Aleja Segura

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ivmwc​:

“If Hart and Ollie are the younger siblings I never asked for, Keagan is the older the sister I never knew I needed,” she said with a tone she was certain Aleja would find humorous, but would likely make Hartley and Ollie tear up.

Blake simply hummed in response not immediately having the proper words for her thoughts. “You know, Luke will likely never forgive me if she happens to find out I used such a term to describe her but, for the longest time she was basically the baby of our friend group, if only in age alone. She was also the only human in the Fallcrest pack pretty much until Tomi came along, so even though we all have our little groups within the main group, she has a special place…and everyone was terrified of what Keagan’s reaction would be if she didn’t pull through both because it would greatly impact Skylar and, let’s face it, it would also impact Keagan herself. Only thing that ever managed to keep those two apart was Keg’s dedication to being an agent.”

Welcoming the change in topic, Blake met Aleja’s feigned surprise with her own. “Oh. So you’re admitting to being the responsible party. I don’t think there’s much to be done about it now. You’ll just have to suffer my absence as I go brush my teeth so as to not offend.”

Aleja laughed at that description, “Hart and Ollie are going to be sad to hear that you prefer Keagan over them. But I guess you’re pretty thrilled that she’s now working in Fallcrest too, same as you.”

“The token human.” She smiled, “Everyone being overprotective over her would make a lot of sense - everyone being scared of Keagan also makes a lot of sense.” She snorted. Aleja only met her for a very brief moment during the party and from the way she handled the uninvited guest, the faerie also wouldn’t want to mess with her. “That family is just.. protective overall, aren’t they?” She also recalled how Lucas handled Skylar whenever she visited the gym. Definitely different from how Braxton and Tomi interacted. 

Bringing a hand over to cup the woman’s cheek, she leaned in for a kiss, “I wasn’t complaining per se, so don’t leave me out here on the couch all by myself. I’m rather comfortable sitting here.”

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ivmwc​:

Blake scoffed and looked at Aleja offended. “I do not fangirl,” she stated. “…I fanwoman.” It was absolutely no secret -to those in town who knew of their actual ties to homeland security- that Blake fully went into her career as an HSI agent based solely on her desire to follow in the footsteps of her friend and her friend’s mother.

“That’s a fair point,” she hummed as she wrapped an arm around the woman. “Though, I’m sure it’s been far more easy for us than for some of the others. That being said, I really don’t like the idea of you having to work twice as hard.” At the mention of the smell, she simply grumbled. “Yeah well, someone finished off the wine and didn’t bother to replace it.”

“Regardless, I’m fully aware of how much you look up to her and that she’s very good at what she does - or so you keep telling me.” Aleja smiled, not at all upset about it since it was endearing to see her girlfriend basically gush over the woman.  

“It’s heartbreaking to hear what happened to Luke.” The relief she felt when she heard that her friend and coworker was going to make it. The event already had a lot of the people concerned since there were a handful of people who suddenly got migraines and collapsed. Aleja merely chuckled when Blake started to grumble, “Oh. So it’s my fault. Well, what can I do to make up for it?” 

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ivmwc​:

Blake glanced over at her girlfriend and said, “I spent several years out in the field, working side-by-side with Keagan on a lot of assignments, all of which she was my superior for. I also grew up visiting the Calvetti home and seeing how Ianthe managed to run her home. Let’s just say that Keagan is seen as one our division’s greatest assets because she learned it from her mom.”

Blake hummed in response and said, “It sounds like you guys are going to have your work cut out for you for a bit.” She set her near-empty bottle of beer on the coffee table, and leaned back on the couch while gesturing for her girl to come in for a nice cuddle. “Sounds like you’ll want to make sure the rest of today is easy-peasy to make up for it.”

“Yes, you keep telling me all the feats Keagan has done as your superior.” While both women were feared, Aleja could tell just how respected the two of them were as well. “You were basically fangirling every time you talk about them.” She teased before going over to sit with her girlfriend on the couch. 

“I think considering recent events, today is already pretty easy-peasy, no?” She laid her head onto Blake’s shoulder while her knees tucked into her chest. “Mm, you smell like beer.” She chuckled. 

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ivmwc​:

“Exactly,” Blake agreed, before adding, “Which means if she’s determined to survive to her next birthday, she’ll do whatever it takes to not piss off combined power of Keagan and Ianthe.” If there had ever been on parental in town none of the members of their friend group wanted to upset, it had always been Mrs. Calvetti. “Believe it or not, I can attest to the fact that his procrastination has actually gotten better,” she noted. “Why don’t you guys consider maybe doing reduced hours of operation and a cut back on certain classes? Most of the customers are so long-term that I’m sure they’d be understanding if one of the OGs had to be out and so their load was unavailable….yes, I do regret my word choice…”

“Keagan and her mom? Are they that scary? They didn’t seem like it when I spoke them briefly.” Of course, she didn’t know them as well as those who grew up in town but considering how Keagan easily managed to get the role of Chief Deputy and she was Blake’s boss, she could only assume she was a good person. Her girlfriend even spoke highly of the other before so surely there was no reason to be.. scared? 

