Winter (Hero Society Book 5)

by Jessica Florence

I was willing to open up to this girl, but the weight of what was happening settled in my gut. I’d given myself over to the Hero Society to help like I’d done before, for a few bites of information about her. I’d accepted my power, but now I would be using it—just like the last time I stayed and fought. And died. Sweat broke out on my head, and I reached up to run my fingers through my hair nervously.

  “It’s pretty sweet. Sorry about being abrupt, but I gotta go. I’m glad you’re okay, and I would like to see you again.” I had already written my name and number down on a piece of paper Pops had brought me.

  Gwendolyn’s cheeks flushed, and she stood.

  “Sounds good. It was nice meeting you.”

  I prayed my little random weirdness didn’t freak her out, but I had to go and sort my head out.

  “It was amazing meeting you. Here’s my number. Hit me up anytime.” I smiled and walked closer to hand her the paper. She took it quickly and stood there looking like she was unsure of what she wanted to do or say.

  Taking a chance, I decided I had to do something to make sure she knew I was into her. So, I leaned in for a hug, during which she stood still as a statue in my arms.

  Shit.

  “I’m sorry. I—” I felt like an idiot, taking a step back out of her personal space. I just needed to leave, but she cut me off.

  “It’s not you. Sorry. I just…Hell. I just don’t do well with people and stuff. I wasn’t expecting a hug and froze; I’m not used to being touched, and normally I don’t like it. But you smell good, and are really sweet, and look like you play beach volleyball, and I’d like to try again.”

  I didn’t get another word in before she was awkwardly trying to hug me. I’ll be damned if I didn’t wrap my arms back around her and smell her sweet scent of geraniums. My mom used to have a big batch of them in her garden every spring. Gwendolyn reminded me of home. The warmth, the feelings of being around people who care about you.

  She pulled back, and I was forced to let her go.

  “Okay then. I’ll see you some other time.” She did what she wanted, and now I was logically supposed to leave like I said I would.

  I wanted to touch her more, feel her under my fingers, and surround myself in her floral scent.

  But that would most likely freak her out.

  “See you soon.” I made myself utter the words and left.

  Chapter Nine

  Gwendolyn

  “You hugged him?” Lynn, my former guidance counselor who was sitting in my apartment, drinking tea, looked shocked after I just told her about my interaction with Arthur.

  I nodded.

  Lynn hadn’t changed much in the last few years. She was a little leaner now than before, and her hair was shorter, with some gray strands popping out of her pulled-back hairstyle, but otherwise was the same compassionate woman who had been there for me on my darkest day and ever since.

  We met once a week to have tea and talk. Mostly she wanted to hear about how I was doing, and I tried to ask her questions, too. She knew I wasn’t that great at small talk, but I usually took thirty minutes before she came over to think of questions to ask her. She was helping me be the best Aspie I could be, and help me work with my powers, not against them.

  She’d stayed to help kids at the high school who were coming into their powers, but it became too much for her to handle on her own. Rose, an empath from the Hero Society who majored in psychology, was now working with her, helping kids make it through what’s happening to them and figure out their place. It was nice knowing immediately that I wasn’t alone.

  “That must have been hard for you. I’m very proud that you took that first step toward physical interaction with him.” She smiled and gave me a sweet look.

  Part of me felt like I’d gotten a gold star, which made me feel good about myself.

  “He was really nice and different. I’ve never noticed other men like I noticed him.” It was a thought that kept rolling through my head after he left. What was so special about him? I’d been around what most people would call attractive men, and I never even cared.

  “You haven’t mentioned a man before in our time together like this. You seem...” She was thinking of a word she wanted to use. It was something she did often. Like a human thesaurus, always trying to use different words instead of simple ones repetitively.

  “Flustered.”

  Flustered was a wise choice. I felt off my game, but in a good way, I think.

  “I can see that. I feel change.” Deep inside myself, there was a little nagging thought that change was coming for me. Change tended to freak me out; I was a creature of habit. These thoughts made me feel slightly scared of what would come, but a teeny part of me was curious about what could happen.

  “You’ve been doing the same things for years: working, coming home, working at home, going for a run, and somewhere in that schedule you eat and sleep. Change is good. Especially if it gets you to open up more.” Hopeful. That was the look she had on her face every time she saw me.

  “Maybe.” I shrugged, feeling slightly uncomfortable talking about change and how boring my life is now that I heard her say it that way.

  “I’ve been thinking about maybe going to the hero headquarters and taking some fighting lessons.” My fingers found the screw in my pocket, and I started to change the metal, feeling its cool surface beneath my touch. Fidgeting was helpful for me—it kept my brain focused while I talked about things that we hard.

  “I think that is a very logical decision, especially with you joining their society. I heard about the bridge incident. You really saved some lives that day.”

  I wanted to wrap my sweater over my head to hide from the embarrassment. I know I helped people, but I was still an awkward fool and snuck away to my Prius like an idiot. Hopefully having the magnetic motorcycle will help next time.

  “You’ve really made some new leaps since I saw you last week. I think you are doing really well for yourself. Makes Mama Lynn proud.”

