An Unsure World

The dim light of dawn filtered through the cottage windows, bathing Val's bedroom in a soft blue glow. A sliver of light crept across her face, gently rousing her from sleep. Blinking groggily, she stretched beneath the covers, allowing her mind to adjust to wakefulness.

She had slept rather well last night despite the circumstances; although perhaps it made sense given how exhausting things had been.

"…"

As her memories returned, her gaze instinctively drifted to the space beside her.

It was empty.

"Cael?"

She called out for him faintly but got no answer. Her voice was still a little hoarse from sleep, and she wasn't able to force it any louder. She slowly sat up, looking around the room.

That was strange. She had been certain that he would sleep beside her after washing up. She had made the action clear to him, hadn't she?

Frowning, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stretched out her arms. She ran a hand through her long, dark violet hair, as she tried to make sense of it.

Was he just an early riser? Or… had he left?

A pit settled in her gut. No. That couldn't be right.

"Cael?"

Her voice echoed through the empty house. Still, there was no response. Panic nipped at the edges of her thoughts.

She cursed herself for drifting off to sleep before he returned.

She gingerly looked out into the hallway and toward her parents' room, the one that had been closed when Cael had been led inside. It didn't seem like it had been opened, but that was the only other place he could've possibly gone with a bed.

She had to check.

She crept over to the door, bare feet padding against wood, until she could press her ear against the cold surface.

Nothing.

Slowly, she opened the door and stepped inside.

The room was exactly how she had remembered it. The dresser was neatly organized with jewelry and small trinkets, and a desk and bookshelf filled with her father's books stood against one of the walls.

On the far side of the room was her parents' shared closet. She walked over to it, running her fingers along the smooth, polished wood. The doors slid open easily, revealing her mother's clothes hanging on the racks. They still smelled faintly of her, and Valeria breathed in deeply, letting the familiar scent wash over her and calm the growing anxiousness in her stomach.

It helped a little, but it didn't solve the problem.

Where was Cael?

"…Was yesterday just a dream?"

The possibility sent her heart into complete free fall.

If everything that had happened yesterday had just been a figment of her imagination, she wasn't sure how she could handle it. It would break her!

She swallowed, trying to ignore the sudden whirlpool surging within her. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. But, instead, she took a deep, shaky breath to calm her nerves.

She needed to focus on finding him.

Val forced herself to move—to search. She hurried through the hallway, past the empty dining table where they had eaten, and into the silent kitchen. No sign of him. The dishes had been washed and put away.

She turned to the living area next, her pulse hammering.

And then—

There. Curled awkwardly on the small couch with his head resting against the armrest, was Cael.

"Thank goodness," she whispered, placing a hand over her chest. Relief instantly extinguished whatever panic she'd been feeling.

She slowly crept toward the couch and knelt beside it to get a better look. Cael was still sound asleep from the look of things. His chest rose and fell steadily with each breath he took, only occasionally interrupted by the smallest of snores.

Val took a while to observe him.

The way his messy ashen-brown hair framed his lightly tanned face was captivating, and the longer Val stared at him, the more her heart began to race.

She had no idea why. Maybe it was because he was the first person she had met after years of being alone, but there was just something about him that compelled her to draw closer.

"…Cael." She leaned in. His name was still unfamiliar to her lips, but she liked the sound of it.

Val reached and brushed aside a stray strand of hair from his face. His skin was warm under her fingertips, and the sensation sent tingles through her.

She paused though when she noticed his arms though. There were a myriad of scars running down the length of them, crisscrossing across his skin like patchwork. Some of the lines were thin and faint, while others were thicker and more prominent.

She hadn't seen them yesterday since he had some sort of arm coverings, but now that she had, she couldn't take her eyes off of them.

"What happened to you…? Were these from your world?"

It didn't look like a monster had inflicted them. No, the scars were too clean, too precise, as if their wounds were left by a blade. Maybe he had been attacked by someone?

Val frowned, wondering who would have done such a thing to him. What kind of world was his? A place of war? A land of chaos?

