“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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr25qE2ZX8Z
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRz4cSPmPdN
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6qH2uzd7G6
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBwF207qRp
Taking it off, she leaves it against the wall beside her water bottle. Maybe no one will notice—777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpjryzo6dcF
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWwh7e3EDXI
“What happened to your arm?” Connor asks, standing arms akimbo and looking at her in the mirror.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKU1D7IZvjU
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIULVfT3MM
She tugs at the bandage self-consciously. “Oh. Nothing, really. I just needed a few stitches.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9km0UXjeiL
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpGKk9lWFPg
He turns around and looks at her directly now. She’s aware of how all eight of the other dancers are watching them.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYYPjOLVoT
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBrZzaO9Ycf
“Stitches?” he repeats, saying it like it’s a dirty word. “What happened between last night and now that you had to get stitches?”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4cUG4qfYew
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6PNWfUWBXj
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFtwbmfb5DV
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrzPje9uU85
“I…kinda got stabbed.” She scratches around the stitches, through the bandage.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw6e0yN8nCi
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjslBWUCo2N
“You…kinda…got…stabbed,” he says, taking a step toward her. “How does that happen?”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQN6a5mitDR
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkpeB2Idj3e
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaL66D1NPOV
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHXFkFQnaZ4
“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.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHzb0oV99hk
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyF5mowJPR
Connor doesn’t say anything, so she keeps going.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncrZT0Ccgi
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrXQymczrVY
“I went there after leaving class last night.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEaU4loRSkh
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjRS8mzdVJL
“At midnight,” he says now, as if he’s just making sure.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGRjl1zDEz
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmpojl0jkjL
“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.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrtHed7qBk
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd13icSIcoc
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaLNukK737e
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03yIzTqUP8
“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.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡum2sarOZIA
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawyNqnkXeg
Now his eyebrows shoot up.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIcWA922V7o
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXUeHHqPnuv
She adds quickly, “It’s fine, though. I was lucky. He went for my stomach, but I managed to block him with my arm.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZqkyp54ls
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGTyOlmX53L
“Lucky,” he says, voice dripping with disbelief. “You were lucky you were only stabbed in the arm and not in the gut.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAY122dpZwO
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1KOwRwCv0u
Veins in his right temple turn into miniature mountain ranges.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1mOuUymPO
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGLG25womnd
“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?”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ6GYID0HRG
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡseHBfkjCo6
“I can’t rely on you all the time. You said so yourself,” she says.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvaMA1waFf1
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZMqLQZQrFr
“Connor, man,” another of the dancers says, stepping in. “At least she’s okay, right?777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtWuBmiP5kg
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2R6SSIRSTO
“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?”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wXdhItBPd
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ktaPQiYDu
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Fdbw0XEGQ
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkeOOrgGsJ
“You’re right,” she says quietly. “I was reckless.”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHWmqP97ed
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡep1mIZavUt
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVn1BSpnqQi
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsnwurRZJIt
“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…”777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSYAVdvBfw
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwuDKCpssE
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.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwRiGqKp0g
777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGz9JJmOYTq
Thank you, Connor.777Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ92nhoNTCQx
Penana
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