Ok. This chapter is kind of lovey-dovey, so if you get through it without throwing up, give yourself a pat on the back! Thanks for the reviews, especially gpeach6 and bookworm842 who had been reviewing every chapter. I reallly appreciate it. Now on to the story!
Iggy's POV:
I felt myself surface to consciousness and opened my eyes. I was lying on top of a makeshift mattress. A pillow had been put under my head and covers had been spread over me. My head was bandaged and I felt like crap. Fang was going to pay. Big time. Nudge was kneeling on the ground next to me, trying to bandage my hand. I guess I must had hit Fang pretty hard. That made me feel a little better. I looked up at her face. It was bruised and her left wing was bandaged as well as her right arm. She looked a little pale, probably from blood loss? I don't know, but I was glad that she was all right. She glanced at me and smiled when she saw that I was conscious. She gently tied the bandage in a knot and sat back on her heels, regarding me with a raised eyebrow.
"You're finally awake, Sleeping Beauty?" She asked.
I decided to ignore that. "Hey to you too. I'm alive, right?"
She laughed. Man, I hadn't heard her laugh in a while. It was a welcome sound to my ears.
"Yeah. You're alive. Want me to pinch you?"
She reached out for my arm. Acting on instinct, I grabbed her hand and yanked. She lost her balance and pitched forward, landing horizontally on me. Our faces were only inches apart. Her face turned red and I felt mine heat up also. To make things worse, Angel arrived at that moment, holding a tray of food. A girl followed behind her. The girl had black hair and brown eyes. She was about the same height as me with long legs and a perfect hour-glass figure. A bad feeling started in my chest but I ignored it and noted how Nudge was trying hard not to look me in the eye but failing.
"What are you guys doing?" Angel shrieked when she reached us and set the tray down on the ground.
Nudge quickly got off me and stammered, "He-he p-pulled me. Kinda. I-I was trying to p-pinch him. I-uh-lost my balance. A-Angel, it's n-not like he l-likes m-me or anything. I-I'm way out of h-his league. He l-likes E-Ella." Her eyes widened and she clapped her hands over her mouth, but it was too late.
I starred at her. "Nudge?" Did she really feel that way about me? Did she really think that I had feelings for Ella? If only she knew.
She gazed back at me and my heart dropped a couple notches at the sadness on her face. She really did believe that I liked Ella.
"Um, I should leave. I'll check on you later." She said, dropping her gaze to the floor.
I struggled to sit up and reached out to grab her arm. "No, Nudge. I need to tell you something." I glanced at Angel and the girl. "Could we have a little privacy, please?"
Nudge pulled her arm out of my grasp and stood up. "N-No. Iggy. I really have to go."
"Where?" I demanded.
"T-To training. W-we have 7 days before the big day. I-I'll tell Phil you're up."
"Nudge, you can't be training with Fang again. Not after the last time."
But she was already walking away.
"You didn't tell her yet?" Angel asked.
I sighed and rubbed my eyes. "Does it look like I told her yet? She thinks I like Ella. Anyways, what's the big day and who's the girl?"
"The big day is when we duel and see who comes out alive. That person will be rewarded with freedom but the other two have to become Erasers. And this is Ali. The scientists at the School created her to be your...uh..perfect other half. You know, like Dylan was created to be Max's perfect other half." Angel quickly added after seeing my expression.
Ok. My day was officially ruined.
Ok. I was in a rush and my nose would not stop bleeding so the ending might suck. Anyway, please review! Thank you!
