Jack awoke next to Ein. Her legs intertwined in his own, both of them naked, her soft supple skin pressing against his body. It took everything in him to get up, he could lie there like that all day. The comforts of a woman, a house and cooked meals makes Jack understand why some men settle down in life. Not Jack though, a warriors life is never so easy-going. Jack was used to canned foods and MRE's, to gunshots and explosions.
Jack slowly pulled himself away from Ein so not to disturb her sleep and got up, putting on his clothes, then his gear. As Jack was reaching for his guns he noticed Ein was watching him.
"Where are you headed, Jack"? Jack sighed to himself, he didn't want to make her feel used but he knew he couldn't stay forever.
"I need to leave, I have things I need to figure out for myself".
Ein clenched her jaw, she did not want him to leave. He was kind to her, made her feel beautiful and was gentle with her, unlike her late husband.
"Jack, please don't leave", she begged "just stay here with me, create a life, I don't know where you came from but you're here now and I will do my best to make you a happy man and comfortable home".
Jack knew he couldn't do that, as much as the thought appealed to him, he knew he belonged on the battlefield. Jack just shook his head, he needed to find a way back to his world, even though he died there, it was all he knew. If going back to his world meant he'd get another chance to kill that man, the man who took his head, he wanted that more than anything.
But this life, a home, food, a woman's touch at night, all things he never had the chance to experience and always dreamed to have once the war was over, but he knew he would never experience that life, he knew he would die on the battlefield eventually.
Ein gritted her teeth at his non- vocal response, not understanding what could be holding this man back, she saw the scars, she could see it in his eyes that he had a very hard life and could not understand why he would want to go back to it.
As a last ditch effort, just to keep him around a little longer she said to him
"Well, why not wait until tomorrow and meet with the King of our town, he may not be high up in nobility but he may have some information that could be useful to you".
Jack thought for a moment and considered it, he didn't have any idea where to go or what to do, he would just walk around aimlessly, at least maybe the king can point him in the right direction. Just then, Jack decided to place his rifle back down and sit on the edge of the bed.
Ein slowly scooted behind him and hugged him over his shoulders, her bare, generous breasts pressing against his back. 'Why is this woman so attached to me already? I know we slept together but she's talking about building a life and everything together' Jack began to have skeptical thoughts of Ein.
It's not that he didn't appreciate her kindness, but he could not understand the connection she had with him.
'Maybe it's because I saved her life' he thought, 'maybe she has these feelings towards me because I saved her from those goblins'.
That made a little sense to Jack, he decided he wouldn't question it any further, considering he will be gone tomorrow and will likely never see her again.
Jack stood up again and walked over to the wash bin, it still had clean water in it and he splashed some in his face. His mind was racing and wouldn't stop. He couldn't control his thoughts. His feelings of being lost and confused, no idea what to do or where to go. He was a soldier and really good at following orders and right now there are no orders to follow. No mission to carry out. He will have to figure all that out himself and Jack has no idea where to start.
Looking at Ein from the side of his eye, Jack watched as she stood up and got dressed. She had a satisfied look on her face.
'What is she up to?' Jack thought to himself 'She's clinging to me, maybe she is trying to kill me or rob me for my gear'.
Jack was thinking long and hard about his current situation and what to do next. Ultimately Jack decided to play along for now, wait till tomorrow to speak with this "King" and then he will leave. Nothing else will keep him back again.
Jack wasn't used to staying still and doing nothing for an entire day. He started with working out. Jack went outside and stretched for a bit before going for a long run. Jack hated cardio but also knew the importance of it. Jack was doing laps around the town, over and over and over again. After what seemed to be an hour of running, Jack made it back to the front of Ein's house and began doing multiple sets of push-ups, sit-ups, and burpee's until his body had that familiar soreness of a good workout.
Ein was watching him as he tortured his body for fun. She knew that men would exercise but never to the extent she just witnessed. The man ran for about an hour straight then proceeded to do these bodyweight exercises for another hour. He really was a specimen. She had never been more attracted to a man in her entire life.
Jack could see her watching him... staring at him. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. All his senses were telling him to run. But he didn't know what her influence was, maybe more people were watching that he couldn't see. Soldiers are found in every civilization, he knows this place has them, he passed them on his run a few times. Maybe they were watching him then too. He needed to play along for now, he will get some answers shortly, at the right time. He just needed to wait.
Once evening arrived, Ein made another dinner meal for the both of them. Jack made sure to keep an eye on her while she cooked just in case she decided to slip something in his food. As an added precaution, he waited for her to take the first bite as well before he ate.
Ein noticed Jack was acting more and more strange. She could see him looking at her differently, carefully, like he was waiting for some type of surprise. She started feeling a bit self conscious.
'Did I come on too strong?' She wondered 'I think he's afraid of me now. I'm scaring him away'. Ein began to overthink and feel bad about herself. Her eyes became downcast, she didn't want to meet his eyes anymore, she was embarrassed.
Jack noticed immediately that she would avoid looking at him.
'I wonder if she's feeling bad for betraying me, maybe she has guilt for what's about to happen. I need to be more careful now, whatever plan she's cooking up is coming to its climax soon'.
Jack finished his meal and went to the room behind the curtain for a moment. Quickly and quietly he grabbed his gear and weapons and climbed out the window. Checking his surroundings, he stalked off into the nearby woods.
Ein was in the kitchen, cleaning the utensils and plates and pots that were used, she heard a little bit of shuffling around in the room but nothing too concerning. Embarrassed about her sudden quietness and avoidance she attempted to strike a conversation with Jack.
"So, what are your plans after speaking to the King tomorrow?" There was no response. Ein felt horrible. Does he hate her already? She never meant to come off so strong and scare him off.
"Listen, I am very sorry for the way I have been acting. I tend to have very strong feelings and do not know how to hide them." She confessed "I have always been known to be... obsessive. But I hope that won't be a problem! I promise to make you happy and do the best I can to take care of you!"
Still no response.
Ein felt a little hurt and frustrated and went running to the room to speak face to face with him but when she got there he was nowhere to be found. It was like he disappeared. She saw the open window and knew immediately that he had ran away from her. Ein was distraught. So she did scare him off. That's why the only men she could keep were the ones she didn't love, because she always scared away the ones she did.
After wallowing in her depressive state for a while. After her cries and screams she closed the window and fell asleep to her own sobs.
Ein could feel a breeze on her face. She was beginning to get cold and it was slowly waking her up. As her eyes fluttered open, she saw Jack, standing over her and just as soon as she opened her eyes she felt his hand roughly cover her mouth. Jack had a wild look in his eye, like an animal. Jack leaned in close to her and she could feel a cold sensation on her neck, a knife.
"I am going to slowly take my hand off of your mouth, if you scream I will slit your throat and kill everyone else involved in your little scheme". Jack felt like he made himself perfectly clear and slowly taking his hand off of her mouth.
Ein's eyes welled up with tears as if she were... happy? Jack was confused. Did he make a mistake? was her plan actually successful?
Jack watched her cry with joy, confused, until he heard her speak.
"I knew you wouldn't leave me, our love is too strong, stay and love me forever and I will love you forever" Jack watched her. her face was flushed and red, she was so happy. "Take me Jack, take my body if you want, take even my life, I live for you Jack. You can cut my throat if it pleases you, just never leave me"
Jack stood there in disbelief, he finally understood.
'She wasn't plotting anything against him. She was just batshit crazy'.