“Are you going to tell me what’s wrong or are you just going to ignore us?”
“I don’t see how it concerns you right now. I’ll tell you later.” My voice was a lot colder than I wanted it to be, but it got the message across.
“Blossom--”
“Not now, Daris. I’ll deal with it later.” With that, I dropped down and went straight through my bedroom window. I went to shower and to get rid of the dirt in my hair before dressing in clean clothes. I fell on the bed and sighed as I began eating. I did not want to listen to one side telling me I was weak and another trying to make me feel better. I just wanted to be left alone. Just me and my books and the silence of the room.
“What did you do?!” So much for the silence I was craving. Daris’s voice was booming through the house. I barely heard the mumbled reply of Witch. At least she was quiet.
“She was passed out! It took me thirty minutes to wake her up!”
Another murmured response floated into my room. I got up and moved to the door. If Daris was going to yell, he had to go outside. I leaned against the door next to the fruit and waited.
“I don’t know why you’re so worked up, Daris. She was only left alone for an hour.”
“She was unconscious!” he shouted. I imagined him fisting his hands through his hair.
“If she can’t keep up with the training, then she should go home.”
Really Witch? Haven’t we gone over the fact that your enemy got rid of my home? I pictured him sighing, his muscles tensing as he fought to avoid punching something.
“I should probably stop him before he breaks something,” I whispered to the empty room. I heard a small crash. “Never mind.”
Daris shouted in frustration.
“I’m not going to get any sleep if this continues.” I stood and opened the door. I wasn’t surprised by what I saw.
Witch had put her dishes away and was smugly enjoying a cup of tea while Daris was tense with fury. A few feet to my right was a shattered plate that I quickly mended and sent to the sink to be washed later. As the glass clinked, the two finally turned to me. Even after a shower, I’m sure I was still a mess. My hair hadn’t been combed and I had small bags under my eyes. I leaned against the wall to keep myself up when the world starts to tip again.
Witch slowly looked at me with disgust written on her face, but her eyes were smug and triumphant. Unlike my tangled mess, her short hair was still neat. Her clothes looked as clean as they had this morning when she dragged me outside while mine lay soaking in the sink.
Daris, on the other hand, snapped his gaze right to me, and the worry that was in his eyes faded slightly. His body relaxed and he exhaled. He ran a hand through his messy hair. He must have done that more times than I thought.
“Normally, I wouldn’t care that you were yelling at her in my defense. It’s nothing new. Can it wait until morning, though?” I yawned and lifted my arms, only to wince as my stomach ached. That’s right…Katherine kicked me. I put my hand to my side. The dull and ignorable pain from earlier came back ten-fold as my muscles stretched. I glanced at the two and saw the smirk on Witch’s face and murder in Daris’s eyes. I straightened and looked at him in surprise. He looked at his mom.
“You didn’t,” He dared, eyes darkening dangerously when she shrugged.
With a sudden surge of energy, I rushed over to Daris and grabbed his arm, pulling him away from his mother before he had the chance to jump her. She was watching Daris with some caution and anger as I was trying to pull his taller, much heavier frame. His body tightened for a lunge and I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my head against his back. My side ached as he strained against my grip. Holding him tighter, I pressed myself closer, trying to take my mind off the pain that was getting more intense with every one of Daris’s attempts. Not even his forest smell was helping me calm down, and holding him down was taking a lot of energy that I didn’t have.
“Daris! Calm down!” My shout didn’t do much to quell his anger, but he did stop pulling as hard and allow me to drag him into my room and close the door. He started pacing the room and fisting his hands while I slumped on my bed. I could feel my heart beating in my side and my head wasn’t happy. I groaned as I finally sank into the pillow and closed my eyes. That also seemed to snap Daris out of his rampage.
“Are you okay?” He sat on the edge of my bed.
“I thought I said I didn’t want to talk about it.” I breathed.
“You actually said that you would talk about it later. It’s later.”
