The slight light that seeped in through the gap in the tent woke Willow up. Morning had come. Rolling over on her back, she looked up at the ceiling of the tent, feeling tired and exhausted. She hadn't slept very well. She was restless thinking about what would happen to her in the future since her old life was destroyed.
And she thought about the imminent meeting with her father. There was so much she wanted to ask her father about the past. Stories about her father and mother that her grandparents never mentioned in the slightest.
"Good morning."
Willow had just realized that Luke was still lying on the other side of the tent and was now sitting up. In the dimness of the tent she could see his ordinary face, not looking tired. It was very strange.
"Morning," Willow said.
Luke smiled warmly, and Willow felt an unexpected sensation flutter in her stomach when she smiled back at him.
"Looks like the rain finally stopped," she said a little nervously.
"I guess so. We should be able to travel further today." He hooked his hands and then stretched his arms above his head. "Are you ready to go out?"
Willow nodded. "Yes. Let's go out."
"But you still look really tired. Do you want to sleep again for a while? I'll wait outside."
"No, there's no need. I'm ready to walk again."
"I guess you didn't sleep well. I heard you tossing and turning."
"I hardly slept at all. Just a couple hours."
Luke nodded. "I think this tent is very uncomfortable, especially for someone like you." He started to unzip the tent so they could get out but Willow reached out and grabbed Luke's arm.
"Wait a minute. What do you mean?"
"What?"
"You said someone like me. What does that mean?"
"There's nothing."
"Really?" She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "You think I'm spoiled, don't you?"
"No, I don't. I don't think that way."
Willow sighed in disbelief. She was disturbed by Luke's words. One moment he was the man who risked his life to keep her alive, but then he was like a robot with no feelings. She wondered if Luke really cared about her.
Since Willow was silent, Luke gave her a longer look. "Hey, did I say anything to offend you?" he asked.
"No." Willow shook her head and gave him a fake smile.
He raised his eyebrows. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. Of course." Willow brushed past him and left the tent. "Never mind. Let's get moving. It's getting late, we can't afford to waste any time."
Willow walked a few steps behind Luke who was now moving without the aid of his crutches. The werewolf led him through the tall trees and bushes with unthinkable navigational skills, as if there was a path only Luke could see. As long as Willow walked in his footsteps, it felt like she was going straight without any change in elevation.
It was that easy for him to do. Willow wanted to tell him that, but she still felt awkward around Luke. Ever since he pulled her out of the river, things had been different. Her stomach lurched every time their eyes met. She tried to ignore it, but it was getting harder to do if they continued to be together like that.
Since they didn't speak, the only sounds that came to Willow's ears during the journey through the forest were the chirping of birds and the gently gurgling stream. With the quiet sounds filling her ears and the warm sunlight peeking through the gaps in the trees, Willow wished she was enjoying the beauty of the forest. But all she could think about was Luke and this new feeling, which kept growing despite her best efforts to bury it.
After crossing the narrow river, Luke suddenly stopped. He placed his hands on a nearby tree trunk and rested on his feet. Willow stopped behind him. "Why are we stopping? Is there a problem?"
"Nothing," Luke replied without turning around. "I'm just taking a breath." Then he started walking again, all signs of his brief weakness gone. In fact, his steps seemed longer and more careful than before, as if he was trying too hard.
Willow followed him until she passed by where Luke had stopped and saw the blood on the ground. Her eyes widened when she found a trail of blood droplets behind Luke. "Luke," she called.
The words had barely escaped her lips when Luke suddenly collapsed into a thorny bush.
Willow rushed to him in a panic. He was lying among the bushes and not moving. She knew she had to lift him from there. Willow bent down and wrapped her arms around him, trying to lift him up - not an easy thing to do as he was much heavier than she was.
But with great determination, Willow finally managed to drag him out of the thorn bush and lay him down as quietly as possible on the muddy ground. Her eyes fell on the dark red stains on Luke's jeans around his ankles and calves. Without needing to examine the skin beneath the fabric, Willow already knew that Luke's wounds had opened up again.
Willow looked down at Luke lying on the ground. He wasn't moving at all. Panic began to seize her heart. She feared Luke was dead, either from blood loss or exhaustion. Trembling, Willow knelt down
and slowly reached out to touch the vein in Luke's wrist.
"You have to live," she whispered. "Oh, God. You have to live."
Willow knelt in front of Luke's body, almost in despair and tears. Since the arrival of the werewolves her life had fallen apart. She had been forced to go with Luke to a place she didn't know. She had to face all her fears that had suddenly hit her like a flood. She was afraid of Boris, afraid of bears, and afraid of falling into the river. But most of all, she fears losing Luke. She depends on Luke to survive and find her father.
"Don't die...." She whispered again. "Please, don't die."
Then she felt the pulse she was looking for. Luke was alive.
***
They lit a campfire. Willow could only gather a few twigs because she didn't know how to look for them. The campfire was now running low on fuel. The crackling sound of burning wood broke the silence in front of their tent. Willow didn't notice any of this as her attention was on the wound on Luke's leg that needed to be cared.
She didn't understand things like this at all. Whenever she got sick or injured there were always people at home who would take care of her until she recovered. He knew nothing about first aid, but this time he had to do his best to help Luke, because there was no one else.
Luke had already explained how. He seemed calm, even though his body was shaking slightly with pain. "Are you ready?" Luke asked.
She had no choice, did she? "Yes. I think I'm ready." Willow glanced at the pocket knife Luke had given her, gripping it nervously. "Are you sure we should do this way?"
Luke nodded. "Just heat the blade in the coals," he said. He sat with his back against a tree and his injured leg propped up on a rock. His pant leg was pulled up, blood still dripping from the deep wound from the bear bite. "Once it's hot enough, I'll tell you the next step."
