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The sky was covered in heavy clouds, a pitch-black fog surrounding her, making it seem like there was only darkness ahead of her. When she left New York the sky was tinted with tiny stars that lit up the road when the street lights ceased to exist. Now the only thing preventing her from getting out of course was the faint light coming out of her Harley. The rain fell relentlessly, in torrents. Tobin couldn´t bring herself to remember where and when it had started to rain like this. She was getting soaked. She realized her leather jacket wasn´t made for this type of weather when she started to feel her shirt under it getting wet. The pouring rain was also making her vision blurry as the water started to pile up in the visor of her helmet. She had been making this route on the same day, every month, for almost 5 years now and never had she encountered such bad conditions.As the miles went by Tobin could feel the weather get progressively worse. The wind that once was just a cold breeze merging with the rain now was full on wind gusts ruffling the forest on both sides of the road, making it harder for Tobin to maintain her balance on top of her bike. Branches were being ripped from trees and dragged to street such was the force of the wind. Tobin knew she was in no conditions to continue driving but she wasn’t going to stop, she couldn´t. She took this route because the only thing visible for miles was trees on both sides of the road and very few people dared to drive near to Doodletown this late. She loved the quietness the lack of society allowed her to have even if it was only for two hours.Tobin came back to reality when the first grumble was heard. It was so loud and rough that it seemed like it had cracked the sky. She looked up just in time to see the stray of light just before it disappeared. She soon realized she was driving right into a storm, but there was no other road she could take and to be honest she loved thunderstorms or storms in general, she got that from her mother.She remembered perfectly the first time her mother her own love for storms with her. She was five and that was the first time she was old enough to realize what was happening. She remembers laying in her bed in New Jersey tucked under her sheets with a flashlight. That’s how her mother found her, hiding afraid the ceilings would fall on top of her head. Her mother picked her up and took her to the living room where there was this big wall made of glass. She could see the whole city from that place, at the top of the building. Her mom sat them both on the sofa in front of the window and asked her to open her eyes and look at the beautiful event that was occurring outside. If she closed her eyes, she could almost hear the exact words her mother said that day.-------- “There’s something about a storm that brings me peace. You should never be afraid of a storm, you know why?”
Tobin looked up to her mother’s brown eyes searching for an answer.
“Why ma?”
“Because nature must rage, just as we do sweetheart. As long as she rages, we will be fine because there is no rage that could possibly last forever.”
She eyed the scenario on the other side of the window again to trying to access the new information, trying to find the beauty in it. She felt her mother pulling her closer as both of them saw the lighting strikes descend from the sky.
“Just make sure you know when the storm is over baby, don’t mistake the calmness of the eye of the storm for its end.”
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Even though she was young and couldn’t understand the importance of the situation at the time those words stuck, and she has been living by them ever since, loving storms more than sunny days now.A strong blast was heard again, now a lot closer. The storm was getting closer now, the thunder came only about a second after the lighting. The sky was getting so low, filled with so many dark voluptuous clouds that it was starting to feel claustrophobic. Tobin sped up, trying to get as fast as she could to the main road. Due to the speed, the heavy rain was aggressively colliding against her body and she could feel her wheels losing their grip to the ground as her speedometer went up. The heavy wind looked like it was racing her, stronger than ever now, tearing large branches from trees like they were as heavy as leaves. She was now at the maximum speed her bike allowed her to go without sliding completely onto the ground. She was driving in the dark, the headlight barely gave a meter in sight, the rain and the night making it almost impossible for her to see.And then it happened.Lightning came, a brilliant shock of white in the graphite sky, forking silently to the unsuspecting ground, the thunderous boom always calling its warning too late. The brightness of the lightning, which landed about two meters in front of her, cleared the road enough for her to make out the structure of a car and the silhouette of a woman. She was looking straight at her in the middle of the road.Tobin only had the time to twist the handle on the bike to avoid hitting the woman, her wheels completely losing their adherence to the floor. The first thing she felt was her leg colliding with the ground and then the burn all over her left side due to the sliding against the asphalt at full speed. She felt the tissue of her jeans tear with the force of the ground against her leg and then the skin getting stripped down to flesh. Her leather jacket suffered some damage, but it held its own against the hard surface.Tobin finally felt the movement stop, allowing her whole body to lay on the ground. Aside from the burn on her leg, she didn’t think she had any other injury. She did a little checkup on herself, assessing if she was able to move every part on her body, trying to see if there was any swelling, bruising or tenderness on her leg that would indicate a fracture, something she had learned from hearing hours of Kelley’s monologues when she was trying to study from an exam. She slowly removed her helmet, praising herself from remembering to put it on. She was about to get up when she heard quick footsteps getting closer to her. She had completely forgotten about the woman.“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god …”She heard her say as she ran to her. Her voice was low pitched filled with worry and concern. She seemed almost in distress. Tobin felt a hand on her shoulder, grabbing her wet jacket and then she saw the woman leaning by her side.“I´m so sorry, so so sorry. My car broke down, I’ve been here for hours now and then I heard the motor and I thought it would be wise to come out of the car and see if someone would help me” The woman was talking too fast for Tobin to process what she was trying to say. “I didn’t expect the lighting or that you would be riding so fast.”The stranger ran her eyes all over her body, seeing if she found any other place where she could be hurt. First, she looked at her legs, her eyes flinching at the sight of blood, she leaned in closer trying to access the gravity of the injury. Then her torso, arms and hands, looking pleased at the lack of blood there. The woman’s eyes met her own. Green. Cold green. They were all Tobin could focus on. The darkness of the night making them seem like they were glowing, two beams of light in the middle of the storm. The woman was gorgeous, dark hair, strong jaw, and beautiful tanned skin. Her dark curls wet from the heavy rain still falling on top of their heads.“Are you okay? Oh god, you’re bleeding. Your knee is bleeding. What do I do?”Tobin realized she was still sitting on the ground. She slowly started to lift herself, looking around. The lightning seemed to have ceased and the wind was now at a normal speed. The only thing that remained was the rain still falling on top of their heads relentlessly. Tobin only then saw her motorcycle, laying a few meters ahead of her, both sides completely scratched. She let out a loud sight laying again on the wet floor.“Oh god, you have a concussion. Should I call an ambulance? Fuck … there’s no cell service.”Tobin looked at the woman by her side again that was now typing on her phone. She seemed even more distressed now, her eyes still with a beautiful cold color. Tobin thought it was best to calm the girl. She reached from the girl’s arm that was now carefully laying on her stomach.“Hey, it’s okay. I’m okay. My Harley though …” She said in a laughing tone trying to uplift the mood but also because she was actually more worried about her bike than her leg.The woman seemed as if she thought Tobin was insane, looking at her with an outraged look.“Are you serious?” She spoke a little louder this time.“Hey!” Tobin shouted. The woman looked at her, displease plastered all over her face. “Come on beautiful. I’m right here by your side, no need to scream.”“You have to be clinically insane …” The girl mumbled. “No seriously. You just had an accident and the first thing you do is try to crack a joke and worry about your motorcycle?”She got up, cleaning the dirt from her hands, looking downwards at Tobin. She held her hand out for Tobin to take and helped her get up. As soon as Tobin got up, she felt a pang on her leg, her injury finally catching up to her. She looked down, she could tell the injury wasn’t severe. Her leg was completely scraped from her knee to the very top of her thigh, the rest of the jeans covered in blood. She lifted her head again searching for the woman only to be met with her back as she was already walking towards her car.“Seriously it's fine. In a week it will be nothing, just a few scars that will make this moment eternal.” She said in a mocking tone almost sarcastic.The woman was now across the road, resting against her car. Both of them stood under the heavy rain unfazed. She heard her huff at the statement and Tobin laughed. She took the sight of the beautiful girl into her mind again. Her white shirt was now completely soaked and see-through, something she hadn’t notice before and couldn’t avoid looking at now. Behind her was a very nice car, if she wasn’t mistaken, she was looking at a brand-new BMW i3. Even though it was a car that demanded attention, thanks to the metal grey color of the car, it could easily pass unnoticed in the city, which seemed suitable.Tobin then redirected her attention towards her motorcycle once again, walking towards her. She lifted the moto very slowly, not wanting to do any more damage, almost crying at the sight of the now-scrapped sides, instead of the beautiful black metallic shade. She also noticed that she was lacking one wing mirror from the right side of the motorcycle.“Are you serious?” Tobin heard a condescending tone say behind her. The voice sounded far away still. Tobin was still intrigued by the voice of the woman, it was almost unexpected. It was low, with an agreeable trace of huskiness and with a hint of more power than the small body would suggest“Most of the time, but why that question now?” Tobin bent down so that her eyesight was directly in front of the motor’s engine, her leg almost immediately complaining at the effort. For the most part, it looked all right, but she was worried that with the slide some branch or rock would have hit a more internal part of the motor.“Aren’t you going to ask me what happened? Or I don’t know ... If I need help?”“Don’t need to. You’re either standing on the side of the road because your electric car broke down or because you want to kill me. I’ll bet on the first.”“Considering the second.”Tobin heard the girl behind her mutter. Tobin was about to respond when she felt a cold shiver run down her spine. She had been under the cold rain for almost an hour now, she was either getting sick or getting an infection from the wound on her leg. She got up and turned around facing once again the beautiful girl.“As much as I’m enjoying your company, there’s no way I’m staying here for the rest of the night and the way I see you’ve got two options. You can either come with me and I’ll drive you home or you can wait here until the next person appears. What’s It going to be?”The woman seemed to be assessing her choices, looking between Tobin and her car.