Taya Saadovska spent all her life in the palace. Daughter to one of the most influential families at court, she lived pretty much like a princess. Suddenly however she is pulled into an unforeseen adventure alongside her childhood friend Nikolai. It...
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Taya didn't know when she had fallen asleep, but what tore her out of her surprisingly dreamless rest was her body feeling strangely numb. At first, she wondered why, but when she slowly opened her eyes reality fell on her like heavy rain. She wasn't at home in her bed but rather in that tiny chamber in an Inn a good day's ride from the capital. And right across from her was Nikolai. He had tucked his arm under his head, while the other rested around her, his hand still buried in her hair. He hadn't let go at all last night apparently.
Seeing as he was still asleep, Taya was too afraid to move. So she just lay there, studying his features. He had matured, the lines of his face sharper and his hair cut in a military fashion. But there was still something cheeky about him that reminded her of the boy she had spent almost every day with. As she looked, she really wanted to reach out and cup his cheek but didn't dare to. What if he woke up? He'd think her crazy most likely. Even though he had been the first to reach out last night, Taya worried about making a stupid move.
It had been so much easier to be close like that when they had been children, nothing more than friends growing up together. But now... she hadn't thought about him every day since he had disappeared, but she had missed him. She had wondered what had become of him and whether he was alright and perhaps thinking of her too. And when he had returned, out of the blue, he had taken her by surprise. Not because of him showing up in her life again, but because of the emotions, it stirred in her. She had been mad at him at first, then cautious, but he had quickly worked his way into her heart again. Not just as her best friend, but... She didn't want to allow herself to finish the thought just yet.
"Nikolai.", she said instead, reaching out to shake his arm a little. "It's time to wake up."
He muttered something incoherent but opened his eyes right away. He seemed as surprised by his whereabouts and position as Taya had been, but the confusion quickly made way for a small grin. For a second Taya could feel his fingers in her hair moving, almost as if feeling the texture of her locks, before he slowly retreated to sit up and stretch.
"I don't know about you, but I feel like I slept on the floor rather than a bed."
Now that he had moved, Taya could get up herself and stretch her aching limbs, showing that she felt exactly the same. "Shall we set out right away?"
"And skip another lovely meal here?" He was in a surprisingly good mood, while Taya was still trying to process their night of proximity.
"And you wanna risk it?", she just asked back, focusing on putting on her boots again.
"I am starving, actually. Or just curious what kind of delicacy they offer to start the day." Even though she didn't want to, Taya chuckled. His humor always managed to get to her eventually.
"But just so you know, if they don't have Syrinki, I will be upset for the rest of the day." She had loved the cottage cheese pancakes for breakfast for as long as she remembered. They were simple but tasted better than any warm bread or thick slice of ham out there.
