A thousand enemies outside the house are better than one within.

- Arab proverb

Sky

When I return home, Yellow Leaves is alone. Burns has gone to explore the city on his own.
I can’t help but smile. Always the Explorer.
“How did it go?” Yellow leaves asks. She’s making tea and is just pulling a fresh tray of cookies out of the oven. The children will be back from school soon.
“It went well. They are all very happy for me.” 
“We are happy for you too. You make a good couple. I told you it would be a good idea to go find him, didn’t I?” She winks at me.
I blush. “Yes Yellow Leaves. You were right, as always.”
“Mom! We’re home!” 
Yellow Leaves turns and smiles at the two boys. “Welcome back.” 
"Yum cookies,” Bliss sniffs.
Quick is the oldest of the two. He’s almost twelve now. They named him Quick, because he was born so fast. 
Bliss came two years later and both Yellow Leaves and Reads the Stars were so happy with a second child that they gave him a name that would express their feelings.
“If you put your book bag away you can have some,” Yellow Leaves says lovingly, “but make sure they’re cooled enough. I wouldn’t want you to burn yourself.” 
“Yes mom,” both Bliss and Quick chime.
I smile at the two. They don’t know how lucky they are. If they had been born a few years earlier, they would have grown up in a world filled with cruelty and pollution.
Life is so much better now.

‘No it’s not.’

It’s a faint whisper in my mind and I gasp surprised. It’s the first time she has actually spoken up. If I had any doubts before, they are gone now.
“Is something the matter, Sky?” Quick looks at me with concerned eyes.
I force a smile and ruffle his hair. “No of course not silly I’m just eager to try the cookies.”
He is easily deceived, but I bite my lip guiltily. It’s the fist outright lie I’ve ever told.
“You need to blow at ‘em Sky,” Bliss says, “see? Like this.”
He picks up a cookie and blows at it vividly before taking a bite. “Ow hot!” he complains and quickly chows down his mouthful.
Yellow Leaves shakes her head. “You should wait a bit longer, Bliss.” She hands him a glass of milk. “Here you go, it will take away the burn.”
I watch as he eagerly downs the drink.
“Can I go play with Hazel?” Quick asks his mother.
Hazel is the girl next door. She’s eleven.
“Of course honey. Take a few cookies with you.” She grabs a plastic container and puts a handful of cookies inside. “There now. Make sure you’re on time for dinner.” 
“Of course,”  Quick smiles and he runs out the door, almost colliding with Burns who has just entered.
“Sorry!” Quick calls while running down the front lane.
“Oh my!” Yellow Leaves says startled, “are you alright? That’s not how I raised him to be.” 
"It’s alright,”  Burns laughs, “he’s young. He didn’t do it on purpose.” He smiles at Yellow Leaves. “And he apologized.”
“Some apology,” Yellow Leaves sighs.
Burns chuckles and I find myself laughing with him. His eyes settle on me and they turn soft.
“Come Bliss,” Yellow Leaves takes the boy’s hand, “why don’t we finish the cookies in the living room?” She winks at me and leads her son out of the kitchen so we can be alone.
“How was the city?” I ask breathless.
“It was very nice,” Burns says, “there’s so much to see. Oh, I brought you something.”
“A present? For me?” 
Burns feels around in his pocket and takes out a black rectangular box. “I hope you like it,” he says.
I take out the silver necklace with the musical note. It’s really pretty. “Thank you,” I say stunned, “it’s so pretty.” I bite my lip. “Could you… could you put it on for me?” A heated blush finds my face again.
“Of course,” Burns says softly and he moves over to take the jewelry from me.
When his fingers brush my neck, my heart stutters briefly. I hold my breath, but nothing else happens. My head is quiet again.
Burns walks back around me and smiles. “It looks pretty on you.”
My hand moves to the necklace and fumble with it. “Thank you. I’m… I’m gonna go see.” 
I hurry out of the kitchen and towards the bathroom mirror. I had to get away. 
There’s a flutter in my stomach.

I stare at my reflexion. The pendant is just below my collar bone. My fingers stroke the little silver musical note. No one has given me anything like that before. I know to Emma it’s nothing new. She was used to getting presents. But it’s a first for me, to get something so personal.

A knock on the door makes me look up. Yellow Leaves enters the bathroom. “Are you alright, Sky? I saw you walk in here. You’ve been her quite a while.”
“I’m fine,” I mumble. A shy smile tugs at my lips. Yellow Leaves eyes me curiously. “What is it?”
I show her the necklace and bite my lip. “Burns gave me this.”
Yellow Leaves reaches out to have a better look. “It’s pretty,” she says and she smiles. “He must really like you. “
I look up surprised “You really think so?”
“Men don’t give a girl gifts without reason, Sky.”
I bite my lip. I want it to be true. I really like Burns. 
“You shouldn’t doubt yourself Sky,” Yellow Leaves hugs me, “you’re a pretty girl. And so nice. How can he not like you?” She smiles at me. “Go to him. He’ll wonder what’s taking you so long.” 
I let out a nervous laugh. “Thank you Yellow Leaves.” I smile and take a deep breath before going to look for Burns. 

I find him in the living room, building a tower out of cookies with Bliss. He looks up and smiles when he sees me. “And?” he asks, “do you like it?”
“Yes,” I breathe and I sit down next to him. Our knees touch and I feel a blush coming up. I’m suddenly feeling awkward. He’s staring at me, searching for something.
A giggle interrupts us. Bliss is leaning on the table, his head on his hands, staring at us amused.  I feel my face burn and I’m afraid to look at Burns right now. This is so embarrassing.
“Are you two gonna kiss?” Bliss asks. He eyes us curiously.
A strange sound comes out of my throat and I clasp a hand over my mouth.
“Bliss!” Yellow Leaves appears in the doorway and scolds her son, “you can’t ask questions like that!”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s a very personal question. You’ll understand when you’re older.” She looks at my heated face and then glances at Burns. A smile spreads across her face. She holds out her hand. “Come Bliss, you can help me with dinner.”
The boy nods and rushes out of the room, already forgetting about the situation.
And we’re alone again.
I dare a glance at Burns and find him looking at me. He seems unsure about something. It’s the first time I’ve seen him upset.
But there’s a softness in his eyes too.
He leans closer and my heart starts to pound.
Like every time I’m with Burns, my emotions seem not completely my own. I’m not sure what to make of it.
It’s confusing.
And frightening.
It seems to affect him too. I can already feel his breath on my lips and it sends a pleasant tingle through my body.
But then he hesitates.
He pulls back and gives me an apologetic smile. 
I see a mix of emotion flash over his face.

Confusion.

Frustration.

Hesitation.

Like he’s searching for something.
It makes me feel rejected.
Burns clears his throat. “I… eh… I’ll go see if Yellow Leaves needs help.” He pushes away from the table and disappears towards the kitchen.
I stare at the table. My entire body feels numb.
I feel like crying.

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A/N Things jsut got mro complicated.... 
What do you think of the song I placed with this? I love this song. Couldn't find a nice video though, but yeah...