I stood there staring at Trey even after Kimberly left for college. He was showing me all his toys, babbling about who brought it to him and why they brought it. About how he had been a good boy. About how he met many new friends. And about how he wasn't scared of Diesel anyore. He told it all with a little stuttering, and with little usage of big words.
I listened to it all patiently, and soon felt all my stress slowly fading away and a more carefree attitude take its place.
Darn! Are kids magical or what?
It hasn't been even half-an-hour since I saw him and I was already feeling like he was my own child. I had a protective feeling, and I almost created a security barrier around him which were used during battles with my power.
After telling me everything that happend during the time I went on a 'vacation', he again lifted his arms up, ordering me to lift him up and carry him to the living room. With a little laugh, I pulled him up and started walking, giving dramatic reactions to everything he was saying.
Eva was seated on the couch when I entered the main room. I faltered in my steps, alright, now, what exactly should I do? Do I just pretend like it was nothing and continue walking around everywhere or do I hand Trey over to Eva? Does she even want me holding her child?
With my decision made, I moved towards the couch and sat down beside Eva. She turned her head to look at me with a small smirk, but as soon as she saw Trey on my lap, her eyes hardened. Turning her head away sharply, she ignored Trey when he reached out to crawl over to her.
Um...., the heck? My eyebrows raised. Was it just me or was she acting weird when she saw Trey?
"Aww, baby Trey!," Callie exclaimed loudly and ran over to where I was. Practically snatching him from me, she placed him on her hips. Like I was a ghost, and wasn't even there, she started walking back to the kitchen asking what he wanted for breakfast.
My expression turned flat.
'Yeah, sure, Callie. Here, take him. I don't mind,' I thought sarcastically.
Sighing, I slouched back into the couch.
"So, are you settled in well?" Eva questioned, now positioned so that she could see me without having to move her neck. Unlike her tense posture when her child was near, now she looked completely at ease.
"Yup." I bobbed my head up and down like a clown as my nerves started acting up again.
Suddenly, she laughed. " You are nervous," she stated.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious. I totally didn't know that!" I put on a surprised tone to my voice and changed my expression to a shocked one.
"You are welcome, Lieutenant Sarcasm. I see, you are still the joker you were. Real funny."
"I am darn hilarious, alright."
We both looked at each other, then looked away. Then stared at each other again before pursing our lips and looking away again. When we shared a look again, we bursted out laughing. I didn't even know why we were laughing. We just were. Abruptly, we both stopped. An awkward silence filled the air. Okay, got to break the awkward air.
What to do? What to do? What t-?
"Do you know how big the biggest cookie ever made is?" I blurted out.
She looked at me, "That was really sudden, but no, why?"
I didn't really know the answer, afterall I only springed it out of impulse to break the silence, but ofcourse, she didn't know that.
"Really big," I finally said, after much contemplation and hard thinking.
"That wasn't even funny," she chuckled.
"It got you to laugh, didn't it?" I shrugged.
"Well, yeah." She looked around for a second, "What is your favorite flavored cookie? Ofcourse, I already know the answer, but still, we need to talk about something, don't we?"
Thus, began a long, deep, heartfelt discussion about how there must be a cookie eating competition held at the Olympic Games. Afterall eating cookie is a relly tough job, isn't it?
***
That day was spent bonding with Eva over cookies, - we took the cars, went to the supermarket, brought eight different flavored cookies and literally just sat there talking and pigging out on cookies and milk - getting beaten up by Stella, being advised by John, laughed at by Ash and last but not the least, getting spit on by Trey. Ofcourse, the poor boy didn't do it on purpose.
I was ready to go die when Kim finally entered the house with James after four in the evening, announcing we were going out to eat. But instead of strangling everyone of them, I went to my room and got ready like the sweetheart I was.
By the time, I moved my lazy butt down, everyone was ready.
"And the beauty queen finally arrives." Callie, rolling her eyes, hooked her arms with Kim's and began walking towards the garage.
"Atleast I look good unlike someone," I teased.
She scoffed, "Oh, please, I look way better than you."
I shook my head, "Just ask Kim. I am more good-looking than you." I turned to Kim, trying to communicate through my eyes.
Please, just support me. I mean, we all know I am the handsome one.
The smallest of smiles lifted the corners of Kim's mouth. "I hate to rain on your parade, but I don't lie. Callie lookes the best," she drawled with just a hint of playfulness.
An automatic pout made its way to my lips.
"Aww, c'mon, Max, we all know you are pretty," Eva smirked.
I choked on my own saliva, "Pretty?" I spat the word like a foul word. "I am handsome, sexy even. But pretty, it is such a girly word. Call me pretty once more and I will push you in front of a fast-moving truck," I threatened with a glare fixed on my face though I doubted it was scary.
"Like you would. You would bawl your eyes out before hurting a fly," Kim commented. A smile which held no humor, came on to my face. I had killed people. I had tortured people.
