Predator l 23

For the first time in weeks, April left Rosewood. For Nikolaj, it was the first time in years, decades most probably, since he had been brought to Rosewood. It was hard to imagine that he never left Rosewood, not even once. No doubt he felt claustrophobic and suffocated from time to time.

It was a funny feeling. The last time she tried to leave the small town ended up with her car being smashed into nothing but scrap and her arm being bitten by a Lycan.

It was a forty-five minutes long drive to the next town. It wasn't as big as April's hometown, but still bigger than Rosewood. The people, of course, very different. They were human. Well, at least most of them. She figured that it was the lack of green that kept the wolves away.

During the drive she learned a few things about Nikolaj. She already knew that as a kid, he had been an orphan in Russia until Viktor took him in and brought him to Rosewood. However, there were small things she didn't know about him, like that he had never watched TV or that he never had been in a cinema. He didn't experience simple things other people did.

April wasn't as much surprised as she should have been. After all, she had seen the cottage and how he lives there. No electricity- nothing. He was sheltered away from the rest of the world.

She had originally planned to make a simple dinner at home, but since she knew that he wasn't the talkative type of men, she had the idea to leave Rosewood and do something else, like watching a movie in the cinema. And it turned out to be a good idea.

Nikolaj had been staring at a poster of a movie that seemed to have piqued his interest. The last term April would use to describe him would be cute, but the way he had been staring at the poster was simply cute and adorable. It was the same movie they watched after that.

Quite frankly, it wasn't something April would have chosen to watch, but Nikolaj seemed to enjoy it. Watching him watching the movie was far more interesting than the movie itself.

The movie was over and April and Nikolaj were exiting the movies together with all the other people. She stretched her arms and was glad to be on her feet again. After three hours it became painful to sit on the seat, no matter how comfortable the seat may have been.

April threw Nikolaj a sidelong glance. She wondered what he was thinking. It was hard to read his thoughts as his face was like usual void of anything. "How did you like the movie?" She asked curiously and threw some of the popcorn into her mouth.

He turned his head towards her. A slow smile appeared on his lips as he watched her. "Good," he answered curtly. "Thank you."

She grinned. "You're welcome."

Once stepping outside, she breathed in the fresh air. Despite the cold temperatures it was a refreshing contrast to the stuffy and popcorn reeking cinema air.

April walked alongside Nikolaj on the sidewalk, heading towards nowhere in particular. It was surprising how the whole atmosphere was entirely different than in Rosewood. Until know she didn't even realize that there was a constant uneasiness clenching her stomach whenever being in Rosewood.

"And?" April spoke up, gaining Nikolaj's attention. "What do you think of this trip? How does it feel to leave Rosewood?"

Nikolaj didn't respond right away. Instead, he thought carefully about his answer. "Strange," he murmured softly. "But refreshing."

She nodded and smiled at him. April knew this feeling all to well. She had the same feelings when she left her hometown to visit her brothers. She was worried, excited, scared but yet happy at the same time. It was a very odd mixture of different feelings.

"I thought the same when I left my hometown," she answered honestly but frowned. It was funny how suffocated she sometimes felt despite living in a big city. April mostly blamed her parents for that, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized that they weren't entirely to blame. They may have caused her all the trouble and pain, but she was the one who allowed them to do so.

"You think Rosewood is refreshing?" His voice distracted her from the trail of thoughts. He sounded amused.

A grin formed on her lips. "Well," she began but was hesitant to answer. Rosewood isn't exactly refreshing. "Let's say it is refreshing to be able to leave my life in my city behind," she finally answered.

"Isn't that running away from your problems?"

She cringed. That wasn't what she wanted to hear, what she expected to hear. It stung, because he was right- she was running away from her problems. Simple problems she could solve so easily. But her immaturity caused her to feel weak and overwhelmed her that she was quick to pack her things and leave home without taking a moment to think straight. That was one of her flaws.

She bit her lips and stared ahead, to nowhere particular. "Yeah," she agreed in a soft murmur. "That's running away."

