let's go."
Walking through the long corridors made Liesel feel incredibly small. They passed room after room which left her thinking she needed to explore this house at some point. The silence was strange, it was always so loud in Himmel Street.
When they reached the dining room Frau Hermann was sat next to the window sipping a cup of tea. She looked happy, a sight Liesel never saw before.
"Liesel! Darling, are you alright?" She came over to her and hugged her gently. Liesel wanted to cry, this was a sudden realisation that her mama and papa weren't there to hug her and ask her if she was alright or curse at her and tell her to toughen up, this is a war.
"I'm fine. Thank you for the clothes, they're wonderful."
"It's nothing. Please, sit down and eat." Frau Hermann directed Liesel to the chair she was just sitting in and Max sat opposite. The maid that Liesel saw yesterday brought in fresh food and poured them tea.
"You are free here, Liesel. Max already knows that, you are both safe and aren't to worry."
"Danke. I can't thank you enough, really." With a sweet smile she left the room.
Set before them was a variety of splendid food. There was a bowl of fruit, bagels, toast, fried eggs, sausages and a big plate of butter. Liesel was astonished. She hadn't seen such food before, not since the Nazi ball.
Max was already tucking in and pouring two glasses of fresh orange juice. The smells floated to her nose and her mouth was watering, but suddenly she couldn't face eating.
"Liesel, eat." Max paused, his eyebrows mushed together as he was puzzled by her state.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts Liesel nodded and picked up a bagel. She ate slowly as if each bite was torture and watched Max as he cleared his plate and emptied his glass, smiling to herself. Was this it? Was this finally the freedom they had been dreaming about?
"What are you thinking of?" He pulled her back, again.
"You." She breathed. He reached out and took her hand in his, caressing her skin with his thumb.
"Shall we go for a walk? Or would you like to rest?"
"A walk sounds lovely." He kept hold of her hand and pulled her up and out of the room. She was still really tired but all she wanted was to do one normal thing with Max. They walked to the back of the house to the big glass doors, there was no one around and the garden looked like a wonderland.
"Are you sure no one will see you here?" Max could feel her hold back a bit, her hand was sweating and she swallowed thickly.
"There's no one around for miles. The only road is at the front and you know how long that is before you reach the village. We are free, Liesel."
"What about planes? What if they see our lights and bomb us?" Max took hold of her face, capturing her eyes and staring deeply in to her.
"As long as this war continues there will always be risk. But we can't let that get in the way of our lives, we can't stop living. Losing your parents is a loss to both of us but we have to keep strong. All we have is each other."
Liesel understood. She was still in shock at the past few days and the sudden loss of her parents. She wouldn't have bodies to bury or graves to visit, all she had were memories to help her mourn.
Max placed his hands on her hips and lowered his head so that his breath tickled her lips. Her stomach flipped as his fingers traced circles and slipped to the top of her thighs.
"I love you."
She leant forward towards his lips so they were delicately brushing and ever so softly kissed his bottom lip. He had suppressed her fears for now, like he always had even though it was him who was always in danger.
"I love you too."
They stood there for a few minutes in the shadows both unable to move from the hold they had each other in. There was electricity sparking between them and Max wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and prove his love to her.
But the sun was right there, just a step over the threshold, the sun that they had dreamed of for so long.
When Max first arrived he was too weary to go outside and walk the gardens, still too scared and careful to put himself in broad daylight and so cooped himself up in the library where he felt close to Liesel through their love of books and stories.
It wasn't until he heard about the bombing in Molching that he lost all care and walked out in to the garden in the middle of the day. He remembers the feeling of the warm spring air and the bright sun burning down on his pale skin, how the fragrant scent of flowers floated around him. He felt alive to be standing outside in the open for the first time since- since he can't even remember when. It must have been at least two years since he left his mother on that fateful night. He shuddered at the thought of his mother being snatched away.
"Max."
He had lost himself for a moment then. Only when her hand stroked his cheek and her thumb grazed his lower lip was he pulled back to the girl standing before him. She kissed him again and again and again until they were both smiling.
"Come on, let's go explore."
The maze-like garden swallowed them whole. They were lost in the towering evergreen trees and rows walls of multi-coloured flowers that seemed to never end as they turned corners and followed gravel paths.
Max had plucked a yellow flowed and handed it to her with a humorous bow. This made Liesel giggle as she took it and placed in her dress pocket.
At the far end of the garden was a fountain where cherubs poured water to the pool below. Liesel took off her shoes and sat on the edge before carefully dipping her feet in. She gasped.
