Lorax - Once-ler x Aurora - Breathless - Chapter 5

After breakfast, The Lorax excused himself from the cabin leaving Once-ler and Aurora sitting alone in the confined space.

“So… What did you have planned for today?” Aurora asked, nudging Once-ler with her elbow as she leaned closet to him as they both sat upon the bed.

“Truthfully, not much. I was too busy working on my thneed song last night” Once-ler said with a laugh.

“Oh… Hey, you now what? I have a good idea.”

“What?”

“How about I show you around these woods? I mean, I’ve wandered and explored these woods since I was a girl. I’d love to be able to show you around. There’s so much you still have yet to see!” Aurora suggested with a smile.

“I’d love that. Like a hike?”

‘Yeah.”

“Perfect. I’ll pack a lunch. We could have a picnic.”

“That sounds wonderful. Can I help?”

“Sure.”

With a half hour, the Once-ler closed the door to his cabin and the two headed out. Aurora smiled as she walked down a familiar path she hadn’t taken in years. The growth of flowers and trees looked so different from what she remembered as a girl. As she walked toward the stream, she looked at Once-ler who was walking beside her. She watched as he looked at the ground and then back up at the trees. The basket, with a checkered blanket neatly folded on the top, was loosely dangling on one of his arms and he quickly switched it when the first arm grew tired. She watched him for a while longer, and she felt her cheeks burn a pink hue as she watched him sweep back his hair that got in his eyes before adjusting the hat on his head.

Once-ler turned his head to look at her when he seen her looking at him from the corner of his eye. She quickly turned away not wanting him to know she was looking at him. She turned back after a few moments and he just smiled warmly at her before saying, “So, you know your way around here pretty well, huh?”

“Yeah. I spent many an afternoon exploring these woods as a girl… Me and my friends even used to set up signs claiming certain parts as our own… I wonder if they’re even still there.”

“Wow. What a beautiful place to grow up.”

“Oh, here we are!” Aurora said, running ahead of Once-ler and over to the opening between the trees and she looked back at him over her shoulder and waited for him to catch up. Aurora smiled as she watched his face as his eyes fell upon the scene in front of him. A beautiful wide open field of flowers, bushes, and emerald green grass branched as far as the eye could see. He heard the humming fish splashing around in a small crystalline lake that formed from the small stream that branched from the main river they followed in the middle of the open field. The Truffula trees were circled around the open field and the deep forestation of trees went on for miles. Once-ler smiled. This was not the deadly waterfall he’d gone down about a week ago. This place was new. Never did he think just a mile of following this small branching creek would lead to this magnificent place.

“Wow…” was the only word that passes Once-ler’s lips as he looked upon this new world that was virtually untouched by human hands. He cast his glance over to Aurora, who just smiled back. “I mean, this place is just incredible!”

“I know. I’m so happy to see that it hasn’t changed a bit! Come on!” Aurora replied, fearlessly taking his hand and pulling him down the steep embankment and running toward the lake. Once-ler’s eyes grew at her brazen action but didn’t mind it at all.

As they ran through the tall silky grass at top speed, the warmth of the air and sun surrounding the two just became all the more intoxicating. Aurora laughed as she purposely fell and rolled the rest of the way down the hill. Once-ler smiled at her actions wanting to follow suit but decided against it when he remembered the basket he was carrying. Aurora rolled to a stop at the bottom of the hill and laughed loudly as she remained on her back.

Once-ler looked at her questionably before he offered his hand to her. After her laughter died down, she took his hand and easily pulled her to her feet. Once-ler laughed at her spontaneity and smiled as he noticed the blades of grass in her hair. Aurora paused when she watched him raise his hand began to gently remove the strands from her hair. Their eyes locked momentarily and she smiled before whispering nervously, “Thanks.”

“No problem. Oh wow, look at those little guys go!” Once-ler said, walking close to the lake and watched the humming fish performing some synchronized swimming. Aurora walked over to Once-ler’s side and watched with him. He sat down on the soft grass before placing the basket next to him and patting the spot next to him.

Aurora grinned before quickly sitting next to him. As the time ticked by, the two remained quiet as they absentmindedly watched the fish perform for them. Both lost in their own thoughts. Aurora wondering what school held this semester and Once-ler remained concerned about the letter he had received from his mother and how quickly time was ticking away and if his dream was ever going to come to pass. Both let out a sigh before looking at each other before laughing.

