Imaginary Friends tend to make not so imaginary enemies.
*****
In an ever-populated area once open to the outside lies The Apex, a domed fortress separated into 7 Sites. Running low on resources in their safe haven, The Apex introduces a program tha...
"Where are you headed?" Eli asked. "Has to be somewhere since you're still fully dressed."
"I thought I would get some practice in while everyone else was sleeping. I practically slept at the training court while you guys were gone," Rhoawyn said, catching his eye before she rose to her feet. She smiled half-heartedly, and Eli knew her inability to manifest had to be eating at her.
"You can practice on me," The words came out in a flurry. And though he would usually have a long, loud laugh at them in any other situation, the way they sounded now made him want to kick himself in the face. Thankfully, he wasn't flexible enough to do it.
"Oh, that sounds—"
"Weird..."
"Great," the two say, simultaneously.
Their eyes gaped like owls in the night, but the warmth of Rhoawyn's smile washed over Eli's need to berate himself for acting so stupid.
"Sure, let's go."
They walked side-by-side to the designated outdoor training ground in a silence he knew was more comfortable for Rhoawyn than it was for himself. He was too busy running through his mental highlight reel, trying to pick out the exact moment in his life when he developed feelings for her. It was a flopped attempt because every moment before today was normal.
He hated her like normal. Saved her like normal. Taught her like normal. Joked with her like normal. Confided in her like normal.
He guessed Rhoawyn unknowingly declaring her like for him in the athenaeum could have sparked this, but he didn't know why. It was no shock that Rhoawyn fell for him; he was probably the single greatest guy she had ever met. He just didn't bank on falling alongside her—at least not yet. Maybe he had been the one doing all the falling to begin with.
He was so consumed with pinpointing the reason for his feelings, he didn't realize how much distance he had closed between them. His hand orbited around the pull of Rhoawyn's, but he did not dare let it gravitate any closer, in fear of catastrophic collision. But when she held it anyway, grinning to herself, he found that the 'when' doesn't matter as much as the now.
They pushed through the heavy metal of the latch door together and broke into the calming hum of night. The chill of the wind soothed against his nerve-fevered skin like a cool melon in the pecking heat of an Apex summer.
Trees lined the pathway to the sprawling training deck, hovering into the face of the moon overhead. The lush greenery outlined the square corners of the court—breaking apart just enough to make way for those seeking to enter it.
Rhoawyn let go of his hand first, placing her fingertip to the scanner just to the left of the door handle. The scanner read her genetic markers and decided her information matched, and the door to the arena unlocked with an audible clink. She held the door open for Eli, and he followed her inside. They moved to opposite sides of the court, taking up positions about eight feet apart. They waited until the door to the arena locked, and the translucent border of protection erected in the form of an energy-resistant field around the perimeter.
Eli, relaxed by the prospect of battle—something he had much more experience with than his feelings for the girl standing opposite him—assumed a defensive stance. His feet took to the ground like the roots of the trees that surrounded them, as he readied his fingers to draw from the deck on his arm—just in case.
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