“You know what?” You place your hand on top of his, and then take it off of your other hand. “Everything that you’ve said to me is ringing a warning in my head telling me that I shouldn’t trust you, but let’s put it frankly. I don’t like you. You’re talking like you’re preparing for a war when that should be over and done with. I’m not going to join you. Whatever your mission is, I am not following.” You soften your tone and turn to Bala. “I’ll see you around, Bala.” He looks up and nods. You don’t need to be a mind reader to see that he’s relieved that you didn’t join them.
You stand up with your tray of food and look for another table. Xaviero had given you a new incentive of taking a chance in order to make a few acquaintances outside of the human species, if only to prove him wrong. “Good morning,” you hesitantly greet one of the tables with ragtag species. You hope that since they are used to sitting with people outside of their species, they wouldn’t mind a human joining their table.
They mostly have human forms, but one member, the one you’re about to sit next to because that‘s the only empty chair left, has scaly muddy brown skin and a wide mouth. When she replies to the greeting, seemingly friendly enough, you see a couple of rows of sharp needle-like teeth on both her lower and upper jaw, and then two large curved teeth rooted in her upper jaw settling on both sides of her bifurcated tongue. It’s hard not to look scared, or shiver when her elongated tongue slips out of her mouth, and then slithers back in. The table chuckles. “Don’t worry,” she says. “I’ve had my fill this morning. I’ll be digesting it for about a week, so you‘ll be safe from me until then.” When you’re rethinking about your decision to sit down, she slips her tongue out again. “By the way, that was a joke. You may sit. I won‘t hurt you, but I can‘t guarantee anyone else at this table will do the same.” That’s another joke.
Your laugh comes out awkwardly. As you pull out your seat, feeling that joking may be a good sign, you feel a sudden surge of vibrations in front of you, but you don‘t even have time to look up to see what‘s coming at you. “DUCK!” When you drop to the floor, you feel a ray of heat pass right over you. Someone yells, probably hit by whatever it was that was aimed towards you, then as you try and crawl away from the table, someone pushes their chair into you, and then topples on top of you. The person is heavy, and you can feel a bit of muscle under his polo shirt. He pushes his body off of you with an angry expression; you thought he was going to hurt you. “Sorry! I, uh . . . .” You try to apologize, but it doesn’t come easily.
When he sees you, his angry expression changes to shock. He opens his mouth to say something when a fireball is hurled at his back. He swears and stands up with his pissed off expression back on his face, and then he turns around to face whoever through the fireball, exposing his back to you. His shirt has a burnt hole, but his reddish copper back seems fine, if only a little redder and a few small blisters. Turning back to you, and looking and pointing down at you, he yells, “Stay right there!”
A. “No way!”
B. “What! Why? Why do you want me to stay here? Why can‘t I go?”
C. “What, and get myself killed? No thanks. You can do that all on your own!”
D. No freakin’ way I’m staying here!
E. “Are you kidding? How is this a safe place for someone like me?”
F. He’s flippin’ crazy if he thinks I’m staying here!
G. “No! Don’t go, please! Help me!”
H. You try to will yourself to stay, and do as you’re told, but you know it’s way too dangerous.
YOU ARE READING
A Smile to Hide (CYOA/WWYFF)
RomanceThree years ago, the murder of your best friend has started the entanglement of all the peace that was gained, and the longer that your town lives in the lies they don't realize they're surrounded by, the stronger the hatred between humans and being...
