Sun Mote Copse A runaway once more

She wished she had uttered those three words. She could feel his withdrawal - his pain. It was pain that she had inflicted. He refused to meet her gaze. She should have expected this, and yet, it hurt her all the same. She felt empty, like her heart had been torn from her chest. 

She could see the dark shadows of his face in the dusk before he turned away. Agony and confusion flickered like a burning fire. He turned and began to walk away - from her. Why had she not spoken those words? Why could she not give him this? 

She awoke from her stupor, jumping to reach his side. No matter which side she attempted to be on, he always looked away. "Embry - please..." Finally his gaze met hers, only he was not truly there. The sea-green eyes were that of a stranger. Her words fell flat. A gut-wrentching pain grew in her abdomen. "E-Embry I do care about you...I-I just don't know if I really know what love is - what it feels like." She pleaded with him, attempting to draw nearer but stopping herself. "I never even loved my parents... How am I supposed to know if I love you?" They had never even uttered the words to her, but this golden creature before her had. The man that had stood up for her, after only knowing her for a short while. The man who had helped her make it this far after leaving her old home. Was what she felt for him love?