Dancing 101 (Lani)

[Lani Hunter]

If Lani knew what kind of hold she thought he had on his power he would probably have laughed. His power really had a mind of its own and didn’t like to listen to him. Or rather it did he just couldn’t get his thoughts to match what he wanted to do. He was just glad that it seemed like his angry depressed phase had faded and he could finally work on his power without getting pissed. Or rather not too much so. He was starting to find the good in life here. He could still do his job no matter how annoying Hammel security was. There really wasn’t a lot they could do to him. So far he had been able to keep them from knowing what he was really up to. He had actually showed up for a few training sessions this week. It had been random and his trainer had given him an earful but then it was the same old stuff and he was bored with it. He just wanted to be able to do everything, he thought he was ready. They wanted him to be able to master the basics but Lani was just too impatient.

He glanced at Adrianna wondering what her past relationships were like. He was extremely curious, mostly about what his competition was. Also he wanted to know which topics were essentially off limits. But he couldn’t just ask her about them, that would be terribly rude. He glanced at her and his brows creased together. “Are you alright?” He asked, she seemed a little jumpy. He was wondering if he just wasn’t giving her enough attention, he had been a while since he had last seen her. He still liked his freedom a lot but he was always eager to text her or get a text from her. Occasionally Lani had called her and spent half the night talking about nothing more deep than how annoying classes were. He was keeping a very tight lip on his job, especially since Adrianna was a possible target. He really didn’t want her going out alone.

Something in Lani made him think that she was over thinking things to the max. If she voiced her questions or even comments on her fears be they through jokes or serious conversation he would have been able to squash those fears. But she didn’t and so Lani, being clueless really had no idea beyond the fact that she seemed a little out of sorts. He was starting to wonder if dancing was a bad idea, perhaps he was invading the only time she had to think to herself. Oh well, he certainly liked the time he spent with her. As much as she made him forget his problems he was completely unaware that he was just stoking the fire under her. Maybe he should make it more obvious that he was did indeed like her. It was a strange attraction he had never felt before and he certainly wasn’t sure where to go from here. Honestly his lack of relationship experience put him at a disadvantage and he wasn’t sure when he should be assertive and when he should let her make the decisions.

Her soft lips against his warmed his heart and a strange sensation passed through him. He couldn’t really place the feeling, it wasn’t something that was familiar. He circled the feeling in his mind poking and prodding it for answers. The answer, however alluded him and so he let it drop. He had to be honest, his little run in with Odion hadn’t been the only thing keeping him up at night. Adiranna had given him so much to think about. All these strange new feelings and emotions, his power was not taking it well. Seriously, the last thing the world needed was an emotionally unstable telekinetic with powers linked to his emotions. He had so much to learn about her but he had a strange feeling that he knew her well already. Even if this whole thing didn’t work out he was pretty sure he just wouldn’t let her avoid him. He liked her too much, even if as a friend he enjoyed her company. He could joke and feel like there was nothing in the world to burden him.

Lani couldn’t honestly fathom a life that was completely void of lies. He lived on lies, breathed them and took them in. Nothing was ever surface deep. Everything had alternative meaning and there was always an ulterior motive. It was strange, with Adrianna it didn’t seem like that. He had lied to her already but her innocence gave her away and he found himself trusting her at her word. Something he hardly did with anyone. He felt like he could read her like a book at some moments and at others he couldn’t even figure out what direction her thoughts were about to leap in. He supposed part of that was the difference between the female mind and a male mind. His thoughts jumped but generally just around the same subject. She laughed and he was glad to hear the sound. It was like bells in his ears, and he realized he had missed it. He blinked at her and shrugged innocently his eyes darting this way and that like someone caught red handed. He grinned at her and gave her a wink. “I know, I know, I should only use my powers for good.” He chuckled at his own joke hoping that would help her relax.

He looked over at her and shook his head a little. “So an approximate half-step,” he said to himself and ducked his head. “I guess you could say that over thinking is kind of what I do.” He grinned. That among other things. Worrying was another one. He just did it. He couldn’t help it. It took Lani a little while to realize how comical he must be looking as he leap dramatically from side to side. He occasionally overstepped himself and nearly tripped himself up. That coupled with the fiercely determined look he knew he was getting, must be rather entertaining. He couldn’t keep himself from laughing as he held her in his arms. He could always play it off as an excuse to get his arms around her. He leaned over resting his forehead against hers and looking into her eyes. “Stop thinking, got it, this is a lot harder than I thought.” He paused and grinned a little, “Close my eyes, Adrianna we’re bound to have many more collisions if I do that.” He smiled at her and straightened shaking out his shoulders and closed his eyes. “Alright, thinking of something different. How about how beautiful you're eyes are, yeah I can think about that,” he took a peek at her to see her reaction before grinning and closing his eyes again. “Ok just tell me if we’re starting left or right.”

[Adrianna Carstyn]

Maybe it was the fact that she couldn’t do telekinesis to save her life that she thought he had such good control. She’d learned that telekinesis was not one of her skills when it came to mimicking when they’d first met. After their first race, she’d asked him to show her how to use the power. The first object had been small and she still couldn’t manage to get it straight. Sure, it was her first time, but usually she was good at mimicking. Powers that were more based off of the body than the mind seemed to come more naturally to her. Telepathy wasn’t something that she got used to, neither was empathy, but she could do well with cryokinesis and pyrokinesis. Elemental powers were the most fun in her opinion, only because she was able to do them without injuring herself in the process.

Adrian looked up when he asked her if she was alright and she frowned. How could she tell him that she wasn’t alright without getting into details? She very well couldn’t lie to him. He’d see right through her and then she’d end up telling him what was wrong regardless. But how did she tell him that she was afraid he was going to leave her behind without so much as a glance behind? She bit down on her lower lip hard and looked down, “I’m just thinking. I tend to do that a lot.” She laughed once in an effort to make it as nonchalant as possible. She couldn’t tell him that she was thinking about her abandonment problems because she was still afraid of his reaction.

Adri definitely couldn’t tell him about her ex’s. That would be a whole conversation of awkward. Then again, maybe it would help her. Maybe he could help her get past the fear of being hurt again. But did he want to know? Would he care? Of course, it was Lani after all. She looked up at him shyly and began to think of a way to start. “I don’t really know how to go about this, but…I was thinking about this thing that’s been happening to me a lot lately and it’s just…it’s starting to get to me. I just don’t know how to get past it, y’know?” She sighed, “Of course you don’t know because you don’t even know what I’m talking about.” With a groan she rested her forehead against his chest and squeezed her eyes shut, unable to find the words to continue.

The way his lips felt against hers distracted her fairly easily. It was sweet and soft, much nicer than forceful and heated. She liked the feeling it sent through her, the want for him to hold her closer, but it also made her scared. It was different than any other guy, but she didn’t know if that was good or bad. She’d spent nights awake talking to him about the simplest things and when she wasn’t on the phone with him, she was thinking about him. Her sketchpad was filled with pictures of him, different features, different ways. Some abstract, some more realistic. She just couldn’t get him out of her mind. Adrian knew that there was no way she’d be able to up and forget about him if it didn’t work out. She’d try to keep her distance, but she knew it wouldn’t work. She was already so drawn to him.

Adrian’s honesty tended to get her in trouble at times. Not just because she’d say something that was on her mind, but because it fed into her naivety. Because she was so honest, she wanted to believe that everyone else was just as honest as her. She knew it wasn’t the case, but she couldn’t help but hope that she wouldn’t be lied to. Part of her wondered if Lani would lie to her. She was just oblivious enough to believe that he wouldn’t. He had no reason to. Right? It was unlikely, but she didn’t care. She trusted Lani enough, even if she hadn’t told him the darkest secret she had. It was only a matter of time before she did. She laughed again, more genuinely this time and shook her head with a smile, “Tsk tsk Mr. Hunter.”

