The sound of a door slamming shut jolted Arthur awake. His eyes snapped open, the sharp pain in his head a reminder of the tumultuous night he'd just been through. He groggily sat up in Bolts' room, rubbing his temples. The room was eerily quiet, save for the faint hum of a malfunctioning drone that had wedged itself into the corner of the ceiling.
He glanced over to the other bed. Eve was still sleeping, the covers pulled up over her, a peaceful look on her face. He couldn't help but smile slightly at how different she looked when she wasn't scheming or cursing up a storm. But something was off when he noticed her phone resting on the bedside table, untouched, still lying next to a half-open backpack. Bolts, however, was nowhere to be seen. No loud music blaring from the walls, no robots zipping through the room.
"Shit, where'd he go?" Arthur muttered, swinging his legs off the bed, the cold floor biting at his feet.
Eve stirred, groaning as she stretched. Her eyes opened, narrowing slightly as the remnants of sleep slowly drifted away. "Bolts probably went to class," she said, still half asleep. "This is what he does. He disappears for hours, only to reappear with some random invention or a new piece of tech he's stolen from God knows where."
Arthur stood, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "And where does that leave us?"
Eve lazily propped herself up, watching him with an expression that was both teasing and dismissive. "Well, it leaves us with a mission, genius." She shot him a sideways glance, her voice taking on a more serious tone. "What happened last night? You seemed... distracted. You kept talking about a woman. Who was she?"
Arthur hesitated. He couldn't shake the memory of Grace—the dangerous, captivating woman who had crossed his path in the hallway. He remembered the way she'd made him feel: uncertain, intrigued, and strangely alive. But he didn't want to bring it up, not with Eve.
But before he could deflect, he noticed Eve's brow furrow in an almost imperceptible way, something in her eyes darkening.
"Hey," she snapped, suddenly sitting up straight. "I asked you a question."
Arthur shifted uncomfortably, his gaze falling to the floor. "It was... just someone I met last night. She was in the hallway when I was stepping out. We talked for a bit."
Eve's eyes immediately narrowed, her lips curling into a tight line. Her posture stiffened, and Arthur couldn't help but notice the sudden tension between them.
"She was tall, with dark hair," he continued, trying to keep the conversation casual.
Eve's expression darkened. "Oh, great," she muttered, the bite in her voice unmistakable.
Arthur blinked, thrown off by her sudden change in demeanor. "What?"
Sure, she was tough, quick to snap, but there was something different about her now. Something more vulnerable that she refused to admit.
Eve didn't respond right away, but her silence was loud enough. Her jaw clenched, and Arthur could feel the weight of her glare, even though she was keeping her gaze fixed on the floor.
Arthur's mind whirled as he watched her, trying to make sense of what was happening. Why is she acting like this?
Eve's thoughts, however, were elsewhere. A knot of unease had coiled tightly in her chest. Why does it bother me so much? she thought to herself, the question looping in her mind as she fought to keep her expression neutral. I've never been jealous before. I can have any man I want. Hell, I could've had Arthur years ago, if I wanted to. Why does this girl bother me?
She glanced up at Arthur, catching the way his eyes seemed to linger on the memory of Grace, and something flickered in her heart. I've seen the way he looks at me, but it's never been like that. Not like that look he just had for her.
The silence stretched between them, both of them unwilling to voice their feelings. Finally, Eve snapped out of her reverie and stood, and began putting on the discarded Academy uniforms Bolts had left behind. "Come on, we don't have time for whatever this is. We're going to Colonel Green's office, remember?"
Arthur watched in a daze as she pulled on the Academy uniform, the tight-fitting gear emphasizing her toned frame. For a moment, he couldn't tear his eyes away, the sight of her so effortlessly powerful making his chest tighten. She always had this effect on him, this combination of strength and beauty that was impossible to ignore.
But they didn't have much time to waste. The clock was ticking.
As they walked through the hallways of the Academy, they couldn't help but notice the strange atmosphere that had settled over the campus. Posters adorned the walls, plastered with Eve's face. "Wanted," they read. "For breaking Academy rules and going AWOL."
Arthur's stomach twisted as he read the words. Wanted?
Eve noticed his unease and let out a bitter laugh. "Once you join the Academy, they own you. They develop your Astron powers, and you become a soldier for the U.S. government. Should've read the fine print before I followed Avery."
Arthur glanced at her, his mind racing. He felt the weight of her words, the unspoken bitterness in them, but before he could respond, he swore he saw a figure in the distance. A fleeting movement—someone, or something—just out of his line of sight.
He blinked, but when he looked again, there was no one there. Only the shadows stretching along the walls of the Academy. No, it couldn't be...
"Eve," he began hesitantly, but he didn't finish the sentence. He didn't want to bring up Grace again, not when things were already so tense. Instead, they continued walking, both trying to ignore the questions swirling in their minds.
They continued on, and soon they reached the imposing building that housed Colonel Green's office. The heavy door loomed ahead, and Arthur's anxiety spiked. They had no idea what they were about to walk into.
Eve reached forward and knocked twice.
The door swung open almost instantly, and what greeted them was nothing like Arthur had expected. The moment the door cracked, gravity seemed to shift. A sudden force tugged at them both, pulling them violently into the room.
"Wha—" Arthur's words were cut off as he was yanked off his feet, his body slammed into the floor in a painful heap. Eve wasn't far behind, crashing into him with a grunt as she landed on top of him.
Arthur groaned in pain, but when he looked up, he saw the figure standing at the desk. Colonel Green. The man was tall, with sharp features that were almost angular—impossibly sharp, in fact. His eyes were a piercing shade of purple, glowing faintly in the dim light of the room.
"Welcome," Colonel Green's voice was like a calm breeze—impossibly smooth but laced with a power that sent a chill through Arthur's spine. "I've been expecting you, Eve."
"Motherfucker!" Eve muttered to herself as she stood, glaring daggers at the Colonel, ignoring the pain of the fall. Her usual fiery attitude flared. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"Welcome," Colonel Green said again, his voice low, almost amused. "I trust you're here about Avery."
Arthur could see Eve's fists clenched at her sides, her body vibrating with barely contained anger. But for some reason, it was that fire in her eyes that captivated him, more than anything else.
From across the room, Colonel Green's piercing purple eyes locked onto them, his calm gaze unwavering. Arthur, still disoriented from the sudden jolt, tried to get to his feet, but his legs felt weak, his head spinning.
Eve, however, was having none of it. She paced back and forth agitatedly in Colonel Green's office, her boots thudding against the polished floor. Her fiery orange eyes were alight with frustration as she glared at the man behind the desk.
"That gravitational stunt? Completely unnecessary," she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why the hell would you—"
Arthur, dazed and confused, couldn't help but watch Eve as she snapped at Colonel Green, her fiery temper igniting the tension in the room. He found himself lost in her fury, staring at her fiery orange eyes, the curve of her lips as they twisted into an indignant snarl.
Her temper, her beauty, her unwavering strength—she was everything he had ever wanted, and somehow, even though she pushed him away time and again, he couldn't help but want her more.
For a fleeting moment, he forgot the danger they were in, the weight of their mission, and everything that had brought them here.
But then, a memory of Grace flashed in his mind—her cold, dangerous eyes, the way her voice had sent a shiver down his spine. Grace had been nothing like Eve—cold, calculating, dangerous. But there was something about her, something Arthur couldn't quite grasp, that made her just as intriguing.
He felt a sigh escape him. Why can't my romantic interests just be normal?
The chaos in Colonel Green's office seemed to fade into the background as Arthur tried to process his own feelings and focus on the mission at hand.