Unfaded (36 page)

             
“You’re both so good,” I said. “Of course you’ve got a lot of years over me. I’m sure I’ll be that good too once I hit at least seventy-five.”

             
“Seventy-five hundred would be more accurate,” Seito said with a straight face. I tossed a snowball at him.

             
Kian opened a bottle of water and took a long drink. There was coffee too, and I sipped some of it from a thermos cup. We stared out at the lake, enjoying the warm sun, recharging our bodies for the second round.

             
It struck me that I was having a fantastic time. It was the first time in weeks that I hadn’t had to worry about someone. My family and friends were safe, Connor was probably moping around the house but I wasn’t going to think about that, and Kian was here with me and there was no one around to threaten us. Everything was all right, even if it was just temporarily.

             
I wanted to freeze time and keep this moment forever.

             
We ate lunch. This time I’d done the packing so there was no missing silverware. I’d gone through the fridge and found leftover roast beef to make sandwiches and I had a thermos of Marley’s famous homemade tomato soup. I’d made Kian stop at the gas station on the way so I could buy some chips and other assorted junk food. We had enough to keep us active for the rest of the day. And we were going to need it. This defensive stuff was hard work.

             
“Did you ever teach me this stuff before?” I asked as I chewed on a piece of cheese.

             
“This is a first,” Kian said. “But you’ve got to look back at history to understand. Fighting wasn’t really something women did. Most of the time they were busy wearing corsets and tiny shoes that didn’t fit properly.”

             
“Oh, man,” Seito said. “I miss corsets. So sexy.”

             
“And sexist,” I said, remembering when I was in the woods and I could barely breath. “They're so tight. No wonder women went around fainting all the time. Created by a man I might add.”

             
“Smart man,” Seito said and Kian stifled a laugh by taking a sip of soup.

             
“What about Unfaded women?” I thought of Lina and how she didn’t look like the type to go running from a fight.

             
“It’s different,” Kian said. “Unfaded don’t have the gender bias that seems to follow the humans around. The girls are taught from a young age how to defend themselves. Everyone has been treated equally. But the women are often just as strong as the men. It’s not really the same with the human race.”

             
“If I’m as strong as you then why do you keep kicking my ass?” I said.

             
“Because you’re thinking like a human. It’s keeping your strength down.”

             
“How do I think like an Unfaded?”

             
“No idea. It’s something you’re going to have to figure out on your own. But you’re strong. We’ve all seen it. You must have tossed Anique a good five feet.”

             
“Five feet’s nothing,” Seito said. “Wimpy by our standards.”

             
“I’m going to remember that when we go back on the ice. You’re both going down. No more nice girl." I jumped up from the table. "Eat my snow!”

             
“Good luck,” Kian said. “You’re going to need it.”

             
“That sounds like a challenge if I ever heard one,” Seito said.

             
“Yep,” I agreed. I stretched my legs in an exaggerated fashion. “Bring it on.”

             
We wandered back out onto the ice and I immediately fell into the position Kian had been trying to teach me all morning.

             
To fight like an Unfaded, I was going to have to think like one. I took a few deep breaths and tried to forget everything I knew about being a human girl. I reminded myself that I was just as strong and fast. The boys were both right. I had knocked Anique back when I’d reacted without thinking. I could do that again.

             
Kian was grinning at me. “I’m not going to go easy on you,” he said.

             
“Good.”

             
Without warning, he lunged. I sidestepped to the left because it felt more natural. Throwing my foot out, it connected with his knee. I yanked my leg backwards, dragging him along, pressing both my hands against his shoulders and shoving as hard as I could. Kian went flying through the air, hitting the ground on his side. I don’t know who was more surprised. I stood there gaping while he climbed to his feet.

             
“Wow,” Seito said. “I think she’s got it.”

             
I couldn’t help myself. A big grin broke out on my face. “Again! Let’s do it again.”

             
We did. I wasn't as lucky the second time around. It was me who ended up in the snow, spluttering as bits of ice went up my nose.

             
We continued on for most of the afternoon. I’d like to say I managed to toss Kian a bunch of times but I only managed to do it twice more. It didn’t really matter. He was right. I was getting faster and definitely growing stronger. All I needed now was the practice. Kian and Seito were more than willing to help in that department.

             
“Let’s do it again tomorrow,” I said at the end of the day.

             
“We’ll see,” Kian said. “I don’t know about you but I think we’re going to be a bit sore after all this. I think It might be a good idea to take a break after your first day.”

             
“Wimp,” I said.

             
He chased me all the way to the car.

                                          *              *              *

              I was great. I was fantastic. By the time eight o’clock rolled around, every single muscle in my body ached worse than anything I’d ever felt before in my life. I could barely walk down the stairs. Even lifting the make-up brush to apply eye shadow nearly killed me.

             
“I’m dying,” I said to Kian when he came to pick me up.

             
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he said with a big grin. “Next time don’t play so hard.”

             
I gave him the dirtiest look I could muster.

             
The movie was at nine. Amber and Claire met us around eight thirty. I contemplated crawling into the theatre but that probably wouldn’t look good on my behalf. I couldn’t move fast enough. At least when we stopped I was able to lean against Claire to keep from collapsing.