Adrianna gave him a sympathetic smile and laughed softly, “It takes some work not thinking. I used to be the same way, trust me. Perfection isn’t the key to hip/hop, it comes more with ballroom or lyrical dances. Hip/hop needs attitude I guess you could say. Put a little spunk into it, y’know?” She attempted to explain the way that her teacher had taught her. Luckily for the teacher, Adrian was full of spunk and attitude. Lani didn’t appear to have much of an attitude. He looked pretty funny trying to dance, but it was completely adorable and only made her smile wider. When he held her in his arms she hugged him close, enjoying the feeling…even if it had been an accident. His forehead pressed against her and she met his eyes. His gorgeous blue eyes that made her literally weak at the knees. “It’ll get easier, I promise.” She said quietly giving him a peck on the lips, “I’ve got plenty of faith in you to believe that you won’t collide with me. Just relax and don’t worry.” His eyes closed and she kept her hands on both sides of his face, wishing she had a power to keep him from over thinking. His words made her blush and smile wide and she stuck her tongue out at him when he peeked. “Okay, we’re starting with your right, so listen and feel the music. I’ll help as much as I can, one thing to remember, it’s not so much a leap or a hop, it’s just a step with some sas added in,” Adri laughed quietly and moved her hands down to the tops of his shoulders. “Ready? 5, 6, 7, 8 and step right, together. Step left, together. Good.”

[Lani Hunter]

He had been thinking for quite a while about why Adrianna might have problems with telekinesis. His power was so explosive and so crazy it was hard to imagine a time when telekinesis might be difficult not because he was trying to get it to not grab stuff but to get it to grab stuff. That would be a rather strange flip in realities. When Adrianna had tried to lift her bag it had been hard and she had to concentrate on keeping it steady. Whereas Lani on the other hand had to deal with the possibility of his power grabbing curtains when he wasn’t even thinking about. It was like that terrifying moment when his power had come out in an explosion of terror and rage. He was sure he could move cars but if he could do so in a controlled way was really the biggest question.

Lani knew something was wrong at the moment she looked down at her feet. He only hoped she would tell him. He didn’t want her to lie to him, or to hide her problem from him. It was a strange thing, he didn’t want to pressure her into telling him, he wanted her to choose to tell him, but at the same time he wanted to help her through whatever it was that was hurting her. He wanted to make her problems go away like she made his go away. Even if they were only temporarily gone. His brows came together in concern as she said she was just thinking. If that was how she wanted it… She laughed a little and Lani only gave a halfhearted smile. “I think we’ve both been doing a lot of that,” he said softly and tried to encourage her to trust him. How ironic, Lani was trying to let her know that she could trust him but he hadn’t decided if he trusted her completely yet.

Lani locked onto her eyes as she tried to start. Well if it wasn’t a lot of information it was at least a start. He cocked his head at her and his eyes softened. He drew her into his arms as she started to speak, this was obviously something that was tearing her apart. He wrapped his arms around her and petted her head trying to sooth her troubled heart. He kissed the top of her head unable to think of anything to say. He closed his eyed and rubbed her shoulders and hummed the way he did when he held his sister. “You can talk to me,” Lani said gently and looked down at her his eyes full of worry. He rocked her back and forth ever so slightly taking everything very slow. Poor Adrianna, whatever this was wasn’t easy for her. Lani didn’t smile, he didn’t try to make a joke out of it. He only hoped he could help at least a little, or at least share the burden.

It wasn’t hard to see how someone could be completely caught under Adrianna’s spell. She was alluring and beautiful and her thoughts were interesting. He remembered the first time they had met. Her mind had surprised him, she didn’t think about thing the way normal people did. She wasn’t shallow or conceded. She had revealed to him so much in their first date at the club, but Lani had hardly revealed anything. He was too afraid of that look she would give him. Sure he could tell her about trivial things but half of his life would still be a secret to her. As long as she didn’t know he was a thief he could never fully open up to her. That hurt a little bit, but he really couldn’t say that the alternative was any better. The alternative being she knew the kind of danger he was willing putting her in, the lies he had told. Not to mention the obviously illegal activity. He grinned at her as she laughed. He ducked his head and gave an innocent look at her scold.

Lani smiled, glad that Adrianna was feeling better at the moment. Dancing really seemed to be her niche. He nodded at her advice and mentally went over his thoughts and told them to leave him alone for the time being. “Spunk? I think I can do attitude,” he said with a grin. He had plenty of that to go around. At least around people who deserved to get his attitude. People like Martin and security got that icy aloof attitude. He only hoped he wasn’t making a complete fool out of himself right now. Maybe dancing really wasn’t something he was meant to do well. Well everyone needed something that would bring about humility and Lani thinks he might have found just that. She promised him it got easier and kissed him and he couldn’t help but smile. “If you say so.” He laughed a little, “That’s a lot of faith. Alright relaxing.” He shook his shoulders again and grinned at her. She didn’t know that Lani worried all the time, at least not yet. It was just what he did, so telling him not to worry was like telling the leaning tower to stand up straight. Lani laughed when she stuck her tongue out at him and shook his head. He nodded and closed his eyes. He smiled as he felt her hands on his shoulders. “Step with sass,” he grinned at the thought and nodded indicating he was ready. He stepped with her and went right then left when she said to. It was strange to do with without seeing where his feet were going.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

Adrian couldn’t even figure out why she sucked so bad at mental powers. Maybe it was because she was mentally unstable? That was a very good possibility. Thinking always managed to get in the way of everything else. Dancing, relationships, mimicking. Thinking just sucked in general sometimes. It didn’t help that she rarely worked with mental powers. A lot of the time she preferred the physical powers because it didn’t involve much effort. Then again, it was best if she didn’t practice mimicking physical powers when she was angry or upset because that did affect her ability. She’d made it clear to the trainer that emotions didn’t help her control any type of power.

As she stared down at her feet she tried to think of a way to tell him what was wrong without mentioning the abandonment problems she had. Was it even possible? Well he wanted to know what was making her upset and unfortunately that was it. She wanted so badly to tell him the truth about her past and the reason that she never spoke of a father. Adri wanted him to know her inside and out, but that fear of getting hurt was just as strong as the need for someone to understand her. She no longer had anyone who understood her completely as Craven had. So would she be able to trust Lani with her deepest darkest secret? She hoped so. His encouragement helped a bit, but she still had a difficult time with it.

She couldn’t keep her eyes on his without wanting to cry. He was so worried and she didn’t want him to be. His arms wrapped around her and she hugged him tight trying to gain strength from that. It was harder to tell him about her problems than it had been with Talen and Craven both, but she couldn’t figure out why. It was because she didn’t want to say anything that would make Lani feel as if he had to stick around just for that reason. She looked up at him and sighed as her cheek pressed against his chest. “It’s just…well my best friend got transferred to a different school and it’s making me think of all the other people in my life that have left me….” Adrianna paused and bit her lip as she readied herself for the truth. “You should know something…at least so you can know what you’re getting yourself into. I’ve got a huge abandonment problem. It started when I was young. The reason I don’t talk about my dad as much as my mom is because I’ve never met my real dad. The dad I thought was real ended up marrying my mom after she graduated high school. Apparently the other guy couldn’t handle it.” She frowned and continued quietly, unable to hold back the string of information that had began as soon as she began talking. “Once my mother got diagnosed with cancer, that guy left and she told me he wasn’t my real dad. And it just keeps happening. First with them, then with the guys I end up having a thing for.” Tears formed in her eyes and she buried her face into his chest, “I’m just so scared that you’re going to leave me bleeding like the rest of them did.”

Her eyes traveled up to his, “And that’s not even all that I was thinking about…I mean it just led into the next thing. My luck with guys…I made it out like I was so experienced, but I’m not. Every guy I’ve been with has broken my heart within a month of being together. I just fall so hard and so fast that it crushes me. And now here I am telling you about how screwed up I am and I know I shouldn’t be, but I just don’t have anybody else to go to anymore.” Sobs racked through her chest and she tried with shaky fingers to wipe the tears away and gain a composure that was barely there to begin with. Her chest began to ache as if her heart was breaking again as she continued talking more and more. It was just so horrible and she hated that she was ruining their time together because of it.

