Kiss of A Titan

The entire time before he came to the forest, I had hidden out of plain sight in the woods, crying on an empty stomach. After the incident with Larry the other night, I had spent the entire day trying to find my way back from the thick woods which all looked similar in every directions I thought would be my way out of the forest but it was not until after I had unknowingly ventured into the deepest part of the woods that I heard someone calling out to me.

I thought at first it was the usual wolf cries, howling at dusk behind me but I listened closely as soon as I found myself hiding from sight beside a tree trunk above some thick shrubs all covered in dirt which partly soiled the same outfit I wore the previous night. Sooner than later, Richard found me among some thick bushes after I made myself visible to him and I was renewed with fresh hope that I had been found despite losing every bit of hope that had plagued my mind after getting lost in the forest.

The night didn't allow us to return back to the tarmac road together and resourceful as he could be, Richard found us a suitable spot in the woods to spend the night and skillfully lit a little bonfire he made out of dry woods with some leaves for us to spend the night without the fear of being attacked by deadly wild animals and night creepers known to devour their prey in the dark.

There was nothing we could find to eat as evening supper since Richard wasn't planning on spending a second night in the woods and apart from the snappy noise of the twigs being burnt in the fire, profound silence was the only thing that came between us soon after he was done making the bonfire. I watched him as his face glowed in the fire whilst he kept grooming it to ensure it lasted the whole night before we could both settle down to pass the night.

He was silent as ever in his endeavor in spite of knowing that I was staring at him while trying to make sure his cozy sweater he had provided for me to shroud myself in, was able to withstand the chilly wind that kept brushing against the flames of the bonfire. I knew he was lost in deep thought and wondered how on earth he was able to find me.

It was then that it occurred to me that I should inquire why he came alone without the rest of the team like I had first thought he did when I saw him. I felt my throat dry when I tried to speak but I was determined to find out from him how he was able to pinpoint my location in the absence of Coach Robbins and the other athletes

"Where are the others? Are....they in the city or?" I asked with my voice cracking.

"They are still far behind but don't worry...they'll soon find us", "You mean...you came here alone?", I questioned in surprise.

"Yes, it is as you had thought while looking at my face", he replied still playing with the fire using a stick he broke from a tree nearby.

"How were you able to find me without anyone's help?", "There's no need for you to know. What matters is that I have found you and you're safe now", "I ... .don't how...to thank you but....", I stuttered but he cut me short before I could tell him what happened.

"Don't say that", "What?", "I'd really like to know you how come we left without you but let's focus on going back", he replied and I felt astonished that he didn't want to hear how I came to the forest as though he already knew the truth. "If that's what you really want, I won't talk about it", "Yep but there's something we could talk about first", he said abruptly and brought out the bloodstained bracelet from his left pocket. My eyes widened with disbelief at the sight of seeing the bracelet and I glanced at the wound on my left wrist which was still sore as ever.

"How come you have this bracelet?", He sternly looked at me as though he wanted to eat me and I knew that he was angry regarding the sudden appearance of the bracelet. There was this pale look on his face which was reflected brightly by the flames as he peered at me and I thought it best to tell the truth rather than to ignore him.

"That....I won't lie to you", "You better not or else...", he threatened and I dropped my head down.

"Actually.... It didn't bought it....I saw it lying on the ground that day you didn't want to speak to me at the dressing room", I explained not to be too concerned if he was going to believe me or not. "Are you sure you didn't steal it?"

"Of course, I didn't steal it, I wanted to ask you if it belonged to you but you were angry with everyone at that time and nobody said it was theirs when I asked them", "Then how come I didn't see it with you when we were in Denver?", "I... only wore it when we were about to leave and I really didn't steal it", "I still don't believe you", "You can ask Clyde about it when we get back that's if.....you're still doubt me", I replied hoping that I was able to convince him. He glared at me for some time but his eyes clouded with tears betrayed his demeanor. Then he kept the bracelet back from whence he had taken it from and returned back to play with the fire.

"Do you mind me asking who owns it?" I asked and when he didn't answer at once, I thought he wasn't going to tell me but still he spoke up even when I could tell he was preventing himself from crying.

"My mom gave it to me some days back before school resumed", "I'm sorry. I...didn't know it yours", "You needn't apologize. It's not your fault that she's sick with cancer", he replied and went further to push the stick into the fire. I felt bad for him at that moment and wondered how come he was still as cheerful at the games.

"For how long has she been sick?" I inquired once again expecting that he would look at me but he still kept gazing at the blazing fire and responded after taking a few minutes to give me an answer.

"She's been sick for five years now and her condition had never gotten better", "That's terrible", "And heartbreaking, what's worse was that Dad never visited often after we moved here two years ago and I know she feels bad about it even though she doesn't show it", Richard replied, pushing his stick further into the fire.

"But you're here to keep her company, aren't you?", "Yeah but I'm not enough to feel Dad's place and I know she wants more than just me to be there. Honestly speaking, when it was first discovered that she had this sickness in Hawaii....", "You lived in Hawaii?", I asked in surprise.

"Actually..., we still do but let me finish first", "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt", I said apologetically.

"It's okay. Like I was saying, we first found out that she had cancer in Hawaii and...Dad had the best doctors there take care of her condition but unfortunately, there wasn't any positive improvement despite the costly medication", "It was getting worse", I rejoined.

"She didn't want to be a burden to us and after hearing that some specialist who can treat her condition was here in Houston, she convinced Dad to have her treated in her hometown two years ago and since then, we've been living here hoping her condition would get better", he explained further and tossed the stick away after noticing a whole part of the fiber had been charred to ash by the flames.

"And so far, how's her condition been?" I questioned but he fell silent for a while and looked into the darkness beside him before looking back at the fire.

"Sadly, her condition's still the same as before. With Ben overseas and Dad not around, she almost feels incomplete but Ben unexpectedly came back and it was good feeling seeing her smile when she saw him", "Ben? You mean that guy who rescued me from the pool at your party?", "Yes, he's my elder brother and I too was really happy to see", "How are you able to act like everything's okay in spite of knowing her condition?", "At first, I was struggling to deal with the reality but later on, I realized it would affect a lot if I bother myself too much about it", "That's why you were like that when we first met at school", "Pretty much, I didn't want thinking about her condition to affect things that also matters", "Things like what? Athletics, right?", "Yep, and those around me particularly you, Rosalie", He answered and smiled at me.

"Me?", "Yes, you do matter to me", We both stared at each after his response. At that moment, I knew he looked at me with a new kind of feeling which he never showed me during the times we had been together despite being furious with me for taking his bracelet.