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“Correct.” I leaned forward, my arms braced on the counter, mug still clasped between my hands.
“Too bad, I was going to ask if I could come with you to the Compound today.” She pulled a plate from one of the cabinets before turning back toward me with a gentle smile.
My brows furrowed. “Why?”
“Few more resharpened blades I needed to drop off.” She shrugged.
I smirked at her, shaking my head. “You just want a peek at him.”
“I’m curious who on earth could be better than you.” She winked before turning back to the stove to pull off her perfectly golden griddle cakes. “Can you blame me?”
“Still as nosy as ever,” I chuckled, my heart lightening a bit as she pulled up a seat next to me, devouring her breakfast.
“How can I mock him with you at home if I don’t know anything about him?” She pointed her fork at me. “It’s part of my duty as the roommate-slash-childhood-friend, and I take it very seriously.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll bring you as many juicy details as I’m allowed to divulge,” I said. “You won’t be lacking for mocking material.”
“Promise?” she held out her pinky, wiggling it at me.
A small laugh escaped my lips before I wrapped my finger with hers. “Promise.”
“Good.” Her dark brown eyes softened as we unlinked. “You know you can’t avoid him forever, right?”
I bit my lip. “I know.”
And I did know that; I wasn’t stupid, and I was too dedicated to my job to avoid him forever. But for now, that was doable.
I just wasn’t ready to meet this man. The one who was more competent than me, better than me, who would be my boss; a stranger who probably read about everything that had happened to me over the past year. How would he judge me? Would he take all of my responsibility away? Would he treat me like a fragile doll or as someone whose opinion was worthless? There were just too many unknowns to face.
Luckily, I had found the perfect escape.
***
An hour later, after I had washed and dressed, I raced down the abandoned roads, my lectracycle humming underneath me. My ears perked up at the distant sounds of another cycle coming from my left; technically, it could’ve been a multitude of people, one of my own Faction on patrol or coming back from a mission. However, I knew it was someone who would help make this dark day a little brighter.
Another driver saddled up next to me, our matching Faction-issued lectracycles keeping pace with each other as we took a sharp left turn, the skyline of Accriton city breaking through the horizon in front of us. Laughter came from my side, and I glanced toward the other cyclist.
“Hi, little shadow.”He gave me a side-smile, making sure to keep his eyes on the road ahead.
“Hey, big bro.”My chest warmed at seeing one of my favorite people again.
Ollie was my older brother, and someone I considered one of my closest friends. He was also part of the Onyx Guard, Alpha of the Vapalles Faction, the territory just to the south of mine. We didn’t see each other as often as I liked, but we were lucky to be close enough to visit once or twice a month. He had been there for me always, never gave up on me…unlike a few other family members.
Ollie gave me a wink.“Race you the rest of the way.”
I let out a deep chuckle before increasing my speed, the wind chapping my cheeks red and drying out my eyes slightly—but I didn’t care. The rush of it all eased the weight on my chest and made it all worth it.
I let out a loud whoop when I passed the threshold to town first, slowing down to be safe around the residents that mingled through the street on foot or horseback. We wove through, people waving at us as we passed. Accriton was a lot smaller than the capital, and most of the residents had lived here for decades.
We pulled up in front of a quaint cottage, the bright white brick exterior and red trimmed windows always a soothing view. I parked my cycle, a teasing grin on my face when Ollie pulled up, his copper brown hair windblown across his forehead.
“I let you win.” Ollie pretended to pout at me, but his baby blue eyes held a gleam that let me know he was joking.
“Keep telling yourself that.” I wrapped my arms around him, and his encompassed me in a protective hug, my cheek rubbing against the soft burnt orange fabric of his simple, V-neck shirt. I took in a deep breath, filling my lungs with the bright scent that was Ollie: tangerine and vanilla. He wasn’t even half a foot taller than me, but still, the comfort of his hug protected me from the rush of anxiety I was holding at bay for the day.
I hesitated one more moment before pulling away. He peeked down at me. “Are you alright?”
“Let’s go inside.” I ignored his question, knowing I would probably get plenty of similar ones in the house. Might as well save time and only answer them once.
