She knew what I was doing, and happily took the bait, talking about things at work. New kids, both with powers and not.
By the time she left, I felt drained. It was emotionally rough for me sometimes to interact with people, especially when we were talking about things I was uncomfortable about. Men, change, and how great I was doing was on that list.
“What do you want to do now?” Pops walked over to me and sat down on the cushion to my right. He normally did something else while Lynn and I talked, giving us some privacy, but then other times he liked to join in—the little socialite of my crew.
“Not sure. I feel tired, but I don’t think I should sleep right now. Maybe watch a movie?” I asked him, hoping for his opinion.
“I’ll get the popcorn.”
We settled for watching Pops’s favorite movie about cartoon robots falling in love and saving planet Earth. If I was being honest with myself, I loved the storyline too. The little robot was head over heels for the more sophisticated robot, and she was so cold at first. But then she fell too. It was sweet.
When it was time for bed, I settled into my comforter, and stared at the ball of steel on my nightstand. I always kept some form of metal nearby so I could wind my mind down by changing the shape.
Cora snuggled up against my leg, and Pops went to his charging station to shut down for the night.
Clearing my mind as best as I could, I began to focus on the ball, shifting it into a triangle, then a square. After another twelve shapes, my mind started to calm. Sleep was peaceful, and I was ready for it to claim me for the night.
I woke with the sound of thunder booming outside the window, completely startled. My eyes adjusted to the room and saw everything looked to be in its place. Cora was still lying beside me, but her head was up, those eyes watching me just in case I needed something. Pops was still charging, oblivious to the loud storm happening outside the window near him.
My body sagged back onto the mattress, and I turned to look at the metal on my nightstand.
A frown formed on my lips, seeing the shape it was in. I always left it as a circle before closing my eyes to sleep. I reached over and turned on the lamp next to the odd form sitting there, so I could get a better look at it.
Not a shape, but a person.
Apparently in my sleep I’d been thinking of Arthur, because the metal on my nightstand had formed his face. Like a work of art, glasses and all.
Chapter Ten
Gwendolyn
“Try to grip me by the wrist, like this.”
I winced in pain as Lilith—the woman in charge of teaching defensive and offensive fighting techniques—grabbed my wrist, showing me what she wanted me to do to her.
She let go and smiled in anticipation of my attack. I remembered what she did step by step and put it into application.
It should have worked, but she did some move with her arm then I was trying to grasp air.
I stared at the woman, in both awe and frustration. She was tall and looked like one of those lingerie models, with black hair and a big grin. She looked both seductive and lethal. In a way she reminded me of one of those Venus flytraps—they lured the bug to them and then ate them. She didn’t have any powers like me or others in the Society. She had been trained as a spy and could hold her own better than anyone except the two men at the top tier of the group, Draco and Dorian. Those two I’d yet to meet, and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel when I did.
“Gwennie, you’ve got to use that big brain of yours and anticipate my next move and be there.” She tried to swipe my legs out from under me, like we’d practiced earlier, but I’d gotten fairly good at that defensive move.
“Like statistics?” I panted, while trying to forget that she called me Gwennie.
Her head tilted to the side, like the way a dog would when it was confused.
“Exactly like statistics. Create a fighting formula. It’s quite predictable if you pay attention enough.” She came at me, checking to see if I was indeed paying attention by moving her hand toward my face. I deflected, and then she tried again.
We practiced moves for a little over two hours, and my body hurt in places I’d never felt before. I ran for exercise, but this was completely different.
“So, what’s your story?” Lilith plopped herself next to me on the mat and drank some of her water, barely looking like she worked out, while I would bet that my face was as red as a tomato from moving so much.
“Don’t you know everything?” I figured everyone knew everyone in this joint. Her head shake suggested I was wrong.
“Phillip brought you in, and you’ve helped take some of the work off our shoulders, but other than training you, nope. Nada.” She was looking at me expectantly, signaling me it was my turn to spill.
“I have power over metal. I work for Phillip in the robotics department. I have Asperger’s syndrome, and two robots at home who are my closest companions. My life is pretty routine.” So routine, in fact, that it took me two whole days to work up the courage to give it a shot.
“You seem like a chill gal. I like ya. Remind me of my hubby, Leon. Very stoic kind of guy when you meet him, but he has a heart of a teddy bear. You look like you are all prickly on the outside, like you don’t want anyone to talk to you, but I bet you are like any other girl. You want to be a part of something, to be loved, and to feel beautiful.”
I’ve never met her husband before, but everything else she said made my chest hurt a little.
“Is that how you feel?” I was curious, maybe normal girls felt like that all the time. Maybe I was normal in that way, too.
“Oh, I know I’m beautiful and very loved. I’m also part of this crew. There’s no judgment—everyone will literally give up their life for you and buy you an awesome Christmas present. There is no place I’d rather belong.”
I wanted that. I wanted to feel like I was part of something, and that people actually cared about me. At work most everyone ignored me, and I ignored them. I wasn’t heartless, but I just kept my focus on my job. It was easier that way, and if I was being honest, by staying away from interacting with people, I avoided rejection. Maybe rejection didn’t happen here. I’d seen people of all shapes and races, both powered and normal humans, in here training. Everyone was coexisting and seeming happy.
“Maybe I’ll come around more often.” I looked at her and smiled, hoping that that smile was similar to hers, a smile of pure confidence.
“Fantastic!” She beamed and then her eyes darted to the elevator that was opening up.
A tall man with dirty blond hair and big muscles walked into the room, his gaze going straight to Lilith.
She was up and on him in seconds. Must be her husband.
I was introduced after they stopped mauling each other. Leon seemed nice. He loved his wife a lot, too, and she him. It was nice seeing a relationship like theirs. I never paid much attention to couples, but now I was curious.
Was it possible for me to ever have something like that? All fire, passion, and undeniable love for one another?
Maybe.
I excused myself a few minutes later, feeling like a third wheel when it was obvious—even to me—that they wanted some alone time.
The whole way home I thought about what it would be like to be with someone in a romantic way. Wanting to know more about relationships and how they work, I stopped off at the big book store on my way home and grabbed a bunch of novels on the subject. If I wanted to learn about something, I always hit the books. It helped me understand the world around me.