The dancing calmed her slightly, but she was still upset about all she’d spoken about. It was a harsh reality that she often hid from behind her wall of honesty. She smiled when he agreed to the attitude part. It was bound to be interesting. She hoped he’d get the hang of it because if he didn’t she got the feeling that she’d failed him and that was not acceptable. She was really looking forward to going to the club with him again after the lesson. Adrian watched him shake out his nerves and he began to focus again. He stepped with her and there was no collision. Her smile brightened and she wrapped her arms around his neck, stepping closer as they continued the ‘sassy step’ as her teacher had called it. Once he got the flow of the music he’d be able to dance a lot easier. His hips were rigid though and she didn’t know how to fix it without physically moving his hips for him. An idea popped into her head and she smiled, “Open your eyes now that you’ve got it. Okay, this next step will help you a lot when it comes to dancing with a girl. Especially me because this happens to be my favorite thing to do on the dance floor.” She winked at him and kept her arms around his neck, “Place your hands on my hips now and follow with yours. When I move you move and try to make it fluid and smooth instead of rigid okay? Now, left, right. Smooth it out and you’re dancing up close and personal.” She smiled as her hips moved close to his. It was one way to keep her mind off of the previous thoughts.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani knew as well as anyone else that mental powers were some of the hardest because people can’t always control their thoughts. Adrianna shouldn’t be so hard on herself. Mental powers had a little extra something involved, most of the time they took a little piece of the person and amplified it. Maybe because Lani was dreaming of freedom and an unlimited existence telekinesis had come about. Perhaps it was random, but then there was also genetic stuff that he couldn’t understand. Powers occasionally fit personalities but not always. Some people were gentle and kindhearted and they had powers that made them hurt people. However, as sad as it was powers changed people. Not all people could stay completely themselves once their power manifested, already Lani had changed so much and he wasn’t sure if it was for the better.

If Lani knew what he was asking of Adrianna he would never have asked. But he wanted so desperately to make it better. Protecting people was what Lani did, what Lani needed to do. If stealing was the way he could do that he would. In a way he was a thief in many more ways than he knew. He had stolen Adrianna’s heart and now he was trying to steal her problems away from her. Lani would never call himself a Robin Hood, but he certainly didn’t see himself as the worst of people. If he believed in a God he would understand that good intentions didn’t make what he did alright. They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Lani had made so many bad decisions in his past he figured why not keep jumping, there was no going back. He knew somehow that he was never going to stop stealing, he was too good at it and honestly he loved to do it.

He held her close hoping to make her feel secure in his arms. As she spoke he rubbed her should and listened with a heavy heart. Yeah he had made a major screw up. He should have lied, it was just like Odion had said, she was afraid of him leaving. He was so angry with the ginger for being right. He looked down at her trying to look supportive though he had to admit that he had had no idea what he was getting himself into. “Adrianna,” he looked into her eyes and they pleaded with her to understand, “You can’t blame yourself for that. Those people who left, they weren’t fathers. They were people, but they never treated you as a daughter if they just left. You owe them nothing, and they don’t deserve to make you feel like this.” He was speaking softly but there was an underlying anger in his voice. Not at Adrianna, never. But at those responsible. Because of this she was hurting so badly. Her heart was so soft Lani felt as if it were wet clay in his hand, so easy to kneed and mold and yet when he made something worth baking he made it so fragile that the faintest touch could make it crumble in his hands. Then she spoke about the men she had dated and Lani felt an immense surge of guilt. He held her even more tightly and wrapped his body around hers and squeezed his eyes shut as she hid her face in his chest. “Oh, Adrianna,” he hesitated unsure if he should make a promise or not. She still only knew half of him, how could this ever be real, but what he felt in his heart wasn’t fake was it? The want and desire to be able to confide in her everything. But he had to protect her, if even from his secrets. “Adrianna, I don’t ever want to leave you bleeding.”

Then she admitted to falling fast and falling hard. He looked into her eyes trying to empathize with something he couldn’t relate to. Really Odion and Adrianna should talk, they would be so much better at consoling each other. Lani was half inclined to suggest that if he trusted that Odion and Adrianna could get along. Lani smiled a little trying to get her back into good spirits. It failed, she started to sob. Lani’s distress level peaked at this and he rubbed her shoulders and reached out wiping her tears. “Shh, shh,” he soothed, “No, no, I’m glad you told me.” He bent a little so that he could be at her eye level. He took her face in his hands like she had a few moments before and wiped the tears away from her cheeks. “I’m glad you told me, because now I can help you. And I suppose I should tell you that you’re not the only one screwed up,” he admitted. Hunter, where are you going with this? his mind hissed. “You see you fall hard and fast, but I… I have a hard time trusting people,” he said carefully avoiding the subject of stealing. “So if you can help me trust you, I can help you cushion your fall.” He smiled a little hoping to get her back to her smiling self. He honestly just couldn’t stand her crying, it was the most awful thing he had ever encountered and he would have hated for it to be his fault she was crying.

The time of heavy talk was oven when they both went back to the subject of dancing and frankly as relieved as Lani was to know what was bothering her he would have to find a solution. Not that he even realized that he felt obligated to help her, but he would rather think of it as he just wanted to make her stop hurting. He followed the rhythm feeling her hands on his shoulders and loving the feeling he got when he trusted her. Granted anyone else he would never had closed his eyes, he didn’t trust people not to lead him to the edge and send him toppling off. He knew there would be no easy fix to this problem Adrianna had just enlightened him to, but if they could help each other together, perhaps there was hope that he could tell her about his whole self. Once she came close to him and he could feel her around him he could relax more. He snapped his eyes open when she told him to and he wondered for a moment why he hadn’t protested. Anyone else and he would have demanded why they wanted to control everything he did. He blushed as she winked and grinned a little. “Alright,” he followed her directions and put his hands on her hips his whole body tingling. He tried to do as she said and move smoothly but once he added his hips there was an awkward third beat in his two part dance. It was turning into an uneven step, hip, back, hip, hip, step, back, hip. Oh dear, Lani was all over the place! He looked into her eyes and fought the urge to laugh because at the moment his mind was not on dancing.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

Adrianna had learned a lot about all the different sorts of powers in classes, but rarely did she learn about her own power. She figured that the only things she needed to know were things like which powers do what and how they all worked. Her own power wasn’t a complicated thing to learn. The worst parts were figuring out the different essences of powers and then growing accustomed to the twinge that made the power unique to the specific person that had that power. It was a lot to take in, but that was the most she’d learned about her power specifically. Mental powers felt different than physical powers just as elemental powers felt different from appearance changing powers, there were so many variations to consider with mimicry.

Being the helpless pathetic girl seemed to be Adrian’s thing lately. It was weighing down on her, but she couldn’t figure out to get that strength back up that she’d had before Talen messed with her emotions. As hard as she tried, she never could find the strength inside herself to just smile and keep all of her problems inside. She didn’t want to tell Lani that she was damaged beyond repair, but it came out anyway. Nothing she did could stop it now. But she simply had to confide in Lani and trust that he wouldn’t break her like everyone else had. He seemed to understand her from the beginning, maybe it would be okay.

The closer he held her, the safer she felt. Despite what she was afraid of, she did believe that Lani wouldn’t hurt her the way that the others had. Even if things didn’t work out for them, he seemed to care enough that he’d want to stay friends. To her, a friend was better than nothing at this point. Adrianna knew she was practically an open book that everyone knew the story of. She was the girl that got hurt too easily, but never learned from her mistake. Well, she’d make damn sure that if the mistake was made again, she would learn from it this time. Lani may not have seemed like he was capable of hurting her, but neither had the others and still they managed to crush her. She bit her lip when he said her name and expected him to bolt right then and there, just as she’d been waiting for him to do every other time. When he continued, she couldn’t help but be surprised that he understood. “I know…but I can’t help think of them that way. After hearing the way my mother talked about my biological father, I just wish I would have had the chance to meet him and show him that I was worth the responsibility.” She heard the hint of anger behind the softness, but she knew it wasn’t aimed at her.