I groaned and covered my eyes with my left arm. I knew that if I looked into his eyes, I would lose my resolve and fall apart at the seams that were somehow containing my rapidly decomposing mood. Daris poked my uninjured side and I made the mistake of looking at him.
I sighed. “No offense, Daris, but I don’t like your mom.”
“So you’ve said.” His lips twitched up.
“I think it’s starting to border along the lines of pure hatred.”
“Was she that bad?”
“You tell me. You were the one who looked like you wanted to rip her head off.”
“That was a combination of events. What happened?”
“You were right about her leaving me outside. I trained nonstop. No bathroom or water breaks. I guess it just got to me and I couldn’t get up.” I sighed and rubbed my side.
“Yeah. She’s a tough trainer.”
“Try ruthless. Tough would have been giving me a water break when it got to be the hottest time of the day and not kicking me when I was down. Literally.” I hissed in a breath when I moved the wrong way. “Damn. That woman can kick.”
“She can do more than just kick, but I think my trees have taken a certain liking to you. I’m surprised I didn’t find her wrapped in roots.”
“She probably would have torn them apart anyway,” I muttered.
“I don’t even know what that was about. She’s always been harsh, but she’s never done something like that. Maybe it’s the fact that you’re the daughter of our most hated enemy.”
“If she thinks I am anything like my asshole of a father, then I think I need to leave,” I said bitterly. I closed my eyes. “I showed her what I could do. I have nothing else to give to try to lessen the way she trains me. Do you have any idea of how long it’ll be before she leaves?”
“For your sake, I wish I did. I can’t make the training easier, Blossom, but I can help you afterward.”
I opened my eyes and watched him warily.
“Do you trust me?”
I nodded. “Stupid question.”
He looked where my hand was rubbing my injury and then carefully at me as if asking my permission. I nodded my head again and lifted my shirt enough to reveal the dark bruise.
“It looks worse than it feels.” I insisted when I saw the pure, unconcealed rage that burned in his eyes. I could tell that he was torn between helping me and going back outside to yell at Katherine until his voice was sore or one of them attacked the other.
“That’s because you haven’t given your body the chance to fully relax. You have so much adrenaline coursing through you that I’m surprised you haven’t thrown me against the wall already.”
I chuckled and Daris smiled, his sapphire eyes lighting up in the dim light of my room. My breath caught and it rushed out when he touched his hand to my side.
“Like you would let me throw you against the wall,” I playfully scoffed.
“If it meant not hurting you, then yes.” His answer surprised me. The tenderness in his voice another shock after hearing how he was growling at his mom. I exhaled shakily. “Close your eyes and take deep breaths. You may feel a bit of tensing, but you have to keep breathing, alright?”
“Ok.” I closed my eyes and started counting my breaths. I felt a power slowly gather at the bruise. It was more controlled than mine and felt cool, like diving into the pool on a hot summer day. Then, the heat came. My body tensed in fear as the temperature
rose. My breaths became gasps and I felt my body shake.
“Shh, Blossom.” I heard Daris whisper. “It’s fine. You’re safe. I’ve got you.” His thumb ghosted over the skin just above the injury and a tingle of pleasurable electricity followed in its wake. I inhaled and allowed my body to accept Daris’s power. His energy mingled with mine until the ache and heat subsided to be replaced with that same calming cool feeling as our power danced together.
“Mmmm,” I hummed in contentment as my body went limp. Daris laughed.
“Can you do the same thing to my head?” I sighed.
I didn’t see him nod, but I felt his hand trail up my arm to rest at the base of my neck while the other rested on my forehead. He pulled me into a sitting position and leaned me against his leg, which he propped up. We were so close now that, without opening my eyes, I felt him inhale the breath I exhaled and blow it across my face. I was more aware of what was going on now. My senses were heightened, but my body was still calm as the familiar cool-then-hot sensation repeated itself. It tickled a bit, having his fingers brush against the sensitive skin on my neck, but I was breathing through it as my mind cleared and my headache finally left me.
