It had been a long, crazy whirlwind of a week for Emery Elwood.

Her and Ty had been nearly inseparable all week. The redhead and brunette spent most of their evenings together, hanging out and doing homework. Ty had cooked again a few other times, and Emery stuffed her face with his food any chance she could get. It had become a common occurrence for the two to hang out in his dorm, getting to the point where Emery felt comfortable and at home when it wasn’t her own dorm. She’d never grown this attached to someone so quickly; it was as if their relationship had been put on overdrive from spending so much time together.

Then there was the romance.

Some of their outings could’ve been considered dates, but Emery never asked and Ty never specified. The two had gotten used to being around each other, and at certain times it could’ve been considered snuggling. They had held hands a time or two, though she tended to shy away from it if he tried. And then there was the kissing. They’d shared multiple kisses throughout their week together, something that Emery honestly had never planned on, but it happened regardless and she wasn’t really complaining. Part of her liked the attention he gave to her, but she would never admit this aloud.

As of this moment, she wasn’t sure where they stood. Were they dating? Everything was a new experience for her, and Ty was never clear on where they stood to begin with. They never used the words “date”, “boyfriend” or “girlfriend”, so she couldn’t be sure. All she knew was they were definitely friends at this point. Good friends. That occasionally kissed each other.

Her face blushed as she shook her head, ridding of any thoughts she had. Time to focus!

She was running partially late. Ty had invited the second year on a hike for the weekend, and being the way she was, she felt no choice but to agree. Not that she wasn’t looking forward to it. In fact, Emery had never been on an official hike before. During her childhood, she’d gone exploring in the woods as a kid, but never over long trails or for periods of time – her mother would worry too much if she was gone long.

Taking a deep breath, she zipped up her bag and slung it over her shoulder, rushing out of her dorm and down the hall. Emery assumed Ty was already waiting for her at the bus station he asked her to meet at, thankful it wasn’t far from their school. Eventually her racing feet caught sight of the station, and she squinted her eyes against the glaring sun to spot a familiar face waiting for her. Waving, she rushed over and stopped by Ty’s side, letting out a few huffs of exhaustion from running the whole way there. “Sorry I’m late,” she breathed, sighing. “I lost track of time again!”

He didn’t seem to mind, being patient as ever and asking how she was just as the bus pulled up beside them. “I’m fine. Ready to take my first hike!” she exclaimed, pumping a fist in the air.

She followed Ty on the bus and took a seat beside him, glancing around to notice there were only a few other people situated on the vehicle. Where was everyone? It was midday on a weekend – surely there were other people that needed a ride on the bus. Emery shrugged at the thought, turning her head to face Ty with an apologetic expression on her face. “Sorry again for making you wait. So how far is this place?” She was curious as to how long the bus ride would be. Hopefully not long – she could feel a spring underneath her seat pushing against her thigh, causing her to wince in discomfort. Clearly the bus wasn’t in good shape.

Ty waved off both apologies, and Emery couldn’t help but still feel guilty over them. He was too understanding, almost painfully so. Shouldn’t he be getting upset with her for making him wait? Her mother certainly would if she were still around.

He proceeded to tell her their destination wasn’t far, and she nodded her head in reply, turning to face the front of the bus. From her seat, she could see clearly through the front window of the bus if she tilted her head just slightly, moving the back of the next seat from her view. She had done just that, staring off into space, wondering about their destination when she felt something touch her hand. Looking down in her lap, she watched as he slowly intertwined their fingers together, keeping his view looking outside the window while holding her hand tightly. His skin felt warm against hers, and she felt the familiar feeling of a blush slowly creeping across her features. It wasn’t as if the two hadn’t held hands before, but she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed, especially since they were out in public. Anyone could look over and see their display of affection.

Of course, no one did. Everyone on the bus was off in their own world, not caring at all that two teenagers were holding hands in public. She felt her chest rise as she took in a deep breath before slowly releasing it, trying to calm her racing heartbeat. She left her hand as it was, gripped strongly by the boy who she had a complicated relationship with. Emery wasn’t sure where they stood in terms of a relationship at that point, and didn’t want to ruin things by asking.

