Richard did not realize that his gaze lingered on her face for several seconds longer.
“Okay,” he responded simply.
“I’ll head to bed now. Good night.” Angela waved at him before leaving with her clothes. She did not notice that she dropped an article of clothing as she exited the bathroom.
When Richard set his book down and prepared to shower before bed, his eyes were drawn to something pink on the floor. He instinctively reached down to pick it up.
All at once, his eyes quivered.
It was a woman’s underwear.
He tossed it into the laundry basket. His heart was beating a little quicker than usual as he thought to himself, What a clumsy and forgetful woman!
Meanwhile, she returned to her room and proceeded to lay in bed. From her position, she could look out the window and spot the full moon outside. It’s so beautiful, she thought to herself in surprise.
This was something she never got to see, whether back in her home or while overseas, but here, she could enjoy all the beautiful things around her in peace.
Angela slept very soundly that night, but she jolted awake some hours later when she heard a piercing sound of a whistle coming from outside all of a sudden. She shot up in bed at once. It was at the start of dawn with the barest glimmer of light, but the field beyond the window was abuzz with activity.
She knew that this place was run like a military base. When she opened the door and looked out the entrance, the thick fog blocked everyone from sight, but she knew there were people gathered in the field.
Soon, she heard the sound of people running, and it quickly faded off into the
distance. She blinked and basked in the atmosphere around her. The mountains were alive even at dawn while birds filled the air with their chatter, and it made her one with nature.
A shadowy silhouette then zoomed past her before turning back. The person asked, “Miss Meyers, would you like to go running too?”
It was Trevor who asked. He woke up late and missed out on joining the rest of the troops, so he decided to run alone.
Angela was wide awake by now, and Trevor’s words piqued her interest. Thinking about all the running she did abroad, she figured she should be able to handle a morning run, so she nodded. “Sure. I’ll come with you.”
Trevor was thrilled. The run would be a lot more enjoyable if he had a pretty woman running with him.
They ran by the side of the road beneath the canopy of trees. It was an ordinary dirt lane that weaved through the mountains and not the usual roads made
of asphalt or concrete, so it was a different kind of experience altogether.
Angela was pretty pumped by the run. Taking deep breaths of the fresh mountain air made her feel like her lungs had been thoroughly cleansed.
She did not know how far she had run, but sure enough, she reached a point where she could no longer keep up. Between her panting, she asked, “Trevor, how much farther are we going?”
“We’re not even a third of the way yet!” Trevor replied.
“Seriously?” Angela’s expression fell. She stared out into the fog in front of them, but she could not see more than a dozen feet in front of her. The rest was all a blur of white.
“Miss Meyers, if you can’t continue, then let’s head back now! I’ll lead the way for you.” Trevor was afraid she could not take it anymore if they continued running forward.
Therefore, Angela and Trevor started making their way back. Trevor even
plucked some wild fruits for her to try. They tasted both sweet and sour and were very appetizing.
The two of them laughed and joked along the way. When they were nearly back at the main entrance, Angela slipped and stumbled into Trevor’s back. After grabbing his waist to keep herself steady, she began to laugh brightly.
Trevor held her hand and helped her out of the wet, slippery patch of road, but just then, he felt someone staring at him. After glancing at who it was, he quickly released Angela’s hand.
Approximately thirty feet in front of them, Richard stood in silence with his eyes fixed on them.
His face was expressionless, but Trevor felt goosebumps anyway.
“Richard, Miss Meyers followed me out for a run but she could not keep up anymore so I walked her back,” Trevor explained at once.
Angela glanced at Trevor, who seemed rather anxious. Could it be because she
had held him up when he was supposed to be doing his morning practice, and that made Richard angry?
“It’s not Trevor’s fault. I’m the one who wanted to join him, and I’m the one who forced him to turn back halfway,” she added in Trevor’s defense.