Once she continued talking about the rest of the men that had abandoned her, she kept waiting for him to push her away and say something harsh before leaving. But he still hadn’t. In fact, his hold on her tightened and seemed to take a more protective edge to it. He was taking it all a lot better than she’d expected and she was happy that she’d finally told him even if it was bringing the mood down. Adri knew he’d be able to get her smiling afterwards. She curled into him and waited to hear what he’d say about it. He’d entertained the thought of her using men, but now he would see that it was the complete opposite. She hoped that after this, if he had any secrets of his own, he’d trust her enough to tell her. His words made her relax slightly and the tension lessened in her shoulders.

As soon as the flood gates opened she instantly felt weak and pitiful. How could he possibly see her as a strong woman who can take care of herself when she’s bawling right in front of him? Her eyes fluttered when he wiped her tears away and she looked up at him with a pleading look, she just wanted someone to understand. She needed someone to open up to so that she wouldn’t feel so weak all the time. Her eyes slid shut when his hands cupped her face and they opened to find him at eye level. His bright blue eyes fixated on hers and she just nodded mutely as he spoke. His admittance made her tilt her head to the side. She bit her lip and her hands reached up to cover his. She smiled faintly when he suggested that they help each other. Her arms slid up around his shoulders and she hugged him tight for a moment, “Even if this whole thing doesn’t work out the way I’m sort of wanting it…we’ll still be friends right?” Adrian pulled back and looked at him curiously.

After she wiped her tears away and attempted to fix her smudged make up, she focused more on the dancing. In all honesty, Adrianna was surprised he had trusted her with dancing. Yes, she was a good dancer and all, but with dancing you had to trust your partner enough to know that they wouldn’t let you mess up. She had danced with many partners and a few of them unfortunately had let her fall on her butt several times, but she still trusted them to fix it. Just as she trusted that Lani wouldn’t fall on his own taking her down with him again. As his hands rested on her hips, she blushed and shook her head trying to focus. Focus on dancing…not on his hands. Easier said than done. Adrian tried not to laugh when she felt the more awkward movements coming from him. If only she knew how to explain the hip movements properly. The way her teacher had taught her was not exactly the most appropriate thing, but it had helped a lot of the guys out. The thought made her burst into giggles and blush brighter red. She snorted and covered her nose and mouth completely embarrassed.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani was sure that if he had Adrianna’s power he would just be driven right up the wall. He would rather have the one and work on it. Granted sometimes he felt like he had a toddler living in his head. His power just had to grab everything! Though he had to admit, he was a little jealous because Adrianna would have such an easier time blending in with normal people. He was just too crazy and his power too unruly. People here loved to tell him how much of a danger he was to himself and those around him. He didn’t think that they realized that he knew that. That and he didn’t think they realized that his power was slightly parasitic and would just pop up to protect him if he didn’t hold it back. It was nice sometimes but then again if he was keeping a secret and things started floating around when he got distracted this could be a huge problem.

That was the other problem; if he wasn’t consciously trying to keep his power from doing things it was doing things. Perhaps that was why Lani always seemed to be unfocused and sometimes a little spacey. Really for someone with a mental power Lani was no closer to understanding his own mind. It was only worse that it linked to his emotions. He was just glad that things like rage and sorrow weren’t often felt by him. Odion could get him feeling rage certainly, and Lani hadn’t even realized he was using his power that night until the headache came afterward. It really seemed like the redhead didn’t understand that Lani could send him flying without even meaning to. Adrianna was certainly easier to be around. He enjoyed how soothed she made him feel and how he could relax and not worry about his problems. It made it easy to keep his power in check and even though his emotions were in a million different directions at least one emotion didn’t over power the rest.

Lani shook his head at Adrianna . He had been so wrong. This poor girl, she had just had life spit on her one time after another. Now Lani was worried more so about other people hurting her, not himself. The look his handler had given her in the club gave Lani the chills and not in a good way. He was putting her in danger. All because he was selfish. He wanted to do anything to let her know that he would protect her, be her shield and her sword. He would try his hardest not to let anything happen to her. But the dread that something was building in the air was something he couldn’t get away from. In a few days he was going to go to Boston and finally voice his desires to his boss. It had to be done. It wasn’t like he wanted to just have his debt dropped but he wanted his boss to give him a chance to make that one last big job that would wipe it out. He smiled softly at her and rubbed her arms. He shrugged. “Some guys do stupid things and don’t know how to deal with the consequences. Think of it as his loss. He didn’t get to see what a wonderful young woman you are. How intelligent and talented you are.” It wasn’t fair that Adrianna was feeling like this. It really wasn’t. How could she have control over anything that happened before she was even born? His brows came together and nodded his head slowly. “It isn’t biological systems that make a father,” he told her levelly.

Perhaps it was because Lani didn’t like people to be just tossed aside that made him stay, but more strongly it was the draw to help her. To get her back to her happy self. He was glad she had told him. He wasn’t sure how he was going to fix it though, it was still a little too much information. He was a little struck by it but he was not going to show that. She didn’t need to see him being confused now, she needed him to be strong for her. So he was, just like he was for his parents and sister when she got cancer. He was the stable rock in the family. The one everyone came to cry on. He could analyze this later and figure out how to help her but right now he just needed to say what she needed to hear, which luckily for the situation was just what she wanted to hear. “You’re so strong,” he said, “For telling me this.” Oh, Adrianna, he thought sadly, how can’t you see how amazing you are? He rocked her back and forth slightly and hummed low in his throat trying to sooth her troubles.

As much as her tears distressed him, that hardly made him think she was weak. Hell, she had slapped a guy in the face at the club. He would never think she was weak. Maybe she just needed someone to lean on but soon enough this little seedling will stretch to the sky and will no longer need that pole to lean on. When that day comes, people will come from all around to bask in her shade. He knew his admission wasn’t anywhere as critical as hers but he needed to give her something to make her know that she wasn’t the only one. Her soft hands on his gave him comfort that he was getting through to her. It wasn’t a little thing he had given her, not a great secret, most people could tell that about him after a few times hanging out together, but it wasn’t little either. He was able to get close to people but then his heart was shielded from everyone else. He smiled a little relieved that she hugged him. He held her close to him and then looked down into her eyes as she drew away. His eyes grew hard with determination and sureness. “Absolutely,” he answered and leaned forward to kiss her forehead.

The mood passed and for that Lani was grateful. Something about this bothered him more than usual. He loved being with Adrianna because she made his problems vanish. But then her problems didn’t, so was he not doing the same for her? Then, maybe it was going to end up being like everyone else. He was the best friend, the confidant. Always trying to shelter her and solve her problems. He smiled a little, he actually didn’t mind. It kept him from thinking about his own problem. Perhaps that was where Lani erred the most. He was so busy solving other people’s problems that he ignored his own and one day they were going to come crashing down on him. Lani’s thoughts got interrupted as she started to giggle. He ogled at her for a few moments like she had sprouted another head. He huffed a little and gave her a mock upset face. “I’m trying,” he insisted with a little whine in his voice, sure that he was laughing at him.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

Maybe it was partially her power’s fault that she was kinda sorta insane? Yeah, let’s go with that reason instead of the fact that her mother’s dying and everyone else keeps leaving her. Right. Anyway, her power did tend to add to her mood swings as the trainer had told her before. It was used to having so many things happening at once that it caused her to overload sometimes. It didn’t happen often, but it happened more than she would have liked. No one besides the others, who had powers similar to hers, understood just how hard it was having mimicry. Take all the stress of one power and multiply it by however many powers there were out there…that was pretty close to the stress her power had on her, but it didn’t show. In fact, her power rarely stressed her out unless she was surrounded by too many people.

Luckily, she’d learned how to turn off the affects of the different powers recently so that she didn’t catch herself reading people’s minds or lifting them up or floating. The closest power to her was the power that she tended to mimic if she was in a crowded area. For instance, if she was at a dance full of metas and was as close to Lani as she was now, telekinesis was a given. However if she’d been with Craven, she’d be able to communicate with crows or Robbie, the weather. It went on and on and on. Whirlwind of powers, but one always pushed through the rest. Proximity was the key.