“Don’t worry about your car,” Tobin said using a more warming tone. “As you’ve figured literally no one uses this road. You can call a trailer when you reach the town and come get your car tomorrow. It’ll be fine I assure you.”Tobin could tell she had won when the woman huffed and lowered her gaze to the ground. She then walked to her car and grabbed her belongings. From what Tobin saw it looked like she was only carrying her backpack and cellphone. Tobin got on top of the motorcycle starting it right away, waiting for the girl that was now headed in her direction.“Wait.” The girl said stopping in her tracks. “How do I know you’re not a psychopath, wanting to kill me??”“When did you conclude that I wanted to kill you? Before or after I sacrificed my leg and my bike to avoid hitting you?” Tobin said with a reassuring smile. “Just get on.”She picked up the helmet that sat on the floor and extended it towards the girl. The girl’s green eyes met her own one more time before she felt the weight from the helmet leave her hand and two legs brace her waist as she settled behind her on the seat.“Do you even know where I was headed?“No,” Tobin said firmly. “but this road only leads to one place someone of your age would probably want to go and that is Duke University. Am I wrong?”She said smugly as she drove off, hissing right after at the feeling of the rain hitting her wounded skin at full speed.“Here.” She heard the woman’s voice say close to her hear. She then felt something the stranger’s hands on her leg as she laid something soft on top of her injuries. Tobin looked down briefly to see a scarf, she didn’t see the woman wearing before, laying on top of her leg. Now, Tobin wanted nothing more than to look into the stranger’s eyes again, but she couldn’t afford to take the eyes of the road.“Thank you.” She said instead, trying to put into that phrase the gratitude she was feeling for the simple gesture. She wasn’t one to say thank you, but she felt taken care of and she couldn’t remember the last time she felt that feeling.“And no, you are not wrong.” She heard the woman continue, choosing not to mention the words mention before which Tobin was also thankful for. “I was headed to a friends house, near the university, when my car broke down.”Tobin nodded and accelerated, waiting to get home as soon as possible after a long day like this. With the new speed, she felt two small hands grab the hooks of her jeans, trying to find a little more stability and safety.“Do you mind?” She heard the voice ask warmly.“Is either that or you falling off the bike, right? I think the first option is the better one. I can assure you,” Tobin said emphasizing the word assure. “that hitting the ground at full speed is very painful.”“Are you always this much of a jerk to people?” The woman asked, her voice dripping with annoyance.“Only to really hot girls with beautiful green eyes.”That seemed to shut the woman up as Tobin didn’t hear a response to her provocation. She was proud of herself for being able to quiet the girl.They drove in silence for a while. After a few miles the rain had finally died down, drizzle gently falling on top of their heads now. The sky was clearer, giving them a beautiful sight. Darkness filled with spots of light, the moon intensely shining beside them. With all that had happened Tobin suspected it should be approximately 4am, they were fast approaching the Purple Heart Memorial Bridge that sat just above the Hudson River. Tobin found it exceptionally beautiful at this time.As they drove on top of the bridge, a few cars now driving besides them, Tobin thought it looked even more perfect this night. Maybe it was because she had just gotten out of a storm or because of the fever she was probably under due to the injurie she had suffered and the heavy rain she had been under. The reflection of the sky was hitting the water just right, making the most beautiful paintings she had ever laid her eyes on look like mere attempts.“Beautiful isn’t it?” She heard the voice behind her say. “Sometimes I forget how beautiful the night really is and how lucky we are because we get to see it.” The sweet low voice suffered a slight change as it pronounced the last words, something in the pitch sounded almost bitter.Tobin chose to put it aside, she was probably overthinking like she usually did. She preferred to give a simple but honest answer.“We really are the fortunate ones.”The other woman’s response came in the form of a gesture. She felt the small hands that sat on her waist giving her a gentle squeeze, one of appreciation. Tobin smiled at the small gesture, content with the fact that someone other then herself found beauty in simple things like that. It wasn’t something common these days. As they reached the end of the bridge Tobin remembered she was taking the girl that sat behind her to her house, or the house she was staying in.“So … Where to?”“Right, of course.” The girl seemed as if she had been caught off guard. “It’s right next to the university, I can tell you from there.”Tobin nodded, accelerating since she now knew where she was headed.“If don’t mind me asking why were you on that road? If you were coming here from New York, where that road starts, you had a way faster route along the river.” She had been meaning to ask that since they hoped on the bike again.“I didn’t want it but the GPS on my car asked me if I wanted to take a tourist route and since I was new in the city and it was still early, I accepted. I guess something must have gone wrong because one hour later I found myself in the middle of nowhere, my car broke down and no cell service. I blame that hell of a storm.” The woman answered, an amusing irritation lacing her voice.Tobin laughed at the confession, feeling sorry for the poor woman that on her first day in the city had already suffered so many inconveniences. Tobin’s giggle earned her a jab to the ribs.“Easy there woman.” Tobin said jokingly. “Try to leave at least one part of my body unharmed.”The other girl ignored the snarky comment, once again focusing on the question she wanted to ask.“What about you? Why were you there?”Tobin should have known that her question would incite this, but she still expected it to slide past her just this once.“Family stuff.” She merely answered trying to convey as much displeasure as she could onto her voice so the girl wouldn’t ask any more questions. Either way she didn’t give her an option as the Duke university stood in front of them.“Where to my lady?” Her normal, playful tone back.“It’s that building over there.”She said as she got closer to Tobin, her head resting on her shoulder, her lips talking close to her ear, so that her arm could be in front of them both, allowing Tobin to look at where she was pointing. Tobin looked at the building the girl was looking at. It was tall, made of glass, it had 22 floors and arguably the best view in town. Tobin knew this because she had been inside it countless times.“Are you shore?”“Yes why?” Curiosity dripping on her voice.“Because me and my best friend live there.” Tobin simply answered. “Didn’t know we were going to have a new neighbor and, trust me, people know everything around here.”“Well I’m staying with my friend on her apartment. That’s probably why you haven’t heard anything.”They soon reached the front of the building, Tobin parking her motorcycle in her spot. She waited from the woman to come down and she hoped of the bike, looking at the beautiful woman once again. Tobin was shore she wouldn’t get used to the woman’s exotic beauty, it wasn’t like she was starstruck or anything like that, but she truly appreciated beauty when she saw it.She picked up the helmet that was being extend to her putting it on the handle of the bike. She looked down noticing the scarf that was now glued to her leg due to the blood, that was now dry, and the water that fall on it. She considered giving it back, but she realized it would probably be better if she cleaned it and then gave it to her. She met the green orbs once again, this time the woman was already looking at her.“It was really nice meeting you, well under the circumstances.” Tobin started looking down at her leg with a smug, content when the woman in front of her chuckled.“It was nice meeting you too …”“Tobin.” She hurried.“Suits you.” She heard the woman say. “It was nice meeting you Tobin.” The woman concluded her sentence.“Can I know yours?” Tobin asked a little too eager.“Christen.” The woman answered quickly.“Well Christen,” Tobin let the name roll on her tongue, liking the way it felt to utter the name of the person she had spent the last few hours with. “Do you need me to let you in?”“No need to, my ride up just reached the door.” Christen said as she redirected her eyes towards the building door that was now being opened.Tobin looked behind her just in time to see the figure exit the figure onto their direction. It was a woman jumping towards them in the middle of the night wearing pjs, minion pjs, that weren’t visible at this distance, but Tobin could recognize that obnoxious piece of clothing miles away. She had regretted giving that gift one Christmas ago, a second after gifting it. She had done it thinking she would upset the woman, but she loved it, and now Tobin had to deal with a grown ass child knocking on her door wearing that. She knew all of this because the woman in front of her was her best friend. Kelley O’Hara.
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Tobin wasn't a suspicious person by nature. When she was younger, her father would occasionally sit with her on the couch, cleaning tears from her eyes because she once again had given her trust to the wrong person way to fast. He was always careful with his words doing his best to try and make her understand that people had to prove themselves before she could trust them, but his kind words did very little to her during her childhood. He tried his best to make her understand that people in their line of work, her mother’s line of work, most of the time just wanted to use her to get to them.However, her father was too kind, and kindness will lead you nowhere in this world. Tobin realized both lessons when she was ten and she was forced to move in with her uncle. He made her into who she was today, shaping her the way he figured it was the right one. Tobin remembered the way he made sure she understood what her father's words meant, what he had been trying to warn her about.------------
It was dark, there was barely any light inside that room. Tobin laid in her bed, face down against the pillow, trying to drown her sobs. She had spent the last two days here in this spot. She loved the dark. In the blackness, anything seems possible. The inability to see gives free reign to the imagination in a way that daylight never could. Laying here she could just pretend the last days never happened.
“Tobin.”
She heard her uncles' strong voice say. His voice was deep, whenever he spoke, every head in the room would turn. Tobin had seen that display of raw power many times and she was only ten years old. He had that rich, silky tone that demanded attention. He spoke as if he controlled the world, his experience and confidence seeping through each word he said.
Tobin knew better than to keep him waiting. She quickly got up, cleaning her now reddened face and made her way downstairs towards her uncle’s office. Every time he was home that was where he usually stayed. Tobin had never been allowed in his workplace. When she usually came here with her parents the door was closed, everyone knew the entry was forbidden, so she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do.
A big wood door stood in front of her, she could see light seeping from under the door. She looked at the metal handing, worn out by its use, her head only slightly above it. She knocked twice, gently, her uncle wouldn’t have been pleased if she just barged in.
“Come on in.” Even though Tobin was waiting for an answer she still flinched at the sound.
She opened the door and was immediately taken aback by the luminosity inside the room. Outside was dark, the whole house covered by the darkness of the night but inside this room, there was so much light she had to give her eyes a second to adjust before she completely entered the room.
