Then he left.
I didn't move. My thoughts drifted without direction while I looked down at the stone resting in my palm, steady and quiet against everything inside me that wasn't.
Chapter 23: Soft Terrain
Over the following days, Bramwell's attention became something steady and reliable. He checked on me regularly without ever becoming intrusive. His messages were practical and straightforward.
Bramwell:Did you sleep? Has the pain lessened? You should try to eat something.
Me: A little. It's manageable. I ate. How about you?
Bramwell: My mom treats feeding people like a legally binding obligation. She’s been cooking extra for you every day, so at this point I think refusing would actually offend the entire household.
She did indeed send me food almost every day without fail.
Me: Thank your mom for me, please.
Bramwell: I will.
Neither of us suggested meeting again during those days. I think we both understood, without needing to say it, that healing came first. Getting stronger mattered more than anything else.
A few days later, I got a different type of message.
Bramwell:I have identified a location that should not exceed your current limitations. The terrain is stable and the distance manageable. I would like to take you there.
Before I could answer, another message followed.
Bramwell:Sending the route in advance since the area is unfamiliar to you. Coordinates attached. Reception is strongest near the clearing where we’ll stop. I’ll also make sure July knows where we’re going and when we’re expected back.
A map appeared beneath the message along with photographs of the trail entrance, nearby landmarks, and the turnoff leading into the site.
Bramwell:Whether this is a date depends entirely on how charming you will find me.
I read that one more carefully than the others before answering.
Me:Okay.
He arrived exactly when he said he would. When I opened the door, his attention moved over me briefly, taking in how much I had recovered. He looked better too, healthier somehow. Still broad enough to fill the doorway, though the beard was shorter now. His curls, however, remained completely untouched.
"Consistently beautiful. Very impressive, Miss April," he said.
I looked away before he could catch my reaction and stepped outside, pulling the door shut behind me. We took his truck, and after a while the road opened onto a wide stretch of land edged with cliffs and scattered rock formations. It was quiet, rugged, beautiful in a way that felt untouched. We started walking, and he fell easily into step beside me.
He glanced toward the trees ahead of us, his expression softening slightly. "Most people skip this part because it doesn't impress immediately," he said. "It takes a little patience before you notice the details. My father used to bring me here when I was younger and insist the best landscapes were the ones that revealed themselves slowly. He said flashy places exhausted themselves too quickly."
His gaze lingered on the path for a moment before he added, quieter, "I've always thought people can be a little like that too."
We kept walking after that, the gravel shifting softly beneath our shoes. After a while he spoke again, his voice calm, almost thoughtful.
"You already know my intention, April. So I suppose I'm allowing you the opportunity to gather data and eventually conclude I'm a fairly reliable option to keep around."
He glanced down at me, then back at the path ahead. "But I should also disclose, for the sake of scientific accuracy, that I'm tall enough to be statistically inconvenient in small spaces, my eyes are a reasonably stable shade of brown, and my curls are against all known logic still functioning. I'm still a catch, in my own way, though you're just in a much higher geological category."
I smiled politely, though I wasn't entirely sure what to do with his certainty. It felt strange, almost like he was describing someone else entirely or some version of me I couldn't quite recognise. Especially the way he kept referring to my so-called beauty, as if it were an established fact rather than something... I don't know, unproven.
There was a small pause before he reached into his bag. He then took out a folded map.
"I thought this might be useful," he said, offering it to me.