Adrianna didn’t understand why her problems bubbled up to the surface whenever she was close to someone. It wasn’t even close as in she knew them well it was the proximity thing. Lani was the closest thing to her and here she was spilling her problems to a boy she barely knew. Yes, they’d shared simple things in their phone conversations and he’d told her about Caroline, but there was always something more. He wouldn’t have told her his darkest secret the first or second day that they’d talked. He wasn’t like her. Here she was, only a few weeks into a relationship that she couldn’t even understand, and she had already told him all of the darkest parts of her she had. She’d shared more with him than she had with any other guy, but somehow she didn’t regret it. His smile relaxed her and she kept her eyes focused on him. The way he spoke so straightforward to her benefited him because it got through to her more than skipping around her feelings did. He wasn’t even being mean or cruel about it, his way with words was amazing even if he didn’t realize it. She smiled slightly, “His loss huh? Well I guess he did sort of miss out.” Lani was right. She didn’t have a father, she had a man who’d helped create her, but that was all he had ever been to her.

The weight that had been lifted from her shoulders was tremendous, but it wasn’t all gone. She couldn’t just let go of everything that had happened to her, at least not at the moment. It was going to take her some time to get over things, but she knew she could with a little help. Whether it be Lani or her mother, she felt like she might be able to conquer her fears of being left behind. Coming clean about all of her pent up feelings and fears had helped more than Lani could know and she was glad she’d gone to him. He made her feel better about herself, whereas before she felt that everything was her fault. “How can I be strong when I’m crying? It doesn’t work like that.” She frowned slightly, but the haunted desperation in her eyes lessened. She no longer felt desperate for understanding because Lani did understand.

Tears showed weakness…wasn’t that why guys never cried? Adrian had grown up thinking that if she cried in front of someone they’d only see a frail little girl who couldn’t stick up for herself. Despite what Amelia told Adrian, she’d learned it from her mother. Amelia never cried. Never showed weakness. She only cried in private when she’d pull out old photographs from her past. Amelia never caught on that Adrian would sit outside her mother’s bedroom and listen to her cry. Adrianna had taken from that, that crying put her at a disadvantage because she wasn’t as tough as everyone thought she was if she cried. She relaxed when he hugged her back and her lips brushed against his neck lightly. When she looked up at him she saw a firm determination in his eyes and his tone made it much clearer. His lips touched her forehead and she hugged him again, her fingers curling into his thick hair. She pressed her forehead against his and leaned in to kiss him. “As much as I want to stay friends, I do still want more than that now…I mean only if you still want it.”

Slowly, but surely, Adrian’s mood brightened. The relief of having the darkness uncovered in her mind was liberating. She felt better with him now that he knew everything, even if she didn’t know everything about him. Adri was happy that she could trust him already, though she was still on the cautious side. The dancing helped her feel close to him despite how new he was to dancing. When he misinterpreted what she was laughing at she burst into giggles again. “I know you are and you’re doing fabulous! I wasn’t laughing at that I promise!” She pecked his cheek and gave him her serious face that hopefully would show him that she wasn’t lying. She just hoped he wouldn’t ask what she was giggling about….

[Lani Hunter]

It was fair that only a mimicker would know what it was like to be a mimicker, just like only a shapeshifter really knew what it was like to shapeshift and a telekinetic could sympathize with another telekinetic. Mimickers could use the power but they didn’t have to live with those kinds of powers day in and day out. Perhaps that was his jealousy talking. Certainly it would be frustrating to have a different power every day. But Lani would much rather have a power that was easy to hide. Oh well, thinking about powers generally gave him a headache, he would much rather just have his telekinesis and quit whining about how life had dealt him a hard deal. That was wrong. He had been so lucky. With everything, even when he didn’t want to be lucky. He was lucky he wasn’t the one to get cancer, he was lucky he got telekinesis, he was lucky he was powerful. Hell, he was lucky to be alive and free right now to worry about these problems!

He wondered a little if Adrianna’s power was consistent. Like, did she only have a power for a little while or was it that once she had a power she had it forever? He really hoped that if his telekinesis bled over to her that it didn’t cause her any distress. One thing he was grateful for was that it seemed like when it went to her it was a lot less powerful than when he had it. It certainly wouldn’t do to have two crazy uncontrolled telekinetics. He did preen a little bit that she thought he was good at telekinesis. He certainly didn’t think so but it gave him a little bit a pride. If Adrianna wasn’t careful she was going to make it so Lani couldn’t walk through doors.

Lani was just as content to hold her until she felt better but since she had shared her problems with him he was relieved and a little concerned. She was worried he was going to leave. Well hadn’t that been his plan? At least eventually. Maybe there would be a day when he could open up to her, but unfortunately there was always an excuse. It was probably good that Lani was blunt in situations like this. He was bad at speaking eloquently and especially in situations like this he felt like dancing around the issue was worse than actually telling it like it is. So what if that put some people off, they had opened up and he was going to give his opinion. Though thankfully Lani had the foresight to filter himself and lie if he needed to. He smiled warmly at her and squeezed her shoulders. “Right.” He agreed. This person who had fathered her might as well be nothing but a seed. He had never acted like a father, never even seen her face. Lani was sure if this mystery man had ever seen Adrianna things would have turned out very differently.

Lani smiled knowingly at her and shook his head at her. “You’re strong because you were courageous enough to tell me. That takes someone strong.” He rubbed her shoulders and tried to get her to understand. “It doesn’t always work like that.” He tapped his chin wondering how he should explain this to her. It wasn’t simple. “If someone you loved came up to you and told you that they had something that was burdening them for so long it was killing them you’d encourage them to tell you. Now say that friend broke down crying and told you that she… or he… had been raped and that they had never told anyone before now. Now knowing that they had held that in all these years and came clean about it, would you call them weak? Even if they were sobbing on the floor.” It was a rather gruesome scenario but then again it happened. Lani had seen it more than once. Even had someone come clean to him, that was why he had added in the ‘he’ for one of his friends from school had been gay and raped by his boyfriend. It was an awful situation and Lani had never once thought he was weak.

Adrianna was misunderstanding why men never cried. Lani knew because he was one of those people who resisted even the slightest tear. Lani never cried because people needed to know that he was strong. He was someone who could deal with anything. Lani was the shoulder to cry on. Lani didn’t cry on other people. Lani was the rock that was sturdy. He was always the one with a level head and he had to be the one who was strong for his family and for his friends. Sometimes Lani felt like breaking down but he couldn’t let himself. People needed him to be strong and so he was. They needed to believe that Lani could make everything ok. Nothing bothered him, nothing could get him to break. If only they knew how much his sister’s illness had killed him. How many times he wanted to rip out his heart when his mother cried on his shoulder because his father was sobbing just as hard. Her fingers in his hair called his thoughts away from this topic and he smiled down at her. He returned the kiss, deepening and lengthening it. When he reluctantly pulled away he looked into her eyes. “I do. I don’t know how to say this… but Adrianna I really like to be around you…” He was stumbling but he swallowed and forced his way through. “What are we? I mean Od – Martin had asked us if we were dating and I can’t stop thinking about it. Because I don’t know about you but I would really like to call you my girlfriend.”

It was sudden and he even surprised himself. But hey they were both on the same page and had gone out on a few dates, why not? He kind of needed a definition so that he might try to wrap his mind around it. Lani smiled widely as her mood brightened. He couldn’t stay upset and so he just changed and huffed and pouted in mock insult. He laughed a little with her goaded into it because he loved the sound of her laugh so much and he just personally found it hard not to laugh when other people laughed. “Uh-huh,” he said giving her a skeptical look. “I have two left feet don’t I?” He sighed as she kissed his cheek. He crossed his arms and looked down at her in a fake stern way. “Well then what pray tell is so funny? Do I have something on me face?” He rubbed his forehead and looked at his hand as if checking to make sure nothing was there.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

As much as she loved her power, it wasn’t as stable as she would have liked. Stability with her was needed, but her power was always changing. Change and her didn’t go well together, but she’d been dealt a hand where change was a constant part of her life now. She didn’t so much mind having a different power every day, but it would have been nice to settle for one power all the time just so she could get a firm grasp on it instead of constantly guessing on what to expect from this new power she possessed. She knew that she didn’t know all that went into having one power and the stress it caused trying to control that single power, but she did understand the stress of having each power. Whether it be explosive or hidden or appearance changing or concealed behind the normal look of a human, she knew what it was like to be seen differently, even if she could change it by being around someone new.