The room was big, bigger than she expected at least. It wasn't very ornamented, she figured her uncle only wanted to keep essentials in it. The room was grey, it looked like it had been painted fresh yesterday. There were a few paintings on the wall, expensive ones for sure, but besides that, the only things in the room were a bookshelf, a sofa against the right-side wall and a desk. Behind it stood her uncle, the light of a computer giving his face a bright glare.
Tobin never liked to look at her uncle, he always had a demanding look she didn't like, but now it was even more painful. He was a clear image of her father, even though they were born two years apart, they could easily be twins. His face was clean shaven and utterly serious, that was the only thing that was completely different, her father always held a proud smile on his face. Her uncle's eyes were hidden behind a pair of round glasses that were quickly removed when he noticed her presence in the room. He got up, making Tobin feel like she was ten times smaller.
He walked towards her in silence and laid a hand on her back. Even though visually she had always been scared of him, she never understood why she found comfort in his touch. There was something familiar in it. He slowly led her to the couch sitting down right after.
“Sit down Tobin.” His brown eyes were looking at her, staring intently. His gaze started to feel uncomfortable, so Tobin bowed her head down, trying to avoid the intense stare.
“Don’t.” She lifted her head quickly at the sound of the strong voice. “Heath’s don’t bow to others, not even to their own.” He said firmly. His voice and eyes were strong. He laid a hand on her shoulder as Tobin made an effort to avoid averting her gaze from his eyes. “I want you to always remember this, kid. Better to die on your feet than die on your knees.”
Tobin nodded, her inner voice telling her she was supposed to please him. His face twitched in something that resembled a smile. The top row of teeth was showing, and there was a faint curve to the lips, but there was no crease below the eyes, no movement of the cheeks. On anyone else, it would be a grimace, at best. On this face, however, it was a sign of bliss. One Tobin had never seen in ten years of life. He seemed almost regretful.
He gave her one last gentle squeeze on her shoulder before retracting his hand. As he withdraws his hand, his face became once again stone cold, as if it had never changed. He took a deep breath in, closing his eyes for a second before continuing.
“Do you know why I called you?”
Tobin knew why her uncle had called her. She was young but she knew that this talk was inevitable. The funeral was tomorrow. Just the thought of it made her eyes well up but she wasn’t about to cry in front of her uncle. She did what she had learned these last few days, she bit the inside of her cheek, allowing the pain to prevent her from crying. Tobin nodded once again trying to speed up the process. Her agreement was insignificant because her uncle continued his talk, not waiting for the signal.
“Tomorrow is your family’s funeral and you won’t attend it.” Tobin opened her mouth to protest these words, but she was quickly cut off. “This is not up for debate. I’m your tutor now and you’ll do as I say.”
“Why?” Tobin asked, her voice quivering. She bit her cheek stronger.
“It will be a public event and I need you to have a normal life. If anyone sees you with me, you won’t have that, they can’t connect you to those bodies. You can morn them from here.”
Tobin kept herself quiet after this assessing the information. She was angry, her parents died, her sister died. She was left without a family in a heartbeat and she wasn’t even allowed to attend their funeral, to say goodbye to them one last time. When her uncle realized she wasn’t going to say anything else he got up, straightening his grey suit.
“Any other question?” Tobin figured this was supposed to be rhetorical since her uncle was already making his way towards the desk, but there was something she had been meaning to ask since she got a hold of herself.
“Why did they die?” She blurted out, the youngness in her voice present in this phrase. The last word leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.
Her uncle stopped in his tracks, waiting a few seconds before turning around and locking his cold eyes in her own. Now they weren’t only cold but angry.
“Your father, my brother, trusted too easily and your mother loved him too dearly. That costed them their lives. Your sister and all those other people were just collateral damage. That was the official report.” He was about to head towards his desk when he stopped once again. “Remember this kid. Trust is like blood pressure. It’s silent, vital to good health, and if mistreated it can be deadly. Don’t make the same mistakes your father did.”
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This whole coincidence made her recall this moment. Kelley never gave her a reason to doubt her, always transparent and truthful, but she had to admit this was too much of a coincidence.Kelley hopped to them, a childish way of walking for an adult but somehow it suited her. Tobin thought she saw the moment when Kelley realized that Christen wasn’t the only one outside. When she saw her standing next to Christen, her face twisted in confusion for a second. It was clear to Kelley that, from how close they were standing next to each other, they hadn’t met just now. The confusion quickly disappeared allowing a happy grin to make its way onto her face once again. When she reached them, she lifted a finger in Tobin’s direction signaling she should wait before jumping in Christen’s arms, her signature greeting. A koala hug.From her perspective Tobin could only see Christen’s face as Kelley’s legs hugged the woman’s waist, arms wrapped tightly around her neck. The hug lasted about five seconds, but Tobin could tell they were close. She also noticed that this was the first time she had seen Christen smile despite her poor attempts at jokes the entire night. Tobin realized how tense the other woman was when she saw her whole body relax in the presence of Kelley. Her rigid posture, almost inhuman from how uptight it looked, now turning into a slightly gentler one.Tobin saw Kelley redirect her smile towards her and Tobin couldn’t help but smile. After long days, coming home to Kelley, someone she considered family now, was what put a true smile on her face. Tobin was already waiting for Kelley’s familiar weight when she saw the woman abruptly stop, a serious look on her face, one Tobin had only seen very few times.Tobin saw Kelley lower her gaze off her eyes to her leg, the red stain on her leg calling her attention. Eyes going wide when she saw all the dry blood accumulated on the scarf that covered her wound. She then seemed to notice the state of her friends. Both dripping wet ripped clothes and in Tobin’s case a bloody leg.“What the hell happened to you two?”Kelley asked as she made her way towards Tobin, kneeling in front of her, pulling off the scarf that covered her injury. Tobin flinched at the feeling of the tissue that was glued to her wound being ripped off. Flesh once again exposed to the wind.Kelley examined her leg briefly and then got up, looking for any sign of other injuries on her face. Hands pressed to her cheeks, forcing her head to turn in every direction. She then turned to Christen to see if she had missed something on her friend. When she made sure Christen was okay, she looked between the two of them shaking her head in disapproval.She lifted Tobin’s arm, looking at the scratches on her jacket, eyes going wide when she connected the dots. She ran the short way to Tobin’s bike, noticing the scraped side.“Did you have an accident?!” Kelley’s voice higher than usual, worry in her tone as well as disbelief. Her eyes widening, looking at Tobin with her hands on her hips.“No … of course not.” A smirk growing on her face. “I just wanted to have a good look at the asphalt quality. I had no idea concrete had such an exfoliating effect.” She deadpanned, her mouth twisted trying to surpass a smile that was trying to emerge, so she could look as serious as possible. That didn’t last long. When she heard a sweet laugh come from behind her, she couldn’t keep it in anymore.Tobin looked back, Christen’s eyes were locked in Kelley’s face. She looked amused, her friends’ distress and Tobin’s joke seemed to get to her.“Oh! I see … you guys think this is funny?” Kelley was now looking at Christen, a disappointing feature on her face. Under Kelley’s gaze, Christen looked down, but she could see that the woman was still smiling. “Kells …” Tobin started, changing her weight from one leg to another, but she was quickly interrupted.“Don’t Kells me! You could’ve gotten seriously hurt.” She paused looking between the two of them, realized the familiarity between her two friends once again. “How are the two of you together to begin with?”Tobin was about to respond when Christen took a step forward getting closer to them and answering for her.“I caused the accident.” She simply stated like it was completely normal. Her face serious as she pronounced the words, although a smile quickly surfaced. At the same time, Kelley’s eyes bulged, eyebrows going up in shock, Christen’s lips started to go up. Her smile was one of happiness growing, she was way more relaxed now. Tobin could see how it came from deep inside to light her cold eyes.“You … caused…What?!” Kelley struggled to put her thoughts into words. Her face twisting as she tried to convey what she was feeling. She stopped, closing her eyes for a second, taking a deep breath so she could think straight.“I hope you guys have a good explanation for what happened.” She stated, more to herself than them. “Let’s go up. I need to take a closer look at that leg.”Then she just started to walk in front of them, feet hitting the floor with more strength than needed. Tobin looked to her side, where Christen now stood smiling at the sight in front of her. When Christen noticed a pair of eyes on her, she looked to her side meeting Tobin’s waiting ones, both cracking up even more at the sight in front of them. A grown ass woman in a minion’s pajama doing something that could only be described as an angry walk. Shoulders pushed back, head held high and long strides. Tobin saw Kelley stop in her tracks at the sound of giggles behind her, her body only stopping the full movement shortly after, due to the quickness of her steps.“I’m not saying it again, you idiots.” She stated, only looking at them briefly, an annoyed look on her face as she walked again towards the building. Christen followed shortly after, not wanting to keep Kelley waiting. Tobin quickly went to grab her helmet that was on the handle of her motorcycle where she had left it when they arrived, hurrying to get to Christen and Kelley that were now waiting for her at the entrance of the building.The three of them made their way into the building. The decoration of the lobby was simple without being too basic, having a more modern feeling to it. A big ceiling and white walls were half of it, an occasional painting was seen as they made their way towards the elevator, a deep brown floor beneath them, that shined as brightly as any other well-polished glass on the outside of the building.They walked to the elevator in silence, a comfortable one but once the metal doors of the elevator closed the mood changed fast. The infrastructure was small, Tobin could say that today it felt way smaller. Due to her helmet when she entered the metal box, she was squeezed onto Christen’s side so that the sliding doors could close. Kelley had to share her side with her helmet, the piece of plastic pressing onto her legs preventing her from moving. Tobin was so close to Christen that her hand was brushing her side, her own chest resting against the woman’s shoulders, feeling the slight movement whenever the woman took a breath.An awkward silence settled over them, the only thing breaking it was the soft music that played inside of the elevator. Tobin wanted to move, she felt as if she was invading the other woman’s space. She wanted to get at least a meter of space between her and Christen but that wasn’t possible, so she just kept shifting uncomfortably in her space, feeling her palms get even sweatier as they went up. This was the first time she wished that she and Kelley didn’t live in the last possible floor of the building so that the ride could be over faster.