Dillon Parth

catalina  learned  many  skills  throughout  her  twenty-five-year-old  life,  but  anything  dealing  with  woods—camping—wasn't  one  of  them.  she  didn't  know  when  the  trees  started  to  blend  together,  when  she  couldn't  retrace  her  steps  back  on  the  dirt  path,  but  it  must  have  been  ways  back.  ❛  i  know  where  i  am  going,  ❜  cat  snapped  at  him,  not  out  of  anger,  but  annoyance,  mostly  with  herself.  she  didn't  want  to  be  out  here  when  it  got  too  dark;  the  wildlife  would  definitely  be  on  the  prowl,  and  she  only  had  enough  survival  skills  to  help  herself.  looking  around,  she  passed  a  familiar  divet  that  had  been  filled  with  rainwater,  and  it  hit  her.  she  saw  that  ten  minutes  ago  and  thirty  minutes  before  that.  ❛  if  you  know  the  way,  be  my  guest.  ❜

If it weren't for the way the light breeze brushed his cheeks, he might have found them warming from the amount of time they'd spent aimlessly trying to make their way through the woods. His shoulders tiring from lugging around his daypack with him, despite it lightening at the hours passed by. It came with a sort of radical acceptance that wasn't a hard conclusion to draw. Dillon was not a hiker. Still her challenge summoned an opportunity to put his money where his mouth clearly had no place being. "I mean I once read that in a corn maze if you keep going left you should be able to find your way out. Think that can translate to a forest?"

What should have only been a moment of panic, was going on for far longer than Dillon cared for as he contemplated why Daniel felt the need to explain himself. Was it his facial expression? His tone? Was it just something the other man did? Did Daniel think Dillon didn't know? Did he know? It wasn't like he'd ever been to The Enclave so it really could have been a fair assessment? These were the questions that sloshed around in his head as he watched the other straightening the coaster. "I mean definitely not, as long as you're not drinking at one after a long shift only to show up to the next job wasted. Trying to do math drunk feels like it should be an Olympic sport."