I lower my voice. “What if I told you there are people within the city who are interested in hearing more about my experience before coming here?”
His eyes flick to mine briefly as we continue walking. “I would tell you that there are eyes and ears everywhere, Zi, and to keep your eye on the prize.”
I sigh, increasing my speed and leaving him trailing behind. “This is why I don’t include you in the plans, Riri. You’re no fun.”
“You’re going to ignore every ounce of what I just said, aren’t you?”
“Going to go run some laps, bye!” I break off in a jog towards the track, leaving Orion shaking his head in my wake.
Leo joins me on my second lap around, falling into an easy jog beside me. Thethump, thump, thumpof my runners against the rubber and our heavy breathing are the only sounds between us.
“Have you ever thought about us walking away from all of this?” Leo’s question breaks the silence.
“What?” I slow to a walk before stopping completely, putting my hands on my hips.
Leo slows, tilting his head back to the sky, eyes closed, and his throat exposed. Is it a moment of peace or a moment of preparation? His jaw clenches briefly before he opens his eyes, putting his arm around my shoulder and tugging me into his side as we walk. “We could leave this behind, you and me.”
“One of us needs to win this.” I throw my hands up, exasperated.
“Why? Why can’t this be someone else’s problem?”
“What has gotten into you?”
“We could have a normal life, asafelife. Together.” Does he want us to abandon our mission? What happened to the fight within him? Allowing myself one beautiful moment to consider a future without the added weight of us changing the universe, I imagine what Leo and I could be. It’s bittersweet and heartbreaking to realize that the future we want does not exist. Not now, anyway. We can’t walk away—not with what we’ve seen. We know too much. The galaxies need to change, starting with the Kosmos.
I bite my cheek, shaking my head. “I can’t want that right now. It’s not possible anymore.” The hope extinguishes from his eyes. “Talk to me, Leo. Where is this coming from?”
Leo offers a weak smile before reassuring, “Nowhere, forget it.”
“I don’t want to forget it.”
“It doesn’t matter. Everything is going to work out in the end.” He kisses my temple and continues strolling, ending our conversation. I can’t help the nagging feeling that persists, alerting me to the fact that Leo’s not telling me something.
We close out the day with some weightlifting. Orion calls out to me, “Nothing below fifty pounds!”
“I never see you lifting anything above fifty pounds,” I mumble as I head to the station. Miles is already lifting, lying on a bench, and pressing over two hundred pounds easily.
“Hey, Miles, how’s it going?”
Miles responds silently—or not at all. “Please tell me Leo didn’t tell you to avoid me, too.” His lips quirk at that.
I start with a series of lunges before adding in some overhead presses. “Got any fun plans this evening?” Maybe if I keep talking, I won’t feel the burn in my shoulders.
“Knitting,” he grunts out.
Knitting. Wait, “Knitting?”
“Keeps me level-headed. I’m making a gift for a …friend.” Who would’ve thought?
“When did you learn to knit?”
“On Noctor. Our tailor taught me when I was younger. Said it was something I could do with my time to keep me out of trouble. I picked up a lot of shifts in the Knittery.” Someone like Gwenda, then. “It’s actually a handy skill to have.”
“Maybe I should try it. I’m sure your friend will love it.” I complete my reps and move into a round of goblet squats.
Miles sits up and observes me. “Your form is good.” A conversationanda compliment from the elusive Miles? This must be my lucky day. Quietly, he adds, “I hope he does.”
“He? Who’s the lucky guy?” I torture myself with some bicep curls, getting ready to repeat the circuit. I swear Miles blushes, but he lies back down on the bench and hides behind his presses.