  She sipped her tea, and I looked over to where Cora was chasing a robotic mouse I made for her. Compliments were not easily taken by me, but I still appreciated it.

  “How’s having a team member been working out for you?” I decided to use question five off of my list now, so I didn’t run our conversation into the ground, leaving us in silence. That was the worst for me.

  She knew what I was doing, and happily took the bait, talking about things at work. New kids, both with powers and not.

  By the time she left, I felt drained. It was emotionally rough for me sometimes to interact with people, especially when we were talking about things I was uncomfortable about. Men, change, and how great I was doing was on that list.

  “What do you want to do now?” Pops walked over to me and sat down on the cushion to my right. He normally did something else while Lynn and I talked, giving us some privacy, but then other times he liked to join in—the little socialite of my crew.

  “Not sure. I feel tired, but I don’t think I should sleep right now. Maybe watch a movie?” I asked him, hoping for his opinion.

  “I’ll get the popcorn.”

  We settled for watching Pops’s favorite movie about cartoon robots falling in love and saving planet Earth. If I was being honest with myself, I loved the storyline too. The little robot was head over heels for the more sophisticated robot, and she was so cold at first. But then she fell too. It was sweet.

  When it was time for bed, I settled into my comforter, and stared at the ball of steel on my nightstand. I always kept some form of metal nearby so I could wind my mind down by changing the shape.

  Cora snuggled up against my leg, and Pops went to his charging station to shut down for the night.

  Clearing my mind as best as I could, I began to focus on the ball, shifting it into a triangle, then a square. After another twelve shapes, my mind started to calm. Sleep was peaceful, and I was ready for it to claim me for the night.

  I woke with the sound of thunder booming out
side the window, completely startled. My eyes adjusted to the room and saw everything looked to be in its place. Cora was still lying beside me, but her head was up, those eyes watching me just in case I needed something. Pops was still charging, oblivious to the loud storm happening outside the window near him.

  My body sagged back onto the mattress, and I turned to look at the metal on my nightstand.

  A frown formed on my lips, seeing the shape it was in. I always left it as a circle before closing my eyes to sleep. I reached over and turned on the lamp next to the odd form sitting there, so I could get a better look at it.

  Not a shape, but a person.

  Apparently in my sleep I’d been thinking of Arthur, because the metal on my nightstand had formed his face. Like a work of art, glasses and all.

  Chapter Ten

  Gwendolyn

  “Try to grip me by the wrist, like this.”

  I winced in pain as Lilith—the woman in charge of teaching defensive and offensive fighting techniques—grabbed my wrist, showing me what she wanted me to do to her.

  She let go and smiled in anticipation of my attack. I remembered what she did step by step and put it into application.

  It should have worked, but she did some move with her arm then I was trying to grasp air.

  I stared at the woman, in both awe and frustration. She was tall and looked like one of those lingerie models, with black hair and a big grin. She looked both seductive and lethal. In a way she reminded me of one of those Venus flytraps—they lured the bug to them and then ate them. She didn’t have any powers like me or others in the Society. She had been trained as a spy and could hold her own better than anyone except the two men at the top tier of the group, Draco and Dorian. Those two I’d yet to meet, and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel when I did.

  “Gwennie, you’ve got to use that big brain of yours and anticipate my next move and be there.” She tried to swipe my legs out from under me, like we’d practiced earlier, but I’d gotten fairly good at that defensive move.

  “Like statistics?” I panted, while trying to forget that she called me Gwennie.

  Her head tilted to the side, like the way a dog would when it was confused.

  “Exactly like statistics. Create a fighting formula. It’s quite predictable if you pay attention enough.” She came at me, checking to see if I was indeed paying attention by moving her hand toward my face. I deflected, and then she tried again.

  We practiced moves for a little over two hours, and my body hurt in places I’d never felt before. I ran for exercise, but this was completely different.

  “So, what’s your story?” Lilith plopped herself next to me on the mat and drank some of her water, barely looking like she worked out, while I would bet that my face was as red as a tomato from moving so much.

  “Don’t you know everything?” I figured everyone knew everyone in this joint. Her head shake suggested I was wrong.

  “Phillip brought you in, and you’ve helped take some of the work off our shoulders, but other than training you, nope. Nada.” She was looking at me expectantly, signaling me it was my turn to spill.

  “I have power over metal. I work for Phillip in the robotics department. I have Asperger’s syndrome, and two robots at home who are my closest companions. My life is pretty routine.” So routine, in fact, that it took me two whole days to work up the courage to give it a shot.

  “You seem like a chill gal. I like ya. Remind me of my hubby, Leon. Very stoic kind of guy when you meet him, but he has a heart of a teddy bear. You look like you are all prickly on the outside, like you don’t want anyone to talk to you, but I bet you are like any other girl. You want to be a part of something, to be loved, and to feel beautiful.”

  I’ve never met her husband before, but everything else she said made my chest hurt a little.

  “Is that how you feel?” I was curious, maybe normal girls felt like that all the time. Maybe I was normal in that way, too.

