Work Text:
They watched the salt water crashing against the beach before slowly receding. It reminded her of a heartbeat, a steady rhythm ever changing to its surroundings, how her own steady pulse quickened by Ares' presence.
Ares was lost in its music, absorbing the endless world that lay bare in front of him. The vast expansion of the ocean, cloaked in darkness, mirrored the sky. Filling the horizon in a sea of twinkling stars.
Yue wished she could stay in this moment. Capturing the warmth in her chest, alongside the expression of pure wonder on Ares' face. Maybe it was the fact that this moment wouldn't last that made it so spectacular.
Cold air cut through her wet clothing, sinking deep into her bones, but it wasn’t what had plagued her mind. What was ahead for Ares? If he were indeed a program, Yue was sure Ares was by how the facts lined up like a constellation of stars. Then what did the future hold for him?
Programs weren’t given a government ID, as far as Yue knows, and it would be difficult to set up life without one. Getting a job, a place to live, and overall a normal life. She had a hunch that kind of lifestyle wasn’t for Ares; someone like him needed to explore.
“I’ve been wondering.” Yue broke the peaceful silence. Hoping that Ares wouldn’t mind her questioning. “You seem interested in going off-grid earlier. Think you’ll give it a try?”
Her lifestyle wasn’t meant for everyone; it was tough. Cramped living area and spaced out shower schedule, limited support from others.
“I am considering it.” Ares made eye contact, not the kind a regular person did; he held it for a bit too long. Almost like it was in a textbook reaction for social conservatives. “Taking into account its risky factors of instability and its-“
Yue's chuckling filled the echoing beach, abruptly ending his mini speech. Ares gave the cutest, puzzled look as if he didn’t fully understand what she found hilarious.
“You don’t have to go in depth, just the first thing that pops into your head.” Yue prompted, not wanting an easy list of pros and cons but the bones of his reasoning.
“Just a feeling,” Ares answered without hesitation, boldly proclaiming his own thoughts. Yue had a hunch that wherever he was from, Ares wasn’t allowed or couldn’t speak freely.
She must be crazy to even be considering what she was offering. “Then do you want to tag along?”
The fresh salt air fell into an uncomfortable silence. Both were quietly pondering the words that lingered in the wind. She regrets being so straightforward while Ares-
“I can reach you the ropes, show you the dos and don’ts.” Yue playfully added while her mind was already prepared for his response. The stinking of his pronouncing no, how he might think of her as weird. “That way you don’t have to learn them the hard way.”
Being off-grid wasn’t easy; the first few weeks were particularly rough for her. Nights so cold that even covered with every fabric material Yue owned, she shivered. Then there were the creeps that would eye her like she was a deer, then stalk her back to the truck. Even the law enforcement caused trouble, telling her to move on in the middle of the night because someone took offense at where she parked the truck. While she just wanted to sleep.
“Are you sure that I wouldn’t be a bother?” Ares asked, giving her an option to back out, but Yue had already dug her grave.
“Nah, it would be nice to have company.” Driving for hours got a bit lonely; even if she had the radio, it didn’t fully block out all her inner thoughts. “Plus, you’ll keep me safe from seagull attacks.”
This time, Ares softly smiled when she laughed, seemingly enjoying her joke. “I would like that.”
Silence filled the space between them; oddly, it wasn’t awkward or weird as before. It was something else, a feeling that Yue couldn’t place or find the right word to describe it. Peacefully.
Yue cupped her hands to her mouth, using her breath to defrost her fingertips. “As beautiful as the view is, I can no longer feel my fingers.”
Ares gave a small nod before rising from the ground effortlessly while she… embarrassingly struggled to lift her own body weight. Her legs trembled as if they were freezing in the cold weather, but the muscles burned, set on fire.
Wobbling Yue stood only for a brief second before her legs betrayed her, dropping her butt painfully into the sand. So embarrassing. Dancing the night away and then running down the beach seemed to have been the limit of Yue's leg muscles. And just maybe the four-hour hike earlier that day hadn’t helped.
Ares dropped to one knee, concern written across his face while his eyes quickly scanned over her. “You’re injured?”
“Yeah, just some popped blisters on my heels.” Yue watched as his eyes snapped to her heels, scanning over the reddish circles that stung with every grain of sand that brushed against them. “But it’s just my leg muscles protesting that made me fall.”
Not wanting to make it into a big deal, she attempted to stand, but her shaking legs prohibited the movement. Seems like having enough exercises for the day, bad timing too, the walk back to the truck is going to be killer.
