Chapter 36

                                    

                                          
His eyes stared at me and suddenly...it clicked. I fell off of him and backed away like a startled gazelle. He stood up but kept his distance, a look of amazement in his eyes. "Is it really you?"
                          
"W-Who are you?" I wondered and my voice wavered. He looked familiar, like I've seen him somewhere before, but how could I have met this lion and forgotten him?
                          
He took a step towards me and I stayed frozen in place. "It's me. Simba..." He took another unsure step forward and the shadows crawled across his broad shoulders.
                          
My eyes widened and my heart fluttered. This...this had to be a dream. "Simba?" I took a step towards him and looked at him closer. The more I looked, the more I saw past the stranger. Those eyes...the softest shade of amber... It really was him! "Woah!"
                          
For a moment, I forgot my pain, I forgot everything that I'd lost. In that moment, it was just Simba and I. The world fell away, this beautiful jungle could've been the wasteland that was the Pridelands. Nothing had more meaning, more affect on my heart than the ghost that stood before me.
                          
Our words became jumbled as we tried to speak at the same time. He embraced me and I've never felt so safe. My heart felt so heavy with emotion and tears glistened in my eyes. Malka was right.
                          
Simba was alive.
                          
Suddenly a voice shouted above our reunion: "Hey, what's goin' on here?!" I glanced over my shoulder to see a slim meerkat standing beside the still stuck warthog. On his face I saw confusion beyond words.
                          
Simba ignored the annoyed meerkat, his eyes still fixed on me. "What are you doing here?" He asked in amazement.
                          
It was my turn to be confused. "What do you mean 'what am I doing here?' What are you doing here?!?" My eyes couldn't look away from him. He looked exactly how I pictured him in my dreams. His pelt was golden and his mane had grown in, a handsome red color. It was strange how similar yet foreign he looked to me.
                          
The meerkat spoke up again, this time more impatient. "HEY! WHAT'S GOIN' ON HERE!?!?!"
                          
Simba glanced at the meerkat again, the excitement still evident on his face. "Timon, this is Nala. She's my best friend!"
                          
I turned to face the meerkat named Timon and the warthog. They both seemed rather unnerved by my presence and I didn't blame them. I had almost made the warthog my dinner...
                          
"Friend?!?" Timon looked utterly baffled.
                          
Simba nodded excitedly, "Yeah! Hey, Pumbaa, come over here." 
                          
The warthog-Pumbaa-somehow managed to free himself and he trotted over eagerly. He seemed more friendly than the meerkat.
                          
Simba turned his gaze back to me. "Nala, this is Pumbaa. Pumbaa, Nala." He seemed genuinely excited to introduce me to his...friends?
                          
Surprisingly, Pumbaa took my paw and kissed it. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."
                          
A little giggle shook my shoulders. "The pleasure's all mine."
                          
Timon started to talk, suddenly rambling. "How do you do.. Whoa! Whoa. Time out.. Lemme get this straight." He waved his hands wildly around, making big gestures. "You know her. She knows you. But she wants to eat him. And everybody's... okay with this? DID I MISS SOMETHING?!?"
                          
At this, Simba looked slightly annoyed. "Relax, Timon."
                          
Suddenly, I remembered everything that's happened in his absence...the devastation that followed. I knew in that instant that I had to bring Simba back. He was the only one that could defeat Scar. "Wait till everybody finds out you've been here all this time! And your mother... what will she think?"
                          
Simba started to walk off, brushing off my words. "She doesn't have to know. Nobody has to know."
                          
I narrowed my eyes at him, slightly confused. Did he not know what's happened? What we've been through?! What I've been through..."Well, of course they do. Everyone thinks you're dead."
                          
His brows furrowed in confusion, but then his face fell. "They do?"
                          
Nodding, I stepped closer to him. "Yeah...Scar told us about the stampede." It's all been a lie.
                          
Simba whirled around, shock plastered on his face. "He did? Well...what else did he tell you?"
                          
I shook my head and frowned. "What else matters? You're alive and that means... you're the King." Scar could finally be overruled. I could have Vitani back...
                          
Timon stepped in, laughing. "King? Pft, lady, have you got your lions crossed?"
                          
Unlike Timon, Pumbaa gasped in disbelief. "King? Your Majesty! I gravel at your feet!" He proceeded to kiss Simba's paws.
                          
Simba pulled away, the disgust evident in his voice. "Stop it."
                          
Timon turned to Pumbaa with annoyance. "It's not 'gravel'. It's 'grovel'. And don't...he's not the king. " looking at Simba, he asked: "Are ya?"
                          
"No," Simba answered bluntly.
                          
My jaw gaped at him in shock. "Simba?"
                          
He shook his head and looked away. "No, I'm not the king. Maybe I was gonna be, but... that was a long time ago."
                          
My heart twisted and joy was replaced with anger. How could Simba be so selfish, so blind?! Scar put us through hell while he was off living an easy life with these two!
                          
Timon still stared at Simba in shock. "Let me get this straight. You're the king? And you never told us?"
                          
"Look," Simba sighed, "I'm still the same guy."
                          
Timon clenched a fist and shook it enthusiastically as if declaring something great. "But with power!"
                          
I had to make Simba see reason. He had to come home, he just had to. "Could you guys...excuse us for a few minutes?"
                          
Huffing, Timon playfully punched Pumbaa in the shoulder. "Hey, whatever she has to say, she can say in front of us. Right, Simba?"
                          
Simba pretended to think for a moment and he glanced at me. "Hmm...maybe you'd better go."
                          
Jaw agape, Timon crossed his arms. "It starts. You think you know a guy..." Then he and Pumbaa wandered off, leaving me alone with Simba.
                          
We watched them go but I turned away. Simba chuckled. "Timon and Pumbaa. You learn to love 'em."
                          
I lowered my head and felt overwhelmed. Simba was alive. After all of this time he was alive... What would happen now? Was he still the same lion that I used to know?
                          
"What...What is it?" He moved closer to me, his soft amber eyes were filled with sympathy.
                          
I tried to find the right words, but they all got caught in my throat. "It's like you're back from the dead. You don't know how much this will mean to everyone." My blue eyes became distant and I felt my heart clenching with the overwhelming emotions. "What it means to me..."
                          
Simba scooted closer to me. He was so close that his fur brushed against mine. "Hey, it's okay."
                          
Filled with emotion, I reached up and rubbed my head underneath his chin. He still smelt the same but his fur was softer than I remembered. "I've really missed you."
                          
For a moment, Simba sat frozen. I worried that maybe I shouldn't have been so bold. But then he nuzzled me back and whispered to me: "I've missed you too." His warm breath caressed my cheek and I never wanted to leave his side.