Her power skipped around a lot, but she had a taste of every power that she’d come into contact with and therefore she’d always have a subconscious handle on it even if she hadn’t used the power in years. The multiple powers didn’t necessarily stay with her all the time, she couldn’t conjure them up on a whim yet, but she’d been told that soon she’d be able to do that with a select few powers that she’d encountered the most and had the most knowledge on. At this point, she didn’t know what those powers would be.

Adrianna subliminally knew that he would leave eventually. She planned to leave Pilot Ridge for a while, too, but the difference was that Adrian wanted to come back once her mother was gone. She wouldn’t have anything left in California once her mother was gone. Mags would still be there, but it wouldn’t be the same. Sure, she’d visit occasionally, but she didn’t want the constant reminder of her mother. So why did it bother her that she knew he would leave? It was because she wasn’t ready for him to go just yet. In time, she’d most likely be able to let him go if he wanted, but now, she didn’t want to lose him. And she didn’t know if he’d come back once he left. Adrianna smiled when he agreed and was instantly comforted by him.

When he explained why she was strong, she almost believed it, but that stubborn side of her wouldn’t let her believe it just yet. He knew she didn’t believe it so he went into more detail and as he spoke, she listened intently. His example was sad, but she got the point. He was yet again, right. Based on the way he spoke, she had a feeling he knew someone who’d experienced what he said. She frowned sadly and shook her head, “That’s completely different. Of course someone who goes through something so traumatic isn’t weak, but what I went through is nothing compared to that. I lost my dad because he didn’t want me compared to being raped…not even equivalent.” She said quietly trying to justify her own beliefs.

The way Adrian thought about men and why they didn’t cry was based on her friend from California. His father, the military man, had straight up told him that crying was weak and that if he ever saw the boy cry…he’d better run. Jake wasn’t weak though, she’d seen him cry before and it only made her see strength. Her thoughts were contradicting themselves, but she wouldn’t admit that. Jake and Lani were a lot alike from what she saw. Both boys tried so hard to be the strong one in the family, but really, Adrian liked seeing that vulnerable side. It made her realize that everyone had a side of vulnerability, even the toughest guys she knew. But she doubted she’d ever see Lani break down. He was the rock for not only his family, but also for her. Would he believe that she could be his rock if he ever needed one? Most likely not. He deepened the kiss and her heart sped up, feeling as though it would pop right out of her chest at any moment. They both broke apart, reluctant, but in need of air and she met his eyes. His stumbled words made her smile and she pressed her forehead against his as he continued. Her eyes widened at the ‘g’ word and she blushed. “G-girlfriend? Are you sure? I mean, of course I’d love to be your girlfriend, I just wanna be sure that you can handle it…” She said softly but with a bright happiness that he’d actually asked her!

Adrianna tried to keep a straight face, but she was just too happy! Of course, she needed to tone it down because he could always take it back, but she didn’t know if she could. She giggled when he gave her that skeptical look and shook her head frantically when he asked if he had two left feet. “No no no, that’s not it I promise!” She blushed when he looked at her and she tried to avoid his eyes, begging that he wouldn’t ask. And then he did. She was about as red as a tomato, but she couldn’t keep from laughing. “Lani you don’t have anything on your face. I was just thinking of what my teacher said to help the guys with their hip movements…that’s all.” She looked away and up and everywhere besides directly at him.

[Lani Hunter]

Lani looked into Adrianna’s warm brown eyes and found himself staring. Thankfully her eyes didn’t unsettle him like Odion’s eyes did. Those eyes could give someone nightmares. But her eyes were so different. So welcoming and understanding he just wanted to look at them all day. They made him feel like he could do no wrong, as farfetched as that sounded. But they made him want to be strong for her. Let her lean on him when she needed it and be there for her. He wanted to protect her from the badness of the world. It was almost like he was looking at his sister, he wanted to protect her, but at the same time it was different. She could be on the same level with him and just like he soothed her fears she could sooth his, but in a much different way.

If Adrianna asked him if he would leave he wasn’t sure what he would say. Probably for the time being he would assure her that he was here to stay. At least until graduation, which was bound to be a year from now. He only hoped that he could keep her safe from the doom that was now resting over her head. Or that he would be able to keep his secret from her for good. If he could get to his boss and get out then there was no reason she had to ever know. Because who knew what would happen if she heard that from anyone else other than him. Even coming from him he would be surprised if she didn’t try to have him committed. Either that or turn him in after scathing him for lying. Perhaps that was why he was silent. Even though they had talked about Anakin he doubted that she would take it very well if she knew that he had been sneaking out nearly every night and robbing people and places.

Adrianna tried to justify her beliefs but Lani was prepared for it. She was not going stump this telekinetic, but mostly because he was too stubborn to let her. She did have a point. That was different, but not in the way she thought. Different scenario same outcome. Lani shook his head right back at her and frowned. “I don’t see how that’s any different. Your father left your mother and now you’re afraid of everyone leaving. Someone took something away from you and left this mark on you that you can’t get away from.” He nodded a little, “It certainly not the same traumatically but that’s not the point. The point is that the fact that you told me makes you strong,” he took her by her shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Do you understand that? You could have kept this secret and let it tear you apart.” Like I am, he thought but quickly brushed the thought away.

He pulled Adrianna back within the safety of his arms. This girl was constantly holding herself back. Her secret, Lani would cherish it and even though she didn’t want him to he would hold that in consideration of whether or not he was going to leave when he turned eighteen. That day was rushing toward him and for the first time he was dreading that day. As much as Lani told her how strong she was he had seen a more fragile side to her. Adrianna broke easily under pressure. He couldn’t add any more of his problems onto hers. It wouldn’t be fair. She had her own things to deal with. Besides he had Odion now to share the burden of his secret and though that wasn’t much it was still better than nothing. Not that he was going to tell him the real truth. No one could know that. They would start trying to fix it for him and they would get hurt. Knowing he was a thief was one thing, knowing that he worked for a mafia like boss was another thing entirely.

But for now those concerns left him as his mind was wholly occupied by her and her kiss. His heart raced and he felt a strange stirring in his gut and a chill ran down the length of his spine. So when they split he knew that this was the right time. Besides he really didn’t want any more confusion here. Maybe if he solidified this he could stop wondering why he had started to trust Odion even a little bit. Maybe he could start to act like a normal person. Normal Lani, confident with everything going for him. He smiled softly at her reaction hoping he hadn’t made the jump too soon. Lani closed his eyes to get away from the brown orbs that had been holding him fixed. Slowly he opened them and looked deeply into her eyes and nodded. “I’m sure, if you’re sure.” Her smile drew a bright smile out of him and his heart raced a little, now that the question was out he couldn’t believe he had just done that.

Lani grinned at her taking her excitement for being an affirmative. He wrapped his arms around her and gave her another kiss. Her giggles pulled out a chuckle from him and he really couldn’t understand why she was blushing so much. She managed to get even more red, if that were possible and Lani couldn’t help but laugh, she was too adorable. She was pretty but now when she was acting like this without any fears or concerns she was beautiful. Lani just wanted to look at her for a while and take in the fact that she was now his girlfriend. Clueless Lani nodded at her explanation and completely unaware of what he was asking for went on to say, “Well if it’s gonna help let’s do it.” He was enthusiastic about this whole dancing thing now, Adrianna might as well have created a monster. At least she hadn’t given him anything too complicated or else he might get easily frustrated and decree that he would never dance again.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

Adrianna could find herself getting lost in Lani’s eyes more often than not. He had the prettiest blue eyes she’d seen, including Luke’s and Craven’s which was saying a lot. He had killer eyelashes and they were just so alluring. She didn’t mind getting caught up in his eyes because it made everything else disappear around her. There was only him. The boy that made her feel invincible and strong, but knew her at her weakest. The boy whose embrace made everything better. She was happy she had him, even if it was just as a friend, he was now the closest person to her heart at Hammel. Ever since Craven had left, she felt an emptiness, but now it was filled.

