Charlie P.O.V

"We should take a drive," Michael suggests while using the towel I gave him to dry his hair.

"Where would we be driving to?" I wrap a towel around my waist.

Michael shrugs. "Anywhere; nowhere.  It doesn't exactly matter to me. I just wanna get away from here for a night."

"That sounds nice," I say with a soft sigh, "just to get away for a night and drive through the backroads."

"Alright, get dressed and we'll go," he tells me.

I nod and walk back to my room. The weather is still cold, especially at night, so as much as I hate wearing pants with my leg injuries, it's a bit of a necessity. I end up in a hoodie and some baggy sweatpants.

I hear the horn of Michael's truck outside. He's clearly ready to go. When I walk out, I see he's already dressed in a new set of clothes. I can only assume he had them in his truck. I suppose it's a wolf thing.

I climb up into the truck and put my seatbelt on. Michael does the same and starts up the truck. The night is quiet and cold. The seclusion is very relaxing. I have always liked the privacy of living on the outskirts of town.

Michael pulls out of the driveway and takes off down the road. I turn on the radio and flip through the stations until I find one playing rock.

"Nice choice," Michael comments.

He turns the volume up and rolls the windows down. The cold night air fills the truck. The headlights shine through the darkness of the night. There aren't many streetlights in the area when most of the land is forest.

"It's nice out tonight," I tell him.

"Yeah, driving is nice. Sometimes a run is even better," Michael replies.

"I'm not gonna be running anytime soon."

Michael laughs softly and nods. "I guess not. Although, I'm happy to give you a ride."

"You're already giving me a ride," I remind him.

"I meant a different kind of ride."

"Oh," I mumble softly to myself.

"Running through the woods in winter is great. It's relaxing, your body gets hot but stays cool because of the cold. Winter is my favorite time of year," Michael tells me.

"It sounds nice."

We keep driving for a while. The night is quiet while we drive. The music playing on the radio is really the only sound filling the car. Talking isn't a requirement. Being together is enough.

After driving for about an hour, Michael pulls off the road and into a clearing. He parks the truck and turns the engine off.

"Why are we stopping?" I ask softly.

"It's nice out here. Come on," Michael gets out of the truck.

I hop out of the truck and walk around to the back. Michael lowers the gate of the truck and pats the bed next to where he sits. He easily pulls me up next to him.

Michael leans back and pulls me with him. Looking up at the sky, I now realize why Michael decided to stop here. The sky is clear and full of stars. It truly is beautiful to see so many stars.

"Wow," I whisper softly while staring up at the sky.

"Yeah, it's beautiful, isn't it?"

"It really is."

We lay in the bed of the truck, hand in hand, just staring up at the night sky. The night is quiet; the music has stopped. Everything feels peaceful.

"I love you, Michael," I whisper, the silence of the night carrying my voice.

"I love you too, Charlie," he whispers back to me.

A smile creeps onto my face as I hear Michael say those words. Four simple words with a tremendous meaning. Four words that I live to hear. The same four words I thought I might never hear from him. Right now, life is feeling pretty good.

I have no idea how much time passes. Michael and I just lay in the bed of his truck, staring at the sky. It could be a few minutes or it could have been more than an hour. All I know is that I never want this to stop. I want this feeling that Michael and I share to continue to flourish.

After a while, Michael sits up and helps me hop down to the ground. We both get back in the truck and decide it's time to go back home. When I look at the time in the truck, it's nearly two in the morning. No one will be out and about when we get back into town.

Michael starts up the truck and drives out of the clearing to get back on the road. We go back the direction we came from. It'll be another hour before we get back into town, not that I mind.

I watch the road as Michael drives. The headlights are the only thing that illuminate the road. Other than that, the surrounding area is almost completely dark.

We haven't seen any wildlife during our drive, which is why it comes as a shock when a wolf runs out into the road. Michael slams on the brakes and manages to stop just a few inches from the wolf. I use my forearms to brace myself against the dash while my seatbelt locks.

"Jesus Christ," I blurt out.

The wolf stares at the truck for a few moments before I get a good look at it. Michael sees the same thing I do.

"James," he growls before getting out of the truck.

"Michael!" I yell, but he doesn't listen.

The wolf runs off and Michael chases him. I stay in the truck, knowing how James treated me the last time we met. Michael eventually jogs back to the truck and gets in, slamming the door.

"He ran into the woods," he mutters as he takes the car out of park and starts driving again.

The drive home remains silent. Both of us know that James will cause trouble for our relationship. Michael is obviously angry because this is the first time he's seen James since he attacked us. Things are going to start changing very soon and not for the better.