Sweet Burden

by K L Ogden

  “You were gone, that’s what’s wrong with her,” Guri snapped back.

  “Obi?” Hitomi whispered.

  He turned his eyes down to her. “I’m here,” he said softly.

  “You left.”

  “I know. I’m sorry.” His voice wavered as he pulled her tighter against him. “I am so sorry. I will never leave you again.” Obi pressed his cheek against her forehead.

  “I didn’t mean to make you go away.”

  “Don’t say that. You did nothing to make me leave,” he mumbled. She could feel his jaw tighten against her forehead. “Let’s get you into bed.”

  She couldn’t take her eyes from him as he carried her into the bedroom. He got her situated in the bed and she quickly grabbed his arm as he started to step away.

  “Please stay with me,” she whispered. If he was truly there, she didn’t want to be away from him for one second.

  Obi leaned down and ran his fingers along her cheek, and then pressed his lips against her forehead. “Always.” He moved around the bed to the other side as she rolled over facing him. He crawled into the bed and he pulled her close to him. She laid her head on his chest and he swept her hair away from her face.

  Hitomi rested her hand on his stomach and clutched the fabric of his shirt. “Is this a dream?” she asked as her eyes closed.

  “No,” Obi placed his hand over hers. “Go to sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”

  She snuggled up closer to him and let out a deep breath letting her body relax.

  Hitomi sat straight up in the bed letting her eyes adjust to the light of the morning. She looked around, her gaze settling on the empty spot next to her in bed. She let out a sigh irritated with the vividness of her dreams. She climbed out of bed feeling better than the previous day. Grabbing one of her bags, she left the room and tip-toed across the main room so not to wake Guri, who was passed out in the chair. She went into the bathroom and started up the shower. She said a silent ‘thank you’ for indoor plumbing.

  She was able to get a layer of grime and sleep off of her and then dressed in clean jeans and a sweater. She pulled her wet hair into a ponytail and stepped out of the bathroom. In the kitchen area, she lit the burner on the stove and put on the tea kettle.

  “Feeling better?” Guri groaned and stretched.

  “Yah. A bit,” she shrugged and grabbed a mug from the cupboard.

  “Sorry I fell asleep.” His feet hit the floor and he stood up stretching again. “Obi wanted me to tell you that he went for a walk. He should be back pretty soon.”

  Hitomi completely froze. “Wait. What?”

  “Obi didn’t want you to think he left again,” he answered walking over to her. “Oh good, you’re making tea.” Hitomi stared at him perplexed. “What?” he raised an eyebrow.

  “Obi came back last night? It wasn’t all a dream?”

  “What exactly happened last night?” Guri smirked.

  Hitomi dropped the mug from her hands and ran for the front door.

  “Where are you going? He said he’d be right back!” he called after her.

  She threw back the door and practically broke the hinges off the screen. Her feet couldn’t move fast enough as she hurried down the steps. Her toes sunk into the wet ground and she had to catch herself from slipping. Her heart pounded in her chest as she looked in each direction. Finally settling on straight ahead, she sprinted forward.

  Her eyes scanned to her left and right as she ran. Staying on her feet was becoming a task as she slipped and tripped on mud and tree roots. But she was determined to find him. As she ran she started to worry about what to say to him. She couldn’t just run up to him and tell him she loved him. Her mind was mixed with emotions. She wanted him to know how she felt, but she was scared to know how he really felt. But he had come back.

  Her lungs began to ache from the cold damp air. Her mud covered feet were beginning to feel numb. She grabbed onto a tree to quickly catch her breath. Hitomi leaned back against the trunk and tried to focus on slowing her gasps. She tilted her head up looking for the sky. But it could not be seen due to thick tree coverage. Her body shuddered violently from the frigid air.

  She scraped her feet against a patch of moss at the base of the tree trying to clean them off as much as possible. Despite her freezing, a trickle of sweat traveled down the side of her face and she wiped it away. She took a deep breath preparing for another run. She stepped away from the tree swiveling her head from right to left when she saw him walking in her direction.

  His head was down and his hands stuffed in his pockets as he unknowingly walked towards her. She took a few steps towards him and stood directly in his sight line. Suddenly his head lifted and his eyes met hers. He stopped for a second as she started forward.

  Her heart was ready to burst through her chest as her pace accelerated. His hands slipped out of his pockets as he moved to her. Her mind raced as her steps turned into a jog. She still had nothing prepared to say, but at this moment it didn’t matter. She was seeing him again and that’s all she need. Their eyes were fixed on each other as the distance between them shortened. She was almost to him, only a few feet away, when she abruptly stopped.

  But Obi did not stop. He stepped up to her, placing his hands on the sides of her face. Obi leaned down pulling her face to his and pressed his lips hard against hers.

