Impractical (Complete)

Chapter 20: Special People

Refreshed from their break, their horses were a little frisky as they followed the main road down to Jaris, the city located much further south in the Glacian nation. The roads were tended, made of bricks, but they knew that their pristine condition would not last long after the war had begun.

Mostly, they rode in silence, allowing their horses to begin at a canter until they started to tire. Every now and then, Aiyana would glance nervously over her shoulder, like she had a constant tic. Fox knew she was ensuring that they were alone and that was why they preferred to travel during the day so as to encourage any of their spectators to think they were just two travelers.

On their first night, they took turns watching the road, never sharing the tent since one always had to be awake. The nights were bitter, a frost coating the grass around them so that the mornings were wet and dewy. Little did Aiyana know but Fox extended his night watches, remembering that she had been sleep-deprived with her duty to the Princess. He had not asked much about Ravenna for he sensed how she had made a friend in her and now missed her dearly.

Like the first time they had strolled through the streets of Nasta, Aiyana seemed twitchy, jumping at every sound from the breeze and the animals. Her attitude remained distant and lost as they rode further south but Fox did not know what he could do. To his delight, the tundra soon gave way to grassland. The sun shone more brightly and the nights were warmer. The grass was long around the road, some having crept between the bricks. It smelled fresh, like all the poisoned air in their lungs had been replaced. Untouched, they drank water from all the streams they passed, admiring the clearness of the water. They found berries in the shrubs and carefully rationed their dried food supplies.

On one of the warmer nights, the sky was clear and crowded with stars, as if each were competing to shine the brightest. Taking the first watch, Fox lay on his back to gaze at the night sky, knowing that if Aiyana wasn't so edgy, she would do the same when her turn came. Now he wasn't so sure. She would stop speaking halfway through sentences, rub her scar and seem completely dazed.

Through the darkness, thicker than a wall, he could only hear the orchestra of crickets and swishing grass, serenading him in all their glory. The peacefulness meant that everything was clearer and Fox turned to the stories his parents told him, playing them over and over in his head. He was distracted when the zip of the tent buzzed through the air and he watched as Aiyana, elegant as ever, carefully climbed out. Her face was tired but her eyes alert as she settled down next to him. When she leaned backward, resting her back on the ground, she was so close and Fox ignored the fireworks bubbling in his stomach as he smelt her scent.

Surprisingly, she was the first to break their silence. "What is the thing you most want to see in the world?"

"My parents."

She sighed. "I mean where do you want to go?"

Fox smirked at the stars and they blinked back at him as he thought about his dream location. "So," he said, "I've always wanted to go white water rafting."

"Hmm..." she smiled indulgently. "Distancia's trench?"

"Yes. The Silver line."

"Sounds beautiful."

Nodding his head, Fox wondered if she would ever accept his offer to join him. Just the two of them. Probably not. Yet, he couldn't stop that fantasy blossoming in his head. She was lithe and strong, a brilliant swimmer. They could...

He snapped out of his fantasy as he realised that he hadn't said anything in a while. "And you?"

She tore her gaze from the stars and turned on her side to face him. "Everywhere."

So let's go he thought. You and I exploring everywhere.

Her eyes did not leave him and he found it intensely hard not to look at her lips. "Would you want to go alone?"

"No. With Arkin obviously. Maybe you can come too."

Oh yes... the third wheel.

He struggled to summon a response that would sound enthusiastic enough so he just said, "Thanks."

She ran her hands through her hair and down to the scar on her neck. She obviously noticed his sarcasm and irritation but she had chosen to ignore it. In fact, her eyes were blank as she stared up at the stars, and Fox wondered what she was thinking.

Arkin.

The feeling of envy was bubbling up inside his gut. How did Arkin treat her? Did he hug her when she was anxious and crying? Did he hold her tightly in his arms as Fox did during her nightmares? Fox was angry but not just at Arkin. He was frustrated with himself for not having any luck at meeting Aiyana first so that she might have fallen for him instead.

"What's he like?"

She paused and a smile danced on her lips. "When I first met him and he barely looked at me, I felt like my heart had been shattered into a million pieces. I needed him to notice me."

Sighing indulgently, she continued, "He's arrogant. Or... he's confident. I couldn't be better than him. But I guess I didn't mind. I don't really know why I fell in love with him."

Sounds like a real... terrible person... if he held her back, Fox thought sullenly.

"He likes to dance. And listen to classical music. While I like to gallop on my horse, he likes to be elegant and trot at a reasonable pace. We are such opposites that I think that was what drew me to him first. He loves books and stories and he asked me to recount my adventures. He liked the last say. He always had to be right. He liked watching me doing acrobatics."

Hesitation formed on his lips. He was a green-eyed monster, watching her talk with such calm about Arkin. But he had to ask. "Are you sure he's the one for you?"

"No. But does that mean you can't love someone?"

He had stumped her again.

She turned on her side, facing him, her head propped up on one elbow. "The thing is Fox, I guess he's my challenge. And he asks me all these philosophical questions and makes me think and do things I would never do alone. It's like I'm a different person."

Fox didn't know if that was a good thing. Wasn't she herself around him? That was a funnier, an adventurous person he loved. Why did some men try and change her?

"I'm making you bored," she said, misinterpreting what he was thinking. "Tell me about someone special in your life."

Shaking his head, Fox smiled. There had been a string of maybe four or five girlfriends. Yet, in comparison to Aiyana, they were dull, uninteresting people and he had never loved any of them. So why had he dated them?

To not feel so alone.

"There is no one special."

"Has there ever been?"

"No."

Aiyana lay on her back again and pulled a handful of grass from the ground. She blew it into his face, making his nose itch.

She smiled again. "Well Fox, I hope one day, you meet a wonderful woman, who goes on adventures with you, makes you laugh and talks to you with sincerity. I hope you find a woman who loves you as much as you love her."