Two Weeks to Fall in Love

16. Two Weeks to Explore the Heart

Time seemed like a fictional construct in this place. Okay, realistically, I knew time wasn't actually fictional but considering this looked like some fairytale enchanted forest it was easy to get lost in this magical place. This place where we were all alone, and...

Blinking a few times, I halted in the spot, gaze assessing the space around me. Noah was pulled to a stop one step ahead of me, my hand still entwined with his, and gave me a puzzled look.

"What's up?"

"Why is it so empty?" I said, finally realizing why this whole experience felt so surreal. We were the only ones here.

"Ohhh," Noah chuckled, and shrugged as if it was no big deal.

He tugged at my hand until we were walking again, and I stared at him expecting a reply that was more than a syllable. As expected for the perpetually enigmatic alien that was Noah Archer, he stayed quiet and hummed until we passed through a wonderful archway, covered in flowers that climbed from ground up.

I squeezed his hand and he looked at me with a raised eyebrow. My face must have said enough, because he chuckled and let out a sigh.

"This place is only open to the public two or three days a week. But, you can rent it for events like a wedding or something."

"Wait, so how are we in here right now?" I asked, confusion clear on my face.

Did he rent this place out for us? Why would he go that far?

I'd had the distinct impression that he didn't like having to rely on his dad's money, and this didn't exactly seem like a cheap place to rent out. Especially if it was a potential wedding venue for people.

Noah was quiet, of course. Obviously, the sky would just crash on top of us if this boy gave me one clear answer. Seriously, sometimes it felt like I was dating a sphynx.

The only sound around us was the chirping of the birds and the crunching pebbles under our shoes. Most annoying, considering my head was burning with follow-up questions. 

Just as I was planning to very aggressively twist his nipple and teach him a lesson, he abruptly stopped walking. Noah looked down at me with a smile that didn't feel right, almost distant, before his gaze focused back in front of him. I followed his eyes, and a few feet in front of us, nestled among trees was a small building that looked like an oval greenhouse. For a second, I was confused as to why this was significant, until my eyes landed on the plaque in front of the building.

The Archer Bird Sanctuary

"What?" I squeaked, fully aware that my eyes probably looked cartoonish with how my eyebrows were basically touching my hairline. "You-Your family, do you own this?"

Noah ran his free hand through his hair, scratching the back of his neck. "Kinda. My dad's the biggest donor for the garden, which comes with certain perks. Like naming the aviary after him."

His voice sounded strained, as always when his dad was brought up in conversation, and yet again, the curious part of me wanted to dig deeper into that family dynamic. This time, however, I didn't stop myself.

"Wow, I didn't know your dad was charitable like that," I said, and when I saw him wince, I immediately regretted the way I phrased that.

"He's not the charitable one," Noah muttered, kicking a rock with his foot. After a few seconds of silence from both of us, he looked down at me. I raised an eyebrow at him, a clear invitation to explain what he meant. He stared at me for a good minute before he let out a sigh.

"Why do you make me want to tell you everything?" he muttered so quietly I wasn't sure I heard him correctly but my heart was already beating overtime with his words.