Chapter 259: Getting Out of the Cave
The quiet atmosphere that was only broken by the sounds of insects, birds, dripping water, Elmo's breathing, and other ambient sounds was rather peaceful for Jonas. He felt like he wouldn't mind spending a day like this, but he had to acknowledge doing that would come with its own price. Such as what they would need to do for food.
Even though Elmo was sleeping next to him, Jonas didn't let that put him at ease that their only problem was getting out of this cave. That wasn't the way the world worked. Even though he wasn't native to this world, he was confident that rule was still the same in this one. That what you wanted didn't just come to you simply because you wanted it. You had to work for it as well.
Suddenly Elmo slid so he was leaning against Jonas, Jonas couldn't help but let out a quiet chuckle. Looking at Elmo's sleeping face, Jonas couldn't say why, but he recalled the time Elmo kissed him. While Jonas had put that out of his mind for so long that he was surprised he even still remembered it, he couldn't help but feel drawn to Elmo's lips again.
He'd never felt like this with anyone, so he couldn't help but feel rather uncomfortable. Yet at the same time, since he'd worked with Elmo so much, he didn't feel the need to try and make him leave. He had a feeling Elmo was already half way to that point, but for other reasons.
The primary reason why he'd do that was because he'd never been able to sort out his own feelings before. He wasn't sure why, but he always felt an immense fear that seemed to have been bottled up and each time he tried pushing himself to even express interest in someone else. Nor did he know where that fear came from.
However at this moment, maybe it was because Elmo looked like he was asleep or it was because they'd already had many shared experiences together, but now he felt like he could at least enjoy being around someone that he did like. Even if only for a short while.
Suddenly Jonas realized his eyesight was back to normal. He wasn't sure if it would go away if he tried using his shadow sight right then, but he was more interested in memorizing the details on Elmo's face. Such as the worry lines that showed how stressed he was, even while asleep. A moment later he realized that Elmo had an eyebrow hair that wasn't going with the rest of the hairs, but was going upward, like it didn't care to be part of the group.
Jonas wanted to push it back with the others, bus he not only didn't want to wake Elmo up if he didn't have to, but then there was also the point that if he did that, he could very well be changing something about Elmo. Something that he thought would be best left alone. After all, Elmo was unique in his own way, and this just made him a little more unique. Though, if Elmo wanted that hair to start behaving, that was his prerogative, but Jonas didn't see that he would have the right to push that issue himself.
Sighing, Jonas closed his eyes and leaned against the stone wall of the cave. He hoped that things would work out well enough that they could find a quick exit, however, even if that happened, that didn't really guarantee they'd be able to get something to eat.