The walked in unison, Marie allowing Jake to guide their way. His condolences were offered to the teen, leaving a bitter taste at the back of her throat. The conversation left much to be desired, full of awkward pauses and foreseeable questions with equally predicable answers. That was until Marie Jana Manawa found herself outside the infirmary, the place she was most familiar with on the Ranch. She shot Jake a quizzical look. "Troy told me you wanted to work here." He motioned to the tent.
MJ shook her head. "I told Troy I wanted to go to med school..."
"Same difference, right? He cracked a typically charming smile, reminiscent of Troy's only far more genuine.
"And when did your little brother become so...charitable?" Sarcasm dripped from her final word, unable to conceal the scowl that had spread across her unique features. The eyes and nose of a Manawa with the lip, hips and sharp tongue of an Ortiz. Marie Jana Manawa was one-of-a-kind, it was no secret.
"Thank you." She finally added with a shrug.
Their brief meeting ended with a pat on the shoulder. "Enjoy med school. You start tomorrow, 3PM."
•
"You're welcome." The one eyed boy had startled MJ as he clambered upon the bench beside her, disturbing the prayer she had barely begun before tucking into her evening meal. She had found peace in doing this before her meals the last fews days, whcih is why she took her time to finish it before her chestnut eyes met his singular piercing sight line.
"My gratitude was directed to your brother." She swept his form quickly from head to toe, taking not of how put together he always seemed to be.
Troy chuckled at the fire she threw his way, glad he's caught her in such a fiery mood. "My brother did nothing."
"Exactly why I like him more than you." Troy feined pain, causing MJ to roll her eyes.
"I need your help."
She cupped her ear. "I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you say the magic word."
"Please."
Immediately, she replied with a sharp and resounding. "No!"
"You owe me."
"I owe you nothing." By now the much shorter brunette had abandoned her plate, too enraged to eat anything no matter how delicious it looked. Despite the arguably light-hearted conversation between them, there wasn't any interaction with Troy Otto that didn't rile her up. "You have a strange idea of how favours work."
"It's ccalled give and take Marie." She didn't like the way her name sounded rolling off his tongue. "You give and I take." Troy plucked a few pieces of corn from MJ's plate as he stood from his seat. The nineteen year old caught the toothy grin he threw her way. He was fast to wrap a tight arm around the petite survivor's shoulders when she stood from her seat.
They began to walk. She was quick to shrug him off, glancing over her shoulder to meet Nick's watchful eye. With a subtle nod he knew she had the situation under control even if the woman herself had no say in her up and coming 'adventure'.
"Go ahead and satisfy my curiousity Troy. What exactly do you need my help with?" The boy in question beamed, loving the angst he heard in MJ's voice when she said his name aloud.
"Hunting."
•
"At night, really?" Marie Jana Manawa was hyper aware of the situation she found herself in - alone with the infamously violent Otto boy who was most certainly armed with a deadly weapon in the dead of night.
He was quick to reason with Marie, glancing up briefly to capture the millions of lights with his good eye. "Boars are nocturnal. Got to catch them sneaking around in the dark."
It was then that the petite woman took in the night sky above her, not a single cloud in sight allowing the vast amount of stars to illuminate the usually dull and lifeless desert around them. "Beautiful." The Otto boy whispered, careful not to break the normally fiesty girl from her trance, the look of bliss clear in her eyes that beamed towards the impressive night sky. He had of course took note of her exotic beauty but it wasn't until this moment that he truly took any notice of just how perfect her features fit on her face, the gorgeous natural curls that cascaded down her slender back, ones that were usually pulled into a tight up-do. Dainty fingers that only had such an appeal when they weren't wrapped around the handle of a deadly weapon, danced absently against her thighs. Even her boot clad feet that bounced ever so slightly with anticipation were a welcome change to see from their usual brood and stomp.
He hadn't realised that peace and tranquility, no matter how fleeting, could bring such allure and appeal.
Troy's heart pounded in his chest, the same way it did when he counted the seconds, minutes and hours it took for someone to turn into one of the undead. The same rush of adrenaline he felt when he sent Travis Manawa into the pit to fight for his life. The smile that came to his lips was a genuine one as he took in Marie the same way she took in the moon and stars above her that night.
But even as the happiness overwhelmed his now sweet disposition, there was one question he simply couldn't shake. The one thing he thirsted to know.
How long would it take for Marie Jana Manawa to turn?
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