Reiner – Somewhere Safe

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“Somewhere safe…” Reiner replied emotionlessly.

“That’s what you said before…but where is that?” I asked again, feeling a little annoyed at how he’s evading my question.

“You’ll see. Now, stop asking,” Reiner replied without a care.

We were in the car together and Reiner was driving. After waking me up super early in the morning, right at the break of dawn, we got in the car and was on our way on our date. Although, I had no idea where we were going, I was glad to be outside the mansion. Not surprisingly, Reiner had packed up everything into the car and all I needed to do was dress up and get in.

I’ve asked him countless times regarding our destination, but he had evaded all my questions. Since I knew that he probably won’t tell me, I decided to turn our conversation to discuss other things instead. I didn’t know where we were going but what I knew was that it seemed to be somewhere far away.

We’ve been in the car for almost an hour, and it didn’t seem that the destination was near.

“I want to go to the beach…” I said wistfully.

“This is your first trip outside in around a month and you’re already thinking of future trips?” Reiner said with a low laugh.

“Of course. I want to go to the beach. We can play in the water and sunbathe together while we read books and chat…” I said dreamily as I pictured my sun-soaked date with Reiner on the beach.

“Sounds good…” Reiner murmured in reply.

I laughed a little as I pictured so many more future dates that I wanted to have with him. In that moment, I didn’t want to admit that my dream dates with him would probably end up as nothing but dreams. We chatted and we laughed all the way until we reached our destination.

I was right. Our date spot was very far from the city. To be accurate, it was around a three-hour drive from the city, and I wouldn’t call it a standard date spot, for sure. When Reiner parked the car, he walked to my side of the car and opened the door for me. I looked around and was confused to say the least.

We were in the middle of a forest deep in the mountains. I’ve never been to a place like this before. We were in the mountains and were surrounded by other taller mountains on all sides. Sensing that I was feeling a little scared, Reiner took my hand in his to comfort me before smiling a little my way. It wasn’t like I was scared out of my mind, but I was more curious about why we were here.

Thick woods surrounded us, and dried leaves covered the floor under our feet. After removing our bags from the car and hoisting it on his shoulders, Reiner led me behind him deeper into the woods.

Perhaps, if I asked him now, he would answer some of my questions.

“R…where are we going so deep in the woods?” I asked as I watched his broad back in front of me.

“A very safe and isolated place,” Reiner replied without looking at me.

“Which is?” I probed further.

“You’ll see. You’ve waited hours, a few more minutes won’t kill you…” he replied.

“I guess…” I mumbled.

In a few more minutes, I could see our destination. My eyes widened in wonder and amazement. How could there be such a thing in the middle of an isolated mountain like this?

“Don’t just stand there. Let’s go inside,” Reiner said as he tugged on my hand.

I was frozen in place as I stared up at the huge wooden structure of a building that was in front of me. A cabin in the woods would be an understatement. This structure was much larger than a cabin. It could be a small mansion in its own right. The space surrounding the wooden building was clear and seemed well maintained. I guess, someone lives here or was taking care of it.

We stood in front of a large door that was probably made of steel and I watched as Reiner took out a large key and started unlocking the door. For some strange reason, I felt very nervous about entering the place. It felt like I was entering a secret or sacred place. The door opened and while I was hesitating, Reiner pulled me inside after him.

It was dark inside and completely quiet. No lights came in from the outside because all the windows were closed. Orange warm light lit up the room when Reiner turned on the light. I blinked rapidly at the sight before me. The room was large and almost empty apart from a few pieces of furniture. A set of sofas, a dining table, and some chairs. The place had absolutely nothing that could be called decoration.

“Is this your place?” I asked dubiously.

“No…” Reiner replied.

“Then…is this a hotel or resort of some kind? You know, nature escape type of thing?” I asked curiously.

“No…” Reiner said.

“Then…?” I asked, getting impatient.

“This is a training camp,” Reiner stated flatly.

“Huh?” I said in confusion.

Training…for what? The hair at the base of my neck stood up and suddenly, I felt like it was a bad idea to be here in this place.

“This used to be a secret base for training. Men and some women train here for combat and such…”

Reiner explained.

“I see. Did you…train here as well?” I asked, my mind filled with interest.

“I did. A long time ago…” Reiner replied.

“It’s not in use anymore?” I asked as I looked around the very empty place.

“Nope. Otherwise, I won’t be able to bring you here. Now this place is just used for storage and stuff...”

Reiner replied as he put our bags down on the sofa and gestured for me to sit down.

“I see. So, what will we do here?” I said, sitting down where he had indicated.

“That’s up to you. There’s many things that we can do here. I’ll show you soon,” Reiner said while smiling.

--To be continued…