As I tended to his wound, I couldn't stop myself from staring at him. I tried—truly—but my eyes kept betraying me.
He noticed.
"What are you looking at, Rapunzel?" he asked with a crooked smile. "Haven't you seen a hunter before?"
"Not really," I admitted. "And what is this Rapunzel you keep talking about?"
He raised a brow. "She's a princess with golden hair who lives in a tower."
"Well then," I said proudly, "I am Rapunzel."
He chuckled. "Oh really? Then where's your dragon?"
"My what?"
"Never mind," he said, waving it off. "What are you even doing out here?"
"Uh… I live around here."
He stiffened. "No one lives in these mountains. Unless you're one of the witches of the night."
"No, I'm not!" I blurted out a little too quickly.
He studied me closely. "You don't look like one."
"I'm from a village down the hills," I added.
"Which village? Where I'm from, we have Nehia, Hazezs, and Oukland."
"I'm from Hazezs."
His eyes lit up. "Really?" he said, grinning. "My cousin lives there. He knows every girl in that place—because he's slept with all of them. And I don't remember him ever mentioning you."
I blinked. "What's… what do you mean by slept with?"
"Oh my gods," he groaned, rubbing his face. "What are you—five?"
"I'm actually seventeen," I said defensively. "What about you?"
He smirked. "You don't want to know."
"I do."
"…Twenty-seven."
"That's a lot," I said softly.
We both smiled. Our eyes met, and for a moment, the world felt strangely quiet.
"I should go," I said suddenly, gathering my things. I turned to leave.
"Wait," he called. "Rapunzel—I didn't get your name."
"It's Ellen."
He repeated it slowly, like he was tasting it. "Ellen… Will you be here tomorrow?"
"Yes," I said, then hesitated. "Well… maybe."
"Then it's a date," he said confidently. "I'll be waiting."
I paused and looked back at him. "And yours, hunter?"
He smiled.
"Adrian."