It didn’t surprise me that Trent lived pretty much between the edge of the forest and the city. His house was so out of the way that it felt like you were walking to a whole new region. No one else lived nearby and he was pretty much by himself. The whole sight put the whole “lone wolf” into full perspective.

Trent’s home looked like he had found a cave and turned it into a home. The opening of the cave was boarded up with logs to create a wall. He also didn’t bother putting any windows and the door was just a bunch of long sticks tied together. I could only imagine how dark it must be inside his home, making me hesitate the closer we got to the door.

Letting go of my hand, Trent went inside his home. It wasn’t long before light flooded through the doorway towards my feet. With a little hesitance, I slowly entered his home.

To say that his home wasn’t what I expected it to be on the inside would have been an understatement. It was hard to believe that we were in a cave at all. Lanterns were placed throughout the home as Trent walked to each one, lighting them up. I also noticed that he had a small fireplace that had a hook hanging from the top of it. It was probably so he could cook his meals.

Scanning the area more, I noticed that a small hallway was built leading farther into the cave. I assumed that was where his bedroom was along with his bathroom. The place felt like a nice little home. Trent even had furniture that looked like it was carved out of the stone around him. Animal furs were used as cushions to make the seating a little softer.

Trent eventually finished lighting all of the lanterns in the area and moved to starting a fire in the fireplace. “It gets a little cold here,” he explained.

“How does this place not fill up with smoke,” I said out loud without meaning to.

He just smiled, “There is a hole at the top of the cave, that’s why I made the fireplace here.”

It was pretty smart of him to think of something like that. But it also told me that Trent had built this place. I’m sure he had a few bear shifters help him with the lifting of the logs, but I was still impressed with his hard work. Even though the place was made out of a cave, it didn’t look like it. Trent had tried everything he could to make it look like a house on the inside. To be honest, it was kind of playing with my mind.

Deciding that it was more awkward to just stand in the middle of the doorway, I fully entered his home. Once I closed the door behind me, I went and sat on one of the chairs he had made out of the cave wall. It was close to the fireplace but not too close where it felt like I was on fire. Trent asked if I wanted anything, but I shook my head making him take a seat nearby.

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We sat there silently for what felt like hours. Even though this was Trent’s idea, he didn’t bother to say anything. It was just us sitting in complete awkward silence, making me shift in my seat uncomfortably. Someone had to say something soon, or I was going to feel more and more uncomfortable. So uncomfortable that I would want to just go home and face Luke.

Deciding to end the silence, I opened my mouth to say something. But before the words could get out, Trent stood up suddenly. I was pretty sure I even heard him wince a little.

“Are you okay?” I asked him.

Trent rubbed his chest just above his mechanical heart, “I will be once I charge this thing in my chest. Will you be okay while I do that?”

Curiosity decided to poke its little head out. It wondered how his heart worked and what powered it enough to keep him alive. Standing up, I asked, “Can I help? If I accept your proposal, I’m going to need to know how anyway.”

He nodded as a response, making me follow him towards his bedroom. My heart raced as I realized where we were going. My imagination began to run wild the closer we got. But nervousness and excitement suddenly switched to confusion as we passed the bedroom. Trent continued to lead me out a small exit in the back of the cave towards a small shelter in the back. I watched as he opened the small shelter and stepped inside. The small building was too small for the both of us, but it was big enough to have a small chair for Trent to sit in.

I watched as he grabbed two wires from a box and placed them on two different areas of his heart. The moment he did, a light came on on the small box. I stared at it in curiosity.

With a smile, Trent explained the device, “That box is hooked up to some cables found that connect to a wheel in a nearby stream. Due to the cable's length determined where my house needed to be.”

“The stream powers your heart?” I heard myself ask.

He nodded, “All of these parts were found in old machinery and your father was able to make something out of it that saved my life. Even if I’m dependent on running water to keep me alive.”

Just hearing him explain something that I didn’t fully understand still fascinated me. I guess that my need for knowledge or to understand things came from my father. It appeared that my parents had skills that I could benefit from later down the road. Just knowing that made me want to leave with my father. But only for the fact that he could teach me new things with him being a scientist.

Sitting down on the ground, I decided to ask a few more questions about the object keeping Trent alive. “How long can you go without needing to be charged?”

“If I don’t do anything like I did today with the disaster, I can pretty much go all day,” he answered, “But days like today is the reason why I disappeared for a little bit.”

Nodding in understanding, I asked my next question, “Have you tried different power sources, or do you only charge with running water.”

He smiled, “There is always running water unless you live in the desert.”