Frankie followed after her, a little relieved when he reached the top. He stood up and walked through the rocky trail that he watched her take. Looking up at the darkening sky caused him to smile in excitement. It definitely wasn't going to be easy getting back down after… and he didn't think to bring a sleeping bag or anything but he didn't care. Honestly, he would be happy to stay out here all night. ”It already looks amazing up here!”
She stopped several yards away from a steep drop off cliff, watching for Frankie so he didn’t go off the edge as she sat down and smiled, “Just wait, it gets better as the sun goes down further.” Selina was so excited to be here, and her eyes trailed to the sky as the sun continued to go down, “It’s gorgeous.”
”Whoa.” Frankie breathed in awe when he saw the steep drop, before sitting next to Selina. A part of him almost wanted to walk up a little closer to the edge and call out; ’I’m on top of the world!’ or something along those lines… But he didn't want to make too much of a fool out of himself so he would settle for taking in the relaxing view right now. ”Yeah, it is.” he smiled at her.
"Worth the work?" She asked as the sky blossomed into an array of every color from red to violet, taking in the view but glancing over at him with a smile for a minute, "This is the best place in the park to watch the sky, I guarantee it." There were only a few things Selina could think of that would make this better, but the main one was food, after hiking all day, she was getting a little hungry.
Frankie nodded happily as they watched the sky together. ”Definitely worth it.” he agreed. ”I believe you. I can't think of any place better.” he told her, leaning back a little. ”Thank you for taking me here. This really has been the best day.”
Selina's happy smile grew and she shrugged, "It's no problem, I wanted you to have at least one good day here after I kicked out away from your original camping spot. Plus, I've never had someone who would like to come out here, but I really thought you would like it and having you be my first friend out here seemed right." Her cheeks may have gotten a pink flush as she talked, but thanks to the sunset, it wasn't that visible.
He chuckled a little and sat up straighter to meet her eyes… Her beautiful eyes. ”Are you kidding? My first camp was nice but it wasn't available for campers, I just didn't know that. And honestly, I could still hear the ”neighbors”.” he joked a little. ”The cave you brought me to is way better than any site I could have picked.” His smile turned from light-hearted to more sincere and grateful at her last sentence. ”I’m very honored that you consider me a friend, Selina. I think of you as the only real friend I have as well and I can be more of myself with you.” he admitted, blushing a little. It was surprising how easy it was for him to be so open with her. Everyone else he knew, outside his family, would have made fun of him… But not her.
"I fell the same way," Selina admitted, looking over at him and trying not to get lost in his eyes and do something stupid, "Around you, I feel like I can be myself. You're one of the only humans I know personally, and definitely one that is changing my mind about humans being terrible." Her mind was screaming at her to tell him how she felt, but she didn't, even as the words came dangerously close to slipping out as she looked into his eyes. Why was she drawn to him like she was? She knew it was more complicated than something like getting along, she knew that instantly.
Frankie’s blush darkened slightly at her confession. He wasn't used to being in this kind of situation. He’d often kept his heart on his sleeve, especially when he was younger, but he knew how to hide it better now. When he was camping usually alone, he didn't bother… Now he was in over his head for this amazing free woman next to him. ”Thank you. Again, I'm honored but don't stop being careful just because of me.” he cautioned her. ”I’m sure you know this but there are plenty of people who are complete jerks, to put it mildly. I’m the weird one out there in the big cities.”
She shrugged and smiled, "I'm not going to stop being careful around other people, but around you I trust that I can be less careful." Selina really wasn't thinking through what she said, studying his face and then glancing back at the sunset momentarily, "People in the city are scary, if I'm being honest. You're one of the only normal ones in my opinion." The sunset was just becoming more intense with color as the sun continued to go down, turning a beautiful shade of red and gradually going orange then blue the further into the sky it got.
Frankie smiled softly and a little shy at her comment on being able to be less guarded around him before looking back at the sunset. ”Well, I don't want you to get in trouble with your pack because of me either… but thank you.” he told her, ending a little quieter. He laughed a little before nodding. ”Yeah, people in the city can be pretty scary. Especially in larger groups.” he agreed, sighing in awe of the beautiful colors. ”This really is beautiful.”
(Happy slightly late valentines day! Also I'm so sorry I disappeared for so long, life has been busy)
"Yeah, it's gorgeous." She mumbled, smiling. Her eyes drifted back to the sky and she thought for a moment, eventually breaking the silence again with a sigh as she finally lost the fight to her brain telling her to tell him how she felt, "Look, Frankie, I have to tell you something, it might be awkward and I don't want to ruin our friendship from this…but I like you, a lot. I know we've only spent some time together, but I really like being with you and just you in general..I just had to get that off my chest."
(Happy Valentine's Day to you too! It's ok, I understand.)
