"I'm sorry for what they did to you," I told him, fighting back a sting in my eyes.
"It wasn't your fault."
"I'm still sorry you had to endure it."
There was a strange, almost overwhelming urge to lean forward, to press my lips into the scars much the way I had seen humans do to their children when they were hurt.
Let me kiss the pain away.
That was what they would say before they did it.
What a sweet concept.
I wished I could do that.
But I knew that no chaste kisses could take away untold years of torture, of enslavement, of imprisonment.
"My clothes won't fit you," I said oddly, pulling my hand away. "I have changes of clothes, but you're too big." He nestled back into his jacket, shrugging. "I could rush ahead to buy you something while you hung back by the tree line," I suggested.
If we end up somewhere near a town, I added silently, wanting to at least keep up the appearances of optimism, not wanting to ruin the idea of the human realm for him before he even got to experience it.
"Sounds like a plan," he agreed, nodding. We walked for another hour before he stopped suddenly, turning to me. "Tell me what direction," he demanded, eyes encouraging.
The buzzing was strong, strong enough that it was uncomfortable, that I wanted it to stop.
"It's... everywhere."
"Walk around a little," he suggested. "Tell me which way feels the worst."
I did, feeling little prickles move over me toward the right. "There," I declared, waving an arm out.
"Good," he told me, smiling a little. "You ready?" he asked, nodding toward the thick line of trees. "It should be right at the edge of those."
My hand moved outward, drawing his attention, his brows drawing down. "It's better to go through while touching. Or, at least, that was what the guards and attendants always claimed."
"Alright," he agreed, clamping his huge hand to mine, fingers slipping between my fingers, this time free of gloves, curling in, holding tight.
And like that, we braced ourselves against the shocks to our system, the way The Green tried desperately to hold us in.
Going through the veil felt a lot like suction, like we were working against a vacuum.
Beside me, Drake gasped, unused to it.
Me, I smiled, everything about this feeling like coming home to me.
"That was..."
"Weird?" I suggested, smiling at the somewhat green look to his face.
"That sounds about right," he agreed, taking a deep breath.
I moved to do the same, looking forward at what appeared to be a car dealership.
To me, it looked magnificent, all those marvelous metal beasts.
Drake, I decided after a glance, did not share in my wonder. "This is what the human realm looks like?"
"Well, this is part of it," I allowed. "But it is as varied as The Green. "Those are cars," I explained. "That is how humans get around."
"They're metal," he told me unnecessarily.
"Yes," I agreed, nodding. "They don't mind so much."
"How are you going to stand it?" he asked, reaching up to rub his hand across his temple where a headache was likely brewing.
"You get used to it. The first couple of hours are the worst. And you are being bombarded. This is a lot of metal. Not everywhere is like this."
"Where are you going?" he asked, voice suddenly rough, hand reaching out to grab my upper arm, stopping me as I went to move away.
"To see about a shirt for you," I reminded him with a somewhat bemused smile.
"It's not safe," he declared, voice a booming baritone, something very alpha and predatory about it. And something within me primally responded to it.
"You don't know that."
"You're not going out there alone."
A little laugh bubbled up and out, making his eyes get even harder. "I am going to live here alone," I reminded him. "Even if it isn't safe, it is safer than The Green is now for me," I added.
"Regardless, I am coming," he added, easing his grip on my arm, but not letting go entirely.
And I maybe liked it there, so I didn't think of shaking it off as I led him through the empty used car lot, making me wonder what time of day it was, or if it was a holiday, but found myself pleased that the signs on the window were English, that the address listed was that for somewhere in Ohio.
"Is this close to your parents' place in the human realm?" Drake asked, stiffening anytime a car whizzed past us as we made our way down the road looking very much like homeless people looking for a new place to squat.
"Um, my parents' place was in a state called Massachusetts. So... no. This is rather far. But still in the same country."
"Country," Drake tried out that word, not comprehending its meaning.
"The human world is split up into territories ruled by different men and women. Ohio and Massachusetts are both in one territory, even though they are far apart."
"How do you know so much? Were you allowed to study the humans?"
"Allowed? No. But I was given a television. And that had documentaries on it... stories about history," I clarified. "My guards didn't seem to understand it, so didn't think better than to let me watch it. There had also been a library full of old books called encyclopedias which tell you everything about the human world. I probably know more about the species that exist here than back in The Green," I admitted, feeling a small bit of embarrassment at that. I could have applied myself harder at my studies, but I always found humans more interesting.
"Are the realms here good and evil?" I turned, smiling over at him. "What?"
"That's not how it works here. There are evil humans. And there are good ones. But no one pledges loyalty to either side. Well, with a few awful exceptions in the past," I qualified. "Everyone here is free to be whatever or whoever they are. And aside from not breaking the laws of the land. Like killing people or rape or starting fires - things like that - they may come and go as they please without worrying about crossing into enemy land."
"That is true of the whole human realm?" he asked, skeptical.