Adrian knew better than to ask him the question that was always on her mind. Would he leave? She didn’t want to think about it because she knew the day was coming up where he’d be making that decision and she didn’t want to be the only reason he stayed. He’d have an unconscious resentment towards her if she did make him stay and she couldn’t handle that. Of course she didn’t know the daunting secret that hung over both of their heads, but she knew there was something. Intuition was a good thing to have and she happened to have a very good intuition. She knew he was keeping something from her, but she would never bring it up. If he wanted her to know, he would tell her. It wasn’t her place to be nosy. But if she did know what his secret was, she might surprise him. Adrian had told him of her thoughts on Anakin when he found out she had a secret love of Star Wars and he hadn’t understood (or so it appeared) why she felt no anger towards him for doing what he had done. She was just one of those people that always found good in the bad. No matter what.

A battle of stubbornness was what it had turned into, but she was at a loss. She was capable of making good points, but she no longer had any to justify what she thought. And as much as he told her she was strong for telling him, she still felt weak for what she’d been through. For crying about it. She had been so good at hiding her pain before, but ever since she’d gotten hurt by her ‘first love’ she hadn’t been the same. “But what makes me weak is that I flat out bawl about it whenever I even mention my father or any of the past men who’ve left me. That is weakness.” She sighed and looked up at him when he took hold of her shoulders. “I’ve let it tear me apart regardless of keeping it a secret or not. Telling someone about it hasn’t made it hurt any less. It just makes it hurt more when that person leaves without so much as a reason,” She frowned.

His arms wound around her again and she rested her cheek against his chest. She could hear his heartbeat and it made her smile and close her eyes. She enjoyed being close to him like she used to be with her best friend, before all hell broke loose between them. She liked having someone there to keep her sane if only for a few moments of time. But it was different. Lani knew both sides of her whereas most people now only saw the broken mask she tried to put up. Rarely was she the bubbly girl that laughed at everything, but Lani had seen that the first time they met. He’d seen her flat out laughing for no reason. It was the closest she’d been to her old self in a long time and the boy in front of her was the only one who had witnessed it. Talen didn’t even have that over him.

Adrianna was always surprised by the sudden thrill she got when he kissed her. It sent her heart fluttering in her chest and also sent a burning heat through her cheeks. The reaction was often the same even though when they kissed it was rarely anything more than a tender brush of the lips. The desire was there, but Adrian didn’t want to push it and she definitely didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. They broke apart and she watched him. He was obviously serious about what he was saying. He really did want her like she wanted him. When he closed his eyes she tried to gather herself so she didn’t scare him with her enthusiasm. His eyes opened and she couldn’t keep the blindingly bright smile off of her face. “I’m very sure!” She squeaked slightly but covered her mouth in embarrassment, “Sorry, I’ll tone down the enthusiasm a little more.”

Her arms wrapped tight around his neck and she kissed him back happily. When he chuckled she looked away and tried to cool off her burning cheeks. Why was she so embarrassed by this? Oh right, because she was little miss innocent and the fact that she was trying to keep her thoughts from him made her blush even more. She finally got a little composure, and as soon as she got it…it vanished after his statement. Her eyes widened and she burned even more. Her face hid in his chest and she shook her head, “I think you’d reconsider what you just said if you knew what it was….”

[Lani Hunter]

Adrianna was sweet and he was glad for the first time in a long time to have a break from everything bad. He could be happy because she could help him forget. Now all he needed to do was stay with her as much as he could so that he didn’t have to think about anything else. The time moved forward though and he was stuck in this path and he couldn’t hide from his monsters forever. Lani didn’t believe in God, perhaps a higher being but either way he had never been religious. Not after what happened to his sister. But if prayer were the answer Lani would fall to his knees and pour his heart to a deity. That had been too much for Lani to keep a belief. The only proof of goodness he had sometimes were the stars in the sky. Proof that even in the darkness and helplessness there were beams of light cutting through the gloom.

Lani was making this relationship just like all of his others. Completely one sided and he didn’t even realize what he was doing. He hadn’t realized that just by being paranoid and terrified of his secrets he had unconsciously led her to believe that questions were dangerous. Lani didn’t talk about what was bother him, no way. It was depressing to think about leaving. A thief must always be on their toes, ready to run. It was an option he had to keep open for himself but it hurt to think about. He had so much here now, as much as he hated to admit it he had a home here. With Adrianna and Odion and little Shapiro. Hell even Malcom had become more than just another security officer. Despite her confession about Anakin Lani couldn’t bring himself to trust her, or rather he trusted her but he couldn’t bring himself to let her in. It wasn’t fair that he wiggled his way in and held her at arms reach but when he was with her he really didn’t want to talk about his problems.

His eyes softened as he listened to her. She was so beautiful and strong but it hurt to know that she couldn’t see that. He rocked her and realized that for a moment he was thinking of her as his sister and not as his girlfriend. That was strange, because the feelings were certainly different. He had different feelings toward Adrianna. But he still wanted to shelter her and protect her from all the badness in the world. He should have given up on socializing and learned to be lonely, it would have been easier that way. He should have known his heart was on its own but he couldn’t accept it. Lani smiled and he shrugged, “Well, every hero, or rather heroin has to have their weakness. If not for that how would they grow?” He asked raising his brows and grinning trying to get her to start thinking of it in a different light. He shrugged, “You can’t just stop it from hurting, it might never stop hurting, but you can share the burden. Not everyone is going to leave you, Adrianna,” he said firmly.

It did hurt a little when she said the word ‘when’ instead of ‘if’. It was almost like already she was preparing herself for Lani’s inevitable departure. In many ways that was good but it also made Lani wonder why they were doing this at all. If she was so sure he would leave her. This was indeed a strange relationship. Could love exist between an open book and a liar? Could it exist between a girl with an abandonment problem and a boy with a flight risk? Either way this ended, well or ill, things would inevitably change the both of them. Whether it came from Lani’s exposure or whether it came from Adrianna finding the courage to stand against him and demand for him to let her in as much as she let him in. Pressure was coming in on Lani from every side and his fear was starting to take over all other senses and usually when things got like this Lani ran. But Adrianna and the rest of the family he had found here made that an undesirable option. Chances were that unless jail seemed like the only other option he would stay her and try to work it out.

Their relationship was still very delicate and easily broken. So the pair it seemed would walk on eggshells until they knew each other well enough to move past that. For now Lani was content to let her live in his arms. Every time he kissed her it was different experience. Always a thrill ran through him but the after effects were different, sometimes confusion and other times complete bliss. Bliss was all that left him after he broke away from her only in favor for breathing. He locked onto her eyes and got lost in them again. They weren’t intense like Odion’s eyes but instead were so much warmer and welcoming. They felt like a hug almost. If eyes could hurt Adrianna’s eyes would. She had the eyes that invited people in and made them feel safe. He smiled at her enthusiasm. She was so cute, at least she felt for him what he felt for her. That would have been awful if he had misunderstood all of this. He laughed. “I like your enthusiasm.”

The more red her face got the more Lani grinned. Whatever was running through her mind was causing her to blush very brightly. Lani was curious. She hid her face in his chest against and he chuckled. She seemed to do that whenever she wanted his comfort but didn’t want to look him in the eye. He held her close to his chest for a while and decided he was going to let her go on this one. “Alright, alright,” he grinned down at her, “If you say so.” He stepped away and took her hands in his and swayed a little loving being able to look her in the eye. He swung his hands getting hers going with him. “So when do we get to learn the cool stuff?” He asked a sparkle in his eye.

[Adrianna Carstyn]

As hard as it was to believe in good after bad, life after death, all of that, Adrianna was trying to believe it. She didn’t know what the future held or what she’d do after life at Hammel, but she knew that everything would be okay eventually. It had to get better because before, she had hit rock bottom. Finally, someone was pulling her up from that point and helping her see the strength deep inside herself. Prior to that, she’d had to be strong for her mother, but it wasn’t the same kind of strength. She didn’t see it as strength not to depend on someone because she did still depend on her mother a lot. This new strength was just that. The need for dependence, a shoulder to lean on, someone to go to, it was slowly lessening. She didn’t feel like she needed anybody, but rather that she enjoyed what they had to offer her and how they could help her when she was lost.