“Can you stop?” Tobin heard Kelley say, breaking the silence between them. “Your helmet is dry humping my leg.”Tobin had never been so thankful for her best friend and her stupid comments.“Don’t act like it’s the first-time sweetie.” Tobin argued, purposely pushing her helmet against Kelley’s legs now.Tobin watched as Kelley simply rolled her eyes and Christen let out a small chuckle. Tobin felt the movement on her entire body as if the small laugh reverberated through her bones. She seemed as if she laughed way more when Kelley was around or involved in the matter. She could understand her infatuation for making fun of Kelley, her friend was easy to make fun off.Shortly after the elevator doors opened with the famous ding Tobin blindly walked backwards out of it, enjoying the freedom the new-found space provided her. This floor, the last one of the building only had two apartments, both suites, one belonged to Tobin and the other one to Kelley. They made their way towards the entrance of Kelley’s place, waiting as Kelley fumbled through her keys, trying to find the one that opened the door in front of them.“If you’re this slow to open your door every time you bring a girl home, I’m sure they all leave before you even open it.” Tobin snarked trying to embarrass her best friend in front of her new-found friend. That seemed to do the trick because Kelley dropped her keys and Christen’s head snapped in her direction.“Girls? Kelley never told me anything about girls.” Christen said looking between her and Kelley that was now bent down picking the keys off the floor. Her face was emotionless although there was a playful smirk plastered on her face. Tobin wondered if she looked like that herself, fatigue taking over their features.Kelley finally found the key, opening the door, letting them in.“That’s because there aren’t any girls, and Tobin knows that. She’s always making fun of me because of it.” Kelley quickly responded looking quickly towards Christen’s, making sure she didn’t fall for Tobin’s jokes.“Maybe if you opened the door quickly there would be a lot more, or you know, more than none.” Tobin joked, playfully knocking her shoulder with her friend’s as she entered the very familiar apartment.Kelley’s apartment was much like Tobin’s. When you entered the complex on your left you had the kitchen and on the left the living room, no wall separating the two spaces. Both enjoyed the feeling of openness their apartments gave them. In front of the main door was a big wall completely made of glass that at this hight, gave them a beautiful view of the city. That was something you had to get personalized when you bought the suite. Tobin chose to get it because it reminded her of her mother. It made her feel closer to her. It reminded her of the various talks her mother, her sister and herself would have about life in general for hours in front of a similar window in their apartment back home. When she asked Kelley why she had specialized hers to look that way, she simply said she found the view way to beautiful to be covered by a piece of concrete.“If you think my life is that miserable, sexually, I’ll give you the pleasure to spice it up. Take off your pants and sit on the sofa please.” Kelley stated. Tobin turned around a smile on her face. She saw Christen first by Kelley’s side and then she focused her vision on her best friends’ face, hoping to see a joking feature on her face but she was met with a dead serious expression. When Tobin saw the serious expression, her smile dropped looking confused.“Your injury Tobin …” Kelley said laughing, looking at Christen in search of a high five. “It isn’t that funny when it’s the other way around isn’t it?” Tobin huffed at the statement but did as told, briefly looking at Christen, who was giving her a fake apologetic smile. Tobin shook her head briefly at Christen, a judging smile on her lips, before stripping down.“Jesus Tobs! Where are your manners?” Kelley exclaimed, embarrassing Tobin even more. She then turned to face Christen, whose eyes were locked on her legs. “You don’t need to stay for the show.”Kelley was about to continue but Christen interrupted, a real smirk on her lips this time.“It doesn’t seem that bad of a show.”Tobin felt her whole face getting hot at the woman’s words. She rapidly avoided the woman’s stare, the decoration of the living room seeming more interesting by the second. She awkwardly shifted her weight from one leg to the other. “Oh god …” Kelley mumbled hiding her face between her hands, letting out a little huff as she did the movement. She looked at Christen once again. “Just go put your stuff in the bedroom, Chris. It’s the last one on the left.”Christen nodded, looking one last time in Tobin’s direction before retracting and soon they were the only ones in the living room. Kelley went to get the first aid kit, she always kept it in the service bathroom, returning shortly after to the living room, where Tobin now sat with her leg already resting on top of the table that stood in front of the sofa. Kelley kneeled in front of Tobin, only one knee hitting the ground. She picked up Tobin’s leg and rested it on top of her own thigh. Tobin watched as Kelley touched the scarred skin that was left on her thigh moving it so that she could have a better vision of her injury.“You were lucky.” Kelley stated, looking more attentively at a particular part on her leg. “It could have been way worse. It’s not deep, so there is no need to get you to the hospital. You’ll probably just have to change the bandage a ton” Kelley lifted her head and looked at Tobin. “I’ll show you how you’re supposed to do it so pay attention.”Tobin watched as Kelley started to clean her cut, carefully so she wouldn’t hurt her. She did this like she had done it a million times before. From Tobin’s point of view, it looked almost as if it was muscle memory. Kelley probably did this a tone in her major or minor, she wasn’t sure.“New friend hum?” Tobin asked after a while trying to initiate some type of conversation.“Yes, and before you ask, she’s just a very close friend,” Kelley stated as she leaned closer to Tobin’s leg, taking out of it small stones that had glued to the bloody leg.“You could have told me you were having someone over.”“When? Before or after your monthly get away.” Kelley argued, giving her the glare, she only used for this subject. Tobin dodged the question like she always did, avoiding it like it wasn’t even made. She knew she wouldn’t get out of this if Kelley wanted, but Kelley had only pressed the issue once, choosing to not do it again due to the major discussion they had when that happened.“You could have texted me.” Tobin continued the talk.“Why are you so curious?” Kelley replied, a little edge on her voice, as she picked up the hydrogen peroxide applying it on a gauze. “Are you interested or something?”That wasn’t what Tobin wanted to get out of this conversation. She just wanted to get this whole situation clean, so she could silence the voices that told her this was odd. The whole interaction they had, between the three of them, had helped to put an end to some of them, but there were still some questions. Either way, Tobin couldn’t tell Kelley this so she shrugged and gave her another answer.“I mean … she is really pretty if you know wh…” Tobin couldn’t end her sentence because she felt a sharp pain all over her leg. She looked down, finding Kelley with gauze to her leg and a guilty look on her face.“Sorry dude … too much liquid.” Kelley apologized, squeezing some liquid out of the compress and applying it again to Tobin’s leg.“No shit, Sherlock.” Tobin sneered, feeling guilty right after because Kelley was helping her and it was an accident, it wasn’t like she did it on purpose. “It’s all good.” She said laying a hand on top of Kelley’s shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze.“Why is Christen here? By here I mean Duke.”“She was transferred.” Kelley began, at the same time she was tapping her leg with an exaggerated amount of compress. “She wasn't happy with the way her major was handled in her last university, and I told her Duke had a great program for her choice.”Tobin was about to ask the name of the major when Christen resurfaced, now in what Tobin assumed to be her sleeping clothes. It consisted of a plain shirt and some sweats. It was simple but it made Tobin realize how strong the woman’s body looked. It wasn’t like she was bulky or anything like that, but Tobin could tell by the way the shirt clung to her arms that she was fit, her form flexing with every step. Christen finally reached them. “I heard someone scream, for a second I thought Kelley was really keeping her promise, letting you spice her sexual life up.” Christen joked as she sat by Tobin’s side.Both Kelley and Tobin looked at each other at the same time, making gagging noises right after. “My ears.” Tobin added and Kelley continued the fake gagging. Christen was about to warn her she would actually vomit if she continued to do that when she stopped.“So dramatic.” She added, shaking her head.Kelley got up, cleaning everything up and putting the first aid kit now closed on top of the coffee table. She crossed her arms and looked at the two adults in front of her. Tobin felt like she was about to receive a lecture from a parent while Christen just looked amused.“Which one of you is going to tell me what happened?” Kelley stated. She didn’t even ask, she just stood there waiting for any of them to speak. It looked like she wouldn’t budge until they told her.Tobin and Christen looked between the two of them, trying to decide who was going to tell the story. Tobin decided it was best if Christen told it, that way she wouldn’t have to lie, and she could just listen to Christen’s soothing voice again, so she nodded towards her, letting her know she should start. When Christen began to talk, Tobin let her head fall against the cushion of the couch, listening to the raw voice tell the story of how they met.As she listened to the other girls’ perspective of the night, she couldn’t help but smile. Now that they were both safe and inside the house, the story sounded like an unfortunate number of events that made the narrative immensely funny and stupid at the same time. When Christen ended, finishing where Kelley had found them, Tobin lifted her head. Kelley was now sitting next to Christen, instead of staying up, her face more relaxed now that she knew what had happened.“Why didn’t you call me?” Kelley mumbled, looking at Christen.“Didn’t you hear the part where I said, “middle of a storm, no cell service”?”As Tobin heard the two friends catch up, she realized her suspicions probably had no foundation. It looked like what had occurred was simply what looked like a terrible coincidence. As Christen and Kelley chattered, Tobin felt the exhaustion of the day take over, as she slowly felt her eyelids close. She leaned her head once again against the cushion of the couch, quickly falling asleep.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Out of all of the days, this could have happened, today was the one Tobin least expected it to. It was the first day of summer, the weekend after the last day of school, the day of the final of her soccer team tournament. The weather was the kind that felt like a kiss of summer without the fiery heat of noontime in August. The grass was a soft green that almost had a hint of blue and in the sky, there were enough pristine white clouds to show you how beautiful the sky was, how perfect.
