The Silent War

New Chapter! Chapter 9

I woke up the next morning to the sun hitting my face.  I opened my eyes and smiled as I looked up to see Ben sitting next to me on the bed reading the paper.  He glanced down and smiled as he swept some loose hair strands out of my eyes, letting them fall neatly behind my ears. 'Good morning miss Jennings. How did you sleep?'

I giggled as I leaned up and kissed him. 'Better than ever thank you, Mr. Whitmore, how about you?'

Ben paused and pretended to think about his answer, forcing me to hit him with my pillow. He fended me off until finally, he grabbed me in a bear hug. 'Never slept better and looking forward to many, many more good night sleeps.'

I smiled as he kissed my forehead and jumped up, pulling on his t-shirt.  I grabbed the newspaper off the bed as he went into the bathroom, calling out after him. 'I didn't know we got outside newspapers in Serenis!  What's happening in the sprawling city of Lunbrudge?'

As I spoke, Ben darted out of the bathroom and snatched the newspaper from me.  I sat up, wondering what I had done to get such a reaction from him.  Ben folded the paper quickly and put it under his arm, though to my surprise he was smiling as he spoke. 'Nothing you need to concern yourself with. I'm going to have a quick shower; then I'll meet you downstairs for the best breakfast of your life!'

He leaned down and nervously kissed me on the cheek, his actions not matching his cheery voice.  I smiled as I watched him walk into the bathroom and shut the door; the newspaper still tightly held under his arm.

I rolled onto my back and took a deep breath, a goofy smile as I thought about the night before.  Newspaper or no newspaper, Ben and I were together, and that was all that mattered at this moment.  I slowly rolled over and sat up, letting my legs hang over the bed as my feet tapped around the floor finally finding my slippers.  I decided to surprise Ben and make him breakfast this morning, skipping down the stairs as I tried to remember my Grandma's flapjack recipe.

As I made my way into the kitchen, I headed straight for the stocked cupboards and began rifling through the items trying to find my ingredients.  I loved cooking, even if I wasn't very good at it; it was still something I liked to try my hand at.  Not that I haven't had some epic failures in the past, in fact, to this day blame Dad's insistence on frozen meals for dinner on me and my failed attempts at everything from soggy meatloaf to rubbery eggs.

I began pouring flour into the mixing bowl as Thimble flew through the open window next to the fridge.  He hopped along the counter, looking up at me and tweeting a few times.

I pulled some bread crusts from the bread bin and scattered them along the counter as he pecked happily at them. I may not speak bird, but the plea for food from animals seemed to be universal, as I recalled Willis' little grunts when he would sit at my feet during mealtimes.

I poured the milk in and began stirring as Bens arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me in as he kissed my neck. 'I said I was going to make you breakfast missy.' He slid his hand slowly up my shirt, making me squirm. 'Ben, stop that! I'm trying to cook for you.'

He held me tighter, not caring that the lumpy batter was going unstirred. 'I'm not hungry this morning funnily enough. In fact, I think I could go without all my meals today if you come back upstairs.'

I turned around, trying to hide a blushing smile as I put on a stern voice. 'That's enough of that you. We have loads to do today, and you will need your strength if you're going to go through another round of Thane's Navitus class. Though don't get me wrong, the thought of lying next to you all day is much more appealing than eating my lumpy flapjacks.'

I reached up on my tippy toes, kissing him passionately until his wandering hand slid down my back.  I pushed his hand away and grabbed the mixing bowl from behind me and put it between us.

'Ben! Stop it; you know you drive me crazy.  Here, mix this, keep those hands busy while I chop some fruit.' I walked to the fridge, prying my eyes away from the shirtless perfection that was in front of me.  Thimble jumped over as I began slicing the strawberries, after the dessert portion of his feast.  I threw him a berry as Ben poured the batter into a hot pan.

He looked over, smiling cheekily at me, but honoring my request as he started up a conversation. 'So, I was thinking about what you said last night.'

I looked over, trying to recall any form of conversation we had had the night before that wouldn't make me blush.

Ben smiled as he continued.  'You know, about eating in the food hall from now on – with the other Supers?'

I did recall this conversation though wasn't sure it ever really got resolved.  I told Ben about my discussion with Phoebe and how she had basically told me I was hated in Serenis.  I thought it would be a good idea if Ben and I ate in the food hall with the other Supers for at least one of our meals every day to see if that would help things along.  Maybe if they saw that I could get through a roast chicken meal without killing someone, my chances of making friends would be better.

I looked up at Ben who was now serving up the flapjacks and spooning my berry mix on top. 'And?  Do you think it's a good idea?'

I followed him over to the table as he placed the meals next to each other and pulled a chair out for me. 'I don't know Eve's.  I mean, does it really matter what people here think of you? If they are that closed minded that they discriminate against someone because of their powers, why do you want to get to know them anyhow?  Besides, you have friends here; Josh, Jay-Ry, Imogene, Bel, Roe, Tobias.'

I looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. 'And Thane.'

Ben rolled his eyes as he took a bite of his breakfast. 'And him, yes.'

I rolled my eyes as I shifted over from my seat onto his lap, wrapping my arms around him. 'Ben, you don't get it because everybody loves you.'

He smiled as he leaned in, kissing my collarbone. 'Everybody hey? Does that include you?'

I pulled his head up and looked into his eyes. 'You know I do. But Ben this has gotten to me and I think we should do it.  And you can't blame the other Supers for being fearful; I mean, look what Thane did to you in front of everyone?  And then on top of it all, I went and took your soul after he'd finished with you.'

Ben's jaw clenched as his hands firmly squeezed my hips. 'That wasn't your fault. It wasn't even you who caused that. Thane brought that on and would have taken my life himself if you hadn't of stepped in and done it first.  At least when you take someone's life you can give it back, someone should remind those Jokers out there about that.  You're not the one they should be scared of.'

I ran my fingers through his hair, trying to distract him from his train of thought. 'Hey, that's enough of that. Look, I want to do this.  I think I need to start mixing with people here anyhow.  If anything, I will be able to learn from some of them and who knows, maybe you will too?'

Ben sighed as he cut a piece of flapjack with his fork and fed it to me, wiping some strawberry juice from my face with his thumb.  This boy seriously drove me crazy sometimes and made clear thinking a thing of the past.  I leaned in and whispered into his ear. 'You know what? I'm suddenly not so hungry myself. I think I'd better head back to bed and rest before training.'

No sooner had I finished my last word, Ben had scooped me up and was halfway up the stairs.  I know it's the last thing I should have been focusing on with a brewing supernatural war, but Ben was a distraction I was happy to focus on right now.