"That's quite cold!" And pulled her feet back out.
"It's because it's in the shade, maybe we can move it away from the trees." Max eyed the fountain with deep thought, he was getting some ideas about the garden.
"Yes, let's get out of the shade." She left her shoes at the fountain and bounced over to the grassy path that led to an ever bigger area of garden.
"This place is a wonderland. I love it." She bit her lip and turned to Max, mischievously smirking. "Catch me if you can."
He frowned but then a smile spread on his face as he watched Liesel run off with her dress and hair flowing behind her like a nymph floating through the woods.
He gave her a head start, laughing as he jogged in her path around the cherry blossoms and under the archway. Liesel was giggling loudly, spinning and whipping her head back to keep an eye on her chaser.
She came to a stop at a white cherry blossom and hid behind the trunk, biting her lip to quiet her ragged breathing. She was still sore and tired tried to ignore the aches for the sake of having fun with Max. He approached stealthily, cocking his head to a side as she playfully drew her finger up to entice him closer.
She pushed herself from the tree and darted to another when Max finally caught her by the waist, pulling her down on top of him as he softly landed on the thick grass under the soaring sun all the while minding her bandaged arm.
Their laughter echoed the gardens, Liesel could hardly stop but when she looked down to Max to see his elated expression her body controlled itself and stilled, studying his flushed cheeks in the sunshine.
It was strange, she thought, to see him like this. Laughing, not shivering cold or hunched against a wall, not sneezing from the damp or half of him hid in the shadows. Here he was healthy and happy and she could see every inch of him under the bright sunshine. Here they were free, out in the open with nature surrounding them. There was finally room for laughter and joy and no room for worries of the war outside.
She traced his face with her finger, dragging it down the bridge of his nose, along his cheeks and over his fleshy lips. He kissed her finger, stilling her in her moment of exploration. The sun lit up his chocolate eyes to the point she swore she could see in to his soul.
Waiting long enough Max finally lifted his head to crush their lips together. They kissed sweetly, innocent brushes passing the time of day as the sun peaked above them. His hands massaged her neck, brushing her curtain of hair away from their faces leaving room to lower his kisses to her neck. Without realising Liesel let out a quiet moan, her eyes heavy as he toyed with her skin in sensual ways.
The afternoon was spent in that very spot as they played with innocent caresses and whispered sweet nothings in to the warm spring air.
"Tell me this is going to be forever. Tell me we will be this happy every day, that when the war ends you won't want to leave."
They were lying side by side with their hands held staring up at the vast blue sky that seemed like an eternity of heaven above them.
"You know I can't promise every day will be like this. But I can promise you that we will be happy and I will never go anywhere without you. I'm too in love with you to even think of being without you." The thought had only just occurred to Liesel that what if when the war ends Max would want to go on about his life like he had planned before he met her?
"What about the plans you had before all this started? When the war ends, what if you want to go live your life and start somewhere new?"
"Liesel, I hope you don't think that I will ever be capable of leaving you. You are my present and my future and I love you now as I will forever. I never had big plans before the war, just childish ideas and hopes to get a job to look after my mother. But that's over, you are my life now. When this war ends we will be together still and be looking forward to a new life of memories. Here or wherever we want to go."
"Will it end?" She turned to face him, not knowing why she asked what she had.
"Eventually, someone has to run out of resources. Let's hope it will Hitler." He winced at the name that was like poison in his mouth.
"It doesn't matter anyway, no to us. We're so cut off from the world here it's like the war isn't even happening." She returned her eyes to the sky but Max's stayed on her.
"It sure feels like it. But even if this war doesn't end soon I promise to love you in every way possible, for every second of every day. Whether it ends or continues there will be no changing of us."
That's all Liesel needed to hear. He had erased her fears in a single minute and brought excitement to her heart at the thought of growing old with him.
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For loving me despite everything. For being my pillow." She laughed at her own comparison but he really was her pillow in ways of comforting her since the first day they met. He pulled her close and kissed her hair, smiling lazily at her worries over nothing.
Before long it was time they got back to have dinner and eventually return to their room for the night – but not before another chase back to the fountain.
At the house, Frau Hermann was reading a book with a cup of tea in her hand. She was content now Liesel and Max were together in the house, it made it more homely and she were glad she wasn't all alone in this big house.
The sound of whispering and stifled laughter reached her ears before her new tenants strolled past the lounge door. She dropped her eyes back to her book and hid her smile as they headed up to their room, thankful that they found each other in these dark and troubling times.