Max stalked into Jam Pony with Alec trailing anxiously behind her. "Alec, will you leave it alone? I'm not telling you where it is and that's final."
"Come on, Max," Alec pleaded. "Just tell me where it is and I can steal it for you. I owe it to you."
Max ignored him, turning with deaf ears towards Normal's desk. Standing there behind the desk was a form she recognized. "Hey, Satrina."
Blue eyes flashed to Max as Satrina looked up. "Oh, hey, Max. How've you been?"
Sighing gustily, she answered. "I've been better." Max's gaze shifted to Alec. "Satrina this is Alec. He's an ... acquaintance of mine."
Alec feigned a hurt look, clutching his chest in addition. "Acquaintance? After all we've been through."
"Puh-lease. After what you've put me through, you mean!" A shadow of Max's stormy temper flared momentarily as she banged her fist softly on the edge of the desk.
"Guys," Satrina interrupted, choking back a laugh. "As amusing as this is, we don't need to create a scene. Now, Max... Why don't you continue your way over to Cindy? And Alec," she began slyly, handing him a package, "Why don't you take your cute butt over to sector four and deliver this, sweet-cheeks."
Alec grabbed the box, throwing a wink Satrina-ward. "See you later, Satrina," he raised his eyebrows seductively, sauntering playfully away. Satrina's eyes followed him all the way out.
Rolling her eyes, Max sighed. "What a typical, egocentric little bastard. He's so full of himself!"
"Where do you know him from?"
"He's a... a friend of the family," Max supplied hopefully.
"Does he have, oh, I don't know, a girlfriend?" Satrina asked innocently.
Max's eyebrows shot up. "And why would you be interested?"
Satrina smiled candidly. "He's damn sexy."
Shaking her head in disbelief, Max answered, "No, you do not want to get involved with Alec. He's ... he's superficial. He wastes everything just so he can have a good time ... whether it's the hooker of the week or ... or gambling! He's self-centered and a dick-" Max stopped herself. Eyeing the slim redheaded woman, she reconsidered. "You know, now that I think of it ... you could do Alec some good. With your personality and your ... stamina, you could change him."
At that, Satrina smiled sinfully. "Whip him into shape, huh?"
Max chuckled. "Exactly."
Contemplating this, Satrina chewed her lower lip. "I like it! And I think I have a few ideas on what to do with him."
Alec cycled through the grime and dirt of Seattle's sector four. His super-enhanced hearing registered the whizzing chains of a bicycle 20 meters behind him. Judging by the speed and pressure at which the tires hit small pebbles, he surmised that the person was female, about 5'7" in stature with a slender build. Lips curving in an expectant smile, Alec continued his leisurely pace to allow his follower time to catch up. This new girl was something: Beautiful as ever with a sense of humor to match. If she wasn't that smart, he figured he could bag her in less than three days. For some odd reason, he usually preferred the blonde-bimbo type, not the witty redhead. But this girl was something different...
Satrina easily glided alongside Alec. "Hey."
He glanced over to her, eyes fixed on the road ahead. "Hey yourself. What brought you over to lovely sector four?" He smirked as he waved his free hand across the vast amount of filthiness that surrounded them.
"Oh, I was hoping to run into this certain gorgeous coworker I have."
Alec bumped his estimation down to two days. "Really?"
"Yeah. I heard from a friend of mine, though, that he's a real bad-ass. Likes to blow his money on hookers and all. You know the sort." Satrina smiled cunningly, hoping that this would get the ball rolling.
His smile faltered. "I see my reputation heralds me." He made a quick right turn into a cluttered alley, and Satrina had to stand up to pedal fast enough to catch up with him.
Making a quick and stealthy survey of the alley, Alec guaranteed their safety. Satrina mistook this cursory glance as despondence, and quickly attempted to raise his spirits.
"I'm sure it was just to keep yourself occupied during some down time." Satrina was determined to prove that this man had some depth. "Must have something to do with blondes." Before Alec could respond, she stopped. "Here it is."
Dismounting his bike, he mentally chastised himself. He was slipping. He should've have known to stop; that this was the address. He'd let himself relax. Guess that was what being out of Manticore would do for you.
Satrina bounded to the dilapidated old board hanging on one hinge that passed for a door. Close behind her, Alec watched closely as she handed the package over to a dusty old man. He continued to stare as the old man signed the clipboard she held in one hand. Suddenly, she turned around to come face to face with Alec. Their eyes locked intensely in a sort of serious staring contest. If Alec didn't know better, he could have sworn he felt something stir within himself. He looked away quickly, clearing his throat as he scratched the side of his head.
Satrina felt her breath catch, but quickly controlled herself. "We should get going."
Nodding slowly, Alec turned only to be face to face with three "handsome" fellas, each looking even more ready for trouble than the last. Alec didn't even have time to move before Satrina stepped in front of him and addressed the three thugs.
"Well, hello fellas. What can we do for you?" she asked cheerfully.
"Your friend there," one thug spoke up, "can give us all he's got in his wallet. And
you... " he leered suggestively in Satrina's direction, "can come along with us and give us all you've got. We've got plans for you, sugar."
