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“Thanks, but you didn’t have to. Just watching you pummel her was great,” Eren said.

  The disappointed look left Caitlin’s eyes as she laughed. They talked about Bridget’s style, habits, and weaknesses while one of the elementary school students mopped the mats. Their conversation was cut short when Bridget emerged from the locker room and sat only a few levels down in front of them. Eren ground her teeth while Bridget chatted up her blond entourage.

  A pleasant pulling sensation drew Eren’s attention to the door of the boy’s locker room. Aiden stepped out a moment later and smiled as he met her gaze. She was too stunned to smile back. Wearing only a pair of clinging black shorts, his chiseled physique took her breath away. His smile turned into a smirk. Laughing and shaking her head, she looked down at her shoes.

  “You gonna need a cold shower, Eren?” Caitlin laughed.

  Eren slugged her lightly in the shoulder and mumbled, “No.”

  A red-headed boy entered the ring with Aiden and they hit knuckles before settling into fighting stances. As they waited for the signal to begin, the red-headed boy kept shifting his weight from one foot to the other. His eyes were a little too wide and he his Adams apple bobbed as he swallowed repeatedly.

  The signal was given and Aiden moved in. He dodged and wove so fast that he made the red-headed boy look like he was moving in slow motion. In only three seconds he landed four punches to the boy’s midsection. Though it clearly would have been easy, Aiden never once hit the boy in the face. A whistle blew before the end of the third round. Rather than look disappointed, the red-headed boy looked relieved. The head judge took both boys by the hand, announced that match point had been reached, and thrust Aiden’s hand into the air.

  Before the judge even raised his hand all the way, Eren was on her feet cheering. Much to her annoyance, she was drowned out by Bridget’s high-pitched whistle. She glared at the back of the girl’s blond bob, wishing she had a cool superpower like heat vision or something. Superior speed and strength fed by her power were great, but right now she’d trade them for heat vision.

  Bridget cringed and shot a wide-eyed look back at Eren as she sat down.

  “Easy there, Cuz, I think she felt that,” Fane whispered in Eren’s ear.

  “Hell yeah she did! That was awesome. Do it again!” Caitlin exclaimed.

  The tension drained out of her as Eren laughed. Maybe it wasn’t heat ray vision, but the fact that Bridget had felt the weight of her gaze was pretty cool. She’d have to talk to Aiden later and find out if he knew anything about the ability. In the meantime, she was more than happy to watch him fight.

  Aiden went through opponent after opponent and Eren’s eyes followed his every move. While it was violent and fast, his style had an undeniable grace as well. He never showed off or wasted a move and he never embarrassed his opponents, though he clearly could have. Watching him sped up Eren’s heart and stirred to life a desire so powerful it made it hard to breathe.

  Bridget and her annoying friends let their cheering get out of hand again and Eren glared at the back of their heads until they stopped. Eren realized her body was vibrating slightly. The vibration was a little different than the kind she felt before channeling. It was as though a tiny bit of her energy flipped out, and directed by her gaze, went into Bridget. From the pinched, almost scared look on the girl’s face, Eren realized it must hurt. Feeling somewhat guilty, she stopped experimenting.

  When Aiden won the final match, Eren stood and cheered, Bridget all but forgotten. After the judge raised Aiden’s hand, Eren started to work her way down the bleachers. His eyes found hers instantly, despite the fact that she was on the move.

  Bridget reached him before Eren did, with her blond entourage right behind her. Squealing in delight, she jumped up and put her arms around Aiden’s neck. Aiden’s brow furrowed and he went rigid.

  The strange new vibrating feeling built up in Eren and she focused it all onto Bridget’s back then released it. Bridget cried out and jumped away from Aiden like he was on fire. Her head whipped in Eren’s direction and there was a shocked, terrified look in her eyes. She recovered quickly and turned back to give Aiden the sweetest smile she could muster.

  “Congrats Aiden, you did so great! If we both keep winning we’ll be going to the dance together!” she said with badly faked light-heartedness.