Daris moved his hands and I instantly missed the feel of his skin on mine. I opened my eyes and saw that we were much closer than I originally thought, his eyes just a few inches away from mine. My steady rhythm stopped and I felt myself holding my breath as I searched his blue eyes. I didn’t know what I was searching for, but as I wandered through his legible emotions, I found myself smiling before leaning forward and pecking him on the cheek.
“Thanks, Daris.” I managed to keep my voice to a whisper despite the volume of my blush. I saw his cheeks tinge with a bit of pink and his eyes lighten. My eyes started to fall shut, the day finally catching up with me. He smiled softly and I think I felt him briefly kiss my hair before laying me down and leaving me to drift away into sleep. Despite my tiring day, I slept with a smile on my face.
Daris had called me into his room earlier this morning before Katherine had the chance to drag me away for another gruesome day of training. The training itself was a nightmare, but every time I managed to finish a session, I was able to relax and watch the sunset from the height of the trees only to go back inside to be healed.
So far, she’d been at the house with us for about two weeks and not a day went by that she neglected to remind me how weak or useless I was, to remind me that the only reason she was bothering with me at all was because I was supposed to be the one able to defeat the Acerlums. Although, she still claimed that there had to be someone out there who could do a better job than me. I hadn’t even had the chance to prove myself yet.
Despite my progress, the physical beatings had increased, much to my disdain and Daris’s anger. It didn’t help that, once I mastered the attacks (courtesy of Daris’s help during the occasional midnight practice), she decided to move on to close combat and short-range attacks.
Each day, I walked back into the house singed and covered in dirt and sweat and ran straight for the shower. Most nights, I ate dinner when Daris took me up to the roof to heal the colorful bruises that spotted my back and littered my limbs.
The beatings usually happened when we did combat, but that usually started after I smart-mouthed her or sent an attack her way when she went too far. I loved that Daris would heal me, but I hated that it just gave his mother a blank canvas to paint black and blue the following morning.
I knocked on the door to Daris’s room and I felt Katherine staring at me from the kitchen where she was eating breakfast. He opened and pulled me inside before I could mutter a good morning. The door shut behind me with a slam and I had to stifle a giggle as I saw the ever-presentable Daris slump against it with a sigh.
“You okay?” I couldn’t keep my smile at bay as he covered his face with his hands and groaned. When I could see his face, after having eventually revealed his eyes, I was happy to see that he was smiling and that his shoulders were shaking as he chuckled.
“That woman has been glaring at me every time I leave the room and it’s driving me nuts.”
“She’s been glaring at me since she met me, but you don’t see me hiding in my room.”
He shot me a weak glare and I just threw myself on the bed.
He laughed as I huffed and rose from the floor to join me. He did the same as I did and I jumped into the air with a giggle when he landed on the other side of the mattress. We lay in silence as we enjoyed the lack of yelling.
“So, is there any particular reason you called me in here?” I asked.
He shrugged.
“Seriously. Your mom wants me to train.”
“Do you want to train?”
“At the risk of dealing with your mom later, no. I’m beat. She’s been killing me lately and, no matter how many times you heal me, I still feel sore when I wake up the next morning and my body feels sluggish.”
“Has it gotten any better?”
“You see the bruises every day, Daris. You know it hasn’t.” He frowned and I added, “However, since you’ve stopped trying to kill her during our training sessions, she hasn’t hit me as much.”
“Great,” he said sarcastically, “So when I’m there, I just make you more of a punching bag than you already are.” His hand covered his face and he groaned.
I sat up and moved his hand so I could see his eyes. “It’s not your fault. I’ll be fine to go back to training soon, but I just need a break. My body already hates the fact that I’m awake and moving around.”
He grinned and got up from the bed. “Well then, there’s only one thing we can do.”
I watched as Daris left the room, closing the door behind him. I heard Katherine’s voice through the door as she asked what he was doing, but either he didn’t respond or I didn’t hear him. Instead, he opened the door again a few minutes later with arms filled with several bowls and plates. Immediately, I got up to help him and that was when I noticed the stack of movies.
