"Thanks. My name is Kali. You had a good work out yourself, if you don't mind me saying so." She smiled at him. "You're in good shape." She looked up to see his blue-green eyes, trying her best to keep back her natural tendency to see a person's true nature. She wanted this to be normal, even though most of her life wasn't at all normal.
Jeremy chuckled, not seeming to be phased by her compliments. He didn't appear to be full of himself or shy. He simply accepted her compliment with the ease of a man who had grown used to hearing them without appearing to allow them to go to his head. He held one hand out for her to shake. "It's a pleasure to meet you Kali."
Her eyes went wide as it dawned on her who he was. She took his hand in hers and shook it firmly as she took a deep breath. "Are you Jeremy Renning, by chance?" she asked, unable to hold back her curiosity. She didn't want to jump to conclusions and seem foolish. It was possible that Renning had a twin or something, but she knew that wasn't a likely possibility. "Don't worry," she added when she saw the tired and slightly fearful look that came into his eyes. "I'm not a reporter."
He sighed in relief. "I guess I should be thankful for that," he muttered. He rubbed the towel over his sweaty face and through his hair again. "Please don't tell me you're some kind of fan or something." He shuddered a little as he thought about his last encounter with a fan. Those had never turned out well for him. "I was having a nice time and I really don't want to ruin it, Kali."
Kali chuckled and shook her head. "I'm not a fan girl, and I'm glad you're having a good time. It must be hard getting all of that attention," she commented a joking tone to her light voice, watching the way his turquoise eyes sparkled even in the fluorescent lighting. He was human, but there was something about him that told her he'd known about the preternatural world for a long time. "You deserve a day off and privacy, too." She took her hair out of the braid that it'd been in all day and turned toward him as she shook it out letting it fall down to her hips. "Everyone does."
Jeremy shrugged his shoulders. "Unfortunately, attention and fame come with the job. I suppose the Bill I am working on isn't helping matter." He sighed and rolled his shoulders o try and work out the kinks that were already trying to knot back up. "I'm sure you've probably heard about it. It seems to be all that anyone is talking about these days." He growled a little. "My life is kept under a freaking microscope so I sneak in here every time I can while I'm in town to try and get away and forget for a while."
She nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. She'd heard it a lot from her superiors, but being the youngest liaison in history hadn't gotten her any fame. "No. That bill doesn't help with your fame, but with the right changed it will help preternaturals everywhere," she stated as she moved to her knees and gestured toward his back. "May I help you with those kinks? You don't want them to turn into knots. Those are a bitch to work out." She watched him carefully, hoping she wasn't going too far since they'd only just met.
He studied her carefully for several moments before he slowly nodded his head and turned his back toward her. He dropped the towel he'd been using on the floor beside him before glancing over his shoulder at her. "What do you know about preternaturals, Kali?" he asked in a voice that let her know that he knew she was involved somehow.
Kali began rubbing Jeremy's back and making sure the muscles were warm enough to manipulate before she started expertly working out the kinks. "I… Well, there isn't an easy way to explain it. I'm an orphan, and I've been on my own since before I can remember." She began her explanation, trying to keep things as accurate as possible despite the next part being difficult. "There are stories floating around that my parents were some sort of preternatural nasty, but there are other stories that they were hunted and eradicated by preternaturals." She listened to the way his body reacted to her touch as she talked in order to decide the best way to work the kinks back out of his muscles.
Jeremy grew thoughtful as he listened to her soothing voice, almost moaning with pleasure at the feeling of her hands working the muscles of his back and shoulders. "Have you ever tried to find out the truth?" he asked her. He turned his head slightly so that he could look at her over his shoulder. "I would be happy to put my resources to use, if it would be of any help."
Kali's hands stopped moving, and she knelt down behind Jeremy's back as she remembered the last time she had tried. "I don't have enough to go on, Jeremy. I don't even remember my last name," she admitted as she sighed, racking her brain for the answers she had always searched for. "I spent the first few years of my paycheck trying to track them down, but being a street rat didn't help anything. The only reason I'm in law enforcement is that one of the officers who picked me up saw my potential." Despite her words, she was still unsure of anything.
Kali ran one hand through her hair and looked down at the ground. "It's been almost thirteen years since they were killed. I was seven, and all I can accurately remember is that my mother hid me behind a dumpster and told me to stay there until she said it was safe," Kali relented as pieces of that night flashed through her mind. She shook her head and rapidly blinked back the few tears from her eyes. "I'm sorry. You probably don't have time to listen to my sob story." She stood up and took a deep breath as she stretched out her legs.
Jeremy stood up and stretched his arms over his head as he studied her. "My offer still stands Kali," he told her in a quiet voice. He turned to head toward the locker rooms. "I've had a fun time tonight, and I would love to see you again sometime." He glanced over his shoulder at her as he paused in the doorway. "I'm assuming you already know how to get a message to me?"