the chef

"Hm? Well, work called in and told me I could take the day off, since I worked through the weekend not to long ago and my boss extended this as a form of reward for all my hard work." She explained in more detail than she wanted to, even though it still wasn’t that detailed at all. 

He paused as she spoke, listening intently. "So you seem like quite the hard worker. But it's always a good idea to enjoy your days off, which it seems like you are." Raegar nodded, looking at the stream in-front of them once more. 

"Raegar. Interesting name." She thought aloud as she took another drag, "I hope that you don’t mind smoke." 

Freya gave him one more look over. He seemed like the type she wouldn’t be seeing again. Given that he had to walk a considerable distance to get here and there isn’t much of a chance of him doing that again. She thought about it for a little longer. 

She decided screw it she’ll bother this man with facts about her because she needs to get rid of this feeling one way or another. “I am Freya by the way… Freya Sørensen.” 

"Well, I can't say I've ever met a Freya before either." He said, rubbing his chin in thought. "Sørensen? Is that ... German? No, Danish, right? Either way it's a lovely name. It's nice to meet you Freya, and no, I don't mind at all." He explained, giving a small nod as he turned back to face the water.

"What brought you here?" She eyed him curiously. This man clearly must have no clue where he is. And casually wondered where he came from. He must’ve walked far to end up here. Maybe he was from the city. 

She chewed that thought over as she felt another necessary question, “Might I ask what your name is?” 

Turning back to his company, he let out a small chuckle at her question. "Well, I went for a walk. It was more of a last minute decision, so I didn't bring all too much with me, I came from Oak Town, I'm sure it's not too far from here." Raegar made a quick gesture towards the way he came, as most people had never heard of the small town before. 

"If you wish." She breathed, tendrils of smoke licking the air as it escaped her mouth. The man settled on the grass next to her and she felt the need to really assess him. Guess who he was and what he was up to. 

He seemed the type to be an unintentional ladies man. Or fully intentional. Which she was not entirely sure of but she was absolutely sure that he was popular with women. He was certainly taller than she was, but that wasn’t entirely too hard with the men she met. Very rarely did she meet a man under five foot seven. 

He turned his head to face her, noticing she was looking at him as well. The chef didn't comment on it though, and instead let the two sit in silence for a few moments as they studied each other. After he figured enough time had passed, the young man shot the woman a small smile, relaxing and slightly leaning back. 

"So, how did you find a nice spot like this?" He inquired, tilting his head to the side as his eyes continued to dart around, noticing the foliage and scenery around them. "To be quite honest, I'm not too sure what part of town this is... But it's really lovely." Another smile made it's way on to the man's lips and he paused, waiting to see the woman's reaction. He couldn't quite get a reading on if she was willing to talk or not, and the last thing he wanted to do was impose his presence on her if she preferred her solitude.

Work called and said she didn’t need to come in today. Which did not exactly thrill the woman. That just left her… and herself. Solitude did not bide well for Miss Freya, no it didn’t. She didn’t have many a person she considered a ‘friend’, and odds were they were busy today. It was a weekday. 

And that’s how she got here. Sitting on the bank of the river, knees to her chest and cigarette in hand. Her mind focused on the way the surroundings were. The lullaby of the water, the sound of birds flying away for winter, the piles of leaves on the ground leaving the tall outstretched branches of the trees bare. 

Just anything to keep her mind occupied. 

Because… today she hated hiding. She hated keeping herself locked up. Letting no one know who she is and where she came from and how she genuinely felt. Freya just wanted to scream it to the heavens. But then people would know who she was. And that terrified her. 

But not that she’d ever admit that it scared her. No. She is little miss secretive. Everything must be under lock and key. No one must know who she is inside. No one can see who she is. No one.

But today it left a sour taste in her mouth. Today that made her skin crawl and made tears want to pour from her ice cold eyes. Just to feel like a little girl for once and let everything pour out like she couldn’t years ago. 

Was that... Someone? His emerald eyes cause a quick glimpse of what appeared to be a woman seated by the riverbank up ahead. Raegar quickened his pace, a small smile making it's way onto his features as he approached the stranger. The woman seemed preoccupied - lost in her own world of thought. Carefully, the man knelt down beside her, giving a slow wave of his hand into her area of vision.

"Hello?" He spoke softly, not sure who this stranger was or why she was this far out. He didn't want to impose though, so as long as she seemed alright he didn't mind the company. "Do you mind if I sit here as well? It seems like you picked a very nice spot." 

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