  Nose scrunched up and one corner of his mouth lifted, Aiden shook his head at her. Smirking, Eren walked up behind Bridget, allowing just a touch of her power to pour over her, and the girl jumped out of the way like a frightened mouse. It was very hard not to laugh.

  Aiden smiled at Eren and stepped toward her. She rose up on the balls of her feet and kissed him. He put his arm around her and held her to him a moment longer than was appropriate in a gym full of other kids. It felt so good and so right that Eren didn’t care if he kissed her like that in front of the whole world.

  “Sorry, I’m all sweaty,” he said when he finally let her go.

  The way he stared at her with such affection made her think he’d forgotten about Bridget standing right next to them. Eren couldn’t help but feel smugly satisfied about that.

  “I don’t mind. You did fantastic by the way,” she said.

  She felt Fane and Caitlin walk up behind them and she didn’t have to look to know that Caitlin was glaring at Bridget. The pressure was intense. Fane reached around Eren to clasp hands with Aiden as he congratulated him.

  “Good match, Caitlin,” Bridget piped in.

  Caitlin’s lip curled back from her gritted teeth and she looked like she desperately wanted to say something, but thought better of it.

  “It’s a shame you can’t compete, Eren. Maybe we’ll see you at the dance though. By Aiden,” Bridget said in a sickeningly cheerful voice as she turned to leave.

  Her friends shot Eren dirty looks as they spun to follow. Despite their anger, their power barely crackled enough to be noticed. Eren smiled at their receding backs. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Bridget’s face when she competed next month. While her maestro said she wouldn’t be able to fight in the Irish matches against Bridget, it wouldn’t dim Eren’s satisfaction at watching her squirm.

  Eren’s maestro asked the school board if she could compete in both styles but they had vehemently refused, insisting she was lucky they were even allowing her to compete in one. But, if she could win March and April’s tournaments then she’d be able to fight Bridget in the grand tournament in May. That was, if Bridget made it that far. For now, Eren had to focus on working hard enough that she could win just one fight.

  “You better go shower. My father has a big celebration dinner planned,” Fane said.

  The last of the anger over Bridget’s intrusion vanished from Aiden’s face and he smiled down at Eren. His hazel eyes filled with excitement and that incredible joy they got in them anytime he looked at her. It took her breath away and left her staring mutely up at him. He laughed and leaned down for a quick kiss. She marveled at how he could smell so incredible despite being covered in a sheen of sweat.

  “Be back in a sec,” he said before dashing off to the lockers.

  Laughing, Caitlin grabbed Eren by the arm and pulled her toward the bleachers. “Come on, before you spontaneously combust.”

  Looking back over her shoulder, Eren watched Aiden until he disappeared into the locker room. Out of the corner of her eye she caught Bridget standing at the door leading out of the gym, staring at him as well. Eren shot her a vicious look, focusing that new vibration into it and Bridget jumped as if she’d been stung. Laughing, Eren let Caitlin pull her up the bleachers. She was really going to enjoy fighting Bridget.

  “Never reveal our existence to normal people.

  History has proven this can be disastrous.”

  ~from Life In A Society

  Chapter 10

  Valentine’s day was off to a perfect start. After the mall and a movie, they found a steak house that Fane insisted was quintessentially American. Both Eren and Caitlin a
rgued that they didn’t need to go anywhere fancy, but Fane had insisted on a true ‘American’ meal, and to him that meant steak. Afterwards, the guys paid without hesitation, even leaving a sizable tip. Eren was impressed, and by Caitlin’s smile it was obvious she was too.

  “I’ve got to go to the bathroom,” Caitlin said as they were settling the bill.

  “Me too. We’ll meet you guys at the car?” Eren asked.

  “Sounds good,” Aiden said.

  He lifted her hand and kissed it before he and Fane turned for the door. She couldn’t fight the urge to watch him as he walked away. He spun around and winked at her and a blush burned her cheeks. Damn, she forgot that he could feel her energy and the weight of her eyes. It was worth it to see him walk away wearing those jeans. Caitlin laughed at her all the way to the bathroom.

