I catch myself constantly stealing glimpses of Hayes' injury. The way the scars seem to crawl up his neck and into his cheek like a thorny rose vine creeping up a trellis. It twists and dips, spots shiny while others are dull and deep. My fingers itch to touch it, to trace the
tendrils that caused him so much pain as they dance up the side of his head, burning off half his eyebrow.
It's mesmerizing, almost beautiful. A map of his sufferings. He finds it appalling, convinced I could only feel the same way. But I don't avoid his touch because of his injuries. I run from the sparks he seems immune to.
The explosion that rips through my body and tries to urge me to follow what the moon goddess has given me. It's not about moving on from what I lost, but accepting what I am being offered. But I'm not sure I can or that I want to.
"Ask me," Hayes sighs heavily, the annoyance clear in his exhale as he remains looking forward. My brows pull together, the left corner of my lip pulling down in a confused frown.
"What exactly am I asking you?"
"Did it hurt? Does it still hurt? How did it happen?" Hayes says, his voice flat and unaffected.
"Is that normally what people ask?" I watch him closely as he clears his throat and looks in the opposite direction. "Because I got the feeling people avoid you."
"Because of my burns?" He scoffs, and I snort.
"No, because you're an asshole now."
Dean and Marcos chuckle ahead of us, both of them shaking their heads.
"Yeah, well, if I look like an asshole people don't ask me annoying questions," He grumbles.
I arch a brow and smirk up at him, regardless of how much he tries to look away.
You demanded I ask you what you assumed I wanted to know." I remind him and he nods,
staring at me," He says. "I assumed you were
my strides to distance myself from him. After three steps, I spin, walking backward as I face him. "Every warrior knows what creates those burns, and I know the pain they bring the bearer of them." Then I spin on my toes and walk toward the front of the group. I catch up to Nisha, sliding up on her right side as she looks amused by my presence.
going to be stuck together for a while, then I may as well familiarize myself with
you lost, Tracker?" She muses,
her. "Just coming up for
ears. Being around Hayes is entirely suffocating and when he isn't around, usually there is Marcos drowning me with his closeness and his overwhelming presence. Two entirely different men
her head before she points up ahead, where Koda saunters, ducking
admit her immediate desire to send me off ruffles my skin and
do something to offend you?"
She arches a
dislike for me is purely a personal choice." I scoff and nod
she exhales and groans. Her hand reaches out, clutching my
family, a weird, fucked up and very anger filled family. But that's all I have, so yes, I am
you, I'm not looking for a family." I say my word, drifting off as my eyes scan the area around us, a scent prickling my senses as I slow down. The trees are still, not a breeze breaking through the dense foliage of the forest, yet my nose draws my attention to
something to me as I narrow my eyes, tilting my chin up and taking a deep
or charcoal in the faintest way pulling me off the path the others trod
as it pulses away, calling me to follow. I
are you going?" Nisha hisses after me, but I am too
a tree, I notice
the under skin looking green and
I bring my hand to my nose and look closely. There is a slight shimmer, an oily hue,
spit its
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XNS3qYCTH+a0mkjenKCQXlzmbgCBZISe6B/EXQGroHiFVGH2bRkwEA8hhdiG58dLOmsA5sgQ11Yz2PlsMrVmNdyf+6w9P8fLrbnARnzgTx1TiVDATed2pZwfMTC/C87GxMZM/6maeH2nFa4Y9hn6kSGg04nBhruX3MYQf3XWERGcEO/SroydinVt4CB3Gn4D5nCtfc1Q/pYvHmlu/Lovv6EA8xhUb8SfEyZkXNfToZ/5WF3+2Y5L0ReSQsGrYXr/SQT38OjNWbCm1G2PNzZgNt+XSPNnPd8Hp4cxU5oAY/gmC983yXmnI+U9IICbOfetyYt8+Yt5Qdawh/ksgh4dsuw7JwgAldChcpCXO3pDVUuzHLKogmMmsg==
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