TFOS- Chapter 4
The forest was eerily quiet, the usual chorus of crickets and rustling leaves swallowed by an unnatural stillness. The night had deepened, a thick mist curling around the trees like a living thing. Sol stood near the small fire they had built, her arms crossed, eyes scanning the darkness beyond their clearing.
Mia sat a few feet away, rubbing Max’s ears as he sprawled beside her. The adrenaline of their escape had worn off, leaving exhaustion in its place, but sleep refused to come. Too many thoughts, too many emotions tangled in her mind like an overgrown vine.
Sol was the same—Mia could see it in the tension lining her shoulders, the way she stood too still, as if she feared moving would make everything unravel.
“You should sleep,” Mia murmured, breaking the silence.
Sol exhaled sharply, a short laugh escaping her lips. “That’s funny, coming from you.”
Mia huffed, leaning back on her hands. “Fine. We’ll both be sleep-deprived and useless when the Revenants come knocking.”
Sol turned to face her, the firelight casting flickering shadows across her face. “They will come.”
“I know,” Mia said softly. “But not tonight.”
Sol hesitated, then moved closer, sitting beside Mia on the blanket they had laid out. The warmth of her body sent a shiver up Mia’s spine, and she wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or something else entirely. Max stirred but didn’t lift his head, as if sensing they needed the moment.
“You saved me,” Sol said after a long silence, her voice quieter now, as if admitting it was difficult.
Mia glanced at her. “Yeah, well, you keep saving me too, so I’d say we’re even.”
Sol’s lips quirked in something that wasn’t quite a smile but wasn’t far from one either. “Still. You didn’t have to come after me.”
Mia’s chest tightened. “Of course I did.” She hesitated, choosing her words carefully. “I wasn’t going to let them take you.”
Sol turned slightly, her eyes searching Mia’s face. The firelight danced in her dark irises, making them look softer somehow, less guarded. “You don’t even know what you’ve gotten yourself into.”
Mia smirked. “Nope. But that’s never stopped me before.”
Sol huffed a laugh, shaking her head. “You’re impossible.”
Mia grinned. “And yet, here we are.”
Another stretch of quiet fell between them, but this one was different—charged, expectant. Mia could feel the weight of Sol’s gaze lingering on her, feel the slight shift in the air between them. The realization hit her like a sudden drop: she cared about Sol, more than just as a friend, more than just as an ally. And she wasn’t sure when that had happened, only that it had.
Sol looked away first, but not before Mia caught the flicker of something uncertain in her expression. “We should get some rest,” Sol murmured, her voice a little unsteady.
Mia nodded, though sleep felt further away than ever. “Yeah.”
But neither of them moved.
Instead, they sat there, side by side, the fire crackling softly between them, the night stretching endlessly around them. For now, that was enough.
Then, Max let out a soft huff, his ears twitching as if he had caught something they hadn’t. Mia scratched behind his ears absently. “You okay, boy?”
Sol watched Max carefully, her expression shifting into something thoughtful. “You know, it’s strange,” she murmured. “Max knew where to find me. It wasn’t just luck.”
Mia frowned. “He’s always been smart, but you’re saying… what? That he sensed something more?”
Sol reached over, running her fingers through Max’s thick fur. “It’s more than that. The frisbee, the game… it might mean something.”
Mia blinked. “It’s just a game.”
“Is it?” Sol countered. “Think about it. The frisbee activated when you needed it most. Max responded to it like he understood. And when we were escaping, he led you straight to me. That’s not normal.”
Mia chewed her lip, glancing at Max, who stared up at her with bright, intelligent eyes. He thumped his tail once, watching them both with an intensity that made her shiver. “You think… Max knows something?”
Sol exhaled, leaning back against the log. “I think Max might be part of this more than we realized.”
Silence fell between them again, but this time it was heavy with possibility. The frisbee. Max. The strange hums. It was all connected.
Mia looked at Max, her heart pounding. “Guess we better start listening to him, then.”
