“You’re leaving already?”Benjiwas still posted outside.
“Yeah. Something came up.”I forced a small smile.
“I didn’t even get to buy you a drink.”
“Next time,”I promised. He readily agreed, and then we were gone. Dennis was walking faster than usual.“Thanks for standing up for me,”I said, staring at the ground as we reached the street. I gently kicked the first pebble we came across. It flew down the block and shot through a small fence.
“Why do you sound surprised?”
“Because I am.”I kicked another rock, softer this time.“No one does that. Except Ari, of course.” When I looked up he was watching me, almost like he was calculating something.“Have you really skinned someone alive?”
“Do you really wanna know?”
“Probably not.”
“Good answer.” He chuckled before looking away.“I told you, I’m not a good person.”
“You keep saying that, but I trust you either way. I finally decided.”
“Your choice. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Where are we going?”
“I’m teaching you how to hunt without killing. You’ll need blood soon. Your eyes are turning darker.”
“Ooh, really? Are they black like yours?”
He stopped walking to look. I kept eye contact, trying to give the best view possible, but the longer he looked, the more uncomfortable I got.It took everything in me not to back away.Hopefully, he couldn’t tell.
“I can always tell when I’m making you uncomfortable.” His eyes danced beneath the streetlamp as he smiled. “It’s the funnest thing about you.”
“Are you trying to make me stop trusting you already?”
“Why would I want that?You have every reason to trust me. And I have every reason to enjoy making you squirm.” He brushed my hair aside, fingers gently stroking my neck.
“Are you gonna tell me what color they are?” I asked, trying to hide how flustered I was.
“Dark purple. Almost black.”
“I love purple,” I said, relaxing when he finally stepped back and we resumed walking. “I have a random question. I know why you hate Kiro, he’s obviously an asshole, but why do you hate Melissa so much?”
“She cheated on Mateo with Kiro. We were all friends before. I saw, I told him. They broke up. She’s had it out for me ever since. And Kiro’s always been an ass. I tolerated him before, but I never liked him.”
“I knew I didn’t like her for a reason! Besides the whole taking Ari’s drink thing. Cheating is such a dick move. I’d never cheat on someone.”
“Really?You don’t seem like you’d care.”
“I guess that’s how I come across.”I ran a hand through my hair, pulling it from an earring when it got caught. “People tend to think I’m a heartless bitch sometimes.”
“Until they get to know you?”
I laughed and shook my head.“No one gets to know me. They always go off first impressions, which usually aren’t that great with me.Especially senior year of high school. That was the worst.”
“What was so bad about it?”
“Everything. I was unmedicated and undiagnosed for the first half of the year, someone found out my dad’s a convicted murderer sothatbecame a whole thing, I went to juvie and got released so my probation officer was on campus for check-ins all the time. Not to mention the psych ward.” I glanced over, unsure if he would judge me for that last part. Or all of it, really. But he didn’t seem to care. I didn’t elaborate and he didn’t push it. “Where are we going to hunt?”
“We’re not hunting yet. I have to go over some things with you first.” He thought for a moment, playing with the chains around his wrist, before nodding toward a nearby alley.“Let’s go in here.”
