“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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsk7c3pAsgD
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xCAPACkNd
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhAyoiF1gJ
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmAFRAmzvDc
Taking it off, she leaves it against the wall beside her water bottle. Maybe no one will notice—632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUZYUuP0T3k
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqswsBI4Ooa
“What happened to your arm?” Connor asks, standing arms akimbo and looking at her in the mirror.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtK4lOTzF35
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmnGA0Dwgr
She tugs at the bandage self-consciously. “Oh. Nothing, really. I just needed a few stitches.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIv2U5srR3f
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyr6eDfavu
He turns around and looks at her directly now. She’s aware of how all eight of the other dancers are watching them.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvENcpixFT5
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8H9ClD0shC
“Stitches?” he repeats, saying it like it’s a dirty word. “What happened between last night and now that you had to get stitches?”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMWvw1ynXL
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMbCX7CTDM8
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1dcetpSvDE
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNf1vtV6zTu
“I…kinda got stabbed.” She scratches around the stitches, through the bandage.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8eknU1H1Nr
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrO54052fS
“You…kinda…got…stabbed,” he says, taking a step toward her. “How does that happen?”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAI8T7MJWRt
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFuktu7Gu5
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJlPrzEWtmd
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTBrUZ6JAqZ
“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.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPpO2UoV064
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbq4lfD7HnQ
Connor doesn’t say anything, so she keeps going.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnW4ZUOojR9
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmXVSkq4ip
“I went there after leaving class last night.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFiNqJFnmgC
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBi1Po3cuF7
“At midnight,” he says now, as if he’s just making sure.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdmflZZE82
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJpZsXLbIya
“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.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmGvcm8fYJi
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYsmfyKA6T
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgxmRhGVyiJ
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTI1ry6UG2
“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.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsB3FmSF9zk
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1CHvosUO6F
Now his eyebrows shoot up.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNVqmPIKV79
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcattFtOk7D
She adds quickly, “It’s fine, though. I was lucky. He went for my stomach, but I managed to block him with my arm.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡup70SifAnc
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYj8l3VnRqz
“Lucky,” he says, voice dripping with disbelief. “You were lucky you were only stabbed in the arm and not in the gut.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnaX1LxC9i
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEp347EdTQ
Veins in his right temple turn into miniature mountain ranges.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3xyVzFjxIu
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9xgqhYl7uy
“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?”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCf7WYfi4Sj
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGAyNLOI8u
“I can’t rely on you all the time. You said so yourself,” she says.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaoRWfSe89p
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa94ehx0LQY
“Connor, man,” another of the dancers says, stepping in. “At least she’s okay, right?632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡios9uxk8vh
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡos810ngsY6
“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?”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPVT0tfRmI9
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrJMrDDJ6Z
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2b3pb8dqv
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Hrot23j4G
“You’re right,” she says quietly. “I was reckless.”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuT66mvpU6Z
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzuW9HMjItm
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbW9uSL5OY
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJbg2LOUiLz
“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…”632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ25vfyq5sRt
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdtYVtP5Nn5
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.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVuXzd2UuT
632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv3S5xNtofd
Thank you, Connor.632Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0o85USFWsB
Penana
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