  While Caitlin checked her hair and reapplied her lipstick, Eren noticed a new necklace she had on. It was a round bone and white colored disk that by the calming feel of it, Eren knew was moonstone. Though she hadn’t seen Fane give it to Caitlin, she was pretty sure that was where it had come from. Seeing it made her remember their conversation in the car. She hadn’t got Caitlin alone in the mall and this question had been eating at her the whole time.

  “Last time the two of you what?” she asked with a smile. She didn’t really think Caitlin and Fane had gone all the way yet, but she wasn’t sure what the answer would be.

  One pale eyebrow rose up into Caitlin’s blond curls and she cocked her head. “Huh?”

  “In the car, you said Fane needed a new pair of jeans because he blew his up the last time the two of you… I want to know how that sentence ends,” Eren said.

  It only took a moment for the puzzled look on Caitlin’s face to fade and a blush to set in. One of her hands fell to the necklace that rested above her chest. Eren had never seen her so flustered. Her stomach clenched as she waited for the answer. Maybe she was wrong about how far they’d gone.

  “Caitlin...”

  Putting her lipstick away, Caitlin turned around to lean against the counter.

  “Last time we made out. Any time we get past second base the stress is too much for him and he loses control of his power,” Caitlin said.

  “Past second base? Caitlin!” Eren exclaimed, bumping her shoulder with her own.

  Caitlin’s smile got bigger.

  “Don’t tell me you and Aiden haven’t gone past second base!” She gave her a hard look. “I can feel that Fane is the right guy. He’s so amazingly perfect. You’ve got to tell me how you and Aiden control channeling so well,” she practically begged.

  Eren paused a moment, listening hard to make sure all the stalls were empty and they were alone in the bathroom.

  “Well, that will help,” she said, motioning to the necklace.

  Caitlin smiled as she touched it again.

  “It’s from Fane, isn’t it?”

  Her smile widened and she nodded.

  “Okay, but first, you have to promise me that if you have sex it will only be because you’re both ready, and that you’ll use protection. My aunt says the only reason our kind have trouble getting pregnant is because it takes us so long to find the right person. If Fane is the right person for you, the last thing you want to do right now is get pregnant.”

  She hated that she sounded like her aunt. But her aunt was right. She kind of hated realizing that too. For her cousin and best friend, she’d risk sounding like her Aunt to save them that fate.

  Caitlin’s blue eyes grew wide and she took a moment to absorb the words before giving Eren a determined look. “You’re right. I promise, to both requirements.”

  “The need to channel is your natural response to being nervous. If you’re not afraid, you won’t channel. Also, if you focus on Fane, his face, his voice, that thought should keep you from channeling,” Eren explained.

  A thoughtful look came across Caitlin’s face and she nodded as she walked toward the bathroom door. “Since the power heightens emotions that makes sense.”

  “It does?”

  “Yeah, I thought you knew,” Caitlin said.

  “No, but that explains a lot.”

  Oblivious to Eren’s distracted state, Caitlin was bouncing on the balls of her feet, practically skipping out the door.

  Shaking her head, Eren wondered if she had just made a big mistake. Maybe she should give Caitlin the condom her Aunt had slipped into her purse. That thought made her stomach do flip flops for a few different reasons. She really didn’t want to explain why she had a condom in her pocket. Biting her tongue, she followed Caitlin out of the bathroom and through the restaurant.

  The moment they stepped into the parking lot, Eren knew something was wrong. The hair on the back of her neck tickled and the air was heavy with a bad energy. A muffled cry came from the alley beside the restaurant, followed by the sound of flesh hitting flesh, a fist maybe.

  The instinct to protect drew Eren to that alley, with Caitlin on her heels. It smelled like garbage and compost and something much more terrible; blood. The tension in the air crawled across Eren’s skin like spider webs, making her shiver. A woman’s pleading voice drew her in. There were other voices too; men, laughing and heckling.

  Power started to work its way up from her core when she rounded the corner and saw two men holding a woman, while a third tore open her blouse. The memory of the times Luke had tried to rape her froze Eren in her tracks. A horrible panic strangled her rage.

