Cause this is not enough

And I won't wait for them to cut me up

So give me all you've got

They'll never stop until they see us fall

So let's run

Run – Bring Me The Horizon

We continued our chatter until Jack flinched and moved over on the couch, closer to the back of it. I threw him a questioning glance.

"I'm fine, the sunlight just suddenly blinded me."

I turned around to see a ray of bright light shine through the kitchen window behind me. "Wow, we've been here quite some time talking then, looks like it's nearly noon already." I commented, truthfully surprised that we lost track of time this easily.

"Maybe we can go out then, to search for a nice spot for our lunch. By the time we'll have found a place we will probably be hungry!" He proposed, and we both got up from the sofa.

I stretched my legs, cramped up from sitting in that awkward position for so long. Jack skipped off towards the kitchen table and took the bag.

"Oh, err..." He mumbled and turned to me, seemingly a bit embarrassed. "Would you mind carrying it?"

I was slightly confused at first but then I saw that it was a backpack type of bag.

"Of course I don't mind!" I replied and walked up to him to take the bag from him. I swung it over one shoulder, since I couldn't wear it over both because my wings would get in the way, and he put his boots on.After I grabbed a flask of water he snatched his coat from the back of a chair and we were ready to go.

====================

"So, what do we have here..." Mark pulled the bag off his shoulder and emptied it on my jacket. It was a beautiful day, so I didn't need it to keep me warm. Instead I opted to use it as a mini blanket to put the food on, so that's what we did. It had taken us a while, but eventually we found a tiny clearing near the edge of the forest where a tree had fallen down recently. It gave us some place to sit and a patch of bright blue sky above our heads, an ideal location to hang out and eat a self-made sandwich. And that's exactly what we did.

We resumed our little chitchat while munching on our lunch, discovering a bit more about each other with every new question. I found out that Mark had a dog before his time in the nebula, and that made me a bit jealous, to tell the truth.

"Aww, I would love to have a dog! I'd always have something to do, like feed him, bathe him, go out and play outside... But my parents didn't feel the same way when I asked them. They didn't agree with me, so we never got a dog..."

"That's a shame..." He said, his eyes were still his usual warm brown, but I could see a hint of sadness in them. "If they would ever change their mind, you should go for it. A dog can indeed be a handful, but the amount of love you get in return is almost unbelievable!"

We kept talking, interested in what the other had to say. It felt so weird, after a year of silence and sitting alone in my room I had someone to talk to, to do silly shit with... And for some reason it felt so natural, as if I got used to it in merely two days.

We got to the subject of names again, this time however our 'human names'. I had asked him if his name had always been Mark, or his real name which I always seem to forget.

"I think so, the name 'Mark' has such a comforting feeling to it... But I'm not one hundred percent sure either. I don't even remember what my last name was. Something with a V, or was it an F..." Thinking, he took another bite from his sandwich. "Nope, there's nothing that rings a bell to me... Hey, what's your full name, actually?"

"My full name is Jack O'Connaill, but you..." I glanced at him through my eyelashes. "You can call me Jack, baby..."

He burst out laughing and of course I soon accompanied him. Our voices echoed through the forest, probably scaring some squirrels away, but that was the least of our worries. What did suddenly worry us was the loud snap of a branch a bit further from where we were sitting. We stopped laughing immediately and went completely still.

"Who's there? Hello?" A voice called from the woods, not too far from our location.

I shot a look at Mark, who looked back with concern written all over his features. He mouthed "We need to hide" to me and I didn't hesitate to get up and search for a hiding place. I got behind some bushes, making myself as small as I could. Mark had started to climb up one of the larger trees, and he got pretty high before he stopped on a branch that was hidden by the tree's leaves. Through a little gap in between the branches I saw a man stepping through the bushes on the other side of the clearing.

When he stood in the open spot I could tell he was that old-fashioned hunter from the town my parents have told me about. He despises new technologies and prefers to go hunting with a bow and arrows, swearing he'd never touch a gun of any sort. Dressed in his withered brown jacket and a brown hat with leaves on it he stalked through the forest every day, looking for a possible prey. My parents had a spot next to him on the weekly market, where he sells the game he had caught earlier on.

He had his bow out and an arrow ready to shoot, while he scanned the trees around him. I didn't even dare to breathe, afraid that he could hear the air passing my lips. He slowly set a step towards my hiding spot, still looking for any sign of life. My whole body was trembling. What if he finds me? He'll freak out, or take me away, or even kill me! I closed my eyes and prepared myself for the moment he would push the bushes aside and find me hiding here. His footsteps were slow, but each one brought him closer to me.

"Okay, just come out, I heard people here... Animals don't laugh or hold little picnics with sandwiches, don't you try to fool me..." He called again, closing in on me.

I didn't look, but from the volume of his voice I could state he was almost right in front of me. Just when I thought he would see my back or my hair behind the branches, a loud crack came from above. I opened my eye right when the hunter turned to see who had caused the noise, just in time to see a shadow float over the leaves of the tree Mark had climbed. Did he... fly off?

The shadow came over again, and I then knew for sure that it was him. It looked kinda human-shaped, apart from the large wings on each side, of course. The hunter followed the shadow, mouth agape and obviously confused.

"What in the heavens..." He mumbled, still tracking the shadow's movements with his eyes.

Suddenly the shadow turned again and flew in the direction towards the middle of the forest. The hunter followed him, wildly curious, keeping his arrow ready to shoot. A few moments later, when he was definitely out of sight, I stood up and out of the bushes. I stared in the direction he went with disbelief. Has Mark lost his goddamn mind?! He lured the guy away to save me, but at what cost? He didn't really show himself to the hunter, but that guy isn't stupid either. He'd know that it wasn't just a big bird or something...

With shaky hands I put our half eaten sandwiches and the water back in the bag and grabbed my coat. As fast as I could I ran back to the house, taking everything up to my room to just throw myself on the bed. My mind buzzed with terrible thoughts. 'I hope he's okay, what if he gets found, what if he gets shot, what if...'

I put my head in my hands, cursing myself for getting him in this situation. My fingers tangled themselves in my hair and I pulled on it out of frustration. There's nothing I could do now! I'd have to wait for any sign of him, and god knows how long it could take him to come back. That is, if he'd come back...

I decided to open my window to look out for him, and also to get some fresh air back into my lungs. I was still out of breath from sprinting all the way back to the house but I hadn't been able to stop running until I'd reached it, the adrenaline had taken over at that point. I leaned out as far as I could and squinted to try if I could see him, but even with impeccable eyesight I'd probably see nothing as well.