Eventually the bus reached a stopping point, and Ty stood up to signal this was their departure. Emery immediately stood up as well in response, following him off the bus and taking a look around. There were a lot of trees and wildlife around the two, and she assumed they were in a park before Ty even confirmed it with his words. Her ears did perk up, however, when she heard he’d be taking her to a special spot. She didn’t like not knowing where they were going, puffing her cheeks out childishly in response. Her thoughts were interrupted when he reached out and took her hand once again, causing a new blush to rise to her cheeks. Because he started to walk while holding her hand, she had no choice but to follow beside him, looking everywhere but at his face.

“So shall we get to hiking?”

She vaguely heard his words and numbly nodded her head, keeping her gaze focused ahead on her. “Y-yeah,” Emery mumbled back, not sounding very confident. Deciding to keep the conversation going so she could focus on something beside their hands, she tilted her head before asking, “So how long is this trail? Have you gone on hikes before? Did you have trails like this back in Japan?” She realized she was rambling and bombarding him with questions, shutting her mouth after the third one. She really needed to work on getting over her embarrassment. It lead her to have some awkward encounters.

Emery brushed aside her red bangs with her free hand, feeling the cool breeze blow them out of place. It really was a nice day out. The sun was warm and bright, feeling nice against her exposed skin. She’d decided to wear a white tank top and dark shorts, her hiking outfit going well with her black sneakers. This was the first time she’d been hiking, and she assumed she should wear a summer outfit for the long walking they’d do. Besides, the weather was beautiful, and it would be a shame to cover up on a day like this. She smiled innocently at the thought.

Ty went ahead and answered her first two questions, and she nodded her head in response. “So you’ve already been on this trail. That’s good,” she commented, tilting her head in thought. “I wouldn’t want to get lost.” That was always a fear of hers in the back of her mind: getting lost. It had happened once when she was younger, getting lost in the middle of the woods by her house. She’d wandered off as a child in search for adventure, and instead all she found was misery and panic. It took her mother hours to find her, only finally able to by the sound of Emery’s crying. Of course she wouldn’t have as dramatic of a reaction now that she’s older, but it would still cause her to panic.

Ty went on to answer her third question, explaining his previous life in the country with his grandfather. Emery’s eyes softened as she listened quietly, only speaking once he was finished with his tale. “It sounds like the country side of Japan is nice.” Truth be told, she’d never been out in the country before. She visited a farm once before, when she was younger, but that was the closest she’d been. Emery liked to think it was nicer out in the country – quieter, more peaceful. It would make sense to be calmer than the busy life of the city she once lived in.

“Hey so um, I’ve noticed something has been bothering you over the past couple days now. Is it something you wanted to talk about.”

Her ears perked up at his question, face instantly flushed. So he had noticed. She shouldn’t have been surprised – she didn’t have the best poker face. Biting her lip, she debated on whether or not to say anything. Truth be told, she was internally screaming at herself to finally ask him, but she was concerned about ruining things. Everything had been so perfect up to this point. The last thing she wanted to do was make him upset.

Taking a deep breath, she slowly exhaled the air and decided to gather the bits of her courage. She would ask him.

Nodding at this, she drifted her eyes to meet his brown ones. “There is something that’s been bothering me.” She swallowed the lump in her throat before continuing. “I…well…I’m not sure how to put it. I’ve never been in a situation like this before…” Emery trailed off, darting her eyes away. She was beginning to lose her confidence. “Is this…a date? Are we…dating?” She cringed at her words, feeling painfully awkward and exposed. Her hand drifted up to cover part of her red cheek, trying to hide the blush forming. “I don’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable. You don’t have to answer that. It’s just…something I’ve been wondering for the past few days.”

Emery felt her heart beating out of her chest. She was definitely outside her comfort zone. To be fair, she’d never been put in this type of situation before. Everything was new to her. The closest she’d ever come to a boyfriend was the last boy that had asked her out, and she responded in the worst way possible: by running away. That was her go-to if things got out of hand or she didn’t know how to handle a situation. It had been like that since she was little. If it weren’t for her getting locked away in her closet so often, she would’ve ran away from home sooner. But she loved her mother too much to do that to her old heart.

