Sparks and Flames (9 page)

“Is that really you, Kian?” She asked. “Tell me that I’m dreaming or something.”

“I wish I could but it’s me,” he sighed, looking up at the glass ceiling. The night was still young but he felt like it was over. All he wanted to do now was go home. He didn’t care about hunting down Oda now. “I am a hunter. Is that what you want to hear?”

“No,” she admitted. “I was hoping that you’d have another reason for being one. I was hoping that you’d tell me you were spying on hunters or something. I just wanted anything besides you being a hunter!”

“Oh, Rukia,” he sighed, her name rolling off his tongue. “I never once expected you to learn my secrets like this. I thought I would have told you.”

She helped him sit up. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine. I’ve had worse injuries in my life so hitting this ground is nothing for me. I have to say that you are very strong,” he noted, rubbing his chin. “I did not expect you to take me down like that. Impressive.”

“I guess it was just an adrenaline rush,” she lied. “I was scared of you when you were coming towards me. I had to do something.”

“You were scared of me?”

“Well, you don’t sound them same when you’re taunting your prey. You sounded like you wanted to kill everything in your sight. You also look frightening too,” she looked down at his entire outfit. “Now that I can see your face, I don’t feel so scared.”

“I’m glad my face isn’t scary,” he laughed. “I’m sorry about what happened earlier. I’m sorry about all of this. I’ve been contemplating how to approach this situation. I said I would tell you. I just didn’t know how.”

“You really are a hunter?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your rank?”

“Lieutenant.”

“Really? You look so young to be one.”

“Don’t let my age fool you,” he said, leaning against the wall. “I’ve fought and seen enough in a short period of time. I’ve been through so much even though I’m only eighteen. They decided that I was so good that they made me a Lieutenant. I’m not the most powerful fighter but I can get my target when I want them.”

“I know it’s a big shock and this wasn’t how I wanted you to find out,” he said. “Believe me. I’m not trying to hurt you. I only hunt Elementals and that’s it.”

“Why?” She asked.

“Well, it’s obvious why. Haven’t you seen the damage they’ve done? They’re the reason that the Velt is in the condition that it is. I was raised without most luxuries in life, Rukia. My mother and father did their best, sometimes going without food so I could eat. It’s especially hard when you’re of two different races. Look at me,” he touched his warm brown skin and rolled up his sleeve so she could get a better look. “Most people don’t look at me twice.”

“You’re beautiful though,” she said. “Those people don’t know beauty when they see it.”

“I’m not beautiful. I’m a killer. You were right when you got me down on the ground,” he said. “I will understand completely if you do not want to be seen with me. It is going to be risky for both us.”

“I do want to be around you though. We had a nice time together when we went out,” she said. “I don’t care that you’re a hunter. I’m just glad that we’re here and your deepest secret is out.” Then a question popped in her head. “Have you ever tried getting out of the Velt?”

“All the time,” he admitted. “There’s nothing I want to do more than leave that place. I’m envious of you. You get to live in those posh hills of Calensa while I’m just rotting away down in the Velt. My parents always wanted better for me but I can’t seem to leave the Velt behind.”

“Come to my house,” she suggested. “Come have dinner with us.”

“Why?”

“Why not? I’m inviting you up to Calensa, a town that you probably don’t get to see much. Above all, I’m inviting you to meet my family. You’ve already seen Midori so now I want you to see everyone else. I wouldn’t do that unless I trusted you.”

“Are you sure it’s okay?” He asked. “I don’t want to feel like I’m barging in on anything.”

“You won’t be barging in. I’m inviting you. Speaking of which, what do you like to eat? I’ll let my mother know ahead of time so she can prepare your favorite dish.”

“I’m open to anything actually. Curry is my favorite food of all time but I do love Japanese food as well,” he said. “Oh, I really love momos the most as well as arroz y habicuelas. I also like pakoras and food made with plantains. I absolutely love marzipan and butterscotch. I love anything made out of bananas in general. I’m not a very picky eater.”

“What are momos?”

“Momos are Indian-style dumplings while the other is rice and beans. Pakoras are a mixture of vegetables wrapped in chickpea flour and fried. My personal favorites are onion and potato pakoras.” Thinking about pakoras was starting to make him hungry. They didn’t get a chance to eat his favorite foods anymore.

“Well, I don’t know how well my mother will pull those off but I’ll bring them up with her.” Rukia decided. “Would you be offended if she didn’t make those?”

“Not at all. Those are the things I love, but that doesn’t mean I get a chance to eat them all the time.” He looked down at the ground. “I can’t remember the last time that I had marzipan. It’s so good yet I never get a chance to eat it anymore.”

“Well, if I find marzipan, I’ll be sure to get you some next time.”

“It’s not necessary, Rukia. It’s just something that I like. That’s all,” he stared down at the toes of his boots. “Please promise me that you won’t tell anyone else about this. You know the kind of reputation that hunters have. If someone were to find out about me…”

“I know.” She stopped him. “Your secret is safe.”

“You mean it?”

“I never lie about anything,” she said.
“I will keep all your secrets if you want me to. I know how people can react when they hear the word ‘hunter’. It’s even worse when the hunter is someone as young as you are.”

“That’s right,” he agreed. “People look at me and don’t expect much. I get it from Elementals and other hunters alike. They think I’m too young to understand the severity of my job. They think that I don’t take it seriously. What they don’t know is that I am serious. I wouldn’t have been a Lieutenant if I didn’t know what I was doing.”

“Well, I promise I will not treat you that way,” she decided. “People need to understand that young people are capable of being serious and thinking of the important things. We’ve seen this world fall apart and rebuild itself. We watched everything we know change before us and become a new world. We know more than we sometimes reveal.”