She carefully ran her fingertips over one of the most prominent scars, feeling the raised texture of it and the way it contrasted with the rest of his skin.

Cael began to stir, and she froze.

"Val?" he asked, his voice groggy from sleep. His eyelids fluttered open, revealing his dark grey eyes.

She jerked her hand away and stood, suddenly self-conscious.

"G-good morning, Cael."

Cael stared at her in silence before slowly sitting up and rubbing the sleep from his eyes. His cheeks appeared to be slightly pink now, and he wasn't making direct eye contact with her.

Had she made him uncomfortable?

That could explain some things, but then, it still didn't tell her why he was sleeping here instead of her bed.

Perhaps she looked like an untrustworthy individual? Or perhaps she had frightened him?

That would be horrible!

"Cael," she started, trying to figure out the words to explain herself. "Val is sorry. Is Val… scary?"

"'Scary'?" Cael slowly repeated the word back to her, confused.

Right, they hadn't gone over that word yet. Val thought for an instant before curling her fingers inward and mimed cowering in fear. "S-scary!"

However, it appeared that even her downplayed act had been too much for him, because he immediately turned away with a redness on his face.

"Ah! V-Val is sorry! Don't be afraid!"

He lightly coughed still avoiding eye contact. "No, no. Val is not scary. Cael is good. No sorry!"

"But… Cael didn't sleep there." She pointed back to her bedroom and mimed sleeping on a pillow. Then, she gestured to the sofa. "Cael sleep here."

"Sleep—no, no. Cael not sleep," Cael answered gesturing toward the bedroom. His voice wavered slightly as he waved his hands.

"Then why?" she asked, tilting her head curiously. She had thought that he understood that the bed was for both of them to share. Hadn't she made that clear enough?

His cheeks darkened even more. "Bad."

"Bad?"

"Cael, Val, sleep… bad," he explained, miming the two of them lying down next to each other with his fingers.

She frowned, not quite understanding. She could figure out why he wouldn't want to sleep in the same bed if he didn't trust her enough, but she couldn't fathom why them sleeping together would be bad.

Her parents had shared a bed all the time, and she'd slept with them too until she had grown too large for it to be comfortable. There was nothing wrong with it.

Perhaps sleeping together was bad in his world? She couldn't understand why that would be the case, and she wanted to question it further, but with his still very limited vocabulary, she didn't think she could get a proper explanation.

Val shook her head. They would have to come back to it at a later time. For now, there was still her usual daily routine to complete. She could wait to worry about the rest until after they at least dressed.

With a small sigh, she motioned for him to follow her to the bedroom. "Clothes, Cael."

"…Clothes?"

She nodded and led him inside, opening a drawer and selecting an outfit better suited for farm work. She glanced at him, then picked another set of clothes from the assortment she had prepared for him the previous night.

"Clothes," she said. "Father clothes. Now, Cael clothes."

"Cael… clothes." He repeated, taking them from her.

She nodded and then began to strip off her nightclothes without a second thought.

"V-Val?!" Cael's voice cracked in alarm.

"Hm?" She stopped to see what was wrong.

He quickly turned away and covered his eyes as he stammered out a sentence in his native tongue. She couldn't understand what he said, but he almost seemed… scared?

"Cael?" She stepped towards him and placed her hand on him. "Is Cael good?"

He tensed up. Then, without another word, he grabbed his clothes and bolted out, disappearing into the washroom.

"…" Val stared at the closed door as bewilderment flashed across her features. Why had Cael fled from her? Had he been spooked by some of the scars she had, or was it something else?

She bit her lip and turned back to the dresser while she resumed dressing herself. Perhaps she had broken some cultural taboo from his world, but she had no way of knowing that, especially when they were already struggling to communicate this much.

She sighed, grabbing her boots and pulling them on, lacing them tightly.

It seemed there would inevitably be misunderstandings until they knew more about one another. She hoped that they could overcome them together.

For now though, she would wait for him to finish dressing. She planned to show him the farm and give him a proper tour of her home as she did her chores. Hopefully, that would go more smoothly than this.