Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The next morning, I lay awake, wanting to go to training but hearing Conláed’s words clearly in my head. Besides, from what I can feel, I am indeed sore. New muscles have been activated and my body definitely knows it.
Maybe I should search for the lake myself, I mean, how hard can it be? But if finding the library was a taste of how complicated it is to find a place in this building, then yes, it will be very hard.
The library… I had hoped I would dream about it, longing to escape to this miraculous piece of the Academy every moment I can. Of course, no dreams found me, yet something else occupies my mind. Someone else.
The one Conláed had told me to go swimming with.
I’m not sure if it’s a good idea. I could barely keep my attention away from him for a minute with clothes on, let alone if he only wears swim shorts.
But maybe I’d be too distracted by the uncertainty of how skilled I am in the water. Or the lack of skill I should say.
A knock sounds at my door. “Maily? It’s uh, it’s Aramis. Con said you wanted to go swimming?”
Did he now? Not sure if I should be grateful or throw a brick at him the next time I see him. Probably the last, he’d deserve it.
Another soft knock. “Are you up?”
I throw the covers away and jump out of bed. “I am! Just a minute.”
He snickers. “Take all the time you need.”
I quickly freshen up, trying to make my hair a little less bedhead-like and walk over to the closet. To my surprise, I find a drawer full of swimwear, most of them are one piece bathing suits and I don’t know who put them there, but I am grateful for it.
I’ve mostly kept my skin hidden behind long sleeves and high necks, but at some point, others would see what I look like underneath all those layers. And if there’s one person that won’t be abhorred by how I look, it’s Aramis.
A navy one with short cupped sleeves and straight lined cleave line and back catches my eye and I quickly change. Tears sting my eyes as I see myself in the mirror, my arms a monstrosity and my fingers move towards my neck, where the same scarring makes my skin uneven.
“You can do this,” I whisper, but even I can’t convince myself.
Without another look, I put on a set consisting of a dark red sweater and matching trousers and walk to the door, nearly forgetting to put something on my feet. Aramis looks up as I open the door.
“Sorry for the wait, I —”
He holds up a hand. “No need to explain, I don’t mind waiting for you.” The look in his eyes makes my heart melt and the smile he gives me? Lord, help me. “Besides, you didn’t take that long, it’s totally fine.”
We walk away from my room and I notice he’s carrying a basket.
By the looks and scent of it, he brought food with him.
He wears a short-sleeved T-shirt and even in the dimly lit hallway, I see the strong, defined muscles of his upper arm, the veins that run down towards his hands. Who knew veins could be so attractive.
As we reach the end of the stairs, we turn to the left instead of the right, going behind the staircase. “Do we need to go outside?”
Aramis shakes his head. “No, it’s a little more hidden away and below ground.”
A lake under the ground? Is that even possible? I guess I’m about to find out. A large stone arch appears as we turn around the corner, leading into a dimly lit room with what seems to be a staircase winding down.
Aramis walks into the darkness, completely unbothered by the fact you can barely see a hand in front of you.
He looks over his shoulder and I take a few hesitant steps towards him.
The dark doesn’t scare me; it has become my friend on many occasions.
What I am afraid of is breaking my neck on the way down.
I won’t say that out loud though, and as I hope the light might become a little brighter a hand appears in front of my face.
I look up and see his glowing eyes, how they absorb all the light around us.
I take his hand and he guides it to his right shoulder.
He picks up the other and places it on his bicep.
My fingers curl around it, his skin warm, the muscles hard, and I can feel them move under my fingertips.
I think he’s trying to kill me, if not by falling down the stairs, then surely from touching him like this. I give myself an internal shake. Stop it, Mai, he’s just trying to help you, that’s all. Right?
“It’s not that long down, but the stairs are steep and tricky if you’re not used to them.” His voice startles me, and I nearly trip, putting a little too much weight on his body. His hand reaches out to my hip to steady me. “You good?”
“Yes, sorry. I tripped.”
He releases my hip. “No need to worry, I’ve been here countless times before. I’ll always catch you if you fall.”
I am currently very grateful for the dark, it perfectly hides away my burning cheeks.
We turn to the left, the light a little brighter and I let go of his shoulder, my eyes slowly adjusting too and I can’t be too eager to hold on to him.