If only you know, Kim. If only you know.
***
As I sat in the comfy chairs present in the restaurant, I was constantly troubled by a thought. I didn't know wheather I was the soft-spoken type or the tough type of guy before I became a Protector, but I sure as hell wasn't scared to kill anyone now.
If, and that is a very big if, Kim and the others think that I am a faint hearted, sweet, cute guy, then I wasn't sure how they would react if they found out my true instincts, the instincts of a Protector - I was meant to kill a people, almost a killing machine - because I wasn't any one of those.
Well, maybe the last one was a lie. We all know I am darn cute.
Will they see me in a different light?
'Ofcourse yes, you idiot, you killed people and are going to in the future,' my mind snapped the moment the question rose in my mind.
Will they hate me?
Maybe, afterall, who likes a person who hurt people? Eventhough, The Blacks are evil, I was no different than them. They kill people, I kill people.
Will they be disgusted?
The answer scared me, mostly because I didn't know the answer to that one and not knowing something always frustrated me.
I sighed, playing with the hem of my blue T-shirt.
"What are you sulking about now?" John rose both his eyebrows.
"Whatever are you talking about. I am a jolly person by nature," I grinned. That one earned me a roll of the eyes by none other than James himself.
Silence settled on the table after that. But this was a comfortable silence. As far as I knew, everyone was well acquainted with each other. Er... except Stella. She still didn't want to talk to anyone other than our own team and even then she usually snapped one word answers.
I felt a little guilty for making her stay in a place she didn't want to when I saw her eating lunch alone by herself but then the act of sympathy soon dissipated when she glared at Trey.
I soon learned that Eva wasn't very fond of Trey, for she believes that he stopped her from going further in life. She was still in denial and didn't want to accept that she really was a mother and a single one at that. She refused to name Trey, and the said name was given by Kim, when she soon realized that Eva wasn't going to take responsibility of Trey and she had been treating him as her own child since.
But strangely, I didn't think Eva was to blame. I just thought that she was being selfish and pitied Trey. I wanted to talk to Eva about the matter, but the longer I thought, I realized that I was in no position to talk. It was her choice, but I stiil thought what she was doing was unfair for Trey.
I mean, he isn't the reason she got pregnant!
I also felt a great amount of respect for Kim after I learned that she was the one who convinced Eva to keep Trey when she was about to put him up for adoption.
***
The food was delicious. It was out of the world. I licked my plate clean and I am sure the others did too. I wasn't able to pay attention to them as I was too busy devouring my food.
When we entered the car, James took the driver seat with John by his side. I sat in the middle with two hot girls on either side of me. Kim and Callie. I was turning luckier and luckier each minute.. I casually put my arms around their shoulders and pulled them closer to me, all the while whistling an un-even tune.
Both of then almost simultaneously jabbed me in my ribs, Callie a little more forcefully than Kim. I pretended I was hurt, for the sake of the ones who didn't know I was a Protector.
Ash was sat between Stella and Eva, looking a little scared. Both of them, to put it simply, hated each others guts. Stella had a short temper and Eva had a um.... fierce personality. Eva wasn't okay with Stella acting rude towards Kim and James - Kim just ignored Stella, though at times she looked hurt and James was fit with glaring at Stella, but other than that, he didn't comment on her behaviour.
Stella doesn't like being told what to do and when Eva told her to 'Shut up,' she started spitting fire in every direction.
"So, is everyone ready for the ride of their lives?" James started the car, imitating the voice of a man who operates the ferris wheel in a carnival. Or atleast tried to. He honestly sounded cre-
"James, dear, please stop. You just simply sound like a creepy man inviting us to the haunted house," Eva drawled in her perfected nasally tone, but everyone knew she was just joking. Everyone except Stella that is.
"Atleast he only sounds creepy when he wants to, but you seem to do that naturally," Stella sneered.
"Actually, I wasn't trying to be creepy-" James started onlt to be cut off by Eva turning her heated gaze to Stella.
"Not as perfectly as you though, right stella?" she smiled sweetly at Stella.
Stella gave her the stink eye. "Please don't smile like that. You look like a clown who is planning the murder of someone."
"I'd punch you, but that would be animal abuse," Eva smirked.
"I am not ready to hear you talk nonsense. So, please stop," Stella seethed through her teeth.
"What? That is the best one you got? I expected more from you. I guess I shouldn't have had high expectations for a person who had a brain the size of a peanut."
"I atleast have a brain. Too bad you would never have the experience to think."
"Think? Do you even know what that means?" Eva started and when Stella fuurrowed her eyebrows, she continued, "Don't worry honey, everyone here knows you. You don't have to tire yourself by thinking."
"Oh, shut up," Stella snapped, narrowing her eyes.
Eva snorted. "Shut up, really? How old are you? Oh, wait, you can't count that high."
Oh boy, this is going to be a long ride.