  Chapter 14

  Obi could feel the heat radiate through him. The darkness and somberness of his body felt as though it was being broken through with beams of pure light. Kissing Hitomi was like swallowing the Sun. Every muscle in his body was aching for more.

  He wanted all of her. One of his hands slid down along her shoulder and arm, and then snaked around her waist. His other hand raked through her hair to the back of her head. His fingers knotted in the wet strands as he pulled her tighter against him.

  Hitomi let out a little hum that vibrated his lips. She did not protest his hold on her as she moved her mouth with his. Every bit of pressure from her lips felt like a wave of fire hitting his tongue. He had to compel himself to remember to be careful with her frail human body in his arms, but he could not tear himself away from her addicting honey tasting lips. Her tongue felt like velvet against his and she tasted better than he ever could have imagined.

  Obi didn’t want to push her too far and he forced himself to slow down. He reluctantly pulled his lips away immediately missing and craving more of the euphoria. He rested his forehead against hers as he listened to her heavy breathing. With every breath, he felt the rapid rise and fall of her chest against his. He untangled his fingers from her hair and rested his hand on her back. His other arm stayed secured around her waist as he was unwilling to let her go just yet.

  He could no longer deny the fact that he was utterly and completely in love with her.

  ****

  Hitomi refused to open her eyes for fear that Obi would disappear. Her heart was pounding and she was still trying to catch her breath. His arms held her tightly against him as his head rested against hers. His hair hung down brushing across her cheeks and nose. She lightly licked her lips instantly missing his.

  She still wasn’t sure that he was actually there with her. It could have easily all been a dream. She brought her arms up and slid her hands around his waist, resting them on his back. Hitomi clutched at fabric of his sweater rolling the wool in her fingers. It felt real. The weight and heat of his body felt real. And most definitely his lips felt more than real.

  Hitomi took a deep breath to try to steady her. “Are you really here?” she whispered. “Because if you’re not, I don’t want to open my eyes.”

  “Open your eyes.” She felt him pull away slightly as his hand on her back returned to her face. His thumb stroked her cheek. “Hitomi, please open your eyes.”

  Slowly she opened her eyes and lifted her gaze up to his face.

  “See. I’m right here.”

  “Where were you?” she blurted out and immediately bit at her bottom lip for he
r outburst.

  His chest rose with a deep breath and he looked down. A peculiar look came across his face. “Why do you have no shoes on?”

  She wasn’t sure that she had heard him correctly. He had been gone for two days, he returned only to grab her and kiss her, and he wanted to know why she had on no shoes? “Huh?”

  “Your feet. They’re bare.”

  “Um, I left in kind of a hurry. You didn’t answer my question.”

  He lifted his head back up. His eyes pierced hers. “Let’s get you back to the cabin.”

  “No,” Hitomi shot back defiantly and started to pull away. “Not until…”

  “Please Hitomi,” he quickly pulled her tight against him again. “I will tell you everything once you are safely at the cabin.”

  “Promise?” she mumbled as she melted back into his body.

  “Yes,” he agreed. He easily scooped her up in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and couldn’t help but smile.

  “I can walk, ya know.”

  “Not without any shoes,” he replied and turned his head towards her. Their faces were dangerously close and it took all of her effort not to press her lips to his again. “And you still look a little pale, even with flushed cheeks,” he added.

  She dropped her gaze and buried her face against his neck to hide her embarrassment. He smelled better than she had remembered with the mixture of fresh rain and musk. They started back through the woods as she replayed the entire kiss in her head. They were both silent until Obi finally broke the silence.

  “Why were you out here?” he questioned.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” she replied with her head still buried.

  “I told Guri to tell you I’d be back.”

  “He did. I wasn’t so convinced.”

  “I see,” Obi sighed. They were back to silence again for the rest of the walk. The only sounds were the crunching or squishing of the ground beneath Obi’s steps. It wasn’t long before they were at the cabin. Hitomi lifted her head to see Guri waiting on the porch. He let out a relieved breath and went inside. They followed behind him and Obi let her down once inside. He stuffed his hands back into his pockets but didn’t take his eyes from her.

  “I’m going to go clean up,” Hitomi nervously said.

  He nodded. “I need to talk to Guri. I will meet you outside when I’m done.” One of his hands came back out of his pocket and he rested it against her cheek. He leaned down planting a kiss on her forehead.

  Feeling somewhat light-headed, she stepped back and stumbled into the coffee table. “Okay.” She quickly turned and hurried to the bathroom before she died of embarrassment for the second time that day.

  After cleaning up her feet and changing into different pants, she slipped on some socks and left the bathroom to find her shoes. She found them neatly placed by the bathroom door and slipped them on. She didn’t see or hear either Guri or Obi, so she went out onto the porch and curled up on the swing.