Looking out of the window, enjoying this weather, Tobin was glowing from the inside out. The smile that cracked her face hadn't been seen since her childhood. She wasn’t an adult, she was only ten, but she considered her childhood the days where she was innocent, and the sweet innocence of a child was something she had lost years ago. Due to her parents' job, she was forced to grow faster than other kids. For her, the world was no longer this perfect place where no one would get hurt, the spell that young kids are usually under long gone in her case. She had seen too much, too soon. And that took something from her, but today was different. She just had a good feeling about the day, nothing that felt this right could possibly go wrong. It just couldn't, or so she thought.
Today was different because it was the first time in a long time her whole family was going to attend one of her games, they had promised her. She missed the times before her uncle was named the president and her parents wouldn't have to spend days without coming home. Times where it could be just the four of them.
Tobin heard the phone ring, quickly leaving the sight outside of the window, running towards the kitchen where their house phone was at. It was her mother, she had been waiting for this call for about an hour now, her mother told her she would call her when she was leaving work so Tobin could get ready and they could leave for the game.
“Ma!!” Tobin excitedly answered the phone, jumping up and down, almost knocking her knees on the table in front of her. “Are you coming? Where are you at? How long till you and paps get here??”
“Tobin, sweetie, calm down.” Her mother’s voice was low, assertive, the voice she used for work calls. Tobin could hear cars speeding by through the call, probably due to the highway her mother was driving in at the moment, she had the bad habit of calling people while driving. It didn’t matter how many times her father told her she shouldn’t do that. “Where are you?” She heard her ask.
“What do you mean where am I? You told me to wait at home for you guys.” Tobin’s face scrunched up in confusion, as she started to pace up and down the kitchen. “Where are you Ma? It’s getting late, we were supposed to be there already.” Tobin asked now in a softer tone, sensing something was wrong, the excitement quickly leaving her body.
“Tobin, we …” Her mother paused and Tobin heard her sigh. The sigh was a signal of the level of tension her mother had reached, long and heavy filled with sadness and sorrow. Tobin heard this a thousand times, throughout her childhood when they promised her something but ultimately couldn’t follow through with what they said. She knew what it meant.
“You’re not coming, are you?” Tobin said not even trying to hide her sadness this time. Her shoulders caved and her face expression fell to a deep frown, her lip quacking as she tried to suppress the tears. Deep down she knew this would happen, but for some reason, she thought today was going to be different.
“We tried, baby, we really did, but something came up and we have to go.” Tobin heard her mother explain but she was long gone, her mind going to all the times they had this to her and her sister. “We’re sorry …”
“No!” Tobin heard herself say before she could stop it, rage dripping through her words. “You’re always sorry, but that means nothing by now! You promised last night that if I helped you with work, you would come. I did, stayed all night by your side. I kept my end of the promise, I always do. When are you going to keep yours!?” She shouted through the phone. Her shoulders quickly rising and falling due to the sudden explosion. Tobin lifted her arm to her eyes, sensing a new-found wetness there, wiping the tears away. She couldn’t even remember when she started crying, short breaths coming out of her nose as the tear stains marked her cheeks.
“Tobin … you need to understand baby, we can’t just leave work, it’s really important.” Her mother’s voice was soft as if she knew she messed up beyond repair now. She had never seen her daughter have an outburst this big. Her child was always calm and collected, trying to reason everything she saw before expressing what she felt about it.
“More important than me clearly.” She let out a short laugh, almost sarcastic, her voice was bitter. “What about Mory?”
“Your sister is coming with us. We don’t have time to take her to you.” This time it was her father who was talking. His voice was different, so different that for a second Tobin thought she was talking to her uncle, instead of her dad. Her father had never used this voice towards her, he barely even used it. Only towards clients who were being to stubborn or with his brother when they would occasionally fight about work, but never towards her.
“Of course…” Tobin mumbled, after regaining her composer from the sudden surprise. “I have to go now, or I’ll be late. I’ll ask Joseph to take me.”
“Yes of course. We’ll see you tonight.” Tobin was about to hang up when she heard her fathers voice one more time. “Hey, munchkin …” His voice was normal again, even sweeter if possible, but still different. He huffed on last time before adding. “Score one for me, will you?”
Tobin knew this wasn’t was he was trying to say but she wouldn’t press, she was too upset to try, so she just hummed as an answer, trying to get off the phone as soon as possible.
“Okay, now go. We love you baby.” Her father said, his voice dripping with emotion. Tobin just listened, hanging up the second her father finished his sentence, not saying back those three words.
That was the last time she talked to her parents.
------------
Tobin woke up startled. The images of the dream still lingering in her head, she tried to go back to the memory, to fall asleep again so that she could be with her parents a little longer. Even if it was an awful memory, she would take anything at this point just so that she could hear them a little longer, but she couldn’t. Someone was trying to wake her, hands pressing against the bare skin on her arms, shaking her, preventing her from falling asleep one more time. When Tobin opened her eyes, all she saw was green once again, and just like the last time this happened, she got lost in the pool of green, only being brought back to reality by the continuous shaking and soft voice calling her.“Tobin. Tobin. Are you alright?”Tobin snapped out of it, diverting her gaze from Christen’s eyes. The first thing she saw clearly was Christen, who was bent down looking at her, a worried look on her face. She was in the same clothes she was in yesterday, the only difference was that her hair was slightly messier now.“Yeah. I'm fine.” A lazy smile on her voice as she spoke. Her voice was raspy from its lack of use in the last few hours.Christen lowered herself so she was kneeling in front of the sofa, her eyes now directly in front of Tobin's eyes. She slowly laid one of her hands on Tobin.“Sure? I heard you whimper. You seemed upset.”“I’m fine, really.” She reassured, hoping to avoid Christen’s gaze. Her whole body was tense from the dream and the sleeping on the couch, especially her leg, the bandage on it restraining her movements.“We might need to change that.” Christen said when she saw her looking at her leg. “I can do it if you want to.” She added with a smile.Tobin nodded, slowly stretching as she got up. She lifted her arms above her head so she could relieve some of the tension on her shoulders, her shirt riding up with the movement. She noticed Christen’s eyes on her abdomen, where a little bit of skin had been exposed. Tobin waited a while before lowering herself, enjoying the feeling of the woman’s eyes on her body. She liked the feeling of being desired by Christen.“Like what you see?” Upon Tobin’s voice, Christen took two steps back, embarrassed that she was caught staring. Tobin smirked, brushing her shoulder against Christen’s body as she walked towards the place where Kelley had put the kit yesterday. ------------------------------------“Breakfast? I know a nice place nearby.” Tobin asked as Christen slightly patted Tobin’s thigh indicating she was over.“Please.” Christen blurted in a hurry. Tobin laughed at the woman’s quick response.“Let me just go get Kelley.”“Kelley already left.” Tobin was already walking towards Kelley’s room when Christen spoke. “She said she had to go meet with some people from a group project from last semester or something like that.” Christen added when she saw the look of confusion on Tobin’s face.“Oh!” Tobin facepalmed herself recalling a conversation with her friend last week where she had complained about having to work a day before school started. “I totally forgot about that.” Tobin laughed. “Do you mind with it being just us?“I already knew Kelley wasn’t going when I agreed to go with you didn’t I?”Christen had a soft smile on her smile, looking directly at Tobin, as she pronounced these words. Tobin enjoyed the ease the woman already seemed to have in her presence, treating her as if they hadn’t just met yesterday.“Okay. Let’s go then.” Tobin walked towards the door, grabbing her motorcycle keys and helmet as she passed the kitchen counter.“Tobin?” Christen called once again. When Tobin looked behind her, she found Christen with a playful smile looking at her. Tobin couldn’t help but smile with the girl, even though she didn’t know what the reasoning behind it. “You might want to at least put some pants on before you leave.” She added with a laugh.Tobin tilted her head to the side at the statement, confused. She then looked downwards taking in her appearance. A shirt, boxers, and no shoes. She looked like she had just left the bed.“Probably.” She simply stated after a while. ---------------------------------------The tiny café huddled among the huge city buildings. Hundreds of people, mostly students, rushed by it, outside on the crowded street, barely paying attention to the small infrastructure as they went on with their lives. Christen watched as the half a dozen customers glanced up as the door swung open, announced by a blast of cold wind. Unlike the outside, the interior of the café was warm and cheery, with bright lights and colorful walls. The customers returned to their conversations as the door swung closed behind the new entrant and the cold breeze was forgotten.She liked to watch people, their minds and emotions fascinated her. Christen looked to her right where Tobin now stood talking to the waiter behind the counter. She could tell they were friends by the way Tobin easily smiled while talking to the woman as she waited for their food. The girl had to be about their age, tall, blonde and an easy high-pitched laugh. Zoey, Christen thought, she remembered Kelley vaguely telling her about a girl that matched this description and who also, from what she was seeing had major heart eyes for Tobin, touching her and laughing at her jokes way more frequently than needed.Tobin must have sensed someone staring at her because the next thing Christen saw was her smile. She had to admit the girl had a gorgeous smile, it reminded her a lot of Kelley’s. Both rows of teeth showing, the corners of her lips lifting allowing the smile to reach her entire face. It was so contagious that Christen couldn’t help but smile back as she watched Tobin make her way towards their table.“So …” Tobin said as she laid a plate full of pancakes and fruit in front of Christen. “I hope you like it.” Sitting in front of her grinning, right after, somehow her mouth already filled with food.Christen wanted to lie say she didn’t like it, so she could pick on the girl, but her expression gave her away, Tobin already sustaining a proud smile on her face.“It’s really good. How did you find this place?”“Kells and I were killing some time before practice and we found this beauty. It’s also really quiet, so if you ever need a really good place to study in the future, I would totally recommend. 10/10.” She then looked at Christen with a cheeky smile. “Can’t promise the company will always be this good though.”“Ehh…” Christen looked at Tobin from one side to another, pondering. “Can’t be that hard, I give this one a 6/10. She tends to be a little too chatty.”Tobin opened her mouth in shock. Christen could tell she was just playing but she looked just like a pop-eyed toy from one of those claw machines at the fun fair. So perfectly funny that Christen could help but laugh.