“Worried about school?” Once-ler asked, desperate to break the silence that had enveloped them.

“A little. It’s been awhile… Just kinda figuring out what I want to do with my life… Wondering what paths to take… you know, just everything that goes with not being totally sure what I’m meant to do with my life. It just feels so incredibly daunting…”
“Yeah, but don’t worry. It’ll come to you eventually.”

“You always just seem so sure… I mean, it must be an amzazing feeling to know exactly what you want to do with your life. I’m curious, what brought it on? You know, when did it hit you?”

Once-ler sighed. Her question brought up a topic he didn’t speak about for years. The deafening silence that followed her question made him realize he couldn’t hide from this much longer. He was in the midst of creating his company and yet something held him back and he began to realize that maybe it was him bottling up all his problems. He glanced at Aurora and her curious gaze.

To Aurora, it was only seeing him with distant glazed eyes and the permanent smile gone from his face that made her wonder if perhaps she stepped over some boundary she wasn’t aware existed considering how open the Once-ler had been about his life. It unnerved her greatly to the point that she was about to change the subject but decided against it when she heard him take a deep breath and say something she wasn’t expecting in the slightest to come from his mouth.

“It was soon after my father died…” he said solemnly, a sad smile tugging at the ends of his lips. His face turned from her and his attention turning to his folded hands resting in his lap.

Aurora was taken aback and wasn’t sure how to respond. Her eyes drifted from his face and fell on the scene of the fish still swimming happily unaware of the seriousness of the conversation. After a few silent moments, she heard him continue.

“I was only ten when he passed away. It was sudden…unexpected. After that, I had to grow up quickly. I realized that I was all my mom had left and I had to be there for her, but being so young, I couldn’t do much. I mean, it just drained her. Emotionally, financially, physically, you name it. It was a struggle for both of us. But it was from that moment that I knew I wanted to be more than just a working stiff my whole life. I didn’t want to spend my life behind a desk. I wanted to make something of myself. I want a life where I could make enough money to not have to worry about it. To help out my mom, to give her back at least a piece of what she lost. So, that’s at the heart of why I’m doing this… I want to do this for me. For my family. To give them the peace of mind they deserve and that’s why I’m so determined to make it happen.”

“You never had time to grieve, did you?” Aurora asked.

That profound comment hit Once-ler harder than he expected. Hearing those words, he knew they were true. He was only a child when he lost his father. His mother recovered. He knew her brazen attitude was partly developed to cover the hurt she still felt. He wasn’t an idiot. The harder she pushed him away, the easier it would be for her to deal with it and not have to feel that pain, she would rather just cover it up and not even think about it. The more he thought about it, Once-ler dealt with his father’s death pretty much the same way. Just pour on the charm, smile, be charismatic, and be sure to sing every now and again and people will never suspect the torment you’re going through. And after hearing Aurora’s statement, he was ready to do the same thing with her.

“…Well, looks like the fish are done dancing for us. Come on, let’s go look around a bit more. I’d like to see more of the woods if you don’t mind.” Once-ler said, smiling before he eagerly rose to his feet. He picked up the picnic basket, which seemed strangely heavier but ignored it before reaching down and offering his hand to Aurora.

Aurora looked back up at Once-ler and took comfort in the permanent smile but the happiness didn’t carry over to his eyes, which told a different story. But Aurora didn’t dwell on it. She smiled back before she took the hand he offered and stood to her feet. Once her feet were back on the ground, her and Once-ler began to walk along the edge of the lake. She silently wondered to herself why would Once’ler relay this information to her if he never wanted to talk about it? She wasn’t exactly sure and knew she shouldn’t pry. The more she thought about it, his sudden confession of this fact from his life made her feel the all more at ease with this man who she now considered a dear friend. He was no longer a perfect stranger, and hoped at some later point, he’d open up more to her, but was perfectly fine if they never spoke of it again. Only time would tell.

The two walked for at least ten minutes before Once-ler felt comfortable enough to speak again. “So… you hungry yet?”

“Yeah.”

“Is this spot okay?” Once-ler asked.

