9 Three Days of Bliss

Lynne:

I heard those words and my cheeks heated up. I shook, staring at the darkened forest ahead of me. He… really wanted me to stay? I couldn't believe what I was hearing. My heart began to thrash against my chest, conflicted feelings rising inside of me.

I wasn't sure if I could let myself trust him again after what happened. I didn't know if I was being naive to think he actually wanted me there or if he was planning to use me after finding out I was the son of the king. I didn't know what to think anymore.

And I wasn't about to bet my own life on it.

I turned around, my eyes blazing with intensity as I stared at the boy who reached out to me seconds earlier. "So you want me to stay now. After finding out I'm the prince?" I asked, trying to keep my tone stern yet steady.

His eyes widened slightly as he quickly stood up. He marched over to me, each step echoing with conviction as he approached. I took a step away from him, ready to run when suddenly Clay stopped moving.

"Are you kidding me? Do you think if I wanted to kidnap you, I'd ask your permission…?" He asked, taking a pause to let his point sink in.

What he said was true. He saw how weak I was earlier, I'm still injured in fact. If he really wanted to sell me off to my father he would have just tied me up as those other bandits had. There was no reason for him to play this game of deception with me. "That's… fair," I responded tentatively.

"Anyways, without me, you're gonna die out there." Clay continued, his eyes burning with conviction. "Just… let me get you home. Then I get it. You can leave and live your fancy-ass life."

I lifted my eyebrow at the tone he used, he made it sound like I was going to abandon him even though he abandoned me earlier. "But, if I'm going to chaperone you home I expect a reward." He stated, his voice sounding like somebody had a hand wrapped around his throat.

"So this is for money…" I grumbled, my heart sinking a bit. However, after I said those words the way his expression shifted with displeasure made me question his intentions.

"Of course it is. But this ain't some kidnapping. You'd be hiring me… As your bodyguard." Clay explained, for some reason, his face turned a bit red. "And this time, I promise I'll protect you."

Now it was my turn for my cheeks to heat up. I felt like, with this contract I could trust him. Not that… it was right to trust him just because of the promise for money. I still wasn't sure about him, but I was willing to at least give him another chance.

"You're right. I don't know my way around this world. So, you're hired." I responded, giving him a small smile. I stuck out my hand towards him. I figured since we were in medieval times there wasn't any sort of contract for a promise like this. Just a good old fashion handshake.

"F-For the payment." Clay started, shifting his eyes from left to right. "The… name you gave me… doesn't suck. And well… you did help me get this barrel of rice…" He stammered, my heart fluttering at how shy he was getting. "So…"

"Don't worry about it." I cut in, his stammering was becoming too messy to understand. "If my dad really is the king of this land, I'll make sure you're well taken care of." His eyes widened so far I thought I was staring at a lost puppy who just found his way home. I swear I would have melted right then and there if he stared at me like that even a second longer.

He reached out tentatively and clasped my hand. Obviously, he had never done this before because when he first slipped his hand there it was limp as a noodle, then as soon as I tightened my hand around his he squeezed so hard I thought my hand was going to be ripped off. When he saw me wince he quickly pulled his hand away, his cheeks an even brighter red than they were before.

"O-Oh was that too hard!?" He stammered, his voice so worried and genuine I couldn't help but laugh.

"A little bit," I responded between chuckles, Clay's face twisting in anger.

"Ok! Ok! It's not that funny!" He shouted, but his grumpy yelling only made me laugh harder. Through the tears now forming in my eyes, I could see him rubbing the back of his neck. "Fine, I guess that wasn't the best start to protecting you."

I could have sworn I saw the slightest smile graze the tips of his cheeks as he spoke. Even that small amount was a treat.

After that, we spent a few days by the water eating that rice we had gathered. It was strange, when we spoke, we spoke about nothing in particular. Even though I lived with this man for three whole days he never spoke about his past and he never asked me about mine. Most of our conversations revolved around what my world was like.

I told him all about anime, video games, cell phones and the internet. He had so many questions and with each new piece of technology I talked about, his expression would fill with wonder like a small child hearing a bedtime story.

In exchange, he taught me how to catch a fish with my bare hands. We spend hours thrashing along the riverbank, he spent a lot of time laughing at me while fish would wiggle out of my grip. I lost more fish than I ever wanted to admit, and the rushing waves threw me off balance so many times I thought I'd have a permanent mark on my butt.

It was hard to sleep at first. For a spoiled rich kid like myself to suddenly be sleeping on the dirt floor, nighttime was like a nightmare. I couldn't seem to get comfortable no matter what I did, even though Clay seemed to begin snoring immediately like this dirt floor was a luxurious waterbed. However, as time passed I slowly got used to it. Even if it was just a little.

Eventually, I even caught a fish all on my own and to my surprise, Clay cheered even louder than I did. We skewered the fish and boiled some more rice with a make-shift bowl we got from scraps of metal along the alleyways. We sat in silence for a while, watching the crackling fire dance between us as the fish and rice cooked over it.

Suddenly, Clay sighed, placing his chin on the palm of his hand. I could see the flames reflected in his eyes. They were dazzling amongst the golden yellow tint, matching the flaming red colour of his hair. "Isn't it amazing…?" He asked in a wistful tone.

"What is?" I asked.

"Being free…" Clay answered.