No Pain: Book 1

Chapter 24: Star

            "You take long enough?" I ask when Najee finally meets me. I have to force a smile, I'm not happy but I'll have plenty of time to be angry right after I never see Najee and the others again.

"John wanted to talk about my guilt." Najee says, pulling the door open for me.

"Soul readers always have to talk." I laugh walking under Najee's arm. Najee smiles slightly "So... you've never hit him?"

"I told you already." I say, "I don't hit puppies." I punch him in the arm. There's almost some relief when I do it, as if it's confirmation of our truce.

"And there's the shooting star." Najee exhales the pain and rubs his arm.

"Too hard?" I ask. Najee shakes his head.

"What? No." Najee smiles at the man behind the counter.

"One room, please." Najee smiles, he stands up straight. I take a moment to follow the curve of his spine, the muscles in his shoulders, down his back and back up, to the little curls at the nape of his neck.

"Star." Najee nudges me, he's smiling. He looks at me like he wants to say something but he drops his eyes, still smiling and I realize he must've seen me looking at him. For a second I look away and I feel my face turning red but then I stop because it doesn't matter what I do anymore, it doesn't matter what I feel or what I say.

"Never noticed before." I say nonchalantly

"What? Najee's brows draw together curiously.

I glance at him over my shoulder "how nice it is to look at you." He actually looks surprised. Maybe because I said it, maybe because he doesn't know how to respond, maybe because he doesn't feel the same about me.

"You don't have to say anything." I say, "Just letting you know." I push the door open and hold it for Najee, he still hasn't moved.

"Let's go." I say. He shakes himself and walks out ahead of me.

"Yeah, let's go." He's still smiling. I don't think I can muster that kind of courage again but it feels good right now and I just want to feel good for this last week.

"Let's do something." Najee says. As the door closes.

"Well, there's no training room here." I say, "and John is waiting for us."

"John is tired and would love nothing more than to continue the nap you woke him from before." Najee drapes his arm over my shoulders, although it's more like he's hanging his arm behind my head and letting it rest on my shoulder. "and there are things to do other than train."

"Like sneak down to the underground tunnels or walk along the streets at midnight waiting for someone to try and attack us?" I laugh "face it Najee, that pretty much sums up what we do together."

"We also save each other's lives, save the world and clean up after Saturday morning breakfast together." Najee is laughing and the sun is shining and I wonder if this will be enough to last me the time I'll be alone.

"How about swimming?" I suggest.

"Swimming?" Najee is surprised now.

"I used to swim all the time, before... before my parents..." I trail off because unless I'm in the middle of anger I hate to say the words.

"I don't think I've ever seen you swim." Najee seems a little confused by that, as if he can't believe he missed something so vital. How could he know? I haven't really gone swimming since joining the team.

"Not up for it?" I ask giving him as light and playful elbow nudge as I can. He winces a little which tells me I still did it too hard, but he doesn't say anything.

"I'm up for anything." Najee says then glances down and with the strangest smile I'd ever seen on his face. "Seeing you in a bikini isn't the worst thing I could think to do with our numbered days."

I don't have to look or feel to know my face is bright red.

Najee hands the key card to John "get some sleep, brother." Najee clasps John on the shoulder. "Star and I have to run to the store." Najee and I hop into the car. John doesn't even ask but he smiles as he looks at my eyes and then Najee's.

"I'll see you guys later." He just reads the room number off the card and heads in.

"He's nothing like us." I shake my head "he just did what you told him to."

"You should try it sometime." He cocks a brow at me. I roll my eyes at him.

"Except..." Najee whips out of the parking lot and out onto the street "I trained you better, didn't I?" he gives me a sideways look.

"I think I recall something like that." I smile.

"Get your butt to the roof and wait there until I come get you." Marco screams in my face, he's agitated to today. He's bent over to make sure he's yelling directly in my face. I turn away from him to comply but Najee is standing there. He looks bored as he rubs his shoulder and rolls his neck "you weren't actually going to listen, were you, Star?" Najee stops just behind me and directly in front of Marco "what did I tell you about messing with her?" I can hear the anger in Najee's voice but everything else about him just emits calm. "Star is my trainee, she is mine to teach and to haze and to send on wild goose chases." Najee takes another step toward Marco "She isn't a doll for you to play with whenever you want." I can hear Najee clench his jaw. I look behind me.

Marco glances past Najee. "sure looks like it." Najee's fist snaps forward the second Marco finishes the sentence. Najee isn't in a great mood today either. Marco stumbles and trips sending him to the ground, he lays there, dazed.

"Star." Najee says my name quietly, precisely "Next time you blindly obey someone, I will leave you to suffer the consequences." He growls walking past me.