Muse’s POV:
“Where exactly are you taking me to?” I asked in the car.
Arden’s eyes never left the road.
She was so focused on driving.
Her knuckles tight around the steering wheel.
“Arden, are you okay?” I asked softly.
She slowly shook her head.
“Arden, park the car” I said quickly.
She parked the car by the road side.
I turned towards her immediately.
She was sweating profusely in the car.
Her face white from fear.
What was she afraid of?.
“What’s the matter?” I asked worriedly.
“I. . . This was. . . This was the road I ” she stuttered.
“It’s okay baby, take a deep breath for me” I said as I patted her shoulder lightly.
She breathed in sharply.
“Now exhale” I continued.
Arden breathed out softly.
She looked calmer now.
“Can you tell me what happened?” I asked again.
“This was the road” she whispered.
“What road?” I asked in confusion.
“The road where I crashed into you” she replied.
My eyes widened in realization.
She was relieving the moment all over again.
My heart ached at the thought.
I don’t want her to bear so much pain because of me.
” It’s okay now.
.
.
I’m here , aren’t i” I said to her softly.
She stared at me with a small smile.
“Yes, you’re here” She replied as she tightly held my hand.
I tightened my hold on hers.
“Let’s go ” she said as she started the car.
We quickly continued on our journey.
Arden’s right hand never left mine as she drove.
Instead, it tightened.
I kept on drawing little figures on her hand to take her mind off the incident.
It seemed to be working slightly.
After a while, we drove into a private property.
She quickly took me in to the property.
It was a beach .
Does Arden own a beach?.
The evening sun illuminated on the water, giving it a golden glow.
The sand looked so enchanting from afar.
The waves were moving slowly with the breeze.
The scene left Muse starstruck.
“Woah” she said softly.
She slowly parked and helped me into my wheelchair.
“Do you want to go closer?” She asked softly.
“Yes!” I replied excitedly.
Arden smiled at my enthusiasm.
She slowly drove me closer to the beautiful scenery.
“I wish I had a camera right now ” I said softly.
“Why?” Arden asked.
“So that I could capture this beautiful moment with you” I replied.
Arden smiled softly.
“Wait here, I’ll be right back” she said to me.
I nodded in reply and watched as she headed back to the car.
She took out a basket and a blanket.
“What’s all this?” I asked as soon as she came closer.
“Well. . I wanted to have a nice time with you” she replied.
” And I thought what better way to have it, if not to have a nice dinner with you” She continued with a smile.
I smiled so widely at her words.
Gosh.
.
.this woman was amazing.
“You actually thought about that?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Well yes and no” she replied.
I stared at her in confusion.
“I went online to know what young girls your age like and this was the first idea” she replied sheepishly.
“Young girls my age huh?” I teased.
“Oh please, don’t start” Arden said as she spread out the blanket on the sand.
She slowly helped me on the blanket and quickly brought out the dishes.
“I picked a few dishes for you, I hope you don’t mind” she said softly.
“Of course baby, that’s okay” I replied with a smile.
Arden paused in shock.
My eyes widened as soon as I realized my words.
“I’m sorry ” I said quickly.
“It’s okay darling ” she replied with a small smile.
I sighed in relief.
I didn’t want her avoiding me because of a mistake.
But I don’t think I wanted it to be a mistake though.
She spread out the dishes on the blanket.
“Bon appetit Mon Cheri ” she said with a weird accent which made me laugh.
“Bon appetit monsieur ” I replied with a quirky bow.
Arden smiled widely.
“You’re such a nerd” she said to me .
“That I am” I replied.
We both settled into a comfortable silence as we ate.
I silently admired the view as I enjoyed my food.
I enjoyed the breeze as it slowly brushed my cheeks.
I enjoyed the feeling of peace I had right now.
I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t think I was ready to leave yet.
While I was admiring the view, Arden suddenly came close to my face.
I froze as she brushed a piece of my hair behind my ear. This story is hosted at g.com.
“Sorry, it was distracting me” she replied with a smile.
“It’s okay” I replied .
“How did you come to know this place?” I asked.
“Well. . when I came newly to New York City, the first place I visited was a park” she said softly, her eyes were filled with melancholy at the memory.
“I went to a park and sat down to clear my head and then this beautiful girl came running towards me, she wanted to know me” she continued.
“I laughed for the first time since I was thrown out because of her and then her parents came looking for her”.
“I watched as she played with her parents, how she looked so happy at that moment and my heart stung” .
“Why?” I asked softly.
Arden laughed softly.
Tears were threatening to fall down from her eyes.
“I never really had any good relationship with my parents, so seeing someone else have that kind of broke me I guess” she replied.
“Is that why you want to have children so badly?” I asked softly.
Arden nodded slowly.
“I wanted to have a child because I want to prove my family wrong but because I also wanted to have someone like that little girl in my life” she said to me.
Her eyes red.
“I wanted someone who I could go pick up from school and he or she would tell me how their day went”.
“I wanted to have something as trivial as having a normal life because my life had never been normal “.
“But I was willing to give it to someone else. . . I was willing to to shower them with so much love” Arden said softly.
Her voice cracking.
This woman.
.
How could someone so full of love be treated so badly by the world.
I slowly took her cheeks into my palms.
“You’re going to be a mother Arden and I promise you that you’re going to be an amazing mother” I said as I looked into her eyes.
Her eyes were filled with pain.
So much pain.
And insecurity.
I hated that.
I hated it so much.
“I don’t think there’s any hope for me anymore ” she said deprecatingly.
“Of course there is” I replied.
“I’m 35 Muse, I’m not exactly that young” she replied amusedly.
But I took her words seriously.
” You’re going to be a mother Arden and I’m going to make sure of it, okay” I said to her seriously.
Arden stared at me for a while before nodding slowly.
“Hmm, I’ll believe you” she said with trust.
Arden’s voice was light, but I knew she was choosing to trust me.
Trust wasn’t something that came easily to her.
Yet somehow, she had placed it in my hands.
The realization felt heavier than I expected.
Because for the first time, I understood something.
Arden wasn’t just protecting me anymore.
Somewhere along the way, she had started leaning on me too.
Her eyes shining with renewed determination.
“That’s the spirit” I cheered.
Arden laughed at my antics.
I wanted to hear her laugh more.
And I was willing to do anything to make sure of it.
Even if it was at my own expense.