"It's true of a lot of the human realm. There will always be wars and prejudices, but as a whole, the humans... they're good."
"Must be why you fit in here so well," he surmised as we turned off the main road to the paved space of a parking lot. "A castle?"
There was no stopping the snort at that as I looked up at the big red sign with a circle within another circle. "Target," I explained, shaking my head. "It is like a market, but indoor. Let me run in to grab you a shirt, and then you can change and come in as well. I promise it's safe. They even have guards here," I added when he eyed the windowless building with wariness. "Just wait... over there," I specified, waving toward the dumpsters. "I will be just a minute."
And I was, coming back out to give Drake a plain cotton tee that I perhaps got slightly too small. Whether that was an accident or on purpose, I wasn't even sure.
While he rolled up his coat, wrapped it in the plastic bag his shirt had come in, and stashed it where no one might steal it, I did the same - changing into appropriate shoes I had bought, and maneuvering into a short-sleeves shirt under my long-sleeved one before peeling the latter off.
"Ready?" I asked, sure he wasn't. Because there was no way to prepare for something such as a box store if you hadn't at least seen one on a show before.
"Of course."
He walked in with confidence that he slowly lost within seconds, blinking hard at the harsh overhead lighting, head swiveling around to try to take in everything at once.
"What is that smell?"
"The food court," I supplied, waving a hand.
"What else is here?" he asked, eyes bright with curiosity, body a little tense.
Because most of the markets in The Green were places of possible violence, places where Dark and Light converged, where terrible things could be around any corner.
We spent the next two hours
there, Drake looking at everything from the packaged food to the children's toys, wondering aloud how they got all the humans into the televisions, bringing a few sideways looks from people who slowly backed away, something he didn't notice, but I couldn't help but smile at.
We walked up to the check-out with a notebook and pen for me and a bulky sweatshirt we had found in the clearance section for him, lucking out that it was natural, not synthetic, and a giant bag of almonds for his trip back.
I had to slap his hand away from the belt as he kept letting it run over his fingers, something the cashier made her eyes small at.
"Was that a lot of money?" he asked on our way out.
"No. Not really."
"At Tenray Square, a bag this size of almonds could cost you six months of labor," he said, shaking his hair.
"The human realm has its perks if you have human money. They even have fresh fruits and vegetables year round. Drive them from other places that are summertime while it is wintertime wherever you are."
"Interesting. Where do we go from here?" he asked, leading us over to grab our belongings from where we stashed them.
"Well, I guess we get a hotel room. Temporary lodging," I explained.
After asking someone then a couple mile hike, we ended up at our destination - a two-story sand-colored stone building.
Twenty minutes later - after producing some little card with my picture on it that claimed I was a Massachusetts resident, something my father had paid a lot of money to get produced - we were walking up to the elevator.
For all my trips to the human realm, it was something I still hadn't experienced myself. Mostly because the guards were afraid of them - whether they would admit to that or not.
"What is that room?" Drake asked, squinting. And, this time, even my head started to pound at the idea of being stuck inside the metal room.
But, I reminded myself, if I wanted to fit in with the humans, I would have to learn how to tolerate them sometime. Might as well start now.
"It's an elevator. And I suspect it is going to be unpleasant," I told him, looping my arm through his, dragging him forward into our uncertain fate.
The doors slid closed, making both our bodies tense.
Then there was a soaring sensation, making my belly drop, my hand curling further into Drake's arm.
"Let's not do that again," Drake suggested when the door slid open, and we all but ran out onto solid ground again.
"Stairs. We can use the stairs from now on. I just figured that was worth a try."
"It was fast," he allowed as we followed the row of numbers toward our room, watching with curiosity as I slipped the keycard in much the way I had seen in movies.
"It's cold," he murmured as we moved inside the room, finding one large bed covered in white sheets and blankets, a window leading out, and a bathroom to the right.
"Air conditioning," I told him, pointing to the vent. "You can control the temperature of the room with this," I went on, pointing to the thermostat. "You can make it warmer or cooler." I turned it warmer, leading him over to the bathroom, enjoying introducing him to things more than I knew I would. "Here is the shower," I told him, turning the water on. "There are soaps and shampoo." I left out the part about them not being pure and organic. They might irritate slightly, but not enough to really bother him. "And this is the toilet," I finished with, flushing it. "And we have a door. No more pine branch barriers."
"That - and bags of almonds - are two things I could get used to. Would you mind?" he asked, waving to the shower.
An image of him flashed across my mind, naked under the spray, his muscles on glorious display. The idea made a heat spread across my body, made my core tighten.
"Sure," I said, hearing the airiness in my voice, wondering how long it had been since he could properly clean without the chains hindering him. With privacy. "Here are towels. And... washcloths. And you can use the robe," I told him, motioning to the one hanging behind the door - white and fluffy. At his brows drawing together, I shrugged. "I will wash your pants and jacket for you once you're done. They should dry by morning. And then you will have something fresh to head back in. What?" I asked when all he did was stare at me, something unreadable in his eyes.