  “Oh, I know I’m beautiful and very loved. I’m also part of this crew. There’s no judgment—everyone will literally give up their life for you and buy you an awesome Christmas present. There is no place I’d rather belong.”

  I wanted that. I wanted to feel like I was part of something, and that people actually cared about me. At work most everyone ignored me, and I ignored them. I wasn’t heartless, but I just kept my focus on my job. It was easier that way, and if I was being honest, by staying away from interacting with people, I avoided rejection. Maybe rejection didn’t happen here. I’d seen people of all shapes and races, both powered and normal humans, in here training. Everyone was coexisting and seeming happy.

  “Maybe I’ll come around more often.” I looked at her and smiled, hoping that that smile was similar to hers, a smile of pure confidence.

  “Fantastic!” She beamed and then her eyes darted to the elevator that was opening up.

  A tall man with dirty blond hair and big muscles walked into the room, his gaze going straight to Lilith.

  She was up and on him in seconds. Must be her husband.

  I was introduced after they stopped mauling each other. Leon seemed nice. He loved his wife a lot, too, and she him. It was nice seeing a relationship like theirs. I never paid much attention to couples, but now I was curious.

  Was it possible for me to ever have something like that? All fire, passion, and undeniable love for one another?

  Maybe.

  I excused myself a few minutes later, feeling like a third wheel when it was obvious—even to me—that they wanted some alone time.

  The whole way home I thought about what it would be like to be with someone in a romantic way. Wanting to know more about relationships and how they work, I stopped off at the big book store on my way home and grabbed a bunch of novels on the subject. If I wanted to learn about something, I always hit the books. It helped me understand the world around me.

  Pops was pleasantly surprised that I’d grabbed the books and was eager to help me learn how to open myself up more to other people, particularly a man.

  His software allowed him to scan the pages of the book and put the information into a database, so he became a living library for me.

  “I’m proud of you for trying,” he said as he brought me a cup of tea while I read one of the books on dating in the modern world. It felt appropriate for my first choice. All the information was scientifically based, which made things easier for me to understand than a book based off of emotions.

  I was about three-quarters of the way through the book when my phone notification echoed in my room.

  Maybe it was Phillip, letting me know I needed to get ready for my next “save the day.”

  Except it wasn’t. My breathing picked up, and I felt my lip go between my teeth nervously.

  Unknown Number: Hey! It’s Arthur, does this painting make me look fat?

  The picture below was one of those stand-up pictures with a hole cut out where the face was supposed to be, so the person could stand behind it and look like part of the painting. It was a masterfully made piece of art that looked like a hippo in a tutu, with his face grinning in it.

  I laughed and shook my head. The whole text was silly, but something about it made me smile big.

  But what should I say back?

  Reaching over, I grabbed another book from the pile on my bed: HE TEXTED, NOW WHAT?

  Chapter Eleven

  Arthur

  Gwendolyn: I think the hippo makes you look fat.

  The next day, a text from her finally appeared on my phone. I’d been trying to figure out what to say to her the past few days. Everything kept coming out stupid, so I just went with something random. I’d been commissioned to do a painting for a comedic standee for the winter festival this upcoming weekend. Kids and adults alike were going to have a blast standing behind these and making funny faces through the cutout. Looking like they had a hippo or seal’s body. It was all for charity, too.

  Maybe I could ask her to go with me
to the festival.

  I looked over at the clock and tilted my head to the side. She would be going for her morning run soon—should I go bump into her or not be a weird stalker?

  A handful of minutes passed, and then I was jumping up and getting dressed for a winter run.

  Any time I could spend getting to know Gwendolyn, the better.

  The snow had melted yesterday, but Seahill’s weather was notorious for switching things up randomly, snowing one minute then heating up a bit an hour later. Today was supposed to be a sunny but cold day.

  I was stretching out my quads when I saw her and Cora, her dragon, running in my direction. Absolute male pride bloomed in my chest when I saw the unmistakable blush on her cheeks when she looked at me, registering I was indeed standing here.

  “Arthur. You like to run?” She slowed to a stop to chat with me. That was a positive improvement.

  “Yep. Gotta keep my beach volleyball body somehow,” I teased, and her face turned slightly pink again, this time from embarrassment.

  “Shit, that came out mean. I just meant I gotta stay in shape somehow.”

  She nodded.

  “I don’t always catch jokes. I was so embarrassed yesterday saying that, but I just couldn’t let it go. I guess I didn’t make a fool out of myself, if you are okay to tease about it.” She looked down at Cora, who was walking around us curiously.

  “Definitely not a fool—more like cute.”

  “Cute.” She chewed on my choice of word.

  “Cute is one of the three things I know about you that are mesmerizing.” I grinned, and her eyes flicked up to me.

  “What are the other two things?” There were many things that I found mesmerizing about her, but I’d stick to the first three that came to mind.

  “Cute, smart, and beautiful.”

  Before she could overthink what I said and get spooked, I suggested that we run together.

  She agreed and together we ran, Cora ahead of us like a good guard dragon.

  We really didn’t chat while we ran, and I was still in a bit of shock that she was okay being around me for so long. It still wasn’t enough for me, though. There was so much I wanted to know.