34. Restless

Once the jacket is off you begin rolling the sleeves up on your flannel. You wonder if Gage thought you were actually going to strip in front of him. The cool water feels nice on your forearms as you wash a days worth of dirt off them. When you're done you lean forward so you can splash water on your face. You gasp when the cold liquid touches your skin. You tilt your head to the side and see Gage has walked off a bit, seemingly distracted. Shrugging, you turn back, and pour a cupped hand full of water over your bent head. You close your eyes as it gently trickles down your neck and sigh contentedly. You feel slightly better when you're done and put your hands behind you and sit back resting your weight on them. Looking up you're able to see the first large patch of sky you've seen since you left Jack's shed. It's slightly past midday and the bright rays gently warm the patches of skin they touch. Even though you haven't had to walk it feels nice to rest for a moment. You're still enjoying the quiet moment when Gage returns to your side, you know that means it's time to go.

You don't stop again until late into the night. It's thankfully not quite as dark this time but you still feel anxious while Gage gathers some wood for a fire. You notice he doesn't use the matches this time and instead uses a fire plow method. You shiver as you wait for the friction of the sticks to create enough heat to start the fire and pull Gage's jacket closer around you. It's only going to be getting colder as fall progresses and you begin to worry about the fact that you only have one jacket between you. Gage doesn't seem to mind being without it for now but that can't last forever. When the kindling finally sparks you see drops of sweat run down Gage's forehead as he gently blows on the small flame. In a few moments the fire roars to life and he sits back, wiping his arm across his forehead. His curly bangs fall back down and cover his eyes, you frown when you catch yourself wanting to push them away.

You settle down next to the fire and try not to look at Gage while he sets the tent up. He comes back when he's done and takes a seat next to you. You scoot over slightly when his knee bumps against yours. "Will you tell me where we're going now?" You're voice is barely above a whisper. You've pulled your legs up to your chest and are resting your chin on your knees looking ahead at the fire. You wrap your arms around your calves and pull your knees closer to your body, waiting for his response. You glance over and see Gage slightly tilt his chin upwards while look down at you with his usual neutral expression. The only emotions you've really seen from him have been a mix of anger and contempt if not straight annoyance. Despite his cold attitude towards you don't get the feeling that he necessarily dislikes you. He at least seems to care enough to make sure you stay warm and fed. After a moment you turn your head back towards the fire and sigh. You're beginning to grow weary of how he won't talk to you for long stretches of time.

More time passes by silently and you sigh audibly before turning to look at him again. He's leaned back against a tree, arms crossed over his chest, and his dark eyes look over at you. You use your hands to help scout yourself backwards so you can lean against the tree with him, taking care not to sit too close. Gage still doesn't seem to trust you very much around his things, so he reaches over to grab some food out of the backpack for the two of you. As he leans over to open the bag the bottom of his shirt rides up exposing part of his back. You're surprised to see a thick scar running down the side of his back. It's on the side you hadn't been able to see when you caught him changing by the fire. He freezes when he feels your fingers gently trace down the length of the scar and follow it to where it stops along his rib cage. "Bear?" you ask, quickly pulling your hand away once you realize what you're doing. He turns to face you and his face betrays a subtle look of surprise at your question. "How did you know?"

You haven't heard his voice since you stopped by the stream, it sounds a little bit softer now. You offer him a small shrug but don't reply, giving him a taste of his own medicine. This seems to amuse him and you see a coy smile flicker across his face before he hands you some food. When you're done eating Gage helps you to the tent and tells you to get some rest. You wake up a few hours later to the sounds of the tent unzipping. You sit up quickly and pull the sleeping bag up to your chest as if it will somehow protect you. When the tent flaps open you see Gage's dark outline and he tells you it's time to get up. It's still dark outside and you groan as you sit up straighter, noticing how tight your back has become. You wait for him to offer you a hand to get up but are surprised when he instead takes a step inside the tent.