Non-Mutation (Book Four)

Chapter 21: Strawberry

A symbol of Venus, the Goddess of Love, the strawberry is thought to bring prosperity and healing. Ancient Romans believed that strawberries could alleviate feelings of melancholy.

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Raphael sees red, his eyes white and his teeth gritted so hard that he could shatter them if he tried. He storms across the rooftops, kicking air conditioning units and punching chimney stacks as he mutters to himself.

"Stupid Leo...hypocritical shell-for-brains," he grumbles. "Maybe I do love her, but it's not like he hasn't ever felt like that. I can't just...ugh, stupid. I just had to open my big fat mouth..."

He bristles and lets out a shout as he whirls around and punches the nearest wall over and over and over again until he splits the skin of his knuckles open on one hand. The pain snaps him back to reality for a moment and his arm falls limp as he looks up at the sky. How is he supposed to know if he's in love? He's never been in love. Could he feel something like that after such a short amount of time?

He takes a deep breath. There's only one person that he wants to see right now, even if he already saw her tonight. Maybe that's greedy but Raphael doesn't care. He doesn't want to go home yet.

He breaks into a sprint towards the Purple Dragons' hideout, the abandoned fortune cookie factory. Best case scenario, he'll be able to catch her attention without alerting the other Dragons. Worst case scenario, he spends the evening alone with his thoughts.

The factory is dark. Only a few windows throughout the building still have light in them and Raphael idly wonders how many members live in there. He gets his binoculars out of his belt and searches each lit window, hoping that she'll be in one of them. Movement catches his eye in one of them and he switches to it, just able to catch a glimpse of a figure with long black hair.

He puts the binoculars away and deploys his grappling hook. He lands against the wall, feet braced against the brick, and he inches down towards the window with his heart pounding. He finally reaches the ledge and peeks into the room.

The first thing he notices is that the room is incredibly tiny. There's hardly enough space for the single bed, the dresser, and the suitcase tucked away in the corner. Taylor has her back to him, pulling her hair into a ponytail and exposing her neck and shoulders to his view. He reaches over and taps lightly on the glass.

Taylor whips around, eyes wide and fists raised as her hair falls back around her shoulders. Raphael flashes a sheepish smile and waves, making her lips part.

"Raph? Que eres..." She cuts herself off and moves to the window, shoving it open with a creak. "What are you doing here?" she hisses.

"I'm sorry, I had to," he says, trying to look as apologetic as possible. "I...I couldn't stay at home."

Her expression softens and she casts a quick look over her shoulder. "De acuerdo, date prisa," she mutters, ushering him into the room as she hurries to the door.

As he climbs inside, she jams a piece of wood under the doorknob to act as a makeshift lock. Raphael closes the window and she turns back to him, crossing her arms over her chest as her eyes narrow.

"You know, when you said see you later, I didn't think it'd be the same night," she says. She keeps talking in a raised whisper.

"I know, it ruins the romance of it all," he retorts at the same volume. He shuts his eyes. "But I had to see you again."

Her face softens and she glances down at his hands. Her eyes widen and she reaches out, taking his hand and examining the blood on his knuckles.

"You're hurt," she whispers.