Sunbound, chapter 4: bonding

Instructions

(Disclaimer! This might have d3@th or romance.. not in this chapter but i think i forgot to add it into the others) We ended up traveling together. Don't ask me how, for I don't know either. One minute, I was trying to get away from him. The next, somehow, we were walking side by side down the forest path like this was the most normal thing in the world. I glanced at him. "Where are we going?" "You'll see." I frowned. "I still don't trust you. So unless you're keen on me escaping, you'll have to tell me." "I'm good." I blinked. "Oh, come on, sunshine. You've got to tell me eventually." "Actually, I don't." I let out a low groan, already annoyed by his stubborn behavior. "Fine..." I muttered. "But I swear to the stars, if I die, I will haunt you forever." "Got it," he said, completely unfazed. "I'll tell the stars." I stared at him. "Ha. Ha." "I thought it was funny." "You need help with humor." He glanced at me, a tiny smirk tugging at his lips. "I didn't realize you knew what that was." I glared at him. He raised his hands innocently. "Okay, okay. I'll keep it to a minimum, moonbeam." Another glare. I really, really wanted to punch him. "Fine. Just moonbeam." This time, I did. Aiden stumbled backward, rubbing his arm. "Ow!" I crossed my arms, trying—and failing—not to smile. "Worth it." He looked at me for a moment before shaking his head. "You're going to be a problem, aren't you?" "Absolutely." We continued walking in silence. The quiet seemed to echo around us. For the first time, I was truly aware of how strange this situation was. For years, Aiden had been nothing more than a shadow behind me. A monster in every dark forest. A golden light I ran from. And now he was walking beside me. Close enough that I could hear every footstep. "So..." I began. Aiden glanced at me. "Where do you come from?" he asked. The question echoed in my mind. Where do I come from? I looked at him. "Oh, you mean the place where you made me leave? Thanks a lot—" He cut me off. "Just tell me, will you? No sob story?" I stopped walking. Aiden took another step before realizing I was no longer beside him. He turned around. I glared. "My life isn't a sob story." "I didn't say it was." "You literally just did." "No. I said no sob story." "That's the same thing." "It's really not." "It is." Aiden sighed dramatically. I crossed my arms. He waited. I waited. Neither of us moved. Finally, I let out a breath. "My village wasn't anything special." Aiden's expression changed slightly. He listened. "Small houses. Too many people who knew absolutely everything about everyone else." He said nothing. "Everyone knew my parents. Everyone knew me. I had friends." The past tense hung heavily in the air. Had. Aiden looked toward the path. "I'm sorry." I stared at him. The words were so unexpected that I almost laughed. "What?" He looked uncomfortable. "Don't make me repeat it." "No, no. I just want to make sure I heard correctly." A grin spread across my face. "Did the mighty Sun just apologize?" "Forget I said anything." "Oh, I'm never letting you forget that." Aiden groaned. I smiled. For several moments, neither of us spoke. Then I looked at him. "What about you?" He glanced over. "What about me?" "You asked where I came from. You didn't answer where you came from." He raised an eyebrow. I waited. For once, Aiden didn't immediately make a joke. Instead, his expression grew distant. "My home isn't somewhere I can return to." The teasing tone had completely disappeared. I watched him carefully. "What happened?" "Nothing you need to worry about." I frowned. "Oh, so you can ask me questions, but I can't ask you any?" "Correct." "That's stupid." "I know." I stared at him. Then, despite myself, I laughed. Aiden looked almost offended. "Did you just laugh at me?" "Maybe." "I should leave you in the woods." "You'd miss me." His mouth opened. Then closed. I smiled. "Thought so." He glared at me. I grinned wider. Maybe traveling with Aiden wouldn't be completely terrible. Maybe. But I still didn't trust him. Not completely. And somewhere deep inside me, beneath the jokes and arguments and strange moments of almost-normalcy, a single question refused to leave my mind. If Aiden wasn't hunting me... Then who was he protecting me from?