"Alright." Willow thrust the tip of the knife into the embers and let it get hot. She hoped this would stop the blood from Luke's wound. "It's hot. So what now?"
"We'll wait a while."
"How long?"
"Just be patient, Willow. I know you're nervous. It's okay. It's going to be okay."
"That's weird," Willow muttered. "You're telling me to be patient when you've got blood everywhere."
"I'm not worried about my leg," Luke corrected. "There's something else I'm more worried about. It's your safety. Will you forgive me, Willow?"
Willow furrowed her brow. "For what?"
"I must have let you down, because I was supposed to protect you and get you to your father as soon as possible. Instead, I got injure, leaving you in a vulnerable position. It's all my fault."
"That doesn't make sense," Willow snapped. "Why do you feel guilty? This is all because you saved me from the river. I'm the one who should be apologizing to you. I was very immature, wasn't I? All my foolishness caused you to get injure by a bear and jump into the river. I acted shamefully by pretending to be brave."
"That's natural. All that fear and panic," Luke said. "I don't blame you. I'd probably be just as scared as you are if I were you."
"But I'm not scared when I'm with you...," Willow said suddenly. Her cheeks were red because she hadn't expected to say that herself.
Luke's cold, calm expression changed for a second, then returned to his usual expressionless face. "You shouldn't think so. Right now I can't even protect you."
"You'll at least try, right?"
"Yes, of course, Willow."
"That's enough for me."
"Because there's no one who really cares about you?"
Willow was stunned at the truth in Luke's words. "Except for my grandparents and my nanny, yes. You're right. My friends and everyone else only cares that I'm rich and what that means to them.
"And you're still friends with them?"
"Because I like to feel loved." Willow stared at the small blazing campfire. "I know it's not real, but it's better than nothing. My friends love the popularity that comes from being friends with a rich person like me. They love my money and I stupidly put up with them. How embarrassing."
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to be loved. You have nothing to be ashamed of."
"Really?" Willow nodded. "I'll keep that in mind then. What about you? Do you have someone out there who loves you?"
"I don't know. I don't think so." Luke looked uncomfortable with the question. "Well, I think maybe we should get back to treating this wound. Can you get that knife? I'm sure it's ready by now."
"Oh, right." Willow got up and went to the fire to get the knife. The handle was surprisingly hot. Luke threw a rag at her. Willow used it to grab the handle of the knife and pulled it from the fire. The blade glowed red from the heat. She sat back down next to Luke. "Alright, now what?"
"Are you sure you can do this?"
"Yeah I think so."
"I can do it if you can't."
Willow looked down at the knife in her hand. She felt responsible. After all Luke was injure for saving her. "No," she said in the most confident voice she could muster. "I can do this."
Luke nodded. "All right. I believe you."
Willow felt her ears mishearing. "What?"
"I said I believe you."
"Yeah, that's nice to hear," she murmured with a blush on her face. No one had ever said that to her before. "Okay, here we go." Willow knelt down so that she was near Luke's bleeding leg. Her heart was racing, but she was determined to do this. And the confidence Luke gave her the boost she desperately needed.
Her hand holding the knife trembled, but then Luke placed his hand over hers, holding it steady. Her nervousness faded, but her heart continued to beat rapidly, only now for a different reason.
"Better?" He asked.
"Yes." The word came out like a puff of air from her lips. Luke's amber eyes stared at her as if he could read her mind. She hoped it wasn't true because there were some thoughts in her head right now that she would be embarrassed to admit.
When hot steel met flesh, Willow's nostrils were greeted with an unpleasant odor. She could feel Luke's entire body stiffen. The pain he was causing was something she could only imagine. She was tempted to pull out the knife, but this had to be done, and it was better to get it over with as quickly as possible.
"Wait," Willow tried to comfort her. "I'm almost done."
She pressed the flat side of the knife into the wound on Luke's leg, smoke billowing from the flesh as the skin blackened and burned. When she finally finished cauterizing the wounds, Willow pulled the knife back and dropped it to the muddy ground. Her relief was obviously nothing compared to what Luke was feeling.
"I'm sorry," Willow said, taking his hand. "I'm sorry."
Luke shook his head, clenched his teeth and closed his eyes. After a moment and a deep breath, he finally spoke. "Not your fault. It must be done."
She was right, but still she hated seeing him in so much pain. "Anything else I can do for you?"
"Yes. Backpack. It's got a piece of tape in it. I keep it in case I need to patch up the tent."
Rummaging through her backpack, it didn't take long for Willow to find the roll of tape. "Here you go."
"Yes. Now, use the cloth. Wrap it around the wound. Then tape it in place."
"Okay." Willow knelt back down beside the freshly cauterized wound and set to work doing what he told her. Her fingers felt clumsy, and slippery with sweat, making the simple task more difficult than it should have been. She swore under her breath, wiped both hands on her jeans, and finally managed to secure the fabric with two pieces of tape wrapped tightly around Luke's calves. "Done," she announced.
Luke nodded and leaned back, suddenly looking very tired. "Thank you."
"Anything else you need?"
He shook his head. "Just need to rest a few minutes. Then I'll be ready to walk again."
"No, you're not. You need more rest. Just lie there for as long as you need."
Luke looked like he wanted to argue, but decided against it. Instead, he sighed and closed his eyes.
Willow sat on a rock, not far from Luke to watch him. A small smile played on her lips. Something new and stronger had just been born inside her. A feeling that pulled her towards Luke like he was a flame and Willow was a moth. A feeling that was both exciting and terrifying at the same time.
***