It was late when she finally arrived home. Snow had started to fall and the wind was chilling to the bone. Her hair clung to her face and when she looked into the mirror, her face was red. Evan needed warmth so she grabbed a towel and went into the bathroom where she turned on the hot water.
She began scrubbing her dark brown hair in the shower, singing along to some old song playing on the radio. Earlier that day she had been learning how to throw knives at moving targets which had proved to be more difficult than she expected. Her entire day revolved around that last little part of training and now she was a licensed hunter equipped with her own silver broadsword and a matching set of daggers. She finally felt free of training, almost as if she could now live a normal life. She slathered herself in lavender body soap and washed the makeup off of her face when a knock came from the door outside her apartment. She sighed and flicked of the water, then wrapped a towel around her body. It was probably her roommate, Stephanie, who constantly left her keys inside the room before she went out partying. She opened the door expecting to see her black- haired friend, but instead it was a teenage boy. He was about six feet tall with messy brown hair and dark purple eyes, with dark bags under his eyes. Evan instantly suspected one of Stephanie’s exes. “Look, Steph is not here. In fact, she’s probably out with her current boyfriend,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“Who’s Steph?” The boy said, confusion clear in his eyes.
Evan sighed and she gestured into the apartment, completely forgetting she only wore a towel. “What do you want, then?” She asked as he entered the room. His eyes widened when he looked at her. She cocked her head, and he pointed at her body, not even trying to hide his stare. Typical boy. “So what? Answer my question,” she grimaced and mirrored his stare.
“I, uh,” he stuttered. Evan rolled her eyes once again. “Read this,” he said before handing her a small letter addressed to her.
Miss Reynolds,
This letter is to inform you that you will train Mr. Hayes Stockholm in combat and hunting skills. Since you are an Gold Class hunter you will be his mentor. You will train him every day in the Felix Center at precisely 8 a.m. sharp. On every Sunday, he will be tested on the individual skills you train him in. If you fail at his training, you will suffer a two month suspension from the center and council.
Thank you for participating and good luck.
Head of council,
Miss Elaine Delta
“Well then new student, I advise you to turn around while I change unless you want to see me naked,” Evan said, smiling slightly. Everyone in the building, every hunter, didn’t care if you walked around nude. They were all professional enough to accept it.
“You can call me Hayes if you want,” The boy-Hayes mentioned while he turned around. Evan unwrapped the towel from her body and put on her undergarments. She shook out her hair before returning to the bathroom and grabbing a hairbrush and running it through her hair. When she walked out, Hayes was sitting on her bed, tracing the purple stars that decorated the comforter. He looked up at her when he heard footsteps and blushed instantly. “Sorry, I thought you were dressed already,” he mumbled just loud enough for Evan to hear.
She smirked as he dropped his gaze back to the stars. “You’ll get used to it,” she said. Evan walked to her closet and pulled out a black oversized sweatshirt and purple sleep shorts then pulled them on. “You can look now,” she told Hayes.
He looked up into her green eyes, noticing the dimness in the emerald color and bags under her eyes. She looked almost lost, as if she didn’t understand anything, and behind her deep green eyes was a dark look. “You seem tired, I can come back another time if you want,” Hayes mentioned despite the fact that he wanted to get to know her since she would be training him for a while. He was also tired from staying up; contemplating on whether killing himself would do him any good. Evan just shook her head and sat down next to Hayes.
She seemed like she wasn’t very interested. Hayes thought she was distant as if although she was physically in the same room as him, she wasn’t there mentally. He wanted to know why her eyes were empty and showed no emotion even when she smiled. Maybe she was just tired and didn’t want company, he concluded though he knew she wasn’t at all. She sighed, “So do you have any questions or comments or are you just here to bother me?”
Hayes laughed a dry, emotionless laugh. “I guess I’d just like to know you since you’ll be training me,” he spoke his exact thoughts even though he didn’t want to sound curious, “Why are you here? You seem to normal to be interested in this profession.” His voice sounded dull and tired, as he hadn’t slept in days.
“How about you tell me about yourself and why you’re here. Usually people don’t show up when they are as old as you. And, for your information, I like it here,” she said, seemingly uncomfortable with talking about herself. Hayes didn’t mind that she kept her silence, because she would eventually explain herself when she felt comfortable around him.
“Well, uh,” he started but stuttered, “my parents died last week by wolf attack so I guess I was sent here to learn how to hunt them.” There was so much more he wanted to say, but he knew that if he told Evan about watching the wolves rip apart his parents limb-by-limb, he would break down. She must have seen the pain in his eyes because she didn’t pressure him anymore.
“I understand, I went through the same when I was eight. Trust me; it gets better after a while. This place takes away the pain and replaces it with training, and sometimes even happiness,” she kept her explanation short and painless, because she didn’t want her sadness that must have been in her eyes for years to come back. Hayes nodded, finally feeling comfortable with the girl, as if they shared a common hobby, not the horrific way their parents died. They sat in silence until Hayes spoke up.
“Thanks, so, what will I be training in?” He asked, still not emotionally stable from the brief conversation a few minutes ago. Even though he had tried to change the subject, he was genuinely curious about what he had asked. Evan looked up with a real smile even though her eyes were still blank and emotionless.
“Physical training is hand to hand combat, handling swords, learning to use firearms, martial arts, flexibility, agility, oh and so much more,” her smile grew as if it really brought her joy and she continued, “You will also have mental training like how to control your heart rate, wolf history, and how to stay completely calm and relaxed.” She didn’t sound quite as enthusiastic about the mental part but still held her smile. Evans smile was beautiful but anyone could tell that she rarely used it by the uncomfortable look in her eyes.
“So how long will it take?” Hayes asked, still curious. Curiosity was the strongest emotion he had felt in a week and he wouldn’t go back to having no emotion. He wondered if it just stayed like that though, like Evans emotionless eyes.
Evans voice brought him out of his thoughts, “It depends on how quick you learn.”
“Okay, yeah, I guess I should go then if I want to get some sleep. Training starts tomorrow right?” He questioned. Evan nodded and smiled. He stood up and approached the door and she followed. The girl opened the door and Hayes stepped out and started down the empty hall.
“Hayes,” she said as he was halfway to the stairs. He turned and cocked his head and she continued, “I hope you will feel better. You know, get over all of this. Don’t hold onto the past like I did or you’ll blame yourself later.”
He nodded and replied, “Bye then, Evan.”
“Goodbye Hayes,” she responded and with that he turned and left. Although more questions were left unanswered than answered he felt happy that Evan talked to him about his parents. He felt no better than before except for the fact that he wasn’t alone. When other people looked at him, pity filled their eyes, but Evan didn’t look like that, she seemed to sympathize- at least a little bit.
