Twenty six

The feel of his warm hand curling up around mine drags me back from my daydreaming, and suddenly I find myself fidgeting in my seat, because of the searing heat scoring my skin. I know what it is. I've experienced time and time again in the past, but somehow reliving it, makes the memory of it feel cheap and dull.

" Lily," He says softly and squeezes my hand. My name on his lips sounds like a sin that shouldn't be spoken out loud. I struggle to keep myself still and try to take my hand out of his, but he holds me still in his firm grasp. There is no dare in his eyes just a simple request, one that has been made before, ' hold on'.

" Mason," I say breathlessly, " We can't. I can't. Please," I'm begging, even though I'm not sure what I am begging for. He smiles and rubs the back of my hand with his thumb, and that motion feels so soothing, all my worries and dreadful thoughts fade away leaving us alone once more.

Don't marry Ava. For some reason, that thought comes to the forefront of my mind. And I pull my hand away, rather forcefully. Mason closes his eyes and heaves out a heavy sigh.

" I...," He stammers for a bit and looks back at me. I just need to hear the magical words that would tell me that we are good. That we can start over without this dreadful cloud hanging over our heads on top of everything else.

I clear my throat, " I'll go pack a change of clothes. I'll meet you at home," I croak, and clear my throat again.

He nods," I'll wait. We can go together," I pull out a small bag from the wardrobe and I pause, my backpack is still at Northenhay.

" Did you bring my bag?" Mason shakes his head as a no, smiling. He knew I would agree eventually. And he had no intention of leaving until I did. Bastard.

I throw the bag back in the wardrobe and pull a thick jumper on since I've left my only winter jacket at home. Damn it.

He rises from his seat, opens the window, jumps and catches himself on the window frame. In one swift move, he is standing on the roof looking down at me, waiting for me to join him. I guess we are going tree-hoping together. It is fun for the most part, especially when I'm not freezing my ass off, that is.

I follow suit, and close the window behind me because I'll be back tomorrow and I'd rather not freeze to death.

He begins running on the tiled roof, resembling a predator chasing his prey, his long legs eating the distance between him and the tree line. When he leaps over the edge of the roof toward the canopy of trees, I find myself gaping because there is no way a normal human being could jump that high and land with such precision without a single wobble. No matter how agile, or well-trained you are.

Somehow this feels more like a challenge other than anything else. Sprinting on the roof, I charge for the canopy just like he did and leap trying to reach the same height as he did. Never have I tried to jump this high, but now that I know it is possible, I begin to wonder if Mason was more than just a foundling. What if he was like me?

My parents said that they struggled to find another person to bind me to, then that means that there is something more to Mason that meets the eye. I also wonder if he knows.

I wonder if he can sense I'm doing laps inside my own head.

To my surprise, Mason leaps from branch to branch with the agility of a circus stuntman. He doesn't falter, his movements are fluid and as if he was born with this ability to take to the trees, but then again it came naturally to me as well. So, that begs the question if we are more alike than we'd like to believe.

Unfortunately, as soon as we came to the edge of Morston, the generous thicket began to thin, leaving a greater distance between the trees. More than we could leap, so we find ourselves in the need to walk towards Northenhay. Luckily the cold weather kept most people indoors but with the hat that I'm currently wearing, it is very hard for anyone to recognise me. It's made out of fur with two flaps that tie under my chin. I'm glad it still fits me because my mother gifted it to me when I was fourteen. I pull at the string digging into my chin, and wince at the sting. Okay, maybe it is a little tight. But I refuse to part ways with it, just like I refuse to part ways with the farmer's shirt.

Mason is wearing the same clothes he wore this morning but still leapt from tree to tree as if he wore nothing. That thought brought a smile to my lips, I fall a step behind him so I could watch that fine ass go up and down in perfect cadence. Jesus, what's wrong with me?

Mason looks over his shoulder, probably sending that I'm either having unholy thoughts about him, or he felt my eyes on his ass. Either way, it always comes down to that. No matter how angry or how much we vexed each other, the heat was always there.

" You look a little flushed. Do you want to stop and rest?" Mason smirks, and falls into step with me. Now it would be a good time for a V'asay to come out of some bush to try and kill me because I definitely can't answer that question honestly.

" No, I'm good," I croak clear my throat and do my best to look everywhere else but at Mason. I could feel his eyes on me, but I didn't dare to meet his gaze. Today has been nothing short of disastrous but I'm glad that he's put the battle axe down, for now.

I'm pretty sure he is doing it for Enid's sake, rather than mine.

I'll take it for now, for exactly the same reason. It feels a lot like when parents divorce and the child gets caught in the middle. Enid might not be a child but she is still caught in the middle. So, for now, I'll look past every other ugly words we have said to each other, and put up with dinner. One day. I could do it.