  Hitomi had not been waiting long when Obi came out carrying a blanket in one hand and a mug in the other. “Here’s something to warm you up.” He handed her the mug and then draped the blanket over her shoulders. She watched him as he appeared nervous and finally sat down next to her. He tapped his fingers on his knee and she sipped the mug of tea, both waiting for the other to say something.

  “Um.” Obi took a deep breath. “I’m sorry I left.”

  Hitomi kept her head down, avoiding his eyes. “Why’d you leave?” she whispered.

  “I just had to think things through,” he stated somewhat flatly.

  “What things?”

  “Everything.”

  “Meaning?” She continued to push for answers.

  “I thought about being a protector now, all the issues in the Afterworld, how to keep you safe,…you.” He turned his head back to her. “I thought mainly about you.”

  She bit at her lip to withhold a grin and clasped her hands together in her lap.

  “We’re completely opposite of each other,” he continued. “And I was created only to protect you. But I can’t get rid of the way you make me feel. I was selfish to come back. I couldn’t be away from you.”

  “Guri told me that you experience physical pain when you’re away from me because of your protector role.”

  He gave a nod in agreement.

  “Did you just come back due to the pain?” Hitomi carefully asked, not sure she wanted the true answer.

  “Yes,” he shook his head. “But not in the way that you’re thinking. The physical pain was nothing compared to the pain I felt not seeing you, not talking to you, not waking up next to you. The way I feel about you has nothing to do with protecting you.”

  “Then why did you have to leave?”

  “Because I didn’t understand everything I feel. And honestly, I never thought you would be able to…care for someone like me.”

  Hitomi reached over and took one of his hands. “Well, I can and I do.”

  His eyes closed and he squeezed her hand. “All I want is for you to be happy Hitomi.”

  She moved closer to him maneuvering his other arm around her and rested her head on his shoulder. “Then you have to promise not to leave again, because you are what makes me happy.”

  His arm tightened around her. “I promise I won’t leave unless you tell me to.”

  Hitomi let out a satisfied sigh and leaned into him more. She didn’t need to have any other questions answered for now. She was content enough being in his arms.

  They sat outside curled up in the blanket for most of the day. After a late lunch, Hitomi went into the bedroom and rummaged through the bag her mother had sent with them. She was shocked when she found her cell phone. Tucking a book under her arm, she turned on the cell phone as she walked back out to the main room.

  There wasn’t much battery left, but maybe just enough to check her messages. She walked over to Obi who was situated on the floor by the fire talking to Guri, who was draped over the chair. Obi moved the blanket for her to sit down and she curled herself back up on Obi’s lap.

  “What did you find?” Obi asked as he adjusted the blanket around them.

  “A book and my cell phone. I’m just going to listen to my messages.”

  She punched in her password when prompted and listened to the six new messages. The first message was from Bradley, who was irritated she had left the dance. The second message was from Kerry, who was digging for details about what happened at the dance. The third and fourth messages were also from Kerry telling her to feel better. Hitomi figured her mother must have told people that she was sick. The fifth message was an apology message from Bradley and he also told her to ‘get well soon’. Hitomi couldn’t help but roll her eyes as the sixth message started. It was Rediisu. He said he needed to talk to Obi immediately. She ended the call and closed the phone feeling a knot forming in her stomach.

  “Here.” She held the phone out to him. He gave her a quizzical look and took the phone. “Call Rediisu. He sounded urgent.”

  Obi let out a low unintelligible grumble and called Rediisu back. Hitomi looked up at Guri with worry on her face, but he returned a slight grin. She turned back to Obi waiting to know what exactly was going on. She was frightened that something had happened to her mother.

  “Rediisu, what’s going on?.....The council is supporting them now…..But, how can…..” Obi shook his head as he listened to Rediisu on the other end. Hitomi hated not being able to hear the entire conversation. Obi was silent for a long time. “Okay, okay. I’ll be there in the morning…No, the morning. I’m staying here tonight.” Obi closed the phone and handed it back to her. He turned to her and leaned over to her ear. “I’m sorry Hitomi. But I need you to let me leave tomorrow. I have to go to Rediisu’s.”

  “Why? What’s wrong? Is my mom okay?”

  “Your mom is fine. But the Savetto is giving their full support to Domitori. They have ordered the extermination of you, me, and Guri.” Obi looked over to Guri, who
didn’t seem to be affected by the news.

  “But I thought that someone in the Savetto didn’t agree with all of this,” she replied.

  “They have to keep their cover or be eliminated as well,” Guri commented and shifted in his seat. “Well, this sucks. All my stuff is still in my chamber.”

  “So, you have to go to Rediisu’s tomorrow. Can I go with you?” She turned away from Guri.

  “No. You stay here with Guri. It’s too dangerous for you to go. They will be watching the skies,” Obi answered.