An unshielded laugh erupted from Satrina's throat. "Ah, boys, as flattered as I am, I just don't think that's gonna happen." As quick as wind, Satrina planted one foot to the man's stomach. A sharp gasp escaped the man as he doubled over. One of his friends grabbed Satrina's wrist, but she answered with an artful yank and twist until his arm was pinned painfully behind his back. Pushing him to the ground, she dug her knee into his back.
The third creep whipped out a knife. But before he could approach Satrina, Alec made use of his Manticore reflexes and training. The man was down before he saw Alec coming.
From the ground, Satrina watched the entire exchange with quiet respect. Never in her life had she seen someone move so fast with that amount of precision...and, well, the graceful play of his muscles through his shirt was mesmerizing, too. He may have been gorgeous to begin with, but he was absolutely intoxicating during a fight. Fierce determination set on his face; every move planned and calculated... Satrina had to do everything in her power to not rip his clothes off and have him right there.
The man beneath Satrina began struggling to break free. Focusing her attention back to the cretin below her, she switched her grip. In one solid motion, she backhanded him. His eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp.
Getting to her feet, she moved to stand alongside Alec as he surveyed his handiwork. "How did you...?" they both started while gazing at each other.
Satrina let out a laugh. "I took Tae Kwon Do lessons when I was younger. You have to be safe in our broken world." Her gaze traveled the length of his body. Momentarily, Alec felt exposed and even vulnerable; he had never felt that way before. "I've never seen anyone move like you." Slowly, she began circling around him, her eyes never leaving his body. "Your movements are fluid with grace, and yet so brutal. You have speed that I've never seen before." She finished her circle bringing her eyes to meet his.
Reading the questions in her eyes, Alec's genetically engineered brain raced for possible explanations. Her gaze was making it incredibly hard to concentrate. "Um, well, I was ... in the army, special ops. We trained a lot and learned almost every martial art..." Alec berated himself for creating such a lame lie. Oh well, it would have to do. It was already out of his mouth. And besides, he doubted Satrina knew enough about army life to prove him wrong.
Her chin raised critically, Satrina squinted at him. Tense moments passed and for a second, Alec worried his lie hadn't worked after all. Satrina's skeptical mask melted into a truly curious one. "Trained a lot, huh?" she asked while moving swiftly to her bike. She waited for Alec to straddle his bike beside hers, then they continued on their way.
"So, Alec, how was the ride today? Enjoy Satrina's company?" Max grinned evilly at Alec as he strode into Jam Pony.
He gave her a pleasant smile. Pleasant, but unrevealing, Max thought angrily. "After spending the day with her, my guess is that you thought she could somehow change me. Make me a better person or some shit like that." Alec walked over to his locker, Max eagerly following one step behind him. "She was good company, especially for a norm. I'm actually looking foreword to banging her."
Her eyes widened and, faster than a heartbeat, she had him pinned against a locker. "You are not going to bang her!" she seethed angrily, shaking him for emphasis.
Totally unconcerned, he threw his head back and laughed. "And why not? I thought you'd be proud, she's a step up from a hooker. Besides, they're only norms. Dirty, stupid, norms."
Applying more pressure to his neck, Max clenched her teeth and muttered in a dangerously low voice. "They're not the ones who are the freaks here, Alec, it's us. We were the ones created in a lab, not them. You may think that we're superior to them, but in every way that matters, we're inferior. We can't have the feelings they do, we can try, but they don't come natural to us. We have our Manticore training that makes everything easy for us, but they have to struggle to survive."
He threw his hands up in frustration. "Okay, Max, what's your point?"
She sighed relaxing her grip on him and allowing him to part company with the lockers for the time being. "You can't treat them like they're worthless. So you're the pretty boy who grew up in the clean, sterile environment. Give them a chance. Spend some of your self-centered energy and get to know them." Inspired by his look of boredom, Max formulated an idea that would push him over the edge. "I bet if you had to get to know a norm, you'd chicken out. And I mean really get to know one"
"I would not!" he exclaimed.
Max snorted. "Yes you would. They're dirty, remember? They've been out in this
filthy, diseased world. Not to mention all the emotional, sentimental crap you'd have to deal with." She pushed him against the lockers again, strong hand in the exact center of his chest. "I bet that you won't be able to get to know Satrina. You wouldn't be able to stand being her friend."
His brow furrowed. "Are you actually betting me to get to know a norm?"
"Oh, come on," she smirked. "You're a big, strong X-5, she's only a norm. What are you afraid of?"
"Nothing." His voice rung with finality.
"Good. So the bet is that you can't make friends with her in a week."
"If I win?"
"If you win..." Pausing to think, Max could only come up with one idea that might even remotely interest him. "If you win... I'll be nice to you."
Surprise showered his face. "You'd be nice to me? No smart remarks, no name calling. A pleasant, civil Max?"
Cringing painedly, Max nodded. "I'll be nice to you." Before any words could come out of his mouth, Max continued. "But if I win, you have to earn back every single dollar that you borrowed from me by only hard work and your sweat."
Alec considered for a moment. "I was going to pay you the money back, maybe not through hard work, but ... deal."
"Hey missy!" Normal yelled from his desk. "No roughhousing. You're on company time. Get back to work."
Rolling her eyes, Max released Alec. "Deal." She walked a few feet, then turned to throw a word of advice to him. "If I were you, and tried to bang her, I'd watch anything vital below the belt. She might not take it too well."
