BY THE BEGINNING of spring, the forest had come to life. Gone were the rainy days and overcast skies, and in their stead, were crisp sunny days and bright spring flowers sprouting in between patches of grass and fern scattered across the forest floor.
Walking through the trees, I admired the new addition of colors the flowers brought to the greenery I now call home. The sun was just beginning to rise, and its rays cast a ethereal glow across the scene. I let my eyes wander appreciatively over the scene, admiring how lush and green Oregon was. It was so different from the desert valley of California I had come from, and for that, I was entirely grateful.
Though these flowers were a lot more than just beautiful, they were a reminder. A reminder that it would be my first spring in Oregon, and a reminder of how long I had been away from California and my old life, both of which I have tried my best to forget.
In the early months of my arrival here in Oregon, I thought about my old life often. I found myself lying awake at night in cold dread, fearing that one day someone would find Elias and I.
However, as days grew into weeks and weeks into months without so much as a slight disturbance, I began to relax. My once crippling fear melted away into the occasional nightmare.
The nightmares did not happen often, but in recent months, they were beginning to occur more frequently. This week alone, I already had two attacks, and I was afraid of the toll it was beginning to take on my body. Each time, the nightmares felt more and more real, and I found myself tossing and turning until suddenly I awoke, gasping for breath. Just like tonight.
Awoken in the dead of night, I found myself gasping for air and drenched in a cold sweat. Alarmed by my sudden gasp, Elias had awoken from his slumber as well. Quickly he sat up, turning to face me on our bed. His wings stretched and fluttered, coming to wrap themselves around my shaking body as he pulled me close. Still trying to catch my breath, I closed my eyes and fell into the warmth of his bare chest. With a sigh, I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shoulder.
His body welcomed me, his arms coming around my waist to pull me impossibly closer to him as his wings wrapped around us. We stayed like that for a while, until my breathing steadied and my head stopped spinning from the horrible images my nightmare had conjured up this time.
Once I felt like myself again, I released my grip on Elias, leaning back to look him in the eyes. His blue eyes were searching, equally concerned at the increasing frequency of my nightmares.
"Are you okay?" He asked softly, his hand reaching out to tuck a stray piece of sleep-tossed hair behind my ear.
My lips quirked into a small smile. "I'll be alright, thank you." I whispered, planting a soft kiss on his cheek. He closed his eyes at my affection, embracing the kiss like he was starved for it.
When I pulled away, his blue gaze found mine again.
"What can I do?" Elias asked, his expression pained. He didn't like to see me like this, in fact, my nightmares were probably harder on him than they were on me. By his pained expression, I could tell it was difficult for him to see me like this, completely helpless to do anything about it.
Though, what surprised me was that he never seemed to have any nightmares. Or at least, not nearly as often as I did. And yet, clearly he suffered far worse atrocities than I ever did. If anything, I was a mere bystander in comparison to his suffering. Yet for whatever reason, he rarely showed it.
In truth, we seldom talked about everything that had happened. Occasionally, in the dead of night, he would open up to me and tell me about his experiences growing up at C.R.O.S.S. Laboratories. On one occasion, he saw a father playing with his children by the lake. The father would stand, arms open as one of his children would race towards him. The father would gather the child up in his arms and carefully toss them into the water, only for the child to resurface laughing and come running back to repeat the process.
Elias said that he had watched them for a long time in curiosity, but as he explained this happy scene to me, I could see that there was sadness too in his expression. He never had a childhood, and living here would be a constant reminder of how differently he was raised.
So, besides the odd nightmare or conversation, we mostly tried our best to forget. Forget Dr. Grant and that cursed place and move on. Remembering would give Dr. Grant the power to continue tormenting us. I wanted to forget him, like the worthless piece of garbage he was.
But somehow, no matter how hard I tried, the memories would return to me. Just like tonight.
"I'll be fine, I'm just going to take a walk, to clear my head a bit." I said, getting up slowly from the bed.
Elias was fast, rushing around to the other side of the bed to help me to stand. I let out a huff, indignant at his insistence on coddling me, but secretly grateful nonetheless. Taking his hand, I leaned on him as he helped me to stand. I could feel a slight twinge in my back as I stood, reminding me of the increasing difficulty moving around was becoming in my current condition.
