Love Unspoken

Abigail bit her lip and kept quiet, jogging behind Landon. The folks chasing them were getting closer, their flashlights bouncing as they climbed too. They knew if they lost sight of Abigail and Landon before they hit the forest, catching up So, they kept on their tail, no breaks.

would be a nightmare.

Abigail's breathing was ragged, and her wound was killing her. She was dead tired from all the running.

But she didn't say a word, scared Landon might ditch her, making all her effort pointless.

Luckily, the forest was thick with underbrush and trees. After what felt like forever, those annoying lights finally disappeared.

She panted hard and asked, "Did we lose them?" Landon was breathing heavy too. He nodded a bit and then remembered she couldn't see him in the dark. "Probably. Let's walk a bit more and then rest." Abigail nodded, gritting her teeth, and kept following him.

For a while, the only sound was the rustling of the underbrush as they moved through it.

They ran until they could barely make out shapes in the forest. Finally, Landon stopped.

He exhaled and looked back. "They probably won't catch up for now. You okay?" Abigail nodded, too exhausted to talk. She didn't care about the dirt and just dropped to the ground, gasping for air, her heart pounding like crazy.

Sweat covered her face. She leaned back against a tree, eyes shut, her heavy breathing drowning out the birds. Landon looked at her without saying anything, scanning the area. Once he was sure it was safe for now, he sat down next to her.

After a bit, Abigail finally caught her breath. She pressed on her wound and turned to Landon. "Are we safe now?" "Yeah, for now. But who knows after dawn," Landon replied.

Abigail's anxiety spiked again. By dawn, the forest would be easy to see through, and with more people searching, hiding would be tough. They'd have to get through another day of tension, waiting for nightfall. She never thought she'd end up living like a fugitive.

She asked Landon, "Was it always like this when you were on the run?" Landon thought for a second. "I don't think I was hunted that often." "Okay, but when you were, was it like this?" Abigail pressed.

"Pretty much." Landon leaned against the tree and looked at her. "Do you regret it?" Abigail closed her eyes and sighed, "Can you stop asking such annoying questions?" Landon scratched his nose and shut up.

Abigail said, "It's kind of thrilling." "Not so thrilling if you get caught," Landon pointed out.

"Will you get caught?" Abigail asked, looking at him, waiting for his answer.

Landon didn't let her down. "No." Abigail finally felt a bit relieved. His calm tone made her believe he wouldn't get caught.

Landon said, "I won't let myself get caught." He repeated it, and this time, Abigail sensed a deeper meaning in his words, one she didn't want to think about. She didn't dare to ask more.

Landon asked her, "If you had to keep running withlike this, would you be up for it?" Abigail's heart, which had just calmed down, started racing again because of his question. "What are you talking about?" she asked.

"Nothing," Landon replied.

Abigail closed her eyes in frustration, forgetting Landon's habit of saying one thing and meaning another. When he finally said something sincere, she blocked it. She hesitated, opening her mouth but not knowing what to say.

Landon said, "Don't overthink it. You wouldn't be willing." Abigail frowned. "Don't act like you knowso well." Landon had said this to her before. He casually picked a few blades of grass and started weaving them. "You find it thrilling now, but you'll get tired of it over tand regret it." "You talk as if I would actually agree to it," Abigail retorted.

Landon didn't respond. He lowered his head, weaving the grass in his hands, looking surprisingly relaxed. Abigail couldn't stand his occasional silence. She turned her head away in anger, not knowing the answer herself. Just imagining a long-term escape, day after day, year after year, even a lifetime, required a lot of courage, let alone making a decision.

They spent over two hours in silence. The forest was already bright, and Abigail felt sleepy. She pinched her leg to stay awake.

Once they stopped, she didn't want to run anymore. She was exhausted, with no strength left.

But she still asked Landon, "It's already bright. Aren't we leaving?" "No, we're lost now. If they haven't caught up, it's safe. If we wander around, we might run into them. You should rest," Landon advised. Abigail stared at him. "If I fall asleep, you won't leave me, right?" Landon glanced at her and suddenly reached out his hand, revealing a grass-woven rabbit in his palm.

Abigail had to admit that he was quite skilled. The rabbit looked lifelike, just like the ones he had caught before. Abigail was stunned. "What's this?" "A rabbit," Landon said.

"For me?" Abigail asked.

"I made it to pass the time. If you don't want it, forget it," Landon replied.

He then retracted his hand, ready to throw the grass rabbit away. Abigail quickly grabbed his wrist and took it from his palm. "Since you put in the effort to please me, I'll reluctantly accept it," Abigail said.

Landon smirked but said nothing. He stood up. "Rest here. I'll check the surroundings." Abigail grabbed his pant leg. "You're not really leaving, are you?" Landon looked down at her hand and then at her face. "You won't be in danger if they find you. What are you afraid of?" Abigail opened her mouth but couldn't say anything.

Landon ignored her and walked away.

He moved through the underbrush, getting farther from Abigail's sight. Afraid he wouldn't rotum, Abigai e leaned on the tree and followed him, keeping a distance. Landon didn't look back but knew Abigail was behind him. Fortunately, there was no one around, but there were a lot of bugs.

Abigail had been running all night, making her tired and hungry. Seeing the bugs, she almost wanted to eat them but held back. She wasn't that desperate yet. After walking a while, Landon found a fruit tree about as tall as a person. He picked a few fruits and looked back at Abigail.