𝐵𝑈𝑇 𝐼 𝑁𝐸𝐸𝐷 𝑇𝑂 𝑇𝐸𝐿𝐿 𝑌𝑂𝑈 𝑆𝑂𝑀𝐸𝑇𝐻𝐼𝑁𝐺

𝑀𝑌 𝐻𝐸𝐴𝑅𝑇 𝐽𝑈𝑆𝑇 𝐶𝐴𝑁'𝑇 𝐵𝐸 𝐹𝐴𝐼𝑇𝐻𝐹𝑈𝐿 𝐹𝑂𝑅 𝐿𝑂𝑁𝐺

𝐼 𝑆𝑊𝐸𝐴𝑅 𝐼'𝐼𝐼 𝑂𝑁𝐿𝑌 𝑀𝐴𝐾𝐸 𝑌𝑂𝑈 𝐶𝑅𝑌

- 𝑐𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑥, 𝑐𝑟𝑦

└─────────❀*̥˚─────❀*̥˚┘

MELANIE stood in front of the large cherry tree near the sheeps and fished down a wine-red pair. She looked at them carefully between her fingers before putting them in her mouth. They tasted sweet but had a bitter aftertaste, which made her unintentionally twist her face into a funny grimace.

Newt was standing not far from her and occasionally glanced in her direction. Sometimes because he was worried and sometimes because his mind was so full of her that he needed to see her.

However, he started to giggle with amusement at her face. "That's what happens when you steal," he muttered instructively and then left his work on the tomato bushes and trotted over to her to give her a little help with the harvest.

“That was just a mouthful,” she countered, grinning gently. It was incomprehensible to her whether it was because of the bitter taste or because in her simple position she was touching Newt with the entire side of her body. Did he pose like that on purpose?

She deftly plucked the cherries and placed them in a basket, undeterred, while her fingertips were already stained pink by the cherries. A slight surge of heat hit her, making her so nervous that she hardly dared to even give Newt a secret sideways glance. "You don't have to help me."

"But I like spending time with you, Melanie," he said justifyingly, and she feared that her statement earlier had seemed ungrateful. "That's the truth."

Denying, she paused in her work, took her hands back from the branches and looked at him thoughtfully. "I think I've had enough now. Thank you,” she said cutting off, taking the basket under her arm and bringing it to the pan in the kitchen. She also washed her hands there before continuing with the gardens and their sunflowers.

Maybe it wasn't fair on her part that she had rejected him like that, but she couldn't stand this constant competition in her head anymore. About whether she should believe the blonde and how differently she perceived herself. How different opinions and perceptions varied from person to person, as did the people themselves.

The flowers had grown a lot in the past few weeks, so that they reached up to her chin. The yellow with a hint of a sunset-colored orange was bright and in some cases she pushed out the seeds in the brown center so that the sunflower had a face and it was smiling.

Satisfied, she ran her hands down her pants and searched the leaves for any bugs. She searched through the rows and partially disappeared into the small field, but the blonde still always knew exactly where she was.

He had stopped what he was doing, paused for a moment. He found her very fascinating with her individual nature, and yet he just couldn't figure out what he could do to get her to open up. She saw the world through different eyes, but at the same time kept hers hidden from everyone. He knew that too well.

After all, apart from Minho and Alby, no one knew the truth behind his limping. He just couldn't let her go, left to her own devices, watching her tread paths that Melanie herself couldn't see. He just wasn't like that.

Finally, Melanie supplied the sunflowers with yesterday's rainwater and planted something new next to them, and also gave them supports so that they wouldn't collapse due to their size. Without further ado, someone spoke to her and it wasn't the voice she most liked. More likely the one that made her stomach literally turn over from miles away.

"And? How are the flowers?,” the one from the campfire asked and it turned out his name was James. There was so much disgusting mockery in his question that she lost all interest in anything.

"Ask them, maybe they'll answer you. Although I think they'll wilt at the sight of you." Her quick wit was something she didn't have to train for, unlike others. It was mutual, both a blessing and a curse.

“Oh, I see,” he made a thoughtful face, as if he didn’t know what consequences Melanie would suffer from him for this. However, for now he simply put his arm around her. Stunned and panicked because his touches on her innocent skin felt like one sin after another.

“Please take your klunk hands off me, okay?,” she said calmly, feeling as if she was making herself even more ridiculous with every word and every action she took. As if he couldn't find any weaknesses in her, which is why he caused them.

"I'm very sorry, but a girl has nothing to say to me," he breathed sweetly into her ear, making her taste bile and regret things that were still in the near future. Everything was so much, and Melanie closed herself off from herself in that moment, causing her own power to act to slip away like ice melting in warm hands.

If Newt hadn't come to her rescue, she might not even remember what had happened. “Let her go, James.”

Without waiting for a denial from him, the blonde boy had already freed the girl from his unworthy grasp. "We were just having a nice chat, so don't interfere!," James hissed.

Melanie's silence was so mortally loud, her eyes squinted in incomprehension and her long hair a bit tangled on her face, that Newt thought that's what it must look like to outsiders when something inside you breaks.

What did I do wrong?

Newt suddenly seemed slightly impatient. Something that wasn't usual for him. So he said in a firm voice and clearly showing his power: "You can't just touch her like that, do you understand that?"

James huffed angrily and denied it. However, he realized that the situation here had already overflowed, so he gave in. Mentally letting go of Melanie, James stood in front of Newt. From the looks of it, a silent exchange ensued, whether he wanted to end up in the den or whether Newt wanted to report his latest activity to Alby.

"You have to do your part just like we all do. Now go on,” the second-in-command told him and sent him away with a noble wave of his hand.

Melanie didn't turn to look after him, but a world of emotions followed him. So fears swirled within her that were comparable to fear of death.

And he knows it, he knows that Newt will always help me. That's why he'll plan moments in which I'm on my own through no fault of my own and he has free access to me, whatever I'm made of.

“Did he hurt you?,” Newt asked after he was finally able to take care of her. Melanie didn't even look at him, believing her circulation was going crazy at the moment, so she sat on a stone to be on the safe side. But she still didn't speak, everything seemed to be tied up and erased.

“Love, look at me,” he murmured, placing his rough hands on her cheeks, running his thumb over the so irritated skin under her eyes that his heart clenched for all the tangible tears she had ever shed. Always someone was guilty, but no one realized.

He wanted to undo everything he hadn't even committed and replace it with support and affection. Newt thought he felt her surrender to his touch and a slight tension escaped from her aura that had enveloped him as if they were both trapped in a bubble that was constantly trying to break. “Will you do me a favor?”

Blinking gently, Melanie looked at Newt for further encouragement. “Sleep next to me in the hammock tonight, there’s one free,” he offered to her.

And as treacherous as his smile shone and complete purity had returned, it could no longer be denied that he wanted this not only to offer her security, but above all because he wanted her closeness.

Her presence so immediately mixed with his. Newt took his hands back to himself and with the unexpected way she reacted, he doubted she was making a commitment.

There's this veil that's stuck to me ever since James was here. That familiar feeling of threat and panic because you feel attacked. A radical snatch of feeling safe. Like a wall that has been kicked down and hides behind it everything that is capable of dying without protection.

I pushed him away so many times and I don't even know why. And everything screams inside me to do it again when I feel like I've betrayed myself. So I'm going to pull every bit of sense within me to start contributing change.

"Okay." Melanie slightly twisted her delicate lips into a heavy expression and yet, it wasn't impossible to find a smile in today's gray eyes. "I'll do that favor, Newt."