“I’ll carry you,” Ares stated plainly.
“Wha-” The words didn’t leave her lips fast enough, but a short scream had.
One of his arms looped underneath her legs, and the other on her lower back, then he just lifted her up. Not breaking a sweat or struggling, lifted Yue like she was light, like he was holding the baby turtle.
Startled, reaching for support, her arms flowed around his neck as if that would keep her from falling. Not like Ares was easily carrying all her weight and still had his shoes in one hand.
His eyes slightly squinted, and his eyebrows furrowed. Giving a look that screamed seriously, like Yue was the one overreacting.
“A heads up next time would be nice.” She complained, trying to ignore how close they were. Yue could feel Ares' steady heartbeat underneath her fingertips that pressed against his neck.
“I had given a warning.” Ares stated facts, knowing that he had in fact told her what he was going to do.
“Yeah, you're right.” Yue huffed in defeat as Ares steadily walked towards the truck, not even stumbling on the uneven sand.
Being this close to his core, she had the perfect opportunity to steal his body heat. The warmth striving off the cold that once sent shivers down her spine. Being carried was rom- Oh, I’m falling for a man I just met. Yue deeply appreciated the darkness that covered her blush, and she could only hope that Ares hadn’t noticed her increased heartbeat.
“Thanks,” Yue spoke as her eyes fixed on Ares' face, studying how calm he seemed while she, on the other hand. Struggled to ignore his long hair brushing against the back of her hands.
“Next time I’ll carry you.” She playfully spoke with full confidence.
“I doubt it.” He spoke bluntly, the kind you only found in military people. No harshness or rudeness.
“Really?” Yue bit her lip, trying to keep herself from laughing as they approached the truck.
“Yes, I do not mean to insult. I’m just stating the impossible due to my weight and your-” Ares finely looked down. Eyes briefly scanning her, poor attempted not to burst out laughing. “You're joking.”
Yue flashed him a smile as he carefully placed her on the truck's open tail gate, the one she needed to fix the latch. She missed his warmth as the coldness returned to her bones.
“Where’s your first aid kit?” He asked, hovering a little close. She had to lean her head slightly up just to meet his eyes.
“Underneath the backseat,” Yue answered, and Ares already moved to retrieve before she even got the chance to get her keys. “I’ll unlock-”
Ares held up a hand, displaying her truck keys in his hand as he unlocked the passenger door. When did that man pick pocket then, and how did she not notice, maybe because she was too far in lala land to realize.
Rounding back with her beaten-up metal kit, Ares placed it beside her. Leaving Yue to open it up while his eyes got a better look at her legs underneath the street lamp.
Military response, assessing the extent of the injury. Before his fingers reached for some whipping alcohol, it stung a bit as he cleared debris from the blister.
“We will need some ground rules.” Yue needed an agreement before letting Ares travel alongside her; if not, they could start getting on each other's nerves.
“Understandable, since we have only known each other for approximately six hours,” Ares responded as he undid a bandage and stuck it on her heel, his hands so gently against her skin.
Had it only been hours since they met? And already Yue trusted him enough to travel with, he could be a serial killer for all she knew.
“Rule number one, we respect each other's boundaries.” The last thing she needed was to stress about Ares opening the truck door when she was mid-chance or ask about her brother.
“Rule two, no murdering each other or stuff of that nature.” It seemed obvious, but it would be best to clarify, just in case he is a serial killer, this one rule would keep her alive.
Ares' eyes squinted, eyebrows furled. A subtle hint of disagreement.
“That's number two?” He was confused as to why it wasn’t the first rule; in truth, it really should be the first rule.
“I’m making this up as I go.” Yue slightly muttered to herself as his hand brushed her ankle as he placed the last bandada onto her heel.
Ares nodded while his hands cleaned up the mess. Repack the first aid kit neatly for the next time used.
“Rule three, we keep an eye out for each other.” Yue liked this rule. “We got a deal?”
“It sounds responsible.” Ares agreed, but why did he need to hover just in front of her? If Yue wanted to extend her legs just a few inches, she would be smacking his thighs. “Deal.”
If Yue knew Ares just a bit better, she would have closed the gap between the two. Instead, she reached over her shoulder, fingers losing the tie straps and pulling a large bag loose, two-handed.
Tossing the bag at his chest. Ares easily snatched it single-handedly, his eyes leaving hers to scan over the heavy bag. Yue couldn’t help but tease. “First lesson, if you're going to sleep in the tent, you should know how to set it up.”