"I forgot what this was like," he told me.
"Forgot what what was like?"
His next word pierced my heart.
"Kindness."
I don't know what prompted me to do it. I had barely known the sensation of one myself. But the urge was too strong to fight.
I closed the space between us, pressing my face into his chest, wrapping my arms around his back, squeezing tight.
There was a moment of stunned silence before the tree limbs he called arms wrapped around me, crushing me closer to him.
We stayed that way for a long time, until the warmth felt like something I would remember always, the scent of The Green clinging to his skin, his arms feeling like a safe place to be.
But then, spell broken, we both pulled away at the same time.
"Turn the handle to the top for hot water," I told him, ducking out without making eye-contact, a bit worried he would see the truth in my eyes. That the embrace meant something to me.
Because I hadn't known kindness either.
And feeling it from him made me think I could really get used to it.
But not with him, I reminded myself as I slowly pulled off my shoes and pants, climbing into pajamas - the only pair I had in my bag.
He was going back to The Green. Hopefully to find his family. Maybe fall in love with one of his kind, create another generation of rare creatures.
And me, I was going to go to New York City. I was going to disappear. I was going to get a job. An apartment. And maybe, just maybe, I could meet friends. I could build bonds. I could possibly even find a man. Of my choosing.
Why the idea of that filled me with something resembling dread was beyond me.
The door to the bathroom opened, bringing a gust of humid air as Drake walked out in the robe that had opened to a V down nearly to his navel.
I was almost embarrassingly aware of his nakedness.
"Humans have us beat on cleansing as well. The soap burned a little," he admitted, shrugging.
"They're not natural," I supplied, jumping up off the edge of the bed a bit frantically, rushing into the bathroom. "I'll be back out in a moment," I told him, then proceeded to take almost an hour, stripping out of my pajamas to take a quick shower myself, slipping back into them after, then washing his clothing as promised.
By the time I moved back out to the bedroom, I found Drake in the bed under the covers, sleeping like the dead.
Sleeping the sleep of a free man, a man who knew no one would wake him with demands, with anger, with violence.
I slowly climbed in beside him, careful not to make him stir, wanting a peaceful night for him for the first time in who-knew how long.
I woke up sometime later to something in my hair.
When my head twitched as if to dislodge it, something beneath me moved, rumbling. No. Chuckling.
Consciousness came to me all at once.
And now, well, I couldn't use the excuse of being cold, of being drawn to his warmth.
That it was simply survival.
No.
At some point during the night, I had moved across the expanse of the bed, climbed upward onto Drake and, oh my, cocked my leg up over his waist.
What was wrong with me?
Even as that thought formed, I understood the sensation in my hair.
Drake's fingers were sifting through it, fingertips rubbing my scalp in a way I had never felt before, something calming and also stimulating, a feeling that moved from his touch and down my spine, making a tremble rack through my system.
Feeling it, Drake's hand froze in my hair much like his air froze in his chest.
Unsure what possessed me to do so, I mumbled into his chest. "That feels good."
My voice sounded almost choked, fo
reign to me.
Beneath me, Drake's breath exhaled hard, almost like that of a hiss.
"I figured."
His voice sounded off too.
Rough. Grumbly almost.
I thought I had said something wrong until a long second later, his fingers started working their magic once again, fingers focusing a bit more on my scalp, working in slow circles that were sparking a need in my body, something akin to that which I had felt in the woods right before Drake had made it explode into pleasure.
And, suddenly, I wanted that again.
I wanted that by choice.
I wanted that with him, by his hands.
I wanted it the way it should have been.
Not thinking, not even sure what one was supposed to be thinking of in such a situation, I simply acted, did what my body was begging me to do.
My knee shifted, planted at the other side of his hips, allowing me to slide over him fully, pressing my palms to the soft sheets made warm from our body heat, looking down at Drake as my hair fell forward, curtaining us.
"What are you doing, Amy?" he asked, voice still rough, but now also cautious, curious.
"I don't know," I admitted, watching as his dark eyes went a bit hooded, as the red within them somehow brightened, stood out more in the dark depths.
Taking a breath that shuddered out of him, he reached up to tuck some hair behind my ear. "Then maybe you shouldn't do it," he suggested, trying to be the reasonable one, the rational one. Maybe even the thoughtful one.
But I didn't want reason and rationale and thought.
I just wanted more of the feeling coursing through me.
My eyes roamed over his face, never wanting to forget it even though I knew our lives would go different ways, even though I knew that my death would precede his by decades - or longer - since I was to stay in the human realm. I would be returning to the Earth before he even looked like he aged a day.
"Can I kiss you?" I asked, eyes flicking up from his lips to his eyes.
"Amy..."
"It's a yes or no question," I told him, feeling his hand tighten in my hair. "Just a kiss," I specified.
At least, that was all I was planning on.
Escape From The Green Page 7