I am still holding his bicep though, just to be sure. Nothing more.
The stone steps make way to a softer ground, loose little granules in a beige colour. I’ve never seen this before. In the five years that I can remember, all I’ve known is snow and ice.
Aramis takes off his shoes and socks and his feet sink into the soft ground. “Ah, the feeling of sand between your toes, there’s nothing quite like it.”
Sand.
Yes, that seems about right. I take off my shoes as well and to my surprise, the sand feels warm underneath my feet.
Aramis - unaware of the first time experience I’m currently having - is already dressed down to his aqua blue swim shorts by the time I look up.
His fingers grab the bottom of his T-shirt and lift it over his head in one smooth movement.
I quickly turn around to give him some privacy. Yet, I can’t help but glance over my shoulder. His backside is all muscle and broad shoulders, and two dimples appear just above the edge of his shorts. He turns around and walks towards me with an ease I can only envy.
If I was impressed by the back, the front is…let’s say I’m nearly drooling. I get what writers talk about, letting their na?ve, main characters swoon over a handsome man. I am that na?ve character right now and his eight pack is very swoon worthy.
“You can leave your clothes on the sand, normally no one will come here. But please, take all the time you need.” He starts walking backward, grinning at me. “I’ll just take a quick test swim if that’s alright with you.”
I nod, because that is the only thing my tight body can currently manage. How am I supposed to get in the water with him looking like that and me looking like…me.
And the fact I have no idea if I can swim, doesn’t help me relax either. There was no pool in Anima and the lake was too cold to swim in.
I observe Aramis for a moment, noticing how smoothly he glides through the water. He is definitely used to this, he even makes it look easy.
Too stressed about the swimming itself, I haven’t even taken in my surroundings and now that I do, I can’t believe how I didn’t notice it sooner.
The stairs end in the middle of the sand plane that stretches out on both sides from where I stand. The cave seems to be oval shaped and it’s about sixty feet till you reach the water that has a beautiful azure colour. The walls consist of stone and rock and some tropical looking plants.
In what seems to be the centre of the lake is a construction of rocks reaching up into the sky where light cascades down through a large opening in the ceiling. Yet, there is no snow to be seen and it is pleasantly warm here.
I walk to the edge of the water, where small waves wash over my toes. It feels slightly cooler, but not cold, and my body easily adjusts to the difference in temperature.
Aramis swims around in laps, not even looking up once. I don’t know if it’s because he wants to give me some privacy and time, but I appreciate it either way.
I look down and take a deep breath. I can do this. I should start with something easy, like taking off my trousers. My legs aren’t that scarred.
In a less smooth movement, I untie the front of the trousers with trembling fingers, push it down my hips and let it fall in the sand. A phantom wind passes me and goosebumps erupt over my bare skin, even though I am not cold at all.
Now for the hard part.
In Anima, a lot of girls saw my skin and they all avoided me for it. What if he does the same? But he has seen my hands, touched them willingly and he doesn’t shrink away from it. He would stay away if I disgusted him. Doesn’t it say enough that he doesn’t?
Fuck it.
I grab the bottom of my sweater and pull it over my head letting it fall on top of my trousers.
No way back now. I walk into the water until it reaches my knees and I halt.
The water will only get deeper from this point on.
And since I am unsure if I can swim and not want to drown and make a complete fool out of myself…
As if on cue, Aramis swims towards me and hovers a couple of feet in front of me where it is definitely deeper. “Everything okay?”
“Yes,” I reply too fast, but shake my head shortly after, looking at my toes in the water.
“Actually, no… At Anima…I never got the chance to swim and with my memories gone from the time before that… I don’t know if I can swim.
I mean, I think I can. I mean, who can’t swim, right?
” A nervous laugh escapes me. Damn it, Mai, stop talking.
“I know it’s stupid, maybe I should just turn around and —”
Splattering water makes me look up, little waves nearly reach my knees as Aramis swims closer.
“Hey, Maily, stop. It’s not stupid at all.
You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.
” Some of the tension in my chest eases, but the fact that he is so close I see the water reflected in his forest green eyes, picks up the beat of my heart. “But I’ll help you if you do.”