Alrossia and the injured man had their meals together. The male slept in her lowly hut for almost a week and he has not spoken to her a single thing.
If he remained silent, Alrossia would presume that he was listening or it was his way of saying 'yes'. If he said no, he would ignore her or put his palms on his sheath.
Alrossia would hunt deers and seagulls for their meal. The male would just sit near the beach and smoke what's left of his packed cigars. Alrossia would return with blood on her dress, she would then set off at night and wash her clothes in the beachside, leaving the man alone in the hut to rest.
But on that one single night, everything changed.
The man could not seem to comfortably rest inside the hut. He would toss and turn around to find a great and cool position. After a few minutes, he finally gave up and stood up to leave the hut.
It was supposed to be cold that night, but it was incredibly hot to the male's senses. He removed his shirt and took a piece of his last cigar. He reached for the door and spots a shining light from the sands.
Alrossia was there, doing her laundry again.
The male approached her.
She heard footsteps in the sand, she turned back to see the half-naked male walking sloppily towards her direction. She just smiled at him as he sat on the sands a few meters away from her.
Alrossia didn't say a word and let him be. She knows that he was looking at the bright, full moon ahead of him, beautifully reflecting its light on the deep waters.
The male laid down on the sand, not caring about the world. Alrossia made her final rinse and folded her garments. She then ran back into her hut and neatly placed them on the laundry wires.
After which, she returned to the beach to have a light conversation with the man.
She sat down near him.
"You look completely healed up, huh."
The male closed his eyes, feeling the breeze touch his skin, he seemed to be ignoring her, but little did she know that he had been listening to her all the time.
"Maybe someone out there is looking for you. Shouldn't you try and wander around the city to see if there is somebody you know?"
She smiled awkwardly. "Well, I guess your wounds are still bothering you."
He puffed a smoke into the cool air. Alrossia looked beyond her. "Sorry if I keep talking. I didn't want you to feel anxious or anything. I wanted to make you feel safe."
"There isn't really anybody on these parts near the sea. The fishes have long migrated to the South. No boats, no fishermen. No villages, no people. Just me."
She sighed. She knows he was listening. And she continued believing that.
"When I saw you back there, I was skeptical about helping you. Would you believe that I almost made the decision to throw you out along with the waves?!"
She chuckled.
The male's eyes opened. Her chuckle and the sea waves was soothing to hear.
"I tried to look for your horse. But I couldn't find it. I didn't know how you got in here. This was supposed to be a place inaccessible by means of foot."
She sighed and played with her fingertips and yawned. "God, I'm exhausted. Why don't you try to come and hunt with me next time? Your body is buffed like crazy! You ate a quarter of every portion!"
She chuckled again.
The male once again, blew smoke into the air.
"I wonder if someone's going to look for me too."
The male's head slowly turned at her body. She was freezing and her hands were all over her knees. Her eyes gently shone against the moonlight.
She smiled sweetly. "Nah, I don't think even my father would look for me."
She rested her chin on her knees and burrowed her eyes with her palms. "No one's going to ever look for me anymore... Sometimes I tell myself, why don't I just become one with the water!"
She chuckled painfully. "Gosh, it sucks to be left alone."
The male sat straight and threw his cigar onto the sand. She looked at him. "So make sure you are never alone, okay?" She reached to him and tapped his shoulders. The male did not react despite her gentle touch sent electricity into his veins.
"Make sure that when you get back to the Capital, you find friends and then look out for each other. Find a suitable wife and then make a litter of babies." she jokingly told him.
"So that you don't end up miserable like I do."
The male couldn't believe how dull she was. She did not even recognize his face. What is because he was wearing a common soldier's robe? What it because his hair was painted in blood? Or what is because the people never really bothered to care about him as the King?
He remained silent.
But deep inside, he wanted to share his thoughts with her. He wanted to console her. He wanted to make him realize how hard a commoner's life was. He wanted to thank her.
But despite all that, despite the battle inside his chest, he could never dare to speak a word to her.
He was scared.
He was scared because he didn't know many things as much as the young woman had.