“Anyway…” Tobin’s voice dragging with fake annoyance. “Kelley said you came here because of your major. What are you majoring in?”“I’m majoring in physics, but that’s not the reason why I changed universities. My minor was the reason, but Kelley being Kelley just mixed it all up.” Tobin knew what Christen meant. Kelley would often forget stuff she told her or remember it all backwards, but she couldn’t judge too much. She did the same often. “My minor is mathematics and Kelley told me that here the classes were better and after some research, because there was no way in hell I would take her word for it, I decided she was right.” Tobin laughed at Christen’s antics, but she was right, Kelley had a tendency of overexaggerating things. “So here am I.” She concluded.“Wait … So you’re telling that you are doing a major in physics and a minor in math?” Tobin was impressed if her major already gave her an absurd amount of work she couldn’t imagine having another one adding to that. “Do you and Kelley have some kind of competition going on? Because if you don’t, you’re both insane.”Kelley was majoring in bioengineering, but she was also doing a minor in chemistry. Even though in Tobin’s opinion Christen’s was harder, Kelley was also under a ton of work most of the time and she played for the soccer team. Tobin had always admired the girl for the effort she put into the things she loved, her motivation never seemed to run out.“You talk like yours isn’t hard at all. From what I’ve heard you’re majoring in mechanical engineering. Pretty easy hum?” Christen jabbed, her voice playfully sarcastic. Tobin knew her major was one of the most difficult but for her, it didn’t seem like, so she often forgot about it. Still, she took the disguised compliment. “Point taken.” Tobin nodded smiling at Christen, noticing the way Christen was already smiling at her. Beneath the two glowing emerald eyes, a smile appeared more often than not. The woman seemed to be at ease with the world this morning. Tobin then remembered something, looking at Christen smirking. “You know, your smile must be a black hole, nothing can escape its pull, I surely can’t.”Tobin watched as Christen’s eyebrows went up, eyes slightly closing with confusion as she tried to decipher the intention behind Tobin’s smirk. When Christen realized that was just a poor attempt at a joke she folded up in laughter, an easy-going kind of laugh. Tobin was sure this outburst wasn’t because of how good her joke was but because it was so out of place, that it made the situation ten times funnier, so much she couldn’t help but laugh herself.Her laughter was warm, joyful, childlike even, and for the first time since Tobin met Christen her eyes were warm, like summer grass under the hot sun. Still laughing but slowly coming to a stop, Christen looked at Tobin.“The way you said it, so out of the blue, I still don’t know if I should take it as a compliment. You seriously need to work on your timing. That was so aggressive Tobin.” She mocked.Tobin was about to reply when she heard a buzz come from Christen’s side. The woman took her phone out of her pocket reading the name. Tobin saw Christen’s demeanor change drastically once she read the name on her phone. Her once smiley face gone in the second she picked it up, now all Tobin saw were strong edges and hard features. It was so fast that it confused Tobin, leaving her a little bit disoriented. Tobin watched as Christen declined the call putting her phone face down on top of the table.“Everything okay?” Tobin was worried, she didn’t know if something had happened but when she met Christen’s eyes again, a smile was already on her face again, reappearing as fast as it left. It was a believable one she had to give that to the girl, she would have probably fallen for it yesterday, but after today she knew what the real one looked like. She believed she couldn’t be fooled.“Yes, of course.” Christen looked outside of the window before locking her eyes on Tobin once again. “Though I’m loving your company, we should leave.”Tobin's face fell. She wasn’t sure why and she couldn’t prevent it, her expression saddening without her permission. Christen must have noticed this because she was quick to propose a solution.“Will you show me around the university? I don’t want to look like the typical newbie tomorrow.”Tobin smiled, happy to not be left alone. “Of course.” -------------------------------------------------------------------“You want the bad news or good news first?”They now stood in the middle of the university, students rushing by their sides as Tobin read Christen’s schedule. Even though classes only started tomorrow the school was filled with the students. People returning from home, friends reuniting and there were some who were even studying, books spread on top of their legs as they sat on the grass, enjoying the bright sun, so unusual at this time of the year in North Carolina.“Bad news.” Tobin looked to the side eyeing Christen, paper still in hand. “What? Bad news always.” A defensive tone in her voice.“Okay …” Tobin mouthed, barely any sound coming off, waving her hands slightly signaling she would leave the girl alone. “So bad news is Kelley will always be across campus from you.”Christen’s face remained the same, tiny smile on it, but nowhere near what Tobin had seen.“Good news is …” Tobin did a small pause. “You’re always on the same side of campus as me and we have like two classes together.”“Yey.” Christen feigned enthusiasm, throwing her hands up in the air. Tobin laughed slightly bumping her shoulder against Christen as she started to walk towards the entry of the main building.“I will remember that when you come to me, begging me for my notes.”“Whatever makes you feel better with yourself.” Christen giggled. “Aren’t you like older than me though? Why are we having classes together?”“Are you calling me old? Two insults in a row, you’re about to walk that pretty ass home.”“It wouldn’t be a long walk, you literally live right there.” Christen stopped walking pointing at the big building behind them. The infrastructure was visible from anywhere around campus, the glass reflecting the bright sun, making it look like it was glowing. Christen’s cheeks were slightly red now and Tobin wished she could know if the new tinted color on her cheeks was due to her smart remark.“I give up.” Tobin grumbled. “And yes, I’m older. This is my last year, but I like to take classes from younger years. It refreshes my memory, so I won’t forget any topic.”“I’m surrounded by old people. Are you sure you’re okay with you holding that? I don’t want you to have osteoarthritis.” Christen pointed at her helmet.“First of all, I’m only 24 so …” Tobin was about to continue on her rant as to why she wasn’t that old when her phone rang. She dug her hand inside her pocket picking her phone out. She smiled when she saw who was calling her.“Hey Kells.” Tobin answered, hearing the words from the woman on the other side of the call. “We’re in the engineering part of the campus. Why?” Tobin started to pace up and down the sidewalk while she talked to Kelley, her hands wagging as they seemed to set up something.Christen took this time to look at her phone. When she declined the call in the café, she was sure she would have a text message on her phone by now. She didn’t expect contact this soon, she thought she would have about a week or two before any messages. She unlocked her phone reading the text: “How have you settled?”. She knew she wasn’t supposed to answer, those weren’t their methods, she would make a call later. She quickly put her phone in her pocket once again. She watched as Tobin made her way towards her once again, still smiling as she talked on the phone with Kelley.“We’ll meet you there in 15.” Tobin nodded three more times. “That was one-time dude.” She sighed looking down as if she was embarrassed, her voice going slightly higher than its usual raw tone. “Okay, we’ll be there.”Christen then watched as Tobin locked her phone, letting it fall inside of her jeans pocket.“Kelley asked if we wanted to meet up for lunch. You up?” She paused. “I’ll show the inside another the day.”“You have to learn something about me. If there’s food, count me in.”“That’s my girl.” Tobin said as she watched Christen who was already walking towards her bike, helmet already in hand, something Tobin didn’t even notice it was missing until she saw it on the brunets’ hand.Tobin had to admit that the sight in front of her was very tempting. The woman was beautiful there was no doubt in that but as Tobin watched the sway of Christen’s hips, her jeans fitted her body perfectly, allowing Tobin to completely enjoy the form of the woman. Her hair bounced along with her body, brushing against her neck every so often making Tobin wish she could feel the softness of the woman’s skin. There was something about Christen that in that exact moment became extremely erotic.“Not your girl.” Christen shouted from where she was. Tobin laughed at the remark running the short distance so she could be side by side with Christen. --------------------------------------------------(…) “So there I am, fifteen minutes early if I may add, waiting on everybody else and then Emily gets there. We both wait a while until I get sick of waiting and text Alex.” She stops for a bit so she could take a bite on her burger. “So, I text him – Hey it’s Kelley here, weren’t we supposed to meet? – and do you know what he answered?”Kelley looks at both Christen and Tobin expectably who were sitting across from her on a booth. Both shook their heads at the same time.“He said – Sorry I have a girlfriend. Can you believe that?!!” She hit the table with both hands so she could emphasize her righteous indignation. “First of all, I’m not even straight, so I wouldn’t want any of that. Second of all I just wanted to know which part of the presentation I was doing, bitch.”After her rant, Kelley leaned against the booth allowing her back to rest against the red leather seat, loudly sighing, looking at her friends.“Well, it could have been worse KO. You could have been the only one who showed up.” Christen said with a laugh, wiping the corners of her mouth.“Hey!” Kelley semi-shouted, pointing at Christen with an accusatory finger. “Don’t jinx it. We’re meeting tomorrow.”Tobin wasn’t hearing the conversation between the other girls from the moment she heard Christen’s mouth mention Kelley’s nickname. She realized she didn’t know how the two women got to know each other. She was curious, they seemed to go way back, and she didn’t know much about Kelley’s childhood, just that she was raised in an orphanage from an early age, no living family. Kelley always got weird when family was brought up, but she wouldn’t press it, because if she did Kelley could do the same. This was a perfect opportunity for Tobin to get to know more.“I never asked how you guys met.” She interrupted her friends talk, both of their eyes landing on her. She saw how Christen looked at Kelley already rolling her eyes at her friends new found smile, like they’ve already been through this situation a hundred times and now it became some kind of an internal joke for them.“I’ll let Kelley tell you. She tells it way better than I do.” Christen said leaning against the booth herself, her shoulder bumping against Tobin’s with the movement.Tobin watched as Kelley leaned in front of her, both elbows on the table, her head resting on top of her hands.“You really want to know? The girl by your side wasn’t always this sweet, I should warn you.” And then Kelley began to tell the story, her eyes glossy with the memory. --------------------------------------------
The cafeteria was run by an ex-army cook who loved bleach. Even the aroma of the mediocre food was overpowered by the scent of it. If you tried to lick a plate or a tray it would taste of bleach too, Kelley was sure of it, she had tried it. But at least there was a lot of food and it all arrived piping hot on the dot of noon when everyone started to arrive, filling the empty space. Kelley always tried to be the first one to arrive so she could avoid all the excessive noise, she never liked it as a child. Today was different though.
