Death Wish

Part 26

The next morning I woke up lying in an unfamiliar bed that smelt like mint. I looked around with a confused expression before a sudden pain erupted from my stomach.

The memories of last night came flooding back.

I'd been attacked. They'd tried to throw me over the edge. But Eric stopped them. And took me to a safe place.

I looked to my right but the other side of the bed was empty. I leaned back into the mattess, gently touching the bandages thag covered my torso. I enjoyed the comfort of his bed for a few more moments before slowly sitting up right.

I shakily sat up and picked up a different scent that smelt like someone was cooking something. I eased into standing but the pain in my torso wasn't so compliant.

My pale brown eyes scanned his room. I'd hardly had a chance to look around yesterday due to the shock and fear. It was as neat as the living room but still homey.

I looked down at the nightstand where a framed photo stood. It showed a quaint family of four, all blonde, fair skinned, and wearing blue. I instantly recognized one of them as Eric, but it looked more like it could have been his studious twin brother. The Eric in the photo had no tattoos or piercings. In fact, he was sort of skinny and nerdy looking. But his smile was bright and happy.

In the picture, his parents stood behind him, and a younger boy, maybe six or seven, stood beside Eric. I could only assume it was his brother.

I didn't know he had a brother.

I took a few more steps, trying to get used to the pain in my torso, but ended up having to lean on Eric's desk for help where there was a mass of papers strewn about. The one that my hand landed on was half out of a vanilla folder and titled 'Classified' in bold letters.

I shouldn't have felt compelled to look through his stuff, but I barely hesitated before opening and reading the file. It had the word 'Divergent' written all over it. My eyes flitted across the page. The part that stood out the most was one simple sentence.

'Kill on sight.'

I felt my breath hitch at the sight. I tentatively slid the paper further but a loud bang followed by cursing suddenly sounded from outside the room. My hand instantly retracted as though being burned. I quickly reset the folder as it had been before and tried to shake the anxious feeling.

Act natural. No one suspects you. Yet.

I cautiously walked out into the kitchen to see Eric with his hand under the faucet with cool water running and a pan with egg parts clinging to the sides laying on the ground. Two separate plates with generous servings of scrambled eggs sat upon the grey granite tops of the kitchen.

"You ok?" I asked curiously, bending down slowly to pick up the pan by the handle. The skin on my stomach burned in protest.

Eric turned in surprise as if he had forgotten I was in his apartment.

"I'm fine. I just burned my hand on the dam pan," Eric explained as he shook out his red right hand.

I laughed softly before gently placing the pan in the sink. There were only a few inches of space between us but I didn't make a move to back away. I was tall but he still towered over me without even trying.

"What's so funny Candor?" Eric asked, not joining in my amusement as he dried his hand with a towel.

My grin only broadened. "It's like Eric vs. Frying Pan and the pan won," I explained.

Eric tried to keep a straight face but the corner of his mouth defied him. "Still a comedian huh?"

"I'm here all night," I replied, not missing a beat. "Or morning, I guess."