I eye Nathan and try to figure out the best move to make. The sun is still low and to my right, and I think that if I maneuver just right, I should be able to blind him long enough to get the "knife" away from him. Victor steps out of the kitchen and onto the back porch and smiles warmly at me.
"Princess, do you know if Dr. Roberts has any coffee? I've looked but I can't find it anywhere."
I casually step sideways, turning my back to the sun and shake my head at Victor. "Sorry. I don't think he does. I've only ever seen him drinking tea, but Luke put a case of those mochas he likes in the pantry." I keep Nathan in the corner of my eye and move just a little more to the right. "Feel free to have as many as you want. I'm sure he wouldn't mind."
Victor disappears back into the house, and I turn back to Nathan. He's squinting, and I take advantage of the moment and angle myself just a little more into the sun. It's been a week since he kissed that girl, and I've been working really hard to get past it. The girls in group have helped, and I've learned a lot from them these last few days.
Sunday and Monday, Rosie and Officer Calderone taught me how to drive, and in the four days since then, they've had me drive us to and from the shooting range. I haven't told the guys that our group sessions have changed yet, but I kind of love the unorthodox approach. I find that I don't feel anxious in the car when I'm the one behind the wheel, and Officer Calderone told me that I'm almost ready to take the defensive driving course.
Nathan takes a half-hearted swing at me and I scowl. I appreciate the fact that he's spending so much time training me, but the whole "I'm so sorry" thing is getting old. He keeps going easy on me, which won't help me if Volto shows up when one of them isn't around to protect me.
"Nathan," I growl, catching his attention. "Do you believe me when I say that I forgive you?"
He grunts and nods his head. Getting him to talk to me is like pulling teeth. I want him to open up to me so that we can figure this out together. I'm starting to believe that I might possibly have a chance to be happy in this family, but it's only going to work if the guys are willing to work at it. This distance between us is killing me, and I just don't think that I can take much more of it.
"Sang," he mumbles, "I don't deserve your forgiveness." He takes another laconic swing at me and I easily smack his hand out of the way. "You didn't even make me work for it. I let my temper get to me and I treated you like shit." He tries to move so that the sun isn't in his eyes, but I shift my weight and keep him in it's path. "Kota's been telling me since as long as I can remember that I shouldn't make decisions when I'm angry. It always gets me into trouble, and by now, I should know to listen to him."
He lunges forward, and I catch his wrist like he's taught me. I pull his hand around as I twist my shoulders, and I force the "knife" out of his grip.
"Good one, Princess," Victor says as he steps back out onto the porch. Nathan quickly backs away from me and I wince as the pain in my chest throbs at his retreat. Victor walks over and hands me a water bottle while sipping from the mocha in his other hand. "You should get North to practice that with you a little more tonight so that you know how to react at a real speed.
I shake my head at his subtle dig toward Nathan and sigh when he doesn't stand up for himself. "You two need to stop this nonsense," I chide as I lean against the porch rail. I grab my towel that's hanging on the edge and wipe away some of the sweat on my forehead and neck. I thought that it would save me having to bathe twice if we trained right after my morning run, but now I feel grimy and itchy. Truthfully, I the less time I spend in the bathroom, the less opportunities I have to disappoint myself by giving into the urge to cut, but I really don't like feeling this dirty. I take a sip from the water bottle Victor brought me and shake my head at the two of them. "Nathan, you're going to have to forgive yourself before anything here will ever be able to change, and Victor, you need to be more charitable to your brother. You guys have been friends for a really long time, and it's time you worked out whatever is going on between you." My voice softens and I look down at the water in my hand. "I don't like it when you're at odds with one another. It hurts."
