Chrys had been born into a family that loathed her. Her father considered her a murderer since her mother died while giving birth to her, and her brother hated the fact that he even had a sister. Chrys was basically the family slave, cooking for her father and her brother, cleaning up after them, and providing for their every need, even the ones that would have been considered insestious. By the age of thirteen, Chrys had learned to escape from the house after supper. She had found a spot in the woods behind her farmhouse that she knew no one would find her in, or so she thought.

Late one night, after Chrys' 20th birthday, she was sitting alone by the lake behind her home. She watched the faint ripple of the water's surface, and thought about how much different her life would be if her mother had lived. Chrys heard a faint noise behind her that caused her to jump and almost fall into the water.
"I did not mean to frighten you. I was hunting in these woods, and I needed a place to rest for a while." The voice seemed pleasant enough, and so did the face as far as Chrys could tell in the dark. The mans long black hair just skimmed his shoulders, which were broad and well defined. His eyes, though dark seemed gentle.
"It's alright. I'm always jumpy."
The man smiled, revealing a set of perfectly straight white teeth.
"My name is Aidan." He said, extending a hand down to her to help Chrys to her feet.
"I'm Chrys." She replied, placing her hand in his and allowing him to pull her up.
"CHRYS! YOU GET YOUR ASS BACK INSIDE THIS HOUSE!"
"I'm sorry.....I have to go." Chrys turned to leave, but Aidan's voice brought her attention back to him.
"Wait, will you be here tomorrow night?"
"Most likely. I'm here every night."
"Until we meet again, Chrys." Aidan said softly as Chrys turned to head back to her house.

Chrys had escaped her fathers beating. She knew he would be full of rage when she returned to the house, but at this moment, she didn't care. She just needed to get away from him even if it was for a little while. Her brother lived on his own now, so he didn't bother her unless he came to visit, which wasn't too often. Chrys followed the faintly worn down trail that led to the waterfall deep within the woods, her thoughts wandering back to Aidan for the tenth time that night.

Aidan was sitting by a large rock near the water's edge, looking calmly at its surface.
"I knew you would come back." Aidan said softly, turning slightly to face her.
"How did you know? I didn't even know if I was going to come back." Chrys replied, taking a seat on the rock beside Aidan.
Aidan caught sight of the bruise alining Chrys' jaw.
"Who did this to you?"
"Nobody...I fell.."
Shit, he knows I'm hiding something. I can see it in his eyes.
"You are lieing, but I sense it is personal, so I will not interfere."
"My father did it." Chrys said, averting her gaze, attempting to hide her shame from him. "He punishes me for the death of my mother."
Chrys did not know why she was confiding in this man she hardly knew. There was something about him that she felt connected to.
"I can take you away from all this pain."
"How?"
"You will just have to trust me."