As one sided as it appeared to Lani, Adrian was still somewhat in the dark. Yes, she knew there was something more, but she’d just told him that darker part of herself, and she could wait until he was ready to do the same. Even if he never told her, she’d never be able to push him to do it. It wasn’t her business no matter what their relationship was. And yet, she was so wrong. It was her business because it put her life in harm’s way and she had no idea. But she trusted Lani so completely, even if she was denying it, that she believed he wouldn’t let anything, or anyone hurt her. She had all this faith in him, enough faith for the both of them. Adri just couldn’t picture him being a bad person. Let alone a thief.

It was a hard thing trying to get Adrian to realize what was good about herself. She had always been told she was beautiful, but that was all she really knew she was. Sure, she got good grades and paid attention in class, but there was nothing more to her than that in her eyes. Strength wasn’t present in her body because she showed weakness by crying so often. She didn’t see what he saw in her just like he didn’t see what she saw in him. They both had the same problem and they were both too stubborn to admit it. His words sparked a curiosity that she didn’t want to let out. If every hero had a weakness…what was his? Before she could help herself, she asked just that, “If what you’re saying is true, then what’s your weakness?” Instantly, she looked down and shook her head, “Sorry, you don’t have to answer that…” She noticed him shrug again and she sighed, “I know that not everyone is going to leave me, but I can never be sure who is actually going to stick around. I’m worried that something I say or do will send everyone running for the hills because they’re scared or uncomfortable,” especially you she thought to herself with a frown.

Adrianna hadn’t even caught onto what she was implying, but in a way that was exactly what she’d meant. She knew Lani would leave, it was only a matter of time because he was so desperate to get out of Hammel. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that one out. Consciously, she didn’t think that he was leaving right away and that maybe he wouldn’t leave at all, but her subconscious was already getting her ready for it so that she wouldn’t crumble after it happened. In the words of Adele’s cover This is how the story went, I met someone by accident who blew me away. And it was in the darkest of my days when you took my sorrow and you took my pain and buried them away. But like everything I’ve ever known, you’ll disappear one day and I’ll spend my whole life hiding my heart away. It was amazing how accurately the song described her and Lani’s relationship. But she didn’t want it to be like that. She didn’t want him to disappear like everything else had in her life, she wanted to always have him there even if it wasn’t in the same way that she had him now. I wish I could lay down beside you when the day is done and wake up to your face against the morning sun.

She was cautious of everything she said around him, though she didn’t fully understand why. Of course, she didn’t want to screw anything up, but making mistakes was part of what made them human. Adrian didn’t want to say anything wrong, but she wouldn’t lie to him either. Having his arms around her made her comfortable and less like she was tip-toeing around his feelings. It helped that kissing him was also a huge distraction. It was thrilling and sensational, but sweet at the same time. Controlled even if only a little. She felt amazing whenever she pulled back and looked into his eyes because seeing the way he looked at her made her feel better. It was like he really never wanted to leave her, however irrational it was to believe that. She giggled and kissed him again, pulling away tauntingly, “My enthusiasm tends to get me in trouble.”

Her mind was cowering away from the previous thoughts, just so she could stop feeling so awkward and as if she were a little kid just figuring out new things about her body. It was humiliating. Feeling his hold on her tighten, she relaxed a bit and hoped that he would understand why she wouldn’t talk to him about it. They were much too early in their relationship to get into that sort of talk yet. Heck, she’d just figured out what their relationship even was today! Much much too early for that stuff. She took his hands and looked up at him with a relieved smile. She rolled her eyes at his question and giggled, “What kind of cool stuff? Break dancing perhaps?”

[Lani Hunter]

As the future was woven out of a million different strands of possibilities, nothing is ever set in stone and while one strand might look like it is sure to come into the tapestry but the artist might take a different path. Who knew? Even those who could see the future could never quite get it right. He was glad that no precognist had happened to see him or something. He wasn’t really a believer in fate but it had been driving him forward in directions he didn’t necessarily want to go. Maybe fate had brought him and Adrianna together. Something had certainly changed here. He wasn’t sure about her but he knew that he was changing because he didn’t want to leave so much anymore. He wanted to be that person that helped people. He wasn’t sure if that was a new revelation or if it had always been there. After all hadn’t he loathed it when they took him away from his sister?

Lani looked into her eyes and silently questioned her. How would she react if she knew about him being a thief? Would she still think he was great? Would she still think he was a hero? The unknown was the scariest thing for Lani. For someone that acted like they didn’t give a damn he cared a lot about how people thought about him. He wanted to be liked by certain people, others he would rather have them think he was a mystery, others his only goal was to piss them off. But if those feeling mixed things got strange and Lani wasn’t sure which mask he should put when around such people. Those people generally tended to see a lot less of Lani. Lani knew Adrianna trusted him and he respected her for that but he also wanted to warn her that he was not to be trusted. He had already lied to her so much. What would she think when she knew he had lied? Would she hate him? Would she forgive him?

If what was good was defined by good grades and being a good student Lani was a horrible person. He really didn’t care anymore. His life was tossed upside down by this power and he really couldn’t see himself doing anything further than a high school education anyways. Lani smiled softly and shook his head at her. That look on her face, it was clear he was not going to convince her of her strength, at least not today. Her question caught him off guard and he blinked utter an “Uh…” Her reaction to that though troubled him. Crap! He had done it again. He had made it so that just like all of his other relationships she was afraid to ask him questions because he shut them down. He didn’t want this relationship to be like that, but he had made it like that without even thinking about that. “No, no, don’t worry about it,” he said with a smile and crossed his arms across his chest. It was just his comfort zone and he got more in it as he rested his weight unconsciously on his back foot to spring away at a moment’s notice. “I guess you could say my weakness is…” He thought about it for a moment looking up at the top of the auditorium. “People,” he finally decided on but he chose not to elaborate beyond that. He wanted her to know that asking questions was not bad; whether or not he would answer honestly was the real question.

The implications of her words were clear. He smiled softly feeling bad for her fear. But everyone had their fear, Lani feared prison and Adrianna feared abandonment. Both things that weren’t so irrational but Lani didn’t let his fear occupy his mind whereas Adrianna’s was more of a constant fear. “I heard a quote once… I can’t remember who said it… damn… but anyways,” He said waving a hand dismissively, “It was ‘Don’t let the fear of the ‘what-ifs’ stop you’ or something like that. I’m paraphrasing.” He laughed a little at himself realizing whoever had said that probably said it much more eloquently than that. He shrugged and shook his head, “I guess what I’m trying to say is that you’re a wonderful person but let loose every once in a while. So what if you stumble a few times, that’s why they invented ‘sorry’.” He grinned and elbowed her a little trying to coax a smile out of her. “And trust me Adrianna, if I had wanted to leave I would have left already.” He smiled a little. No one could have stopped him and certainly there were other things that kept him sticking around but Adrianna didn’t have to know that. For now telling an untruth was better than honesty.

Walking on eggshells. That wasn’t what he wanted. He didn’t want her to worry about how upset he would be if she said something wrong. He just wanted her to say it. God knew Lani’s filter needed to be fixed a little bit. He was really just spewing the first thing that came to his mind. He was a little more careful than most people but he was trying to let that wall down when he was with Adrianna. He was still careful about most things but he was working on it. It would be nice to have someone he could really talk to. She kissed him again and when she pulled away Lani was left desiring more. He leaned toward her a little and a little smirk flashed on his face. Two could play at this game. So he didn’t give into the urge and instead moved in like he was going to kiss her. “Trouble is my middle name, or haven’t you heard?” He said leaning in and swooping away before he could brush her lips.

Lani was willing to let her thoughts go, after all he had secrets and even if he was curious beyond reason he would let it slide. She deserved to have some of her own secrets. Besides had Lani known what she was thinking he certainly would be crimson after the first few words. It was embarrassing that Lani was so inexperienced. He certainly wasn’t unfortunate looking, he had just never made the time. That and he was generally clueless. When girls would give him complements or compete for his attention he usually didn’t have a clue. Most of the time if his sister happened to be around he didn’t have eyes for any other woman anyways. He grinned, “You can break dance?” He asked skeptically.