Too Close for Comforts
893 Words
The camp was quieter than usual.
Not peaceful.
Just… careful.
Like everyone was choosing their words—
Or avoiding them entirely.
And me?
I stayed away.
At the edge of camp.
Again.
“…You’re going to make that your
permanent spot or what?”
I didn’t turn.
“…Do you ever get tired of following me?”
“…Do you ever get tired of running away?”
I sighed..
“…I’m not running.”
“…Right.”
I finally looked back.
Taika
Of course.
“…What do you want?” I asked.
“…To make sure you’re not spiraling again.”
“…I’m fine.”
“…You keep saying that.”
“…Because it’s true.”
“…It’s not.”
Silence.
“…You don’t have to stay here,” I muttered. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“…I know.”
“…Then why are you here?”
He hesitated.
Just for a second.
“…Because I want to be.”
That—
That caught me off guard.
“…That’s a bad reason.”
“…Is it?”
“Yes.”
“…Why?”
“Because I’m not exactly good
company.”
“…I’ll decide that.”
I looked away.
This is dangerous…
You’re getting too comfortable.
“…Stop it,” I whispered under my breath.
“…Stop what?”
“…Nothing.”
He didn’t push this time.
Which was unusual.
“…Earlier,” he said instead, “you lost control.”
“…I noticed.”
“…Does it hurt?”
I paused.
“…No.”
That wasn’t entirely true.
“…It feels like… pressure,” I admitted. “Like something’s building up and I don’t know how to stop it.”
“…Then don’t stop it.”
I blinked.
“…What?”
“…Control it instead.”
“…That’s easy for you to say.”
“…Not really.”
I looked at him.
“…You think I always had control?”
Silence.
“…You didn’t?”
“…No.”
He leaned back slightly, eyes on the sky.
“…When my power first awakened, I couldn’t even take a step without breaking the ground beneath me.”
“…Seriously?”
“…Seriously.”
“…So what changed?”
“…I stopped fighting it.”
I frowned.
“…That sounds like the opposite of control.”
“…It’s not.”
He glanced at me.
“…Power isn’t something you suppress. It’s something you understand.”
I didn’t respond immediately.
Because—
That actually made sense.
Don’t listen too much.
“…And how exactly am I supposed to ‘understand’ something I didn’t even ask for?” I muttered.
“…By not facing it alone.”
There it was again.
That line.
“…You really don’t give up, do you?” I said.
“…Not when it matters.”
“…And this matters?”
“…You do.”
I froze.
“…Don’t say things like that.”
“…Why not?”
“…Because you don’t mean them.”
“…I do.”
“…You barely know me.”
“…I know enough.”
“…No, you don’t.”
“…Then let me.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
This is bad.
“…No,” I said, standing up.
“…No?”
“…No.”
“…That’s it?”
“…That’s it.”
I turned to leave—
But suddenly—
My foot slipped.
“…!”
The ground shifted slightly beneath me—
Unstable.
I lost my balance—
And before I could react—
A hand grabbed my wrist.
Strong.
Warm.
Taika.
I stumbled forward—
Right into him.
“…Careful,” he said quietly.
Too close.
Way too close.
My breath hitched.
“…I’m fine.”
“…You keep saying that.”
“…Because I am.”
But I didn’t move.
Neither did he.
And for a moment—
Everything else faded.
The tension.
The suspicion.
The chaos.
It was just—
This.
Too close.
Too quiet.
Too real.
This is dangerous…
You’re getting too comfortable.
“…Stop it,” I whispered again.
“…You’re doing it again,” he said softly.
“…Doing what?”
“…Talking to yourself.”
“…Mind your own business.”
“…You are my business.”
“…That doesn’t even make sense.”
“…It does to me.”
I finally pulled away.
“…You’re impossible.”
“…You’re avoiding.”
“…I’m leaving.”
“…Again?”
“…Yes, again.”
“…You’re really bad at staying.”
I paused.
Just for a second.
“…Maybe I don’t want to stay.”
“…Or maybe you’re afraid to.”
That—
That hit too close.
“…You think you know everything,” I muttered.
“…No,” he said. “Just you.”
“…You don’t.”
“…Then prove me wrong.”
I didn’t answer.
Because I couldn’t.
That night—
I couldn’t sleep.
Not because of the danger.
Not because of the Wolf clan.
But because of him.
This is bad.
“…Yeah.”
You’re starting to feel something.
“…No, I’m not.”
You are.
“…I’m not.”
You are.
“…I said I’m not!”
I turned to my side, pulling the blanket over my head.
“…This is ridiculous.”
Because no matter how many times I denied it—
Something was changing.
And I didn’t know how to stop it.
- Writer
