A buzzing comes from the flickering streetlamp above us, drowning out our obligations.
I don’t move, and neither does Nariko. There isn’t anywhere else I’d rather be.
Time slows. The rain doesn’t fall as fast. I watch a droplet land on her upper arm, and it swims down her smooth flesh. Suddenly, I’m jealous of water.
I’m dehydrated.
I’m parched.
For her.
It’s five in the morning.
The sun is waking up, its golden hues peeking across the horizon to let everyone know it’s time to start their day.
Not me. Not the Dust Bunnies.
My eyes are heavy, and it’s going to be another hour before I can finally fall asleep. The entire team is discouraged and coated in mud after the chase we had.
No one was hurt, and the storm itself wasn’t anything to worry about. Come to find out, nothing serious was on the radar. Ruka wanted me to stop talking to Oklahoma because my big brother doesn’t trust him.
We traveled. We got our asses kicked by wind, mud, and rain.
All because my brother wanted to get me as far away from Oklahoma as possible.
Now, I want to be out of thestateof Oklahoma, or I might murder him.
“You’ll have to talk to me eventually,” Ruka breaks the silence. “Please, Nariko.”
“Let’s just get to the motel and get some sleep. I don’t want to talk about the reason you put our team in jeopardy in a night chase.”
“Nari, come on. I didn’t put the team in jeopardy. There was no tornado. We were fine.”
I turn in my seat and scoff, stunned by his lack of empathy. “You are unbelievable. How do you not see the damage you have caused? We don’t need to be running from a tornado to be in danger. The storm itself was an issue, and I’m glad we got the data to send to the weather stations nearby to warn people of the lightning, wind, and hard rain, but we didn’t need to chase it. You knew that. I think we all knew, yet we followed along because that’s what a team does. I could be in bed right now, resting, preparing for another successful chase today, but I am exhausted. I know the girls are too.”
“You could have ignored me. You could have talked me out of it.”
I roll my eyes and laugh. “Yeah, because that would have mattered. We all hope to see changes on the radar, Ruka. I thought that’s what it was. I thought we were chasing based on your instincts, not because of me talking to Oklahoma. Grow up,” I spew in Japanese, settling into my seat, and glance out the window.
In the distance, there’s a storm building, and today, I don’t plan on chasing it. I want everyone to take the day off to get some rest. Ruka and I need some space.
It’s easy to be at each other’s throats when we spend all of our time together. It’s natural, but this time? Ruka took control of a situation that wasn’t his to control, made us run after a stormthat was never going to produce anything, all so that I was far away from Oklahoma.
The one man I’ve been interested in, in what feels like ages, because he was rude when we first met him.
I’m too tired to make sense of Ruka’s thought process.
“He isn’t good for you. We have to stay focused, Nariko. We have sponsorship deals, partnerships, and an obligation to our?—”
“—Stop,” I say in a quiet and resigned tone. “How dare you guilt me? You don’t think I know the job?” I pat my chest. “Me? The one who started all of this, by the way. Do I need to remind you of how we all got here? Don’t you dare try to manipulate me. I’m allowed to want more than this.”
“Why would you?” he shouts, the car swerving to the right and off the road.
I grip the handle above the window, the side of my body slamming against the door. Tires kick up dust and rocks ping against the side of the car. He corrects it by jerking the steering wheel left to get us on the road again.
“You have all of this!” He waves his hand in the car. “Why would you want to give it all up for a guy?”
“You must think so little of me to think I’d give this up for him—for anyone,” I say sadly, realizing my brother must not have that much faith in me. “What a slap in the face. Who I choose to date is none of your business. Who I sleep with is none of your business. It’s no one’s fucking business.”
