Rediscover

Part 6

          Eve had woken everyday before sunrise for the past 13 years, and one late night wasn't going to change that. The hard floor she had lied on didn't do much to persuade her to sleep in, so when the sky outside the window lightened to a soft gray Eve had already risen, frowning disapprovingly at the clock informing her she had only slept a grand total of 2 hours. She moved to checked on Erik, who still remained in the same position as the night before except that his lazy grin had been replaced by a grimace foreshadowing the headache waiting for him once he woke. Eve scolded herself for smiling as she crept from the crowded trailer and halted just outside the door. The familiar form of Jane could be seen lying on her side atop one of the lawn chairs. One of her hands cupped her cheek as a pillow, while the other held her journal protectively to her chest. This, however, wasn't what caught Eve attention- Jane had fallen asleep outside multiple times during her outdoor studies - it was the large shadow of a man standing on land where sand and concrete met that drew her attention. His back was to her as he watched the sun begin to paint the clouds above in streaks of gold and purple. While she couldn't see his face she could easily spot the tension lacing up his back, his shoulders hunched forward ever so slightly as if a giant pressure was against them. Eve knew that if she had common sense she would avoid an agitated man who could crush her to a pulp, but naturally her curiosity overruled her caution and she began treading to his side. He glanced down at her when she joined him, eyes shining with hesitant surprise.

          "You wake early." He observed, digging his hands in his pockets, though Eve already spotted how they were clenched in fists. She shrugged.

          "I've always been a morning person." The two stood in silence as the first sunbeams began to warm the sand beneath them. She tilted her head to to look at the man beside her, his usual glinting eyes shadowed in a veil of darkness and brows creased with what Eve recognized as the same look Jane got when she spoke of her late father: Grief, and uncertainty. A look, Eve observed, that didn't fit him.

          "You seem lost." She finally observed aloud, lacking all pretense. He lifted an eyebrow in consideration, hesitating so long before replying that Eve thought she had offended him.
"I feel lost." Eve tilted her head curiously.

          "Why?" Thor took a deep breath, his he'd ducking as if trying to hide from the truth of his next words. 

          "I made a promise to Erik the past night. I told him I would leave the town. But I'm coming to realize that I don't think I can follow through with my word." He rubbed his face and couldn't hide a subtle glance to where Jane remained slumbering. "I've realized a lot in my time in this realm. I'm finding out what really is important, and how clueless I really was... and still am." Eve blinked against a cool breeze, fighting the urge to squint as sunbeams made Thor's golden hair gleam into a halo above him.

          "Erik means well. Neither Jane or I have a father, so he's taken that role for both of us. He can be very protective and thinks he's doing what is best for her, but he didn't see see you two last night." Thor cast her a look, the shadows that had been draped over his face lightening at a reluctant quirk of his lips.

          "You did?"

          "I might have spied on you two," Eve admitted shamelessly. "But that's besides the point. It's clear you care for her Thor, and she does for you. If anything, leaving will destroy her, not protect her."

          "And starting over isn't exactly a bad thing." She looked out at the now sun-soaked desert before them. "Especially since you won't be doing it alone. Sometimes you have to begin again to find who you really are." She spoke with such intensity and, what surprised Thor into looking down at her, understanding. Her voice held a depth to it that he had never heard before, one that made him question just how much strength was hidden in the girl beside him. She stood a foot shorter than him despite her only seeming a few years younger, but what she lacked in height she made up in fierce determine glow of her gaze. With her chin raised and gaze facing the sun she looked much older than she really was. Thor's face softened into curiosity.