• Chapter Ten: Play Time’s over
    “Oh my gosh where have you two been! Dads furious and moms been worried sick! Kino, what happened to your shirt?” Shadowpaw was the first to welcome Kino and Lola back. Emi called from the healer’s hut, unable to leave.
    “Are they back yet? I could use some help in here. Shadowpaw! Answer me!” Emi was not happy to know that they were back. Jack was in the hut, on a bed once again, being treated for a gash in his arm.
    “What happened here Emi? Did the pathetic excuse for life finally decide he wasn’t worth it or did he just trip again in that forest he calls a play ground?” Kino walked in, Lola on his back. She fell asleep again just after they kissed. Emi started looking at Lola, as if she had gotten hurt. “She just fell asleep again, she’s fine. Although I think she might be under a bit of stress, so don’t wake her.” Kino set her down on a bed and then sat on the end. Everyone, even Jack, turned to look at them. “What?”
    “Again? What happened?” Shadowpaw was the one with the guts to ask. Kino glanced over at Lola, sound asleep. Her chest slowly raising with each deep breath and then moving back to its original place only to continue the pattern. It put a big smile on Kino. “Well?”
    “She fell asleep, then woke up around dawn. She woke up and… and… well we fell … and then she fell asleep.”
    “I have a feeling your not telling us the whole story.” Emi didn’t buy his story, even though it was kind of true.
    “Yah, I bet I know what he’s leaving out. Its probably something really embarrassing…”
    “Shut up Jacky.”
    “It’s Jack!” Jack wasn’t buying it either. He and Kino were yelling at each by now, as they usually do. Unfortunately, this woke Lola up.
    “Why are you two yelling? Jack! What happened?” Lola was now completely preoccupied with Jacks injury to try and stop the fight.
    “It’s nothing really, just a small gash; it’s long but it’s not deep. He should be fine. In the mean time, what happened to you Lola?” Shadowpaw was now checking for bruises and ticks and any other health concerns. “You seem to be fine, but I can’t figure out the reason for your being tired. It must be stress. Kino, you were right.”
    “Wait Kino was right? About what?”
    “He said that you were probably exulted from stress. He was right. Now back to an earlier conversation. Lola, what happened?” Shadowpaw was now sitting on the side of Lola’s bed.
    “Oh well that’s easy. First I went off to my secret hiding place, which is where he found me. I fell asleep, and then I woke up. He was already on his way back to the village with me on his back. We started talking, I made us fall and then…” Lola trailed off, just now remembering it herself. Her face was red, but no one could see it because she was hiding her face in the pillow.
    “What happened?” Shadowpaw began to prompt her.
    “Its nothing,” Lola was mumbling through the pillow, her face still scarlet red. “It’s nothing at all.”
    “Um, Lola, are you okay?” Emi started to walk over to her; Lola whispered something in her ear. Emi suddenly sprang up, walking towards the door. “Jack, come with me. You need some fresh air, I’m dress your wound out here; Kino, can you come with us?” Kino gave her a grunting sound standing up and leaving anyway. “You’re save now Lola.” Emi winked at her, and then slowly began to walk out towards the boys.
    “Promise you won’t get mad or scowl at me or anything?” Lola was looking up now at Shadowpaw, who nodded once and moved a little closer. As if she needed to hear better. “Okay well, the thing is is that, well I accidentally made us fall, I was looking at his… his uh…” Shadowpaw began to prompt her with her hands. “Well you see apparently the night before, I had cried into his shirt before I fell asleep and so he… he wasn’t wearing his… his uh…”
    “His shirt, okay so you were looking at… his chest right?” Lola nodded; Shadowpaw seemed unmoved by this new piece of knowledge. “Continue.” For the next several minutes Lola told Shadowpaw about that morning. When she got to the kiss however, Shadow began to look very shocked at it.
    “Now you can see why I wanted them to leave, you’ll fill Emi in for me, right?” Shadowpaw neither said nor moved to indicate an answer. “You will fill her in, right? Right?”
    “Sure, sure. Just uh, just give me a minute. You can sleep if you want.” Shadowpaw walked out, and the same moment that she left Kino walked in. Lola began to wonder if he was waiting there for the whole time.
    “Kino! What are you… you didn’t hear that, did you?” Lola was half sitting when she said this, just a scarlet as before.
    “Not a word, why? Was it an interesting conversation?”
    “I guess you could say that.” Kino was standing next to her bed, only standing with half his face in her view.
    “Listen, I’ve been meaning to talk to you ever since you woke up again so just hear me out. What happened this morning was my fault. I should have never…” His words were muffled by Lola’s lips, pressed against his. She pulled herself away, Kino leaning forward as if hoping for more time.
    “I don’t want to hear you apologizing for anything. I didn’t stop you; I didn’t even just stand there. I kissed you back, so you can’t get out of this alone.” Lola leaned in for another kiss, but Kino held her back for a minute.
    “You know I’ve wanted to say this for a long time now. I love you, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me from loving you.” Kino kissed her again. Forceful enough to topple her onto the bed. She flipped him around, putting herself on the top.
    “You have no idea how much that goes for me too.” Lola laid next to him, kissed him once again. Snuggled into his side, and his arm around her, she fell asleep once again.