In My Blood (Eric-Divergent)

Smoke

When it came time to fight, I was feeling great after an hour on the bags. Four was on his own again as he showed us how to block, hit and kick.  Eric hadn't returned after leaving earlier. I was kind of glad too. I didn't even know what to think about his actions earlier. Not for a second would I believe that he was just being casual, and that I was over thinking things because I found him attractive. No, he was definitely being a little too friendly. Not that I'm complaining...

"Okay, partner up and practice blocking." Four called.

But we didn't practice long. Maybe ten minutes later, Eric sauntered in with a deadly look in his eye.

"Where's my first jumper?" He shouted across the room as he headed towards the fighting mat.

My head snapped around to meet Eric's expectant eyes. He stopped in front of the ring and folded his hands behind his back, shooting me a sly grin.

"In the ring!" He called impatiently, and I reluctantly stepped away from Jackie to oblige.

"Last jumper, you too!" He bellowed, nodding at a girl farther away.

My opponent just so happened to be the snotty Erudite girl from yesterday, who apparently didn't find me funny. I stepped into the ring and waited patiently for her to carefully tuck her auburn hair into a neat bun, then wipe some spare lip gloss from her bottom lip.

Prissy bitch. I thought, rolling my eyes.

I glanced at Eric, only to find that he too, was unimpressed by her actions.

"How long do you want us to fight for, Eric?"

I cringed at the sound of his name on her lips.  Fluttering her lashes at him, I stifled a laugh. She was either flirting, or kissing ass. Eric picked up on it, and grinned deviously at her.

"Let's just say that somebody's getting knocked out, okay sweety?" He answered sarcastically, unphased by her poor attempt to catch his attention.

I sighed loudly. All I wanted to do was hit her, and she was stalling.

Her brown eyes lost some of their luster as she was taken back by his response, and I smiled innocently when she finally focused on me.

"Have at it." Eric said.

Without further anticipation, I lunged forward and placed a right hook to her jaw, sending her back a few steps. She doesn't stand a chance.

She managed to block my next set of jabs and eventually punched me in the ribs, barely making progress. With two sisters, I was used to sparring. Conditioned for it, really. She jumped forward finally, catching me in the cheek.

Wow, she's weak. I probably won't even bruise.

"Come on ladies." Eric said lazily.

So I reached out and grabbed her neck, throwing her down onto the mat. She landed with a whimper and I pounced on her,  jabbing her in the ribs repeatedly until she mustered up a decent block. I got off to let her recover, glancing over at Eric. He wore a proud grin, and nodded once at me. My cue.

With a final swing, my fist collided with her left eye and her petite body landed with a thud on the mat. My steady, slow breathing was the only sound as we all stared down at the unconscious girl at my feet. I cracked my knuckles loudly and turned away, stepping off the mat while a few of my peers went in to clean up my mess.

With everyone distracted by my limp opponent, Eric approached me with a playful glow in his grey eyes.

"Good work, Candor. Keep it up." He praised, letting his eyes wander down the length of my body.