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"Are you serious?" April's jaw hinged to a new extreme; she was floored.
"Absolutely. I believe the fort can be held down just fine for a couple of hours, don't you?" Guy glanced over to one of the teenage boys, Max. He was used to seeing the Sherriff's associate coming round once or twice a week. He was not fond of this man of black at all, but he knew how excited April became over the whole deal and so Max had agreed to manage the orphanage for the day. The girl of Derbyshire turned to see the band of orphans that were playing in the spring grass and chewed on the inside of her cheeks before bursting with joy and allowing anticipation to leak from her pores. April hopped as quickly as she could over to the strawberry colored horse that Guy had brought with him, being careful of course not to frighten the creature. Gisborne's own ebony stallion whinnied at the accompanying mere as April pressed her face to her snout.
"She is truly beautiful." She romantically thanked him with her eyes, giving Guy an overwhelming wash of warmth and tingling in the nerves. He had done good for someone special.
"I have been assured she is excellently trained – you should have no trouble riding through the forest with me today."
"Well we aren't needing to be winning a race, are we?" the slender girl pulled away from the animal and took a wide step to her quickly developing beau, sliding his palm between both of hers and squeezing lightly. She was tall and did not have to look too far up to see the glow on his visage.
"I promise to give you only the best." His baritone oath was one he intended to keep. April was giddy and rushed back to the pair of horses, crunching her riding boots on the rocky soil before slipping into a stirrup. Gisborne took a few long strides to hold her feminine waist and assist the girl up high before climbing himself onto the opposite creature. She dramatically extended a hand and a giggle to allow him to lead the way. With a wink he obliged, kicking in his heels and starting their afternoon trip.
Budding scents and lofty butterflies whizzed past as the riders exited Kirkslees's property and progressed towards the adjacent river, announcing the opening of a new and gorgeous season in Nottingham. Guy yanked in the stallion's speed a bit so that he could file back next to his crush that was close behind; the black horse was a bit disgruntled at this, after all, he was used to thundering after Robin Hood. The water in the brook was nearly as crystal clear as Gisborne's eyes as it lazily meandered over smooth stones to the southeast. The pair had gone about twenty minutes along the edge of the waterfront before April allowed her horse to stop and scuffle her feet a bit. The orphanage manager dismounted at a patch of blackberry bushes that were neighbored by yellow trumpet flowers, cheerfully popping a few in her mouth with a sheepish grin. Guy met her at the shrub. She plucked another fruit and held it before him, silently telling him to open his mouth and, as he obliged, she shared the berry and plopped down at the riverbank. Gisborne sat beside her and felt his cheeks burn as he made sure to complete contact and have their shoulders touch; the two people from opposite lands took in the scene without saying a word. April watched as liquid slowly eroded white stone and breeze nudged and persuaded tall flower stalks to bend slightly and share their pollen. Guy was too wrapped up in his companion to notice where they were, however beautiful the landscape. Her baby blue tunic and black riding trousers were obviously not worth too much money, but they were adorable and perfect on her. He would not trade it for anything he could have bought. Stick straight auburn hair brushed by in the wind and touched the base of her shoulder blades as she shifted her weight to lean towards Gisborne, distracting him momentarily from her smile.
"It was very kind of you to bring me out today." April rather professionally thanked him as if he were an uncle or business associate.
"I did not want to see the end of the day without you, April," He sincerely said with a hush. She chuckled a bit at the flattery and watched a handful of ripe blackberries snap from the vine in the breeze, "Honestly."
"Honestly, Sir Guy, you are too kind."
"Please, just Guy. I have asked you before." He rested a hand over hers in the velvet grass. The electricity of his eyes jolted her retinas and her modesty, demanding she glance away yet again. April let out a sigh.
"You tall and handsome men are too much for me." She forwardly joked, pressing her humility.
"So there is another?" Guy bantered with raised eyebrows as he fed off of her playful energy.
"Ah no, that was rather long ago..." she momentarily drifted back but never dared to abandon his company. April turned back to him and put her hand over his, stacking theirs up higher.
"And how did that work out? Will I have to arrest him?" Gisborne bowed his head closer to hers. She giggled at his offer.
"No, really. It was nothing but a crush. He went off to live with a farmer any who, so there is no contest."
"He was one of your orphans?" Guy questioned as he watched the river in his peripheral vision. He did not, however, miss the enlargement of her emerald eyes at the notion; they then went to a bandage of covering something in her soul. His own gaze narrowed at her first episode of secluding from him. The clouds stopped marching along the skyline as the air fell heavy in his next breath, "You were an orphan with him, weren't you? In Derbyshire?"
"I am so sorry." Her throat closed on the words as April attempted to tug away her hands, but he would not let her. Guy kept her anchored to him. She had become upset in a matter of seconds and it was fathomable that tears would soon become a piece of the afternoon.
"For what?" he immediately chased, but she did not reply. He hounded it again.
"I was an orphan; an undesirable." April cleanly divulged before looking back at him. It took her brain some time to register that his expression was unchanging, giving a hope that his opinion had in no way advanced based on this knowledge.
"Why are you apologizing for it?" Guy furrowed his brows. He saw the pale girl lick her lips and pucker them out a little.
"Well, orphans aren't really known as valuable people. Especially to someone of your caliber."
"They are all special and wonderful; isn't that what you told me?"
"Yes… to me," she let a small smirk tug before continuing, "but not the world. My father passed away when I was young. Well, rather, he was exiled – leprosy. I was tossed into a home and never given a family. Not a soul wanted me milling about… So, I grew up, moved out, and started a better place here at the Abbey. Somewhere that the children know they are loved by at least God if not in this life." April held her breath. All of the dirty laundry was now exposed to oxygen, each reason society deemed her as a lesser now dangled before her crush, and all weight on her chest seemed to multiply. Guy's answer came too slowly for her nerves.
"My father was a leper," he donated. Now it was Gisborne's turn to break eye contact, "exiled when I was a teenager." April's lips fell open a bit.
"So… you do not think I am some disgusting leper? You understand?"
"The title marred my family for years. None of us, though, were any different." Guy let out a stone breath of anxiety. This territory that he was pounding over was unheard of – he just told her one of his biggest shames and secrets. Society did not accept that past. Why would she? Gisborne was taken aback that their childhoods had so many parallels and yet they were opposite human beings altogether; she was too splendid to have his burdens. His skin itched as he removed the leather and flesh to expose the blood in his pounding heart to another soul, screaming alerts at his brain that the deflective shield he relied on was down, and that he had just become vulnerable.
"You do not judge me any differently, I shall not you."
"You are truly the most wonderful man I remember ever meeting."
"Oh, I sincerely doubt that." Guy had a small laugh as he thought about his occupation, but she held a serious expression. April took her hand from his and placed both palms on his cheeks, feeling the dark stubble on her skin and sensing his warmth.
"Honest." She whispered. Guy let down a swallow and abandoned his own mind in her deep eyes, casting aside his doubts and fears from their heart to heart. He put a hand on the back of her head and ran his calloused thumb along her neck before inching his body closer. Their skin resonated to the universe. He pulled her in and parted his lips, nearly shivering when hers aligned with his. The couple's kiss was tender and knowing without any hesitation or verdict. April's rose mouth was just as gentle as he imagined and her bottom lip fit perfectly between his own. It was here that Sir Guy of Gisborne lost his search for acceptance. He had also finally found a word to describe her: sunshine.