REINER - IF YOU STAY

“How did you manage to hit the bull’s eyes on all three targets with ease?! This is amazing! Wow!” I

cried out in excitement as my eyes widened at the holes in the targets.

“Anyone can do this much with enough practice. The target wasn’t even moving…” Reiner replied

emotionlessly.

Other guys might have used this opportunity to show off a little but definitely not Reiner. That in and of

itself, just made him all the more impressive. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.

“Still…I think it’s amazing,” I said, meaning it. I never thought that he would be this good.

“Well, thank you My Lady. I’m sure you can do it too if you pay attention and practice,” Reiner said,

almost snapping at me.

“I…don’t think so…” I replied, clearly unconvinced.

“Have some confidence in yourself,” Reiner replied before patting my head softly.

“Is it time for some food yet?” I asked, referring to lunch.

“Don’t change the subject. It’s your turn next,” Reiner said while shaking his head.

…

After lunch, we spent the entire afternoon at the shooting range. With a whole lot of encouragement

from Reiner, I learnt how to hold a gun properly and I shot a gun for the first time. It felt strange but it

wasn’t unpleasant. Reiner stood behind me as he held my hand and positioned in on the gun. It felt like

we shot the gun together.

Without a doubt, I was very bad at it, but practice does make perfect. Reiner was right, if I practiced

some more, I would probably do better. Not that I would be able to reach his level. Reiner was indeed

good at his job. I wondered when he started learning how to use a gun…and to fight…

Was this career even normal? I had no idea what he was like growing up or what kind of life he had

prior to meeting me. I had so many questions and so many things that I wanted to know about him.

Before we knew it, the sky above was dyed a beautiful orange color and the sun had started to set. I

looked up and saw some birds flying by across the sky. It was a captivating sight to behold. Nature is Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

really beautiful.

“Let’s call it a day,” Reiner said.

Finally, the words that I have been waiting for! The end of training for the day has arrived. I sat down on

the grass floor and sighed. Somehow, I survived that. New experiences were great too, I guess.

“Good call. I feel like my arms are about to fall off…” I said with a hint of complaint.

“Can you stand? I want to show you a good view of the sunset,” Reiner said as he bent down and

offered me his hand.

“Sunset? Oh…sure…” I said as I placed my hand into his much larger one.

“It’s a little bit more uphill though,” Reiner said, sounding a little apologetic.

“I think my legs are going to give out. I don’t think I can make it,” I said as I put on a pitiful face.

“That’s a shame. I guess we’ll miss out on the good view after all…” Reiner said teasingly.

“Oh, come on. This is where you’re supposed to offer to carry me on your back,” I whined.

“Why do I have to do that?” Reiner asked as he raised an eyebrow at me.

“Because you love having me on your back…” I replied confidently.

“You’re funny. Get on,” Reiner said as he crouched down with his back towards me.

I got on his back, and he stood up. Wrapping my arms around his neck loosely, I placed a kiss on his

cheek as a way of thanking him. Reiner turned and smiled at me. My heart skipped a beat and I

hugged him tighter as I tried to hide my blushing face from him. The walk uphill wasn’t a long one, but it

was enough for us to share a pleasant chat long the way.

“When did you learn to shoot a gun?” I asked with interest.

“When I was a kid,” Reiner replied.

“Who taught you?” I asked.

“My father and other people…” he replied without looking back at me.

I could tell from his tone that I wasn’t going to get much more out of him. Time to switch topics.

“You know, there’s no real need for you to teach me self-defense…” I started saying.

“That’s not true. It’s always better if you know how to defend yourself,” Reiner cut in readily with his

own view.

“If you’ll just stay by my side then I wouldn’t have to defend myself…” I said sweetly.

“I won’t be here all the time…” Reiner stated factually.

“You know…sometimes I wonder how I can make you change your mind about that…” I said close to

his ear.

“We’re here. Get off,” Reiner said as he bent down to let me off.

Such bad timing. Well, it wasn’t like I expected him to answer me anyways. This man is so difficult…but

so fun…

Wow! Now this view is really something. We stood side by side close to a cliff where we could see a

very big and bright orange sun that had started setting. The wind blew in my face, sending my hair

fluttering behind me. The sun felt so close, and the view was breathtakingly beautiful. I didn’t even want

to blink my eyes. It felt like I could stare at this view forever.

“Pretty, isn’t it?” Reiner asked needlessly.

“Very. Super super pretty…” I replied in awe.

“I used to come here a long time ago when I was tired from training during the day,” Reiner said as he

seemed to recall some fun memories.

“I wish we could watch more sunsets like this together…” I said wistfully.

If only we have more time together. We could do so many things together.

We stayed that way until the sun had dipped below the horizon. After the sun had set the sky darkened

quite fast and the temperature started to drop as well. I sneezed suddenly.

“Are you cold?” Reiner asked with concern.

“It’s a little cold…” I whispered as I hugged his arm against my chest and leaned onto him.

“Maybe we should head back,” Reiner suggested.

--To be continued…