"I'll go with you." Elias persisted, tightening his grip on my arm as I steadied myself.
I shook my head, gently removing his arm from me. "I'll be fine. Besides, you have to help build houses today, just get some more rest okay?" I stated, looking up at him with a reassuring smile.
Elias frowned, but still nodded at my request. He knew better than to try to reason with my stubbornness by now.
So, I left, in the early hours of the morning to take a walk and clear my head. Finding myself watching the new flowers that were sprouting under the glare of the rising sun, a small sign to give me hope that something good was coming.
Suddenly, I heard rustling in the trees above me. It was not a particularly windy day, so I recognized that sound immediately. I let out a breath. I said I wanted to go alone, but deep down I knew I wasn't truly alone. As I walked, I could hear the faint beat of wings, and the rustling in the trees above me signaling my silent follower, my guardian angel.
"I know you're there." I called out to the trees around me, waiting. It didn't take long.
The rustling sounded again as Elias emerged from a tree above me. His face was dejected at being caught following me, and I couldn't help but smile at how scolded he looked.
"Come on down." I called to him and he obliged. Jumping off the branch of the tree and gliding down to me. My hair blew back from the gust of wind his wings created as he landed a few feet in front of me.
I crossed my arms. "Following me were you?" I stated, looking at him in mock disapproval. Now up close, Elias could see through my fake indignation. In response, his lips lifted into a hesitant smile.
"Maybe." Elias replied, stepping towards me. Once we were close enough, he reached out and grabbed my hand, cradling it in his own. He let out a sigh.
"I just wanted to make sure you were safe." He said softly, brushing my hand with his thumb.
Smiling, I lifted his hand that held mine to my lips, placing a chaste kiss there. I kept my grip on his hand as we watched the sun begin to rise to its full height in the sky, a reminder it was time to return.
Hand in hand, I guided us back through the forest masterfully, remembering small markings on trees and oddly shaped bushes as my map.
We made it back quickly, too quickly according to Elias who would much rather spend the day alone with me in the forest.
Together we entered the community and made our way to the gardens. With the help of the village, we managed to expand the community gardens. We started with creating more fertile soil plots and moved on to even build a greenhouse. Now, we had several acres of crops growing that easily supported the small community here.
Also, I had a green thumb it seemed, so Aileen put me in charge of the gardens. It was a lot of work, but it was good work. It was work that made me feel proud, work that didn't leave me questioning things or hating myself like my previous occupation as an intern. Here, I could use my education for something good, and I loved it.
Once arriving at the gardens, Elias kissed me goodbye, before begrudgingly taking his leave. I chuckled as I watched him hesitantly walk away, looking back every once in a while. He acted like we would be apart forever, but in reality, he would be back in a few hours for our lunch break. We liked to eat together by the river, finding a shady tree to settle down and relax for a while.
Once Elias was out of sight, I returned my gaze to the gardens and the work ahead. In front of me was a budding patch of strawberries almost ripe for spring. I bent down slowly to inspect the leaves and the sprouting fruit, carefully clutching my protruding stomach. Moving around was definitely getting harder these days.
Making my way down the line of strawberries, I paused when I heard the door to the greenhouse slide open. Glancing behind me, I saw Aileen enter with something white and rectangular clutched in her withering hands.
Her face was pale as she walked up to me. I stood up slowly from my crouched position to greet her, but the look on her face made me pause. Wordlessly, she handed me what looked to be a letter.
I searched her face for a moment before taking it, flipping it over in my hands to look at it.
"What is this?" I asked, breaking the silence.
Aileen didn't respond, instead, she watched me carefully.
With a frown, I looked down at the letter in my hands, examining it. I read the small letters printed neatly on the address. Our address.
"How did they get this address?" I asked quickly.
"You tell me." Aileen quipped, eyeing me.
I frowned, glancing back down at the paper in my hands. It was a letter, sent from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Sacramento Field Office in California.
My eyes re-read the words California, and memories from all those months ago came flooding back. I shut my eyes, forcing the painful memories out of my mind to refocus on the present. With shaky hands, I ripped the letter open and unfolded the white pages tucked inside.
Reading the carefully typed words, my eyes widened.