Barefoot

Part Six

He parks his motorcycle in the same place as yesterday, hidden behind a tree. She gets off first, landing on the soft grass. He notices she still wears no shoes.

"Lets go barefoot," she says, smiling.

"Through the forest?" He asks, confused.

Her bright smile dazes him and she nods. "Of course, silly. Where else would we go?"

He shrugs, still slightly dazed by her smile. Before he knows what he's doing, he's taking off his socks and shoes and then they're running through the forest, her musical laugh echoing around.

He feels carefree and light and he immediately knows he's glad she walked into his life. They reach the water quickly and he puts out his hand to stop her from going any farther. She looks up at him and her beauty takes his breath away. "Remember the sharp rocks," he whispers, his eyes traveling down to look at her pink lips.

Her cheeks blush slightly, but she's bold, braver than him. She closes the distance between them and her lips are against his. They're soft and taste like strawberry and he thinks he could easily get addicted to kissing her.

His hands move to cradle her face and tangle in her soft hair and he can feel her lips curve up into a smile against his. She takes a step forward so they're chest to chest and his heart goes crazy.

He moves her so they're against the trunk of a tree. He slides his jacket off and wraps it around her shoulders so the rough bark doesn't hurt her, then puts more pressure onto her lips. She pulls away slightly so they can each take a breath. "You called me Flower earlier," she whispers, her chest heaving from the kiss.

He gives her a sheepish look. "Yeah, um-"

She cuts him off by giving him a butterfly kiss, just barely there but enough to make his heart leap into his throat. "I love it," she tells him, her light green eyes seeming to glow and he loves them.

He puts his elbows on either side of her head and leans down to kiss her again, feeling courageous. She responds by resting her hands on his chest, and she can't help but feel more at home than she's ever been before.

He pulls away again, then sits down on the grass. He tugs her down with him, chuckling slightly when she lands directly on top of him, his arms around her to keep her from hitting the ground.

"What did you want to tell me?" She asks, not moving from their current position. With both her legs off to the side and his arm around her back, she's basically using him to keep from falling over.

He adjusts himself so he's leaning against the tree. "It's a long and pretty complicated story."

"That's okay," she says, laying her head on his chest. She can hear his heart racing and she smiles, knowing that hers is doing the same. "I've got time."

He smiles gently and she can't help but think about how handsome he is when he loses his scowl. "This spot along the creek has a lot of memories in it," he starts, closing his gorgeous blue eyes. "As you saw, I only live with my mother now, but I didn't once. I lived with my mother and father and my younger sister. My father was great at first, but he lost his job when I was about thirteen years old. My sister was just a baby then, only two years old. He began drinking a lot and using drugs and his whole personality changed. He became abusive. I protected by mother and sister as much as I could, but it wasn't enough." He opens his eyes and tears well in them. His pain makes her heart hurt and she nuzzles into his chest, letting him know that she's right here.

"And then last year happened. He went after my mother one night. I stopped him and he stormed out of the house. My mother was crying and my sister was crying. I wanted to go after him and make sure he didn't do anything stupid, but they needed me, so I stayed." He takes a shaky breath. "A few hours later, I got a call from one of my dad's friends, saying he had gotten drunk and used drugs and that he had collapsed. I told my mother and the three of us went to find him. We found him here, at this creek."

She gasps, tensing as his next words make her blood boil.

"It was a trick. He was fine. A little drunk, but not as bad as usual. They were waiting for us, three of them. Two of them grabbed me and held me back as he beat my mother. She cried for him to stop and asking what she had done, but his mind was too far gone. He beat her until she was unconscious and then he grabbed my sister, who was screaming. She was terrified and she didn't recognize her father. I didn't recognize the person he was now." A tear runs down his cheek and he stiffs, tilting his head back to rest it against the tree.

"You don't have to tell me any more, it's okay," she whispers, brushing away his tear.

"I want to," he murmurs.

She nods and keeps her hand on the side of his face. "What happened next?"

He opens his eyes. The amount of pain and sadness in them tells her all she needs to know. "She was seven years old. Seven. And he killed her."