Hard to Hate You // Michael Langdon

Part X - Library

"Where did you go after dinner?" Coco asks as she walks into the library.  "I've been looking for you."

I stop picking at the blood stuck under one of my nails to look over at Coco.  "Showering," I semi-lie; I did shower, but only after going through my whole ordeal with Michael.

She looks at my wet hair and seems to buy the lie.  "That must've been one hell of a shower," she scoffs.  "You were gone forever."

I shrug.  "It's not like there's anything else to do in this outpost."

She sighs as she sits next to me.  "I don't think you understand how much I despise everyone else here," she complains.  "You're the only person I can tolerate, yet you have been MIA ever since the day after Langdon arrived."  She slowly turns to me.  "Wait, you and Langdon aren't hooking up, are you-"

"Bitch please," I scoff.  "I hate that man's guts almost as much as he hates mine."

She chuckles.  "What did you do to make him hate you?"

I shrug.  "Gave him a piece of my mind.  He did not appreciate it at all and now seems to pester me every time he sees me."

"Oh, Valentina, you have to make amends with him," she complains.  "I need you at the Sanctuary with me."

"I think I'd rather die here at the hands of feral cannibals than make up with that incompetent ass," I scoff.  I suddenly begin to feel the urge to tell her everything that's on my chest.  "He uses these mind games and manipulation tactics on all you guys, but then I can tell what he's doing so I call him out on it - which he does not appreciate - so then he spends every minute he sees me trying to fuck with my mind."

"Um, Valentina-" Coco begins.

I ignore her and continue ranting.  "He really has the audacity to feel like he owns me and shit.  I simply cannot believe him.  And I keep making it abundantly clear that I want him to stay the hell away from me, but no, he just can't accept that-"

"Ms. Callistra," Michael interrupts.

I jump to my feet and turn to see Michael standing behind me.  

I turn to Coco and lower my voice.  "So that's why you were trying to interrupt me?" I whisper.

She nods silently.

"Great," I sigh as I turn back to Michael.  "So you were there for that whole thing?"

He nods, an amused yet angered look on his face.  "I was, from the 'would rather die by feral cannibals' to the 'I want him to stay the hell away from me.'"

"Yeah, well can you take a hint?" I sigh.  "I think I've made it quite clear that I want you to stay the hell away from me."

He smirks.  "Oh, you have earned yourself quite the opposite of staying the hell away from you," he states as he walks toward me.

I cross my arms as I stand my ground.  Coco watches the interaction with interest, excited to have something interesting happening for once.  "What are you going to do, kill me?" I mock.  "You happen to have a witness here."

"I could easily make her forget," Michael challenges as he stares me down, attempting to make the one-inch height gap between us feel larger.  "Coco, leave us alone," he demands without looking away from me.

"Coco, stay," I insist.

"No, she will leave," Michael argues.

"Too bad, I say that she stays."

I begin to push him away, but he roughly grabs my wrist.  "Coco, leave or else I will tear you apart limb by limb then serve your body as dinner and use your head as the centerpiece," he states, his eyes on fire, making it clear that his threat is not at all empty.