Nikolaj kept silent. She didn't expect him to say something, but it surprised her when he suddenly grabbed her hand into his own and squeezed it lightly. His touch almost startled her and so did his skin, it felt so unexpectedly warm against her own. It was surprising how soft his hand was for someone who was involved in brutal underground fights. A reassuring smile grazed his lips when she lifted her gaze to his face. Her heart fluttered. It was weird.

April noticed that he wasn't as tense as he usual was. Compared to his usual self, he almost seemed carefree. He didn't try to keep the blank mask on his face. At least, not the whole time.

They continued to walk aimlessly ahead, until they stopped on a bridge and sat on one of the wooden benches. The day flew by very quickly. April stared ahead to the darkening sky, watching the sunset and being surrounded by the night chill. A mixture of yellow, orange and red color reflected on the silent surface of the water. It was a calming sight- something she didn't feel often these days.

Her eyes darted back to Nikolaj, he also seemed to be at ease for once. Their earlier conversation was still swirling through her mind.

"Did you ever think about running away from your problems?" After the words fell from her lips, she realized that she had asked him a similar question the day at his cottage not too long ago. She had asked him if he ever thought about leaving Rosewood.

"No," he answered and shook his head. "My life in Rosewood is good. Better than in Russia when I was nothing but poor and an orphan."

His features turned somber, his eyes distant. Except of knowing that he was an orphan, his background was nothing but a mystery to April, but there was one thing she was sure of: he was plagued by the shadows of his past.

It made her overthink her own life and decisions. She had two parents - though bothersome at times - yet she never truly appreciated it for having parents and took it for granted.

When she peeked a look at him, she saw him already watching her with an unreadable expression. Seconds of silent passed by where no one made the attempt to speak first.

Nikolaj's blank features eased into a slight smile on his lips. "Are you hungry?" He asked in a soft and gentle tune.

Until then April didn't even realize that except of having breakfast this morning and some popcorn during the movie, she didn't have a proper meal and that she was indeed very hungry.

She nodded. "Yes, very," she answered and stood up and faced him. "I think I saw a diner not too far from here. Let's get something to eat from there, okay?"

He followed move and stood up from the bench as well, his lips curling up slightly. "Okay."

She grinned at him. "Are you hungry as well?" She asked as they walked the way back to the place where she had seen the diner. Their steps were slow, enjoying every minute and taking all the time they had. "Or are you just simply going to tag along for my sake?"

"I'll eat with you," was his reply and they exchanged soft smiles.

They had spent hours together, yet it felt like a brief moment. April enjoyed his company deeply. His silent nature but at the same time the moments he chose to talk with her were pleasant.

The diner was large and reminded her of the diner in Rosewood, only that this one was crowded with many different groups of people. She couldn't even recall seeing that many people at one place at once in Rosewood. Excluding the the bar, of course.

They chose to sit at a table for two, the only table that was available in that moment. Since the diner was quite busy, it took a short while until the waitress approached their table with a smile on her lips.

Once their food was placed in front of them, April couldn't help but glance every now and them at him. Between all the people around them, he looked like a human, blending into the crowd but yet at the same time he was the one who stood out of the crowd the most.

April's hear flitted once again when his pair of soft green eyes met hers for brief second.

Their earlier conversation was still bothering her a bit.

Growing up alone as an orphan must have been awful for him and she could only imagine how lonely a child must feel for not having parents and being forced to grow up as an orphan.

And then, being ripped away from the life of an orphan and thrown into the life of a cage fighter. She wasn't stupid. Of course she had already been thinking once or twice about the fact that all of Rosewoods cage fighters weren't fighting for the sole purpose to entertain. She'd seen the brand mark on his shoulder. The mark Viktor gave him to show his ownership.

It wasn't the life he had chosen. It was the life he was forcefully given.

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Sorry for the long wait. I wasn't home for the last couple of weeks. I wrote half of it weeks ago and this chapter was supposed to be longer but I forgot everything I had planned for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.