Page 46 of Stealing Embers
Oh, no. No, no, no, noooo. He did not just say my name.
Oh, crap. But he did. Crap, crap, crappity-crap.
Where to hide?
Ash nudges me with her elbow. Her eyes saywhat’s the problem?and mine silently reply,what isn’t?
My cheeks burn as I push off the mat and make my way up to the front. My eyes remain laser-focused on the spongy black mat beneath my feet rather than any of the students.
“Where would you like me to go?”
Please say a room with no witnesses.
“Hold up here for a second. Let me grab a sparring partner.”
Ticking my eyes up from the ground, I watch Seth jog a few feet away and cup his hands in front of his mouth.
“Yo, Steel.”
Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no.
This is not happening.
Steel’s wailing on a punching bag hanging in the section next to ours. He glances up when his name is called. His eyes connect with mine before sliding over to Seth, who waves him over.
“What’s up, man?” Using his forearm, Steel wipes at the sweat beaded on his brow. His knuckles are red from pounding on the punching bag. Don’t normal people wear protective gear for that kind of activity? I snap my gaze to the ground before I have a chance to ogle any more of him.
“Mind if I borrow you for a minute? I need to assess Emberly’s skill set.”
Just say no, dude. You know neither one of us wants to do this.
There’s an awkward pause before Steel replies.
“Sure.”
Why me?
Seth positions us within a circle on the black mat. It’s probably about fifteen feet wide. My eyes stay glued to the floor. The collective stare of the class burns into my side, and Steel’s gaze blisters my front.
“Go get ‘em, Em!” Ash shouts.
“Yeah, show my big brother who’s boss!”
Awesome, Sterling’s in this class too. Which means Greyson is probably going to have a front row seat to my humiliation as well.
Ignoring the jeers, Seth steps in front of me. “Alright Emberly, Steel is going to come at you. Just do your best to protect yourself.”
I nod, still not lifting my gaze.
Seth’s feet disappear from view. I shift my weight back and forth and fold my arms across my chest. Hunching my shoulders, I try to make myself as small as possible.
I wish I had the power to melt into the floor. I can’t believe they’re making me—
A boulder slams into my stomach, knocking me off my feet and punching the air out of my lungs. In a flash, I’m on my back, blinking at the overhead lighting and wondering what the heck just happened.
Wasn’t I just standing?
I squint at a figure above me until he leans over, blocking the light shining in my eyes. Steel’s blue-black hair brushes his forehead as he watches me gasp for air. Without a word, he offers me a hand up. I roll to my side, ignoring the help, and push myself into a standing position. Something dark flashes in his aquamarine eyes before he slants his gaze away.