She got caught up in classes and couldn’t arrive at the cafeteria at her usual time, the excess of noise making her head hurt right away when she opened the doors. For the most time, things ran smoothly. She got her food and went to her usual table. People knew better than to mess with her, so she remained unbothered.
It was then she saw a new figure walk in. A lanky girl, skinny, she should be around her age, 14, one or two years younger maybe. The girls' skin tone was dark, darker than most people she knew at least, and her dark curls were so exotic that Kelley knew right away who she was looking at. Christen Fawsi. Marcus had briefly talked to her about bringing Christen to them, she knew she had to look out for the girl. She was important to them, so she kept an eye on her for the rest of lunch.
Nothing major happened. The girl got her food and sat down a few tables in front of her. She could see everyone’s questioning eyes on the girl. She didn’t even seem bothered, her head always down, looking at her food. Kelley thought no one would pick on the girl but she should have known better, they always pick on the newbies.
Kelley watched as Jason, one of the older guys, made his way towards the small girl, two guys trailing on his back. He stopped in front of Christen’s tabled and by that time Kelley was already getting up ready to intervene, but it was already too late. She watched as Jason laid a hand on Christen’s shoulder using his force and position advantage so he could push the younger girl onto the ground.
Kelley watched as Christen fell, back hitting the floor with full force, somehow her head remaining held high, preventing it from also hitting the floor. Kelley didn’t wait for the girl to get up before attacking the bigger guy. She pushed him back with the help of her movement.
“What the hell is wrong with you?!” She yelled, looking behind her where the girl now was slowly lifting herself off the floor. She then focused her gaze once again on the guy.
Kelley could hear the silent gasps around the room. People were not used to hearing her voice outside of classes or training. She eyed the guy up and down, he had a good 20 centimeters on her, her fists were already closing by the side of her body as she waited for the other guys' reaction.
He eyed her up and down his face confused as if he didn’t know what he had done to upset her. He seemed almost apologetic, taking two steps backward trying to gain some space between himself and her. He looked back, trying to see if his friends were there to back him up but they were long gone. He nervously smiled at Kelley.
“KO … come on. It’s just the rookie procedure, you can’t be mad about that.”
“Watch me.” Kelley took one step forward, watching as the guy took one back, his legs hitting the table behind him.
“Ok, ok …” The guy said as he walked back towards the exit, his steps getting more rapid as he approached the door. “I’m sorry.” He mouthed before exiting the cafeteria.
Kelley quickly got off her offensive stance, allowing the blood to circulate through her hands again, slowing curling her fingers before turning around, so she could check on Christen. When she did turn around the girl was no longer there. Kelley confused looked around the cafeteria finding the girl near the tray rack, putting her own there. She walked towards the girl, laying a hand on her shoulder when she reached her.
“Hey, are you o…” Kelley wasn’t able to end the sentence because before she knew what happened, she felt the girl grab her hand and twist it, pushing it down, quickly forcing her to her knees. Pain shot through Kelley’s body while she was under the girls’ force, which was quickly released after the girl made sure Kelley wasn’t going to make any attempt to fight her.
“Leave me alone.” The girl almost barked the sentence. Kelley looked her in the eye. They were stone cold, so cold that if the girl was laying down, she wouldn’t have been able to tell if she was alive or dead. She looked as if she was empty inside, no emotion.
Kelley watched as the girl made her way out of the cafeteria along with everyone’s eyes. She knew why they were looking. In two years, that was the first person who was able to lay a hand on Kelley, but she was looking for an entirely different reason. She just couldn’t get that stare out of her mind, the only thing running through her head being: “What the hell?”
-----------------------------------------------
Of course, Kelley down toned the story as she told it, making it seem just a tiny bit passive aggressive as if Christen had been just in a bad mood when they met each other, occulting several parts of the story, especially her last name, Fawsi. As Tobin laughed at the way more funnier version Kelley told, both Kelley and Christen just looked at each other, the true story running through their minds.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Tobin was jolted awake by the sound of knocking. It came quietly first and then it increased its volume as if this wasn’t the first time the person knocked. Tobin’s eyes took in every ray of light that enters the room through her window. The sun was still resolutely below the horizon and the streets are colored by different quantities of light. Although she could hear soft rain crashing against the concrete on the outside. It should be around 7.00am, she still had an hour before she had to get up and head to college. With the soothing sound of the rain and the morning bliss, Tobin quickly began to drift off again, trying to enjoy the warmness of her bed for a little longer.But then the knocking continued. Stronger this time, the person demanding to be let in. Tobin sat up, brushing her eyes, clearing them from any sign of sleep before getting up and heading to the door.Tobin wasn’t ready for the sight behind the door when she opened it. She half expected it to be Kelley wanting to get breakfast but behind the door was Christen. The girl was dressed in running attire, a pair of leggings, a shirt and running shoes, but she was drenched from head to toe. Even with the wet hair and face from the rain, Tobin could see marks of sweat on her face, she looked exhausted, her body leaning as she stood in front of Tobin’s door, like she had run way more than her body could handle. She looked small, shaking from the cold and the fatigue. Tobin watched as the girl tried to form a sentence between her shaking teeth.“So..o…rry to… wake yo…u.” Tobin didn’t wait for the girl to finish her sentence, quickly pulling her inside, grabbing the first jacket she could find hanging near the door. She laid it on top of the girl shaking shoulders, feeling the cold and wet skin against her fingers. Tobin rapidly started to warm the girl the best way she could, rubbing her hands against Christen’s body, hoping that the friction would help.“Kel…ly is..n’t ho..me and I did…n’t kno..w where el..se to go.”“Chris it’s fine really, we just need to get you warm.” Tobin looked at Christen, noticing the way the girl was still shivering, the heat Tobin was providing wasn’t enough to bring the girl’s temperature up.“I like it.” Tobin heard Christen mumble while she was thinking of a way to warm up the younger girl. Tobin looked down, worried about the woman, trying to make sense out of the girl's words, only to be met with Christen, her eyes closed leaning against Tobin’s chest, seeking warmth.“I lik...e wh..en you ca..ll me Chr..is. It’s diff..erent.” Christen continued, letting her head fall against Tobin’s chest. Tobin sighed, enjoying the feeling of such an intimate embrace with the girl, cursing herself for her next action.“A shower will get you all warmed up.”Tobin separated herself from Christen, carrying her all the way to her bedroom, letting her fall on her bed, covering her with the sheets, while she quickly entered the bathroom to turn the water on and to lay on the top counter a couple of her clothes Christen could wear when she finished the bath.When Tobin entered the bedroom again Christen was almost falling asleep, having pulled all the covers on top of her. The girl looked comfy and Tobin wanted to let her stay like that, laying on her bed underneath her covers, but she knew the girl needed to get out of her wet clothes.“Chris …” She nudged the girl, using the nickname she just discovered she was fond of. “Come on, let’s take a shower.”“Together?” Christen’s answer came out clean, no short breaths in between. Tobin was happy she was no longer freezing cold, able to speak. She laughed at the smart remark before slowly starting to pull Christen to her feet and gently leading her to the bathroom door.“Warm up. Use whatever you need. If you need anything just call.”Christen nodded, making her way towards the inside of the bathroom. Tobin closed the door, letting her head fall flat against the hardwood. She looked different today, Tobin couldn’t quite make out what was different, but she had a different feeling to her, almost vulnerable. She was always so stiff it was odd to see her like this.Tobin looked behind her at her bed, that was now wet from Christen clothes. She sighed knowing fully well she wasn’t going to be able to enjoy her last few hours of sleep before going to college. She quickly changed the covers of the bed, now wet due to Christen’s clothes, so she wouldn’t have to do it later. She heard the shower start when she finished and figured she had about 20 to 30 minutes before the girl emerged from the bathroom.She looked at the watch beside her bed once again, it marked 7.23 am, they had about an hour and a half before both of their classes started, maybe she could squeeze breakfast into their schedule.Tobin looked at the piano in the corner of her bedroom, the big structure took an enormous amount of space, but Tobin didn’t mind it. It was one of the few things she got to keep from her father.It was easy to tell it had once belonged to him, so simple and humble just like he was. Tobin sat on the bench in front of the piano. It has black, a few spots gaining a lighter tone due to its use. One of the edges was broken, lost between movings. Her fingers grazing the keys, memories flashing through her head with the enormous amount of times they both sat in front of the piano. He was the one who taught her how to play the instrument, one of the few moments they both spent time together, alone. ---------------------------------------
Tobin woke up in the middle of the night to the soft sound of a piano. The music flowing through their house effortlessly. It was a sad tune but beautiful, the low chords making it sound sentimental and dark. She got up following the sound, she passed all the bedrooms, hers being the last in the corridor. Mory’s door was closed, she was probably sound asleep but her parents' was open, no one inside.