“It’s perfect.”

Once-ler placed the basket on the ground. He grabbed the blanket resting on the top of the basket and unfolded it. As he was spreading out the blanket, his thoughts went to what possessed him to tell her something he never told anyone. He looked back over at her and for some reason, felt comfortable with her. He wanted himself to believe he could trust her, and from what he knew of her thus far, believed that to be true. But knew keeping things inside always was easier and for now, that’s what he intended to do.

After the blanket was spread neatly on the ground, Aurora took a seat, smiling up at Once-ler. He was about to take a seat when he felt a swani-swan fly near his head, making his hat fall near Aurora. Once-ler touched the top of his head, fixing his hair and laughed almost in disbelief wondering why the swan would be flying so close and laughed when concluded the Lorax probably put the swani-swan up to it.

As Once-ler took a seat across form her on the blanket, he watched curiously as Aurora picked up his hat and looked up at him. “May I?” she asked.

“Go ahead.” He said with a small chuckle.

Aurora lifted the hat up to her head and placed it on top and removed her hands. The hat fell over her eyes and Once-ler laughed at how the oversized hat fell on her head. She tilted the hat further forward so it rested comfortably on her head as she smiled when she noticed he was still laughing.

Aurora’s eyes widened when a Barbaloot scurried over to the picnic basket, opened the lid and grabbed a sandwich before it began eating it. Aurora wasn’t sure whether to decide to shoo it away or not but rather would have Once-ler handle what to do. When Once-ler caught her eye with her concern, he just said, “Don’t worry, there’s plenty more – look!” Once-ler said, opening the other side of the picnic basket. His eyes widened when he seen the fuzzy orange Lorax pop his head out. A half-eaten sandwich in his hand and his cheeks full. Once-ler remained silent, more shocked then anything as Aurora just fell back, her left arm the only thing holding her up as she howled with laughter at the Lorax’s and Once-ler’s expressions as their eyes locked.

“What are you doing here?” Once-ler asked, finally being able to regain control of his voice.

“Simple.” The Lorax said, hopping out of the basket after finishing the last bite of sandwich. “I wanted to follow you… You know, keeping my eye on you and all, and I got hungry.”

Once-ler just sighed as he watched a small pack of Barbaloot eating what was left in the basket, feeling much like he did when the Lorax confessed to using his toothbrush to comb its huge moustache. He glanced over at Aurora who just continued to laugh heartily with her hand grasping on her stomach. He smiled at her attitude toward the whole situation and brushed off the situation and laughed along with her.

As the day came to a close, Aurora and Once-ler were laying on the soft grass gazing at the clouds and trying to point out shapes in their normally abstract forms. After a moment of silence, Aurora rolled onto her side, her chin resting against her hand as she gazed warmly at Once-ler. His eyes were closed as he took a deep breath of the crisp early evening air. She reached out her hand and hesitated momentarily before touching his shoulder. Once-ler’s eyes opened and he tilted his head in her direction.

“I just wanted to say thanks for today. I haven’t had a day this thrilling in a long time.”

“The Lorax and the bears ate our food…” he commented.

“True. But… I hadn’t laughed like that in years… I needed that. Tomorrow’s not gonna seem so bad now.”

“Glad I could help.” Once-ler replied with a grin. “Well, I guess we should be heading back before it gets too dark.”

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

“Have a good day at college tomorrow.” Once-ler said as they arrived back at the cabin.

“Thanks.” Aurora said, handing him the blanket she carried for him.

“Hey, if you ever want to stop by between classes or after classes, whatever. I want to let you know you’re more than welcome.”

“I’d like that. Well, I need to get going. Thanks again, Once-ler” Aurora said, turning to leave.

“You’re Welcome. ...Aurora?”

“Yeah?” she asked, turning back toward him.

Once-ler didn’t respond. He just stepped forward and hugged her. Her arms quickly wrapped loosely around his waist, returning the embrace. After just a few second, he let go and smiled as she waved warmly and turned to leave. He waved back enthusiastically as he watched her leave. As he observed her walking toward the dirt road, he smiled softly to himself now knowing more than ever maybe the thneeds weren’t the only reason he happened upon this place… and wondered now more than ever what the future had in store.

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