New Wings

Chapter 9

"Want another slap?"

"Think I'll have to say no to that offer, which is a shame, because I can think of several offers I'd gladly take from you."

Cress didn't miss the meaning behind that, as young as she was. What was annoying was that she knew he didn't mean it. He said that to every girl he was ever around, she was sure of it.

"Thorne, not now."

"Alright."

(That was from last chapter, a refresher)

Thorne-

They spent about twenty minutes in stony silence, neither one wanting to talk. Thorne could still feel the sting of her little hand smacking into his cheek, so he wasn't feeling inclined to apologize for getting her angry in the first place.

She was in the washroom now, and as he sat slumped against the window-pane, he could tell she was in a mood. There wasn't a single note of song drifting from the bathroom. Cress thought he couldn't hear anytime she hummed under her breath or softly sang herself to sleep, but Thorne had trained himself to eavesdrop, and it took a lot of reminders to keep from complimenting her on the melodies. She had the clear, high pitched chirp of a bird, making his fun nickname become a little more real to him everytime he saw her. Well, heard her.

What on earth was happening to him? Everything about this...this child screamed "off limits," and yet he kept making mistakes. Like that kiss for instance. He'd known exactly what he'd been doing to her when he hugged Cress, and he did it anyway. It was exactly the kind of thing he wasn't supposed to be doing. Exactly...right?

The creak of the door snapped him out of his trance, and he lifted his head automatically, his brain forgetting the somewhat important detail that all he could see was black and a few smudges in the distance. Even that was an improvement. But Thorne had never been a very patient person, and deep down it was driving him crazy. He'd never had to rely on someone before, and Cress wasn't really reliable at the moment. What had she been thinking? Even after she explained the incredibly stupid plan, he hadn't been able to understand what had caused her to leave him like that.

Oh, who was he kidding? He knew. Of course he knew, Thorne wasn't a complete idiot. He'd hurt her.

Normally this wouldn't have phased him, he was used to this kind of thing, but with Cress it actually felt wrong. His stomach twisted at the thought, and he scrunched up his nose, angry with himself. He was thinking like a schoolboy.

"I...ahem. Do-does it hurt much?" Her voice was soft and quiet, making the knot in his gut tighten just a little more painfully.

"I've had much worse, Birdy." There was nothing but the rustling of sheets in response. Time to break some rules.

"You really don't like me calling you that, do you?" He heard a faint choking sound, and a smirk crossed his lips. She coughed a few times, then let out a sigh.

"No. No I don't like it. You never tell me why, and I hat--don't really like not knowing things." The poor kid couldn't even use a word like hate, but she'd felt just fine slapping him in front of Scarlet. Maybe she was a little crazy.

Adorably crazy. GAH, NO.

"Well, Birdy... when I first met you, you sort of hunched into yourself, like a baby bird. That along with you taking flight so to speak, leaving all that you know, being that brave, I don't know, Birdy just sounds like the right way to go." She was silent again, and he was growing very uncomfortable. "Not to mention, I give all my friends names like that." There. That would end any suspicions she might have. They were friends. That's it.