When she reached the door of the studio, the sound picked up, getting slightly aggressive like it was trying to tell us the middle of a story, when all is chaotic and a mess but still somehow beautiful. She slowly pushed the door open, finding her dad sitting on the chair in front of the piano. He didn’t hear her, completely lost in the music, his fingers moving along the keyboard with grace, never leaving the piano for more than a second.
“Paps?” Tobin’s voice was high pitched, young, innocent.
She watched as her father turned towards the door, the music ceasing right after. This was the first time Tobin saw her father in three days, by the time he got home she would already be asleep. He seemed tired, his body leaning forward. The hair that usually carefully combed was now wildly sticking in every direction. His suit was all scrunched and full of wrinkles, the tie that usually sat straight around his neck was now loose, freely bouncing with each movement her father did. Regardless he seemed happy, especially when he looked at her, standing by the door. He quickly got up, walking fast the short distance between them, opening his arms so that Tobin could jump into them. She didn’t even waver, happily leaping into her father’s strong arms.
“Munchin.” He sighed into her shoulder, squeezing her against her body. “What are you doing up?” He separated her from his body, putting some distance between the two of them so he could talk to her. “Your mother made me promise I wouldn´t wake you. Tomorrow is your first day of school.”
“I heard the music, just wanted to see who it was.” He easily smiled, placing her on the ground, crouching right after so he was the same height as her. Tobin smiled back, the gap between her teeth visible. “Where’s Ma?”
“She should be arriving. She said she just needs to talk to your uncle for a bit and then she would be coming home.”
Her father must have sensed the sadness caused by her mother’s absence because he ruffled her hair suggesting something Tobin had been waiting months to hear fall from his mouth.
“Do you want me to teach how to play the song?”
She rapidly nodded, sitting on the chair in front of the piano, waiting for her father to follow. He sat by her side, explaining to her the very basics of the instrument so she could understand them. Tobin listened carefully to every word, the sleepiness of moments before long forgotten.
They had been in front of the piano for about an hour, Tobin finally understanding the basic concepts of the complicated instrument, able to play at least three compasses of her father’s song without completely messing it up, when the door to the studio opened once again.
Both looked at the door, in particular at the small figure that was now entering the room. Mory with her eyes semi closed, half asleep, and her favorite toy tugging behind her. She looked up to them, the same smile Tobin had done minutes before on her face when she saw her father, the toy long forgotten when he, that was no longer beside Tobin, picked her up.
“Oh! My little monkey.” She heard her father say at the same her sister’s laugh filled the room. Tobin laughed at the sight, it wasn’t very common, the three of them were never together at the same time. “I’m going to have a field day when your mother gets home, both of you up at these ungodly hours. She’s going to kill me.” He laughed. Tobin so she could be near them, her father pulling her against him the second she got there.
“Who am I killing?” All of them turned to the door, Tobin and her sister quickly jumping off her father’s arms so they could embrace their mother. Her mother kneeled, opening her arms so she could take them both in a tight embrace. “My babies….”
“Hello again love …” Tobin heard her father say, as he placed a small kiss in her mother’s forehead. From her position she could see how her mother smiled at the simple gesture but when she got up, her face completely changed, turning into a frown, hands placed firmly on her waist.
“Don’t even try. I told not to wake them and you managed to wake them both up.”
“Hey! They came to me.” He lifted his arms signaling his innocence.
Her mother then turned her attention to them, looking between Tobin and Mory.
“Pappa was playing the piano.” Mory said excitedly not knowing that she had just put her father in a tough spot.
“Oh was he now?” Her mother was smiling back at her father like she just caught him giving the kids chocolate when she specifically said they had already eaten too much.
“Monkey! Come on! Throwing me under the bus like that.” Mory tilted her head to the side, hearing her father but not understanding the expression, while all laughed at her innocence. Tobin was happy, it was nice to be with all of them at once.
---------------------------------------------------------When Christen exited the bathroom she was half expecting to find Tobin sitting in her bed waiting for her but that wasn’t what she found. Tobin was completely lost in the moment, as she played a beautiful melody, eyes closed, a soft smile placed on her face. It was different from her usual smile, this one seemed genuine, loving, like she was missing dearly whatever she was seeing.As Christen continued to hear the soft tune she realized that it was very familiar. She had heard it once before, but she wasn’t exactly sure where or when.“Tobin?” She called the other woman although she was positive that it wouldn’t do much, she was completely lost in the music. Christen walked the distance between her and the piano, getting close to Tobin. Once she was in plain sight of the girl, she saw her snap out of it. Eyes wide for a second, like she wasn’t sure where she was anymore, looking from side to side to make sure she was where she was supposed to be. Then she looked at Christen, a smile still on her face but somehow different. It was still warm, but the realness of it was gone.“Sorry. I got a little distracted.” Tobin got up from the bench, eyeing Christen up and down. Her clothes looked big on the girl, it wasn’t a huge difference, but it was noticeable for someone who knew that her usual style wasn’t this baggy. Never the less the girl, looked amazing as usual, Tobin getting a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach noticing how well she looked in her clothing.“It’s okay. I should be the one apologizing.” Tobin looked confused at that statement, unable to find a reason to why the girl should be apologizing. “For barging in at those hours.”“No problem, really. I’m just glad you’re okay.” Tobin started to walk towards her closet, picking up some clothes she could change into. “Although I’m rather curious to know what happened to you. So … What do you say if we go grab breakfast and you tell me what happened?”Tobin looked at Christen, an expectant smile on her face. She was met with a knowing one in Christen’s face, Tobin rapidly realizing her mistake.“My bad. Got it, if there is food you’re there.”Christen laughed as Tobin walked backward towards the bathroom.“I’ll just go change real quick. Make yourself at home.” ----------------------------------------------------------“So now that we’re both warm and calm, tell me what happened.”Tobin sat their breakfast in front of them. It was similar to the last one, pancakes and fruit but this time she brought some type of coffee to go along with it. Christen tried to tall Tobin out off paying all of their things again but she just shrugged it off, saying that if she invited, she was paying. Christen was about to respond when she noticed black ink on the side of her cup, she tilted it to the side so she could see what was written on it.Christen automatically laughed at the inscription, her head hanging back, full chest laugh. Tobin laughed along with the girl, loving the fact that she was able to bring this much happiness to the woman.“Tobin, you seriously need to work on your pick-up lines.”“What?!” Tobin exclaimed, incredulous. “This one was way better than the last.”“Seriously?” Christen was amazed by the fact that Tobin actually thought that this was better in any form. “You just wrote, and I quote - Are you a 90-degree angle? Cause you are looking right. – Again, I don’t even know if I should feel flattered or insulted.”“Oh come on.” Tobin laughed, her eyes crinkled. “These are hard to come up with.”“Are you going to do this every day?” Christen asked, taking a sip of her coffee, enjoying the warmness of it.“You’ll just have to wait and see,” Tobin said with a smirk on her face. “Anyway, what happened to you?”“I love to run in the morning, like really early 5.30 and I’m up.” Tobin gasped at what she heard. At that hour she was in her fifth sleep, not even an earthquake would get out of bed. “Yeah, but I guess I got lost, it started to rain, and I panicked a bit. And then when I finally got to your building, I realized Kelley had yet to give me her keys, so I was stuck outside for like an hour and a half, because she was out, and I didn’t want to wake you...” Christen rambled a bit this last part, nervously moving her hands like she was embarrassed about needing the help of someone, her head down looking at the table as she pronounced the last words.Tobin reached across the table laying one of her hands, on top of the girl’s. They were still very cold, not fully recovered from the temperature difference that they had suffered in the morning. Tobin sighed, regretting her next words she said before they left her mouth.“We’ll do it like this.” Tobin used her other hand to lift Christen’s chin so she would meet her eyes. “Every morning from today, I’ll go run with you.”Christen tried to interrupt her, probably to say there was no need in that, but Tobin was quick to cut her off.“No, wait a second. We’ll go run and then we come here to eat breakfast. It will be good for me, the season is starting this weekend.” She smiled at the girl in front of her. “It can be worse than what Kelley has put me through.”“Is that a challenge?” Christen said with a devious smile on her face, knowing fully well that if she wanted it would be ten times worse.They were both looking at each other with a smile, Tobin still holding Christen hand between her own. However, their attention was stolen by the upcoming news that were now being broadcast in the tv in front of them. - Early this morning there was a shooting in King-II-Sung square, North Korea. Few people were hurt, no casualties. There are no major suspects, the shooter fleeing the scene without being seen, nothing to track them was left behind, no witnesses.
Authorities are trying to contain the panic, but it was obvious this was a very well-planned attach, performed by an organized group. –
As the reporter said this, images of the city were shown. On a big wall of the main building was printed in big letters a capital R, with an inscription underneath. “We will be reborn.” Christen looked at Tobin, she could see her hands clenched beside her body, her face completely set, jaw closed. Anger ran through her veins and Christen could see it clearly. The woman in front of her was no longer the loving, happy person she had seen only until now. She had been scarred, just like herself, and Christen found that beautiful.A small smile tugging on her lips as she watched Tobin, her breathing getting more rapid and unsteady with each second that passed, as the news covered all the angles, they had had access to in such short notice. Most of the reporters wondering what this meant. Was this a declaration of war?Christen reflexion was cut short by the vibration of her phone. Tobin didn’t even notice when she picked it up reading the message that had just arrived, too lost in the TV to care.Christen’s eyes widened, she knew that this was exactly what happened, but it still caught her off guard. On her phone, only three words were seen on the screen. “It has begun.”