Kian was floored by what she had said. While neither of them was old enough to have seen the old world, they had heard enough stories about it. That was how he came to know of places like Puerto-Rico and India. Some of the older members in this world held onto memories from the old countries. He had seen history books of what that world was like and how everything came undone. The world as they knew it had split up and become separated. No one really knew what happened to cause this. All he knew was that the old world was not here anymore. He had no idea what country the Velt used to be or if it was a brand new land. He just knew that it existed and was his brand new home.

“Do you ever wish we could see the old world?” He asked. “I wish I could know about the countries that my parents were from.”

“Yeah, I do. I know nothing about my birth parents,” she said. “The Benton’s are a wonderful family and I owe them everything. They’ve made sure that my sisters and I have always had a good life. All the same, I wish I knew about the country my family came from. I want to know just what it was like.”

“I bet it was beautiful,” he said. “I’ve seen pictures of India and it’s so colorful. Same thing with Puerto Rico. Neither of those places looked as dark and depressing as the Velt does. I know that there was poverty in both of them but nothing like this. There’s literally no hope.”

“I wish I could help you out,” Rukia said. “I wanted to give you money but you didn’t take it.”

“You should save that money for the people who need it to eat. Give it to the people that don’t have a house to stay in,” he suggested. “And if you really want to help, come down to the Velt and help someone out with their house. Donate food and clothing. I know some kids who really love things like paper and pencils. Drop off a lot of those.”

“You’ve given me some good ideas and you’re right. Money will only go so far to help these people. I need to get down to business and into the thick of things,” she realized. Now she felt foolish for even giving him anything. “One day, I will come down to the Velt with things to distribute to the children and adults. I know I have a lot of things that I don’t use.”

“That would be wonderful,” he said. “You give those gifts away and those kids will be happy. It will be like Christmas for them.”

Christmas. Rukia’s face lit up at the idea of making someone happy. She almost forgot all about Kian being a hunter because he was all for helping others. Deep down, that’s what he was doing; he thought he was being helpful.

If only he knew the secret that she had deep down. She dreaded the day when he would learn what she truly was.

Chapter 11

Even though Kian had been revealed as a hunter, it didn’t scare Rukia. If anything, she wanted him to come to dinner the next night. He was surprised that she had mentioned this to him but he accepted her invitation. A dinner wouldn’t hurt. He would just tell his parents that he wasn’t going to be around for the night. They could eat without him.

Rukia decided that he could come to her house while her parents were out and help him get dressed. He didn’t want to bring her to the Velt. His house was a mess and he wasn’t about to introduce her to his family yet. Right now, he felt better if she would help him out. He took his clothing to her place and she let him change in her room.

“I’ll be keeping an eye out for anyone that might be here,” she said. “You go ahead and get changed. I’ll be right outside.”

“Thank you for letting me change here,” he said. “I didn’t want to get my clothes dirty while I came here. These are a few of the nicest outfits that I have and I don’t want a speck of dirt on them. I’ll leave my regular clothes here in your closet. No one’s going to look in there, will they?”

“No, only I handle that closet,” she said. “Go ahead and change. I’m right here for you.”

Rukia left him alone at that point. He had found some of his best clothes which was a simple pair of black slacks, a white shirt, an olive green vest, matching green tie, and cufflinks that once belonged to his grandfather. He felt guilty for wearing them, but his father insisted that he take them. They had been passed down from generation to generation. Now it was Kian’s turn to wear them and this was the perfect time to do that.

She fixed his tie while he finished fastening the cufflinks. “Are you sure they’re going to like me? I don’t think I should mention where I’m from.”

“Relax, my parents aren’t ogres,” she said. “They will not mind if you’re from the Velt. All they ask is that you be polite to everyone.”

“I think I can do that,” he said, taking his comb and running his hair through it. He squeezed a little gel into his hands and rubbed it in. “I still don’t get why you want to hang out with me. I’m a Lieutenant who kills Elementals. I’m technically a bad guy and bad guys don’t ever win the good girls. It’s just not something that happens.”

“That’s only in the movies.” Rukia said. “In reality, it’s much different. You don’t have to worry about my family. None of them are Elementals.”

“I figured. Besides, I think your sister might beat me up if I tried to do anything. I saw how she was with that cricket bat. I almost pitied the other guy but then I remember that he tried to assault me.”

“If you ask me, he deserved that beating. I cannot stand anyone that assaults another person like that,” she said, helping him button up his vest. “All right, I think you look ready. Do you have any cologne to wear? If not, I borrowed my father’s for this.”

“It’s okay. My father lent me his cologne,” Kian put some on. “I would put on aftershave but I haven’t had much facial hair that needs shaving. Everyone says that I stressed out so much that I couldn’t get any hair to grow.”

“Why would you ever stress out?”

“Being a hunter is not an easy job. I’m always worried about my life and what’s going to happen to me. I always think about whether or not I’m going to see tomorrow. Yes, I have a lot of kills but I’ve also had a lot of near misses. I’ve been injured plenty of times by my targets. I’ve had to go to the hospital for many surgeries.”

“I see. The main is that you came out of everything alive though.”

“I suppose that is a good thing. People have asked me time and time again how I make it out alive. They wonder if I’ve given my soul away to someone and that’s why I’m able to kill people so easily. In a way, I think I did give my soul away.”

“Who would you give your soul to?”

“I don’t know. I guess I handed it over to the devil. That’s the only person you can lose your soul to over here,” he said, touching his chest. “For the longest time, I wondered if I had a heart too. I never felt it beating and everyone said I was cold.”

“You think otherwise now?”

“I know otherwise now,” he admitted. “Since you entered my life, I’m beginning to feel a little different about things. It hasn’t changed how I feel about Elementals, but it changes how I feel about people in general.”