Re: The woods
Child logic was always the most difficult to argue with, and since the last thing Luke wanted was to upset the little girl, or be drawn into an argument with a kid, he merely nodded. "It's okay," he reassured her, even as he wondered why she and her mother didn't go out much. Then again, if her father was who he thought it was, and his profession was the same, it made sense. But would he really be willing to put not only Wren, but innocent children at risk too? "My friend knows to be careful," he added, trying to shake off thoughts of Wren being with someone else, "and he knows how to take care of himself." It amazed him, really, that Stella was so trusting, in such sharp contrast to the way Gus was. But her upbringing hadn't been like his, that much was obvious, and maybe that made all the difference. Not that her willingness to put her faith in strangers was a good thing-- Gus was the extreme, but being a little more wary wouldn't hurt. Fearlessness was all well and good until it got you into trouble; he'd learned that lesson as a teenager, and the world was even more dangerous for a child.
He smiled, though, when she informed him just how brave she was, and despite her inability to pronounce most words correctly, it was clear she was extremely intelligent for her age. Only four years old, and he couldn't imagine Gus ever being this talkative, not unless it was with someone he trusted; definitely not someone he'd met all of five minutes ago. "Being responsible is important," he agreed. "You seem pretty responsible already. Your parents must be really proud." And there he went again. God, why couldn't he just shut up?
Panic began to set in when Stella pouted and wailed, and he cursed silently as she rounded the corner into the living room. Fuck. Fuck. The last thing he needed was for her to throw a fit when he tried to leave, but he'd just walked into a stranger's house like some sort of creep, and like hell was he sticking around for not-Wren to show up-- or, worse, their father. That would turn ugly fast. "Stella," he whispered urgently, careful to avoid tripping over Rhett as he crawled after his sister, "a tea party sounds really nice, it does, but I can't--"
And then he froze.
He didn't even see the dog crate, or feel the little boy tug on his shoelaces. No, his attention was firmly fixed on the sleeping woman on the couch, achingly familiar, and Luke suddenly found it hard to breathe as he took in her pregnant belly, the engagement ring on her finger, and the wedding band behind it. Oh, god, he needed to get out of here, and he needed to get out now, before he completely lost it in front of a couple of kids. "I-- I have to go--" he began, and he managed to take one step back before the phone rang, and he nearly dropped the puppy in surprise.
All logical forms of action, like oh, say, running, completely vanished from his mind. He was rooted to the spot, unable to move as the woman (not Wren, not Wren, she wasn't real) unthinkingly answered the phone, and now he knew. Now he knew how Wren had felt, seeing his older self, someone who didn't know her, just like this woman wouldn't know him, wouldn't feel anything for him. And even though he'd known, that one word, Silver, cut through him like a knife, and the world around him was falling apart, his insides were being torn to shreds, and god, then she looked at him.
While Stella begged her mother not to tell daddy, Luke tried to find words, any words, to explain himself. "I'm sorry," he blurted out, for lack of anything better to say. "I just-- your dog ran out onto the street, and a car almost hit her, and then your daughter showed up, and-- the guy in the car, he told me where your house was, because she didn't know, and I couldn't just leave her out there alone." Oh, he was babbling, that much was obvious, and he tried to take a step back, but he couldn't, not with Rhett chewing on his shoelaces. "I was just bringing her and the dog back, that's all. The door was open, and-- I'll go," he added desperately, holding out the dog and glancing down at the little boy at his feet. "I'll go. I'm sorry."