Mister Acres [ COMPLETED ]

Chapter Five

   "Ah.. yea. I had a few things.." I started, sticking my hands into the pocket of the coat.

  Troy set his hand on the ground in front of me, implying for me to get on. I shot him a hesitant look before swallowing back my fear. I've done this before.. I'll be okay.

  "Normally I'd say it'd be fine to talk here, but it's getting late and I don't want to wake the others." Troy lifted me up from the ground just as I sat down, then began to walk back in the direction of the room he had come from.

  An unknown room to me.. And instantly I felt the need to scout it out. Maybe it was instinct.. But I knew better than that. I was still looking for a way out.

  The room wasn't all that big. Enough for a few desks and a bean bag type chair in the corner. It also seemed like there were some electronics, but none of it I recognized. There was a ceiling fan spinning on the lowest setting and a row of dimly lit yellow fairy lights around the corners of the room. It had a cozy feel to it and seemed out of place for Troy's initial demeanor.

  "What were you wanting to talk about?" Troy asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

  "Ah.. I guess I just have a lot of questions about this place. I couldn't sleep." I started, my voice partially trailing off at the end of my sentence. As much as it was true, I felt like I was lying.

  "That's understandable.. I'm sure it's a lot to take in." He smiled softly, sitting on a chair by a desk as he talked.

  There was a short silence, as Troy set me on the surface of the desk before turning towards the computer. I watched as he did so, trying to make out what was on the screen.. But unfortunately I didn't really understand anything.

  "Why'd you make this place.?" I asked, crossing my legs.

  "Well.. I hate the idea of people keeping borrowers as pets. I wanted to create a place of safety for your kind, a place where you can actually do things." Troy stated, still typing away at his computer.

  I nodded, but stayed silent for a moment, going over his words in my head. People can say anything without it meaning anything.. It really wasn't enough info to base my big decision on.

  "How did you do all of it..? It looks like it took a lot of work."

  "Ah.. I didn't do it all by myself. My friend, Malcolm, helped a lot. And even if it was a lot of work.. it was definitely worth it to me." He explained. I nodded in response again, a sigh softly leaving my mouth.

  I didn't really feel like I was going anywhere with these questions.. It didn't answer my internal plans or my friends' inner thoughts about the place either. Though, I couldn't think of what to ask him. I couldn't just ask to leave. I feel like that wouldn't be a smart idea.

  Thinking for a few moments, I finally turned back to Troy.

  "Has anyone ever left here?" I asked, causing his attention to break from the computer. He didn't answer at first, instead he closed off whatever it was he was working on and turned his full direction towards me.

  "Why?" He asked, his voice heavy with concern. A part of me felt guilty for blatantly putting it out there, but I didn't know how else to go around it.

  "I was just wondering. This place is amazing.. There isn't much of a reason to leave, but what if someone didn't want to stay? Would they be forced to?" My eyes didn't leave his as I spoke. A heavy feeling of guilt seemed to attach itself to me, and I couldn't shake it.

  "Well.. it's not really like we force you to stay. It's just preferred if you did, for safety and such.. If a borrower really wanted to leave, we wouldn't stop them." He explained, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you wanting to leave?"

  With that I felt frozen in my words. What could I say to that? I really didn't know if I wanted to stay or leave yet.. And most of the decisions would be based on my friends. It all felt really confusing.

  "I.. don't know."

  With those words, the atmosphere seemed to change almost instantly. Troy eventually stood, holding his hand out for me to walk onto, which I did hesitantly.

  "Is there someone else?"

  My eyes widened and turned to look up at his face, attempting to read his soft expression. He didn't seem upset or anything.. It was hard to tell. I didn't exactly answer, but I think he caught on immediately.

  "Most times.. I've realized, people leave here because of someone else and if that's the case, then I understand." He spoke softly as he began to walk out of the room, curling his fingers up so I wouldn't fall.

  I didn't reply, instead I just slowly turned back around to watch where he was walking too. My mind was practically spinning like a top. This confusion was overbearing. Borrowers left on their own? Did they discuss it before they left, or did they sneak away? Do they do head counts? There were so many factors.. And I was way too on edge to piece it all together. I really needed to talk with Kila again.

  "You okay?"

  Troy's voice brought me out of my spiral, causing me to quickly turn in his direction once more. I shot him a sheepish smile and a nod before looking around.

  "Hm.. okay." He said, his voice sounding unconvinced, but he didn't push any farther.

  My attention stayed on the surroundings. I watched as we passed through the main room with the small town and straight out the farthest door. Once outside of it, we continued to a large area, right past the kitchen. It seemed like a living room, with big windows leading outside. There were small steps down into a small couch area. It was honestly really cozy looking. There was also a far dining room table, surrounded with at least maybe six chairs. There was also an unlit fireplace with a tv mounted above it. It looked very well taken care of as well.

  "Where are we going?" I asked, noticing that he still hadn't stopped.

  "I thought maybe it would be nice to get some fresh air. Sometimes it helps." He reassured, a soft smile resting on his face as he continued to walk to one of the windows. To my surprise, it opened like a door in front of him and he walked right out into the darkness of the night.

  There was a softly lit porch light nearby, so it wasn't pitch black, but it was still dark enough to cause a shiver of fear to travel through me. There could be so many animals out there.. Troy took a seat on the cement, criss-cross styled before setting me beside him on the ground. The pavement was cold to touch, but I didn't complain and sat down anyway.

  There was a silence between the two of us, like we were in two different realities. Yet.. it didn't seem bad. It felt relaxing. The fears of the forest and the dark melted away as I felt comfortable in the silence. It was like having a guardian nearby in a way.

  I let out a sigh and closed my eyes.

  I knew I wanted to stay.