“Let’s take a five minute break?” Connor says, blessedly giving his dancers a moment to catch their breath after ten straight minutes of his cardio-intensive choreography.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nTWXgELNY
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFT2bE3PhSc
Eve pushes up the sleeves of her hoodie and then pulls them down again. She can feel the dampness of sweat under the collar of her shirt, pasting her hair to the back of her neck. A droplet trickles down the bridge of her nose and drips off the tip. Taking a deep breath, Eve accepts that she has to take off the hoodie or risk overheating.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ViIrEpVMq
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXzVPGQfHmD
Taking it off, she leaves it against the wall beside her water bottle. Maybe no one will notice—702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv9yWJ65J5y
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk0Hplk1vl5
“What happened to your arm?” Connor asks, standing arms akimbo and looking at her in the mirror.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3cc9jDt8h
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNjkmrXkUX
She tugs at the bandage self-consciously. “Oh. Nothing, really. I just needed a few stitches.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3SvJsGTn3
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW0j6l240jM
He turns around and looks at her directly now. She’s aware of how all eight of the other dancers are watching them.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO413zY6ojy
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ZmbaV7fY9
“Stitches?” he repeats, saying it like it’s a dirty word. “What happened between last night and now that you had to get stitches?”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO3GVd4exnq
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrnYFBSxYGK
This is exactly what Eve had been hoping to avoid—the reason she considered not coming to class today. She can’t skip, though, when they have a performance coming up so soon.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3XFnBQFKf
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuOs5Egq03k
“I…kinda got stabbed.” She scratches around the stitches, through the bandage.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhNyFcKXjsE
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡioB6ZxPLD0
“You…kinda…got…stabbed,” he says, taking a step toward her. “How does that happen?”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAGWUm4uFC2
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIzEc2sv6vz
Everyone is still staring. Eve feels the danger in him right now—a compressed spring, a snake ready to strike. She has to fight not to take a step back. She didn’t do anything wrong.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT51geutv8P
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG6g7IKepiW
“Well, I leave food in the breakroom fridge at work sometimes,” she says, words coming out in a rush. “I don’t want it to spoil in the car. So I stop by work on the way after dance and on my way home.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1o7mzQK91N
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgIX7DlMKDL
Connor doesn’t say anything, so she keeps going.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtF8wSQHBWJ
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqc5KbxQpGT
“I went there after leaving class last night.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvJgSa8UOvP
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0VbD94exg
“At midnight,” he says now, as if he’s just making sure.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjkMjzGgOiT
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMG8XUq5Os
“At midnight,” she confirms. She can’t look him in the eyes, so she looks past him to the back of his head in the mirror. “I usually just pop in, grab my food, and pop out. But last night, this man showed up. He used to work there but was fired a few months ago.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKxXbM1QQp
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtA458SRgHg
His expression doesn’t change. In fact, he doesn’t move in the slightest. A quick glance at the clock shows her their five minute break has long since passed.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWHWqRKAId
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡutAd71x3Q9
“He was trying to get into the building,” Eve says. “He tried to make me let him in, but I wouldn’t. So…he got pissed off and stabbed me.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6gbrWGoFqc
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAp2RoqQyje
Now his eyebrows shoot up.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQjZDVOQbYv
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0w3fVYyme
She adds quickly, “It’s fine, though. I was lucky. He went for my stomach, but I managed to block him with my arm.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNesENvHgmU
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3XEVJwhuGo
“Lucky,” he says, voice dripping with disbelief. “You were lucky you were only stabbed in the arm and not in the gut.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmQ38orpmDu
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIekTdh9F58
Veins in his right temple turn into miniature mountain ranges.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkJb9Zd7kKa
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPukkgoBOqM
“What about those times you made me come into the office with you because you were too scared to go into the building by yourself at night? Where was that fear last night?”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEHREQdMI22
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9pJpWxIgug
“I can’t rely on you all the time. You said so yourself,” she says.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjdX0jdfDWo
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfFJdWvGcJB
“Connor, man,” another of the dancers says, stepping in. “At least she’s okay, right?702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmrPXSgY1CA
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrACsGR0L5V
“I can’t believe you’re so stupid!” Connor bursts, ignoring him. “You really don’t have any common sense! So when I say you shouldn’t rely on me all the time, it means you should go to deserted office buildings by yourself in the middle of the night?”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75KTZ0wDbU
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhj5B6tBo7
Eve’s surprised by his vehemence. Actually…no, she isn’t. There’s a reason she tried to hide the bandage and considered not coming to class today.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6b3BuGHfbN
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajV2wGuhEH
“You’re right,” she says quietly. “I was reckless.”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsbhpoh3esR
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡObZn45jy2q
All the steam seems to evaporate from Connor, then. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before turning back to the mirror. His eyes graze the clock. He claps his hands together once.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkj0eeJYKhe
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnG4DjeLFRP
“Looks like our five minute break turned into a ten minute break. Let’s get back to work. Let’s go from the top—with counts first and then music. Ready? Five, six, seven, eight…”702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQTKlCFvNs
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMgjoqozM6
Eve watches him in the mirror, following his choreography but also observing his expression. He’s settled back into the friendly, but strict dance instructor and choreographer, but she knows him well enough that she can see the concern in his eyes and feel it in the tension of his shoulders.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj3BI8Zs3JC
702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7YkRRkgvr
Thank you, Connor.702Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8vsq4oXQz8
Penana
search
Loginarrow_drop_down
Registerarrow_drop_down