             
Amber looked fantastic. She was wearing a short jean skirt and a nice black sweater that brought out the paleness of her skin and the highlights in her blonde hair. Normally she was bubbly but tonight she was practically bouncing off the wall. Her cuteness factor was through the roof.

             
Claire looked lovely too. Her blonde hair was tied back in a long French braid. She wasn’t wearing anything as daring as Amber, she tended to stick to jeans and shirts but there was no denying her beauty too. She may have been more reserved but I happened to know there were a lot of guys who liked her. She was always just too busy to pay attention to them.

             
They both liked Seito, one for his brains, the other for his looks, and both for his personality. I wondered whom he’d choose and whether or not it would affect our friendship. Once again I thought about making a comment to him.

             
“So what exactly happened to you?” Claire asked when I leaned into her again for the third time.

             
“I got a little too eager while cleaning my bedroom,” I said. “I think I pulled a muscle.”

             
Ok, so that
was the understatement of the century. Still, I wasn’t about to let my soreness keep me from having a good night. With the way my life was heading, I’d be lucky if I got anymore of them.

             
Kian paid for everyone’s tickets and wouldn’t take money from anyone who tried to offer. He wasn’t trying to impress, money didn’t seem like much of an issue for him. Afterwards we got into a long line for popcorn and drinks. There were a lot of students. Addison didn’t have a lot going on in the evenings and the only movie theatre was often sold out on weekends. I had a lot of people nodding in my direction and saying hi. There were a lot of strange stares too.

             
“It’s because of the fight,” Claire whispered to me. “Everyone’s saying you took on some girl and landed her in the hospital. They’re all curious.”

             
“Sheesh, punch one girl and you never get to live it down,” I said.

             
“You really hit someone? Who?”

             
“You don’t know her and she deserved it. And she was fine. No blood or anything.”

             
Claire was looking at me like she’d never seen me before. “Are you sure you’re all right, Mai? I’ve known you my entire life and I’ve never heard you talk that way.”

             
I knew what she was thinking. She thought that Kian might not be the good influence she first thought he was. Of course she was right but I couldn’t admit that. Up until a few weeks ago I used to be the type of girl who would feel terrible if I saw a dead squirrel on the road. I once blasted Connor for an hour and refused to speak to him for a week because he got into some macho screaming match with some university students at the ski hill. Now I was a girl who punched someone and then shrugged it off like it was no big deal.

Was I killing off the old Mai? How long would it be before I was gone completely?

              Claire was still watching me carefully. She wanted an answer.

             
“It was a onetime thing,” I told her. “You know I’m not the type to fight. I hate that sort of thing. It’s so juvenile. Besides, she hit me first.”

             
“I’m glad to hear that,” she said but she didn’t sound convinced. She knew there was something different about me. She just didn’t comprehend how much.

Meanwhile Seito was dazzling Amber by telling her stories about his time in Hollywood when he hung out on the set of one of her favourite movies.
Amber was obviously enamoured. When Scott Myerson walked over to say hello she barely said two words back.

             
We loaded up with tons of junk for which Seito paid and went in to find our seats. Both Kian and Seito wanted to sit in the last row. Amber was thrilled. She thought it meant they wanted privacy. I knew better. It was a security issue. They didn’t want anyone having the chance to sneak up on us. Both of them sat on opposite sides of me with Amber beside Seito and Claire at the end.

             
The theatre was packed and I saw a lot of people I knew. I saw Breanna come in with her friends Sue and Chelsea. They were with Ken and Scott, both of whom were on the basketball team. I was glad to see Connor wasn’t with her. She probably wasn’t very happy about that. It was petty of me to think that, but if my ex-boyfriend was going to start dating again, I wanted him to be with anyone other than her. He deserved better.

             
I quickly discovered that sitting wasn’t going to be any more comfortable than standing. Squirming around, I spent the next few minutes trying to find a position that didn’t involve my muscles screaming in agony. It was turning out to be quite the chore.

             
“When the lights go down you can always take a nap,” Kian whispered in my ear. "Don't feel bad or anything. It's not your fault you can't keep up."

             
"Ha ha," I said sourly.

             
“Get a room,” Seito said loudly as he reached across me for the Milk Duds. 

             
I would have murdered Seito if I wasn't feeling like I was about to die myself.

             
The movie started off with a huge death scene. The killer ruthlessly sliced and diced his way through a sorority house. It was pretty graphic, lots of blood and body parts flying across the screen. Seito was enjoying himself enormously, chewing away at the popcorn that Claire and Amber no longer seemed to want. They were huddled together as they normally were during horrors, both their hands inches from their faces just in case the action got too intense. Seito shoved the popcorn in my direction and I took a handful, making the mistake of turning my head to thank him. The big grin on his face was pretty funny and I found myself coming down with a bad case of the giggles. I smothered my mouth in my jacket. Massive laughter during a death scene is never a good thing. I concentrated instead of keeping my attention on the movie, I was afraid if I even glanced in his direction I might end up in hysterics.