  “Hey girls, come to join the party? There’s room for more,” the man who’d torn open the woman’s blouse said.

  His filthy eyes ran up the length of Eren’s body then looked past her at Caitlin. Someone moved behind them, a fourth man. The men holding the woman smiled.

  “Bring them over, Todd,” the leader commanded.

  The man called Todd grabbed both Eren and Caitlin by the arm and shoved them forward. Anger roared through Eren, flushing the panic away. At the same time, she and Caitlin turned and punched Todd. Eren hit him in the face—feeling a satisfying crunch—and Caitlin hit him in the chest. He stumbled back and hit the ground, groaning and holding his nose. It didn’t really matter to Eren that he was hurt. He would live. As adrenalin coursed through her veins she felt her power rise and she didn’t bother to hold it down, it would be useful.

  “Damn, Todd, they’re just girls,” one of the men holding the woman said.

  The other men laughed. Eren smiled.

  “Run! Get help!” the woman yelled. She was crying and near hysterics. It was obvious she didn’t think they could really help her.

  “Lady, we are the help,” Caitlin said.

  The first man who had spoke glared past them at Todd as he groaned and complained. “If you’re really gonna let two little girls get the best of you we’re not saving yah any!” he snapped.

  Todd cursed at him but didn’t stand up. Apparently, Todd was the smart one.

  “Careful, they break easy when you use your power,” Caitlin murmured to Eren.

  Remembering the small boulder she had thrown across the river last summer, Eren nodded. The last thing she wanted was to kill anyone, even if they were scumbag rapists. Scaring them out of their minds so they might not try it again would be enough. Like opening a fist, she relaxed her control on her power and let it fill her body in a rush. Her hands started to glow a soft blue as she stepped into a fighting stance. She wished the scumbags could see it.

  “Sweet, it’s so much better when they fight.” one of the men holding the woman said. Another one laughed and yanked the woman back to her feet when she started to sag.

  Hands open and power pouring around them, Eren advanced on the leader. Smiling, he drew his hand back to slap her. His movements looked like they were in slow motion and yet Eren knew it was just her power fueling her speed, making it superior to his. She moved effortlessly out of the way as he swung at her three times. Moving far too fast for his eyes to follow, she slashed at his chest with a bit of her power. His shirt shred
ded.

  His eyes grew wide as he looked down at the blood beading up on his chest. “What the hell?”

  Before he got the last word out, Eren hit him in the chest with a sidekick, using her power to strengthen it. Like exaggerated special affects in an action movie, he flew back several feet and crashed into a group of garbage cans.

  A click snapped her attention back to the two men holding the woman captive. The mouthy guy was brandishing knife at Eren with a wild look. Slapping it aside with one hand, she thrust out with the other and grabbed him by the throat. He struggled and pulled at her hand, causing the blue mist of her power to swirl around his fingers, but he couldn’t come close to breaking her grip. As he started to kick at her, she poured more power into her arms to heighten her strength. She lifted him off the ground, slamming him into the brick wall of the restaurant. Eyes wide with disbelief, he went still.

  All the while the woman’s wild eyes were watching Eren. Out of her peripheral vision Eren could see Caitlin making short work of the other guy. Though she wasn’t able to use her power to hurt him, her skills were more than enough to handle a woman-beating scumbag. She was smiling and having a great time. Eren wasn’t sure if she wished she could share her enthusiasm or not.

  “What are you?” the mouthy man gasped.

  “I’m just a girl, remember?” Eren asked in her sweetest voice.

  Without straining, she tossed him into the pile of trash with his other companions. Caitlin brushed her hands together as if dusting them off, and gave Eren a huge grin. Eren turned and offered the woman her hand. Cringing, the wide-eyed woman covered her head with her arms and whimpered.

  “Don’t touch me! Something’s wrong with both of you. You…you glowed. You’re monsters!” she cried.

  Eren’s chest tightened and she couldn’t respond. Her tongue refused to work. All she could do was stare numbly at the woman. She had seen their power. Aunt Sylvia and grandfather had warned her that there were those among normal people who were sensitive enough to see such things, psychics, mediums, and such.