Of the Forest and Sea

Chapter 23

I woke up, Maria curled up next to me. Sunlight streamed into her windows, and I snuck downstairs quickly.

"There's no keeping you two apart, is there?" As quiet as I was, I wasn't quiet enough to get past Benjamin. "I told you, boy, you're not to stay with her at night. It's not right."

"You and Loveday stayed together before you were married."

"Yes, and we're adults. You and Maria are still too young."

"She asked me to stay last night. It's not like I'm forcing her to stay with me at night. If I did, I'm sure I wouldn't be allowed to see her anymore." Benjamin scoffed.

"You're lucky I let you stay here as much as you do."

I knew Benjamin had been drinking the night prior, but how much I wasn't sure. The normally full, now empty decanter next to his chair gave me and idea of how much he had. He must've been up all night.

"What do you think Maria and I do when she asks me to stay with her?"

"There's a long list. And I choose to believe you make the smart decision to stay out of her bed."

"If you know I'm in her room, why do you let me stay all night, knowing you're going to be upset at me in the morning?" He looked at me but didn't respond. "You trust her, don't you? So why do you choose to get so upset at me when it's her decision to ask me to stay?"

I couldn't hide how hurt I was, Benjamin didn't care if it was my decision or hers, he was always going to hate me.

"Robin, what's going on? Why are you yelling? Uncle?"

I hated to leave her here alone, but I needed time. Am I really just going to walk out? I couldn't leave her... but I wasn't going to be badgered by someone who pretended to give a damn about me. I bit my lip to hold my tongue, knowing the next words out of my mouth would make me lose Maria. Do it for Maria, bastard.

"Will either of you tell me what's going on?" I turned towards Maria and shook my head.

"I need some air. Come get me later if you need a break." I tried to kiss her cheek, but she turned away, only letting me squeeze her hand once. She couldn't have been that mad at me...she squeezed my hand back. I smiled slightly as I walked towards the door, but my smile fell quickly.

"Robin de Noir, don't you dare walk away from me when I am talking to you." Benjamin's voice rang out and echoed through the still empty halls.

"You kept quiet because you know I'm right. You know it wasn't my doing. You know that if anything happened between Maria and I that you didn't approve of then you would know of it. Either by Maria or by Loveday or even Mrs. Digweed. But you can't handle the fact that I'm not to blame here. I didn't ask Maria if I could spend the night, she asked me. And you can't believe when I tell you that nothing happened except for sleep. I am not walking away from a conversation. You decided I wasn't worth your time."

"Uncle? Is that true?" Benjamin was silent, and Maria's voice was a much softer alternative to my own. He looked between us, but again, stayed silent.

I continued to walk towards the door, not feeling any better than I did before I yelled at him. As I put my hand up to the large door handle, I heard soft footsteps behind me. Her hand came up to my arm and she whispered quickly.

"Meet me at the hideout in an hour." And with that, she went back to her uncle, and I quickly went to the hideout.

***

"Robin, are you okay? I'm so sorry, he had been drinking all night. Once we sobered him up enough, he apologized to me." She came bursting through the door, rambling off all of these words. I sat up off of the bed and she rushed over to hug me tightly.

"I'm fine. Is your uncle still mad?"

"I don't even think he knows what he said. What happened this morning?"

"He was downstairs when I was going to my own room, and he caught me."

"Should I not ask you to stay with me anymore?" Her question asked me one thing, but her eyes...her eyes pleaded with me to say no.

"Do you want me to still sleep with you?" I asked, moving a curl away from her eyes.

"I don't feel as nervous. I don't wake up as much if you're with me..." Her arms tightened around me, and she hid her face in my chest.

"I asked you a question, little princess..." I murmured, holding her close to me.

"Please don't say no if I ask you to stay. Uncle can't keep us apart anymore. No matter what he tries, I'll always come back to you, and you'll always come back to me."

I gently pulled her back and made sure she was looking at me before I spoke, "No one on this earth can keep us apart. I will always come find you, as long as you want me to." I could almost watch her melt as I spoke. But the next words changed her expression entirely. "Let's run away."