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•••••
KARI
"Who is she?" I ask once I'm inside the dimly lit room, closing the door behind me.
Turning back to Ice I am met with a thick layer of sweat coating his back as he continued his pull-ups.
Doing one more before jumping down, he grabs a towel to clean his face. "She helped us. Be nice."
"Of course. I have no reason not to be," I respond walking closer and handing him the uncapped water bottle I was holding.
The towel long forgotten, he throws it to the side and accepts the bottle and chugs half of the liquid in one go.
"So can she fight?"
He nods.
"That's good." I nod back, "Will she be staying? She seems off..."
"If she wants." He ends the conversation as he observed the wall. More specifically, the different gloves aligned on it, grabbing a familiar set Ice turns and walks toward me. "Let's practice."
I smirk grabbing them, "You sure?" I laugh. "If I win I get an entire day to myself, no 'body guards'" I motion with the hand that's unoccupied.
"And if I win?" He chuckles.
"We'll think about it when it happens."
•••••
•••••
After a shower and a change of new clothes, I make my way back to the living room. Nearing a walking Ice just a couple of feet in front of me, I pause as I scan the room.
"What kind of group is the Mighty Warriors?" I hear the girl ask.
"So to speak, a group of warriors made to fulfill our dreams." Ryu responds.
"Isn't it a theft gang?"
I wince at her words.
Ryu chuckles, "Well, it can't be helped if it seems that way."
"The stolen money is only used to create an ideal type." Ice interrupts, and she looks our way. Her eyes slightly widen for a second as she meets my face.
"An ideal type?" She amusingly says looking back at the man in front of me.
I sit next to Ryu, smiling as I grab his book from the short table.
"That's mine." He whispers.
I whisper back, "Was." I flip the book open to the first page. Feeling his head lean against my shoulder, I continue to roam my eyes down the pages.
"We ourselves adhere to this belief." Ice sits, "We give hope to those who have lost their dreams and also have been abandoned by society."
I stay quiet, listening to his words. Only quickly turning to glance at the sitting girl.
"Through music and fashion." He looks back at the table with CDs, vinyls, and cassettes.
"The sun that brightly illuminates the darkly setting heart." Ryu leans forward resting his chin on his hand. "No matter what kind of person they are, everyone can illuminate equally."
I hide my smile with the book as I hear her let out a deep sigh.
"What is it?"
"Giving hope?" She snickers tilting her head.
"Do you not understand?"
I pat Ryu's shoulder, turning his attention to me. "Well I'm off, I have a big day tomorrow." I stand looking at Ice.
A slight pout is visible on his lips and he begrudgingly nods. I turn to the sitting girl, "It was nice to meet you." Giving me a once over, she nods.
I walk away.
Away.
Briefly hearing Ice explain his story, all the way to us and the creation of Mighty Warriors.
I'm laying in bed when I hear the door open.
I sit up, seeing her stand awkwardly. "Ice said I could stay here."
I turn on the light, turning to her I smile. "All the boys took the rooms." I stand walking toward the luggage bag on the chair. We seem to have the same figure.
"Here, you can shower and change in there." I point at the bathroom door.
She looks at the clothes in my hands before looking back at me. "Thanks."
"No problem..." I say seeing her walk toward the door.
She stops. "Sarah, my name is Sarah."
"I'm Kari." I quickly replied as the bathroom door closed.
I walk back to the bed, my back pressed against the headboard. I grab the book on the night stand and begin to read.
I'm a few pages in when I notice the door unlock and open.
I smile at her patting the side of the bed closest to her.
Her eyebrows rise.
My smile falters a bit as I see her discomfort. "Okay, you sleep here and I'll sleep down here." I gather a pillow, one of the blankets and begin to messily fix them on the floor.
"This is your room. I'll sleep on the floor." She grabs my arm to stop me from laying down.
"No way!" I tug back, "It's your first night here, I don't want you to feel weird."
"Why're you being nice to me?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" I retort back. Seeing her scan my face as if looking for a lie.
I couldn't help but feel sad of her reaction, what kind of life has she had?
I gently motion her to the bed, "Here, rest it's been a long day."
I feel her stare as I lay down on my spot, "Goodnight Sarah."