Suddenly, toward the end of her various questions, she felt Ty reach out and grab her cheeks. Her brows furrowed in response, confused, opening her mouth to question him further on his actions when he cut her trail of thoughts by kissing her.

Her eyes widened a touch, surprised, before slowly closing and leaning into him. He held her there like that for a solid minute, not letting her go – not that she wanted to go anywhere. When he finally released her lips, she let out a breath of air and felt the familiar spread of heat across her cheeks. It was too easy for him to make her blush. She hated not feeling in control, but at the same time felt thrilled by it. It was a confusing feeling, and at times like these she wasn’t sure what to make of it.

“Does that answer your question,” he laughed, and she felt her blush flare up further as his ease. How could he be so casual about this? Was he used to dating girls? Did he have more experience than her? Not that that took much, seeing as how she had none to begin with.

He flicked her forehead, and Emery couldn’t help but smile. Ty seemed to do that lovingly, so she didn’t take it as him wanting to inflict pain onto her. He proceeded to tell her that she was his girlfriend, and her blush grew redder by the minute as his confession. She placed a hand up to her hot cheek, hoping he wouldn’t notice. But he turned his attention away, grabbing her hand carefully and pulling her along once more, forcing her to follow his footsteps. She let herself be dragged along, glad he wasn’t looking at her reddened face.

“O-oh. Good to know, then,” she whispered, unsure whether or not he heard her soft words. Welp, that cleared things up. Looks like she had herself a boyfriend. Emery bit her lip, trying to stop the smile from spreading across her features. Her heart skipped a beat, and she honestly wasn’t sure if it was from nerves or from happiness. Taking a deep breath, she slowly exhaled and decided to take note of their surroundings, realizing they’d gone further into the park and down the hiking trail. No one else was around, which faintly surprised her.

“So,” she started, deciding to change the subject. “Where are you taking me to, exactly?” Emery was grateful for her choice of clothing at the time. It was midday by this point, and with the sun high in the sky the heat from the trail was gradually beginning to take force. She could feel a drop of sweat perspire from her forehead and quickly wiped it with her free hand, glancing Ty’s way and waiting for his answer.

A breeze fluttered through Emery’s hair, and she reached a hand up to make sure her long pigtails were still in place. It really was a beautiful day out, with the sun’s warm rays beaming against her smooth face. She let her garnet eyes blink a few times, taking in the beauty of the nature around her. It wasn’t often she got to travel around outside like this, and the sun felt nice against her exposed skin. She let out a slow, relaxed breath of air, feeling the wind brush by her cheeks and tickle her nose. Scrunching her face, the ticklish feeling didn’t leave until she was forced to let out a small sneeze, quickly apologizing immediately afterwards.

The two walked hand in hand with a comforting silence lingering between them, Emery taking faint note of the feeling of Ty’s fingers tightly intertwined with her own. He felt warm, or perhaps that was simply her feeling cool comparatively due to the constant wind blowing past her. Either way, she gradually felt her nerves relax the deeper they went into the woods, feeling comforted by the isolation. At least there wasn’t anyone around to see them holding hands. It wasn’t as if she was ashamed, but the public display of affection wasn’t something she was used to.

He suddenly spoke up and she turned her head in his direction, listening attentively. Ty was going on about her not being shy around him, causing her eyes to drift down in embarrassment. Of course he noticed – who wouldn’t realize her timid nature? “I’m sorry,” she murmured, keeping her eyes cast down toward the trail. “To be honest…” she trailed off for a moment, hesitating, before choosing to continue on. “I’m nervous about messing things up. I can’t not try to make someone pleased. It’s just…who I am. If there’s anything my mother taught me, it’s that the feelings of others always come before your own.”

She let her own words slowly sink in as Ty proceeded to tell her their destination was a secret. Her cheeks puffed out once more in a joking frustration, but she said nothing more. Emery was sure he was taking her somewhere nice, perhaps a scenic spot in the park. She couldn’t be fully sure, but either way she packed her bag for whatever the occasion might’ve been. Sunscreen. Visor. Jacket in case it got cold. She even packed a swimsuit for the hell of it, but that was just her going above and beyond like she normally did. Ty would probably laugh if he saw all the contents in her bag, and she felt herself blushing once more at the thought.