“Movie day?” I asked hopefully. He shot me a smirk before sneaking out of the room to return with all my bed covers, my pillows, my e-reader, and a large thermos. He tossed the covers on the bed, put the e-reader on the nightstand, and put the thermos next to the several snack bowls. Then, he opened two panels to reveal a flat screen and a DVD player. He turned to me and his eyes glinted mischievously.
“Not just any movie day, Blossom. It’s a “Revenge-on-my-Mother-for-Torturing-us” movie day.”
I smiled as he locked the door. I jumped off the bed and tiptoed around the food while Daris messed with the television until I was right behind him. I wrapped my arms around his waist as silent thanks before setting up the bed with the warm blankets and the fluffy pillows.
As Daris landed on the mattress next to me, I couldn’t help but think how great this was. He was helping me go against his mom. He was letting me take the break I needed while also helping to replenish the calories my body was starting to crave after being so long without a good, home-cooked meal. As if reading my mind, Daris’s stomach growled and I giggled.
“Shush you,” he reprimanded with a smile. “I know she saw you come in here, but the last thing we need is for her to start bothering us before we’re halfway through the first film.”
“I rather get that out of the way now so we don’t have to pause it later.”
“But then you don’t get a fraction of the break you need. Stop thinking about it.” He sat up and slung his arm across the back of the pillows and around my shoulder, pulling me into his side. “Just relax, Blossom. Everything will be fine.” His breath tickled my ear and I tensed as I felt the redness start at the tips of my ears and travel down my neck passed the collar of my baggy t-shirt. “Your other relax, Blossom.”
My body finally slumped at that and a giggle bubbled out of me. I folded my legs off to my side and curled under Daris’s arms until my head was resting comfortably on his chest. I felt his body stiffen.
“You should take
your own advice, Daris.”
He chuckled lightly and started the movie. A familiar song filtered through the speaker and I found myself humming along as I recalled the memories I associated with the notes of the music. I looked at Daris.
“Movie marathon?” He asked.
“Shut up. The movie’s starting.” And that was how we spent the day. Watching some of my favorite childhood movies and laughing without event thinking about training. We somehow lasted well into the following morning due to the abundance of sugary snacks and frequent naps. The fact that his mom chose not to interrupt us was a huge bonus and a bigger mystery.
It was moments like these, though, in the blocks of silence when Daris slept and I watched people and cartoons move across the screen, that I questioned myself. Denying that I was falling for the blue-eyed trainer would be futile. I just didn’t know what it meant. I’m pretty sure I started making a mental pros and cons list before the movie was half over. I started with the cons first, deciding to get the negatives out of the way quickly.
In terms of emotions, Daris was kind of a loose cannon. Granted, I didn’t think he had ever been seriously angry with me, but he let others influence his feelings too much, especially his mother. That may be what led me into the main con: I didn’t think he had much of a thought filter. No, I didn’t know how he grew up or the kind of environment his home had, but there had to have been a boundary somewhere, some sort of line I couldn’t cross. However, he was quick to fix the situation and acknowledge when I was an—No, I had to focus on his cons. He was guarded with his past and wouldn’t answer my questions and could sometimes act like a kid, but I guessed that could have double as a pro, too.
Forget it; I had to start on the pros. Other than his looks, he was intelligent and creative. While he may not have always known how hurtful some of the things he said were, he could make me happy and made training fun to the point where I wanted to work hard. Although he was closed off, he answered my questions so that I knew what I was born into: a version of World War III. Even now, I thought as I looked at him, he knows when to step in to fix a situation because, at the end of it all, he knows what he’s doing. He was a decent cook, but fun to teach. Overall, being around Daris made me happy. It made me happy before my mom was gone and I was grateful for the childhood he granted me at times to remind myself that it was okay to have fun every so often, that everything wasn’t awful. I looked at the sleeping man beside me and thought: Was Daris’s childhood like mine, filled with responsibility and independence? Is that why he’s the way he is?
Marked by Time (The Mark Series Book 1) Page 19