Frankie stared at her in complete surprise. Of all the things he had expected to hear that hadn't seen one of them. ”Selina… I… Uhh, wow. I’ve never really had anybody tell me that before.” he admitted, rubbing his neck a little. ”Honestly… I really like you too. I agree that it's fast but… I think you're really amazing and I like you a lot. I actually think I liked you when you came back and showed me the cave.” he told her, his face turning red.
Her face was a deep, tomato red and she smiled shyly, glancing between him and the sunset while nodding. "Yeah..I'm happy that it didn't end up being super weird telling you that." She admitted, finally looking at him alone again as she picked at some loose gravel under her hands. Inside she was absolutely ecstatic and she wanted to hug him, but she refrained from hugging him, guessing that it would be awkward.
He smiled softly back at her as she blushed. ”Yeah, me too.” he agreed with a small nod. ”Actually, I’m mostly just glad you told me… And that you're ok with me feeling the same.” he said scooting a little closer, his hand brushing against hers. I hope this isn't too forward… Honestly, he kinda wanted to kiss her but that would definitely be too fast.
When their hands brushed, she didn't pull away, her smile growing faintly. "You feeling the same way made telling you a lot less nerve wracking honestly," She admitted, scooting ever so closer to him as well and letting their hands brush again before her fingers settled just ontop of his while her hand rested next to his.
His face turned even more red as she returned the touch, gently lacing their fingers together in response. ”Am I that obvious?” he asked with an embarrassed chuckle. It wouldn't surprise him if he was but it was still awkward to have been found out so easily. Though it was a huge relief to know that she liked him back.
"Actually no, I didn't notice at all until you told me a few minutes ago." She replied, laughing lightly, "I was really nervous even after telling you, until you replied." Selina squeezed his hand lightly after a moment, smiling and letting her blush fade while she watched the last of the sunset.
Frankie looked at her with a small shy smile. ”Really? Even after the hug earlier and the fact that I’ve been blushing almost all day?” he asked as he gently squeezed her hand back.
She nodded, her blush returning as she realized how oblivious she had been all day, "Even after those, yes. I guess I labeled the blushing from walking and exploring all day, but the hug, I have no excuse. I guess I was just wrapped up in how much I liked it."
He smiled softly at her as she explained her easy dismissal of his earlier actions. Honestly, if they weren't having the conversation they were now, he would have been fine with using those excuses. ”Yeah, the red face from the exercise makes sense.” he nodded in agreement. ”But I’m glad you didn't mind the hug. I don't really have an excuse for it, I was just really happy that you said I could stay.”
"Yeah, the hug didn't bother me," She said, understanding his explanation for it and figuring she probably would've done the same in his position. Selina thought back to the hug, replaying it and realizing that she sort of wanted to hug him again, even if it was a slightly random feeling and thought. "Today was pretty fun, and quite the workout, wasn't it?"
Frankie smiled, a bit more relaxed at her acceptance and nodded at the change of topic. ”Yeah, it was. But definitely worth it.” he agreed as he looked back at the sky and watching the stars start to come out. He briefly considered placing his arm around Selina’s shoulders but decided against it for now. If she didn't mind holding hands like this, then he was content with it.
She nodded, silent for a minute before a question popped into her mind and she turned to look at him, "I should probably ask you this before it gets late…do you want to head back tonight? Or just stay here and head back in the morning? Either works with me, Alpha gave me permission for an overnight trip if needed."
He blinked a little at the question before realizing what time it most likely was. ”Uhh… I think it might already be a little too late for me to try heading back.” he chuckled softly. ”I can't see that well in the dark to climb those rocks. Unless there's a short-cut down this, that doesn't involve a running jump, I’ll probably have to stay up here for the night.” he told her.
Selina nodded again, thinking for a moment before answering, "I don't think you could make the trip down alone, but if I shifted..I could help you down." She didn't know if he would want to go with that option, but she would be fine with it, mostly because she trusted him and wanted to help him.
Frankie turned to look at her, a light blush on his face. ”What, you mean like carrying me on your back?” he asked. ”I appreciate the offer but… You don't have to. I think it's supposed to be a warm night so I’ll be alright until morning.” he smiled.
"Alright, but know the offer stands, I have better vision than you so I would be able to navigate the path." She said, knowing that whatever choice he made she was going to stay at least nearby, "If we're staying until morning, maybe we should make a fire? If you have any matches with that is."
”Thank you, Selina, but really I think I'll be fine up here for a night.” he smiled at her, nodding as he got out a matchbox to start a small fire. ”Can you help me gather some firewood and rocks for a fire ring? About the size of your hand is a good average.” he suggested, needing to be able to contain the fire before he got it started.
She nodded, standing up and walking around the rock top, gathering loose stones and as many of the broken sticks as she could from the ground. After just a few armfuls of sticks and enough rocks to make a fire ring, she decided to take a break, "That enough? Or do you need more?"