A Heart So Precious Sample

Chapter Five

Oh, and being attacked by a wolf triple my size. At least it would make for a good story to tell to my future grandkids one day.

"Sorry," I apologised, glancing over at the girl that had captured my thoughts all morning. Well really since the moment I met her. But there's no need to tell her that. Or that I had been thinking about her at all. Wouldn't want to come off as creepy. My chances were already slim as they were.

I swore her lips twitched upwards as she nodded in acknowledgement of my apology. So she was being playful. Relaxing, I settled more comfortably on the log, waiting for her to talk. After a moment of silence I realised I had been the one to approach her, meaning I was the one who should start whatever conversation I was wanting to have.

Remembering how she had reacted to me bringing up her past earlier that day, I stayed clear of that topic. Thinking momentarily on what we could possibly talk about, I settled on asking a good old fashioned question about herself. Or more specifically, a generic question that would tempt them to talk more about herself.

"So what do you like to do in your spare time?" I asked. Though the question isn't interesting in and of itself, I hoped that I would be able to learn more about the young woman before me. From there, I could ask more personal questions, and not sound like a generic copy of every guy in the human kingdoms who had certainly vied for her attention.

I hoped she found me as interesting as I found her.

Mentally chastising myself once again, I focused on her answer. She would surely think I was dull witted if I continued to stare into space every five seconds. Though at least I was lost in thoughts of her.

I'm not sure if that really made it better, but seeing as it made me feel better about my obsessive thoughts I will keep telling  myself that.

" Oh," she muttered, seemingly thinking of a response. " Well, I do tend to enjoy practising with my sword, though it gets boring after a while. Truth be told, I don't really do much." Glancing down at the ground, she appeared disheartened.

Confused, I watched as she wicked at the seams of her pants. I don't know what was disheartening about knowing how to use a sword, considering most men had only a basic understanding of skills needed to wield it, and usually ended in some form of injury.

Trying to hide my giddiness of the prospect of this girl knowing how to wield such weapons, I nudged her gently with my shoulder.

" You know, I always wanted to get better at using a sword," I said, chuckling softly, hoping my laughter would be contagious. I didn't like the look of self doubt and helplessness on her face. If I knew how to use a sword, I would hope to never have to feel the helplessness portrayed on her cute face. " Maybe you could teach me sometime."

Whipping her head up immediately, her plump lips pulled in an endearing grin.

" I would love that," she exclaimed, jumping to her feet. Bouncing around, she continues happily. " I could finally practise on a real opponent."

Glancing teasingly over at me, she speaks in a semi-mocking voice, " I promise not to hurt you." Pausing for dramatic affect, she continues with laughter poorly concealed in her voice. " At least not too much."

Laughing along with her, I couldn't help but feel confident. While she seems to pull pride from her skill with the dangerous weapon, I was also double her size, with a decent understanding of how to wield the blade.

We would see who would win in the end.

I had a feeling it would be me.

Making eye contact with me, she recognized the overconfidence present within me, her grin pulling so wide over her face it looked like it hurt. At least, that's what she would say. That I'm overconfident. Which I'm not.

Obviously.

Chuckling loudly, she turned away, not deigning to respond. Crossing the clearing with uncanny speed, she proceeded to lay on my bedroll staring silently at the sky.

Pushing myself to my feet, I felt someone's eyes on me. Frowning in advance, I glanced over my shoulder at my father who had been shamelessly eavesdropping on our conversation. Glaring at him indignantly, I turned away as he wriggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Sighing in frustration, I walked over to my bags piled neatly by my bedroll on the other side of the clearing. My father is a nut about honour and respect, so the only reason he would tease me about a girl was if he knew I had no chance in hell of impressing her. Or alternatively, that she is perfectly capable of beating the living crap if she didn't appreciate my attention.

I choose to believe the latter.

Though she couldn't beat me if she tried. At least, I hope so.

Grabbing my hunting knife, I dug through my bag for my grinding stone, preparing to care for my blades. The familiar motions of skating the stone over the dull metal often calmed me when I was feeling uncertain or overwhelmed. Sometimes both.

Tuning out the consistent ringing of my work, I turned my attention to my fellow hunters huddled around the clearing. Frequent glances were being shot across the clearing at the lone girl, weariness evident in all their gazes.

While our own village was far from thriving, so was the rest of our human kingdom. This trip was, for many, an escape from the overwhelming stress of everyday life. Ahvi being here seemed to have interrupted that.

While uneasiness was present in their eyes, there was also a heavy dose of respect. While few saw what had happened that morning with the wolf attack, those who did had quickly spread the word. It was known among the group of men that the girl had single handedly saved my life. More so , that she had done it in her weakened state while they were slumbering all around.

I'm sure the brutes did not appreciate being shown up by a girl. A young one at that.

As pride filled my chest, deep within I couldn't help but hope that one day I would have the right to feel proud of the girl. That I would have the right to call her mine.

This is a woman no one could ever call boring.

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