This day was the hottest day yet. Eva was struggling to finish her morning exercises under the scorching sun. Her mouth was dry and she felt like her limbs were filled with lead.
Lucas had gone to a nearby village for supplies, so she was all alone. Hills and grassland surrounded her. Not a single chance of shade in sight.
Sweat trickled down her face as she tried unsuccessfully to wipe it from her brow.
'It's no use.'
Her thoughts felt muddled as she dropped the practice sword next to her and felt her vision swirl. Each breath felt heavier than the last and she saw dark spots float in her vision before everything went black.
A loud thump was heard as she landed on the ground unconscious. Hours passed by before Lucas returned to their camp.
The bag fell from his hands the moment he spotted Eva. Her beautiful blue hair was strewn across the ground around her.
Lucas knelt beside her and scooped her up closer in his arms. Placing his hand on her forehead, he felt the blazing heat that had overtaken her body.
'This is bad.'
Their nearest water source was a little far away, but the distance did not mean much to Lucas. Rising to his feet, he easily lifted Eva's small frame.
Her arm fell limp at the movement. Lucas gritted his teeth and quickly rushed to the tiny lake. It was too dangerous to camp near the spot as this was one of the few water sources in the area.
He wanted her to be safe so he had chosen a spot a little out of the way. It would be their last day in such a dangerous climate, but he had taken the power of the heat too lightly.
Again, he forgot how fragile humans could be. Eva's cheeks were a bright red as if mocking him for allowing her condition to worsen to this degree.
Finally, they reached the smallish lake. Wading into the water he let the cooler temperature of the water cool Eva down. The frown on her face began to fade.
"Lucas, don't leave me."
Her voice was muffled, but Lucas' keen ears picked up what she spoke. The breath in Lucas' throat caught as Eva's hands fumbled their way to his shirt and grasped onto the fabric.
"I'm not going anywhere."
He whispered the words to her. There was no point in replying, but it felt like something within himself solidified in that moment.
Lucas knew the desperate words she spoke in the haze of heat exhaustion were the true feelings inside her heart.
"Lucas, I…"
He waited to hear the next confession from her, but her body began to shiver. The water splashed as she moved in closer to his warmth.
Lucas managed to keep her head above water as her face dug in between his neck and shoulder. She still felt hotter than normal, but perhaps that was just his reaction to her closeness?
Lucas tried to clear his head but his attention was immediately taken by the loose collar of her shirt. She had pressed herself tightly against him and because her shirt was wet, it had pulled down slightly.
His heart beat frantically in his chest. What was he doing? He needed to look away, but his eyes refused to budge.
A groan escaped Eva's lips and saved him from his conflict. He quickly looked away and tried to calm his heart hoping she wouldn't notice.
"Where am I? Lucas? What happened?" Eva began asking questions as soon as she was awake.
"I found you unconscious when I returned, so I brought you to the water source nearby," Lucas explained.
Eva looked around and then down at their two bodies and wet clothes. The heat in her body immediately rose and not because of the sun this time.
She felt embarrassed. The fabric of the light shirt she was wearing was hugging her body more than usual. Tugging at the collar was not helping either.
Every time she moved she became more self conscious of the very fit body against hers.
'This is so embarrassing.'
"Um.. I think you can put me down now." Her voice felt small as she tried to find a way to escape this situation.
"I found you unconscious, there is no way I can trust you right now."
Lucas' accusing voice was the last straw as her head fell against his shoulder. It was dangerous to be this close to him. The feelings that were hiding under the surface were threatening to break free.
In fact this situation felt 'good' to her. The beating of her heart sounded loud in her ears and she couldn't reject the fact that her body felt comfortable here.
Even while they were mostly wet, his scent seemed to smell forever of the forest. This was the most dangerous sensation of them all.
"I am in your care," she said meekly.
Feeling victorious, Lucas shifted her back into a princess carry in the water and they slowly emerged from the water.
He set her down upon a rock at the lake's edge and began feeling her temperature again. She still felt hot, but better than before.
"I am going to grab our stuff, wait here." Lucas instructed her.
Eva nodded and watched as he quickly disappeared over the nearby hill. She pressed her palms to her cheeks and went over the last few minutes in her mind again.
'This is not happening. This is not happening.'
If she kept repeating it over and over maybe she could forget the feel of his body pressed up against hers. Or how perfectly she fit into his arms.
'What was sleeping me thinking?! What if I said something?'
She never got a chance to finish her thoughts as she felt a surge of nausea and dizziness rock her entire body. Her hand covered her mouth as she leaned to the side of the rock.
'Ugh. I feel sick.'
She emptied her stomach next to the rock and felt weak. Leaning over the rock she felt like she was floating in water.
She briefly registered a thud somewhere nearby, but she felt too sick to look over that way. Eva felt hot again and her breathing became labored.
"Eva?!" apanicked voice reached her ears.
'Lucas?' she thought briefly before the darkness swam over her eyes once more.
******
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