A crack of thunder sounded somewhere in the distance when the other man spoke to her.  Erin's heart pounded wildly as she peered through the trees trying to figure out who else was here.  She took one step closer towards the trees, glancing briefly at the slumbering man on the ground.  He hadn't moved so maybe what the voice said was true.  Maybe this Alek wouldn't wake up.  By now she was close enough that she could just make out the man standing amongst the trees.  It was Chris.  What was he doing here?  But then she realized he was always nearby, always hovering just in the edges of her vision.  She couldn't remember a time when he hadn't been there.  Now that she actually stopped to consider it, his very presence provided a sense of safety and security.  A warm feeling almost.<br/><br/>"There's only one way to find out.  We'll have to try to wake him up.  Besides, we can't just leave him here and he's too big to carry."  She offered him a bright smile before turning her attention to this Alek still curled up as if he was sleeping.<br/><br/>She crouched down near his head where he'd be least likely to lash out when he awoke.  "Hey.  Hey!  Are you awake?  Can you hear me?"  There was no response.  So she pinched him.  Right on the soft skin on the inside of his upper arm where it was bound to hurt more.  And yet there was still no reaction.  Her brow furrowed while she thought about what to try next.  Erin looked around for something she could use to wake him up.  There was a stick nearby that would do perfectly.<br/><br/>She grabbed the stick then straightened slowly before making her way to Alek's feet.  Again she crouched down, this time to unlace the man's boot and pull it off, tossing it aside carelessly.  Shifting her grasp on the stick, she drew it slowly and firmly up the sole of the man's foot.  To be honest, she had no idea how she knew to watch to see if his toes curled or he tried to pull his foot out of her hand.  Something about a reflex?  It was just knowledge it felt like she'd always know. She thought she saw Alek's toes curl a little but couldn't be quite sure.<br/><br/>Her attention shifted back to Chris.  He knew what to do, didn't he?  It was another one of those feelings that she felt she'd always had, the feeling that he was her rock, the one she could rely on.