“Yeah, I’ll have to discuss this with him when we get to work.” The faerie initially thought that Braxton was going to close the gym for a few days considering that he had gone through an experience too but she was proven wrong when he notified her earlier that they’ll have to cover a bit of Luke’s work. “That will be.. tomorrow’s problem.”

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ivmwc​:

Blake’s brow furrowed a bit before she said, “Yeah, I figured that much like with any job she wouldn’t really be able to return to work without being cleared by the doctor. Which, I know Col has already pulled off quite the feat in managing to get her home before the weekend was fully over, but I don’t think he’s going to have a way of finagling around the fact that the average post-op recovery time for a craniotomy is like six weeks…at best. I hate to be the bearer of bad news babe, but I think Brax is going to have look at more permanent solution than just you two working double-shifts.”

“Knowing Luke, I don’t think.. she can be stopped when she’s determined about something. Maybe Keagan and Sky will be enough to keep her home until Col clears her.” She closed her laptop so she could give Blake her full attention. “That’s what I said, we need more hands on deck in general - even if Luke was able to come to work. He said he was working on it.” Aleja shrugged, “I’m just glad he posted the job posted at the very least. His procrastination is something else.” 

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“With Luke out for a bit, Braxton and I will probably be handling a few double shifts to cover the schedule - I’ll most likely be home a bit later.. and be at the gym a lot more often too for at least the next week or so. With what they’ve been through.. Brax is going to give Luke some time off.” She looked up from her computer, “I swear, I might kick Braxton if he pushes all the paperwork on me just because Luke’s not here.” 

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ivmwc​:

“I mean, I can also get it in writing. Notarized and everything. Sign it in blood if it will ensure you a little peace of mind,” she replied with a small grin. It was only half a joke, because in her position she had the ability to that and more. “Knight in Black Leather does have a ring to it, but sometimes it might be brown leather or red leather. Really just depends on the outfit.” At the mention of the town’s reputation for catastrophes, she gave the woman a playful squeeze as she groaned. “I swear, why does everyone keep focusing on the bad things. Just appreciate the present. I choose to focus on the fact that I am healthy -now-, I have a wonderful new girlfriend who can cook and kick my ass, probably simultaneously if she wanted to, and fall is in the air.”

“I would say that we might then need to cut it to just Knight in Leather but that sounds like a fantasy kink.” She laughed, “And I’m not jinxing it! I’m just saying, I’ve heard stories about this town from Michaela and they all seem to happen during events or the holidays! And spoopy season is here after all. I’m sure nothing will happen. I’m hoping nothing will happen. We don’t need more on top of this pandemic. But fine. I’ll say no more... Fingers crossed and all. Does that make it better?” 

Enjoying her position for a few more minutes, Aleja let out a sigh as she came back to reality, “Speaking of the present, we should really clear the table.” Picking up the plates, Aleja got up from her spot and dropped them all in the sink. 

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ivmwc​:

Blake smiled softly as Aleja spoke, and chuckled lightly as she said, “Well, you only say that now because you’ve never had to deal with me first thing in the morning,” It was a way to begin to lighten the mood around them, but even as she did so, Blake reached out and rearranged how she was sitting so she could pull the faerie closer to her. Wrapping her arms around the woman, she pressed her close to her chest, and placed a soft kiss atop her head.

“Fallcrest is your home now, and I want you to know that I will do everything in my power to ensure that you are safe here. From anyone and anything. And from now on, you no longer have to feel like you have to carry things like this alone. I will always be right here to help you shoulder any burden, because someone whose laugh is more than enough to lighten my entire day should have the privilege of feeling the same lightness herself.”

The faerie leaned into the hug, feeling safer than she had been during her stay here. Not that she doubt Michaela and her capabilities to keep her safe but something about Blake’s words just.. made it more concrete. “That’s quite the declaration there.” Her attempt at keeping it light. “But thank you. I see the title of Knight of Black Leather still stands. Well.. Hopefully nothing is going to happen. Fingers crossed. Although, I did hear stories about all the ..chaos that happened here before my arrival. Still not sure how I feel about that.” 

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ivmwc​:

All Mick could do was a make a face and say, “I’m supposed to be the boss of the other law enforcement people. A little intensity is to be expected, especially during times of crisis -which we’ve perpetually been in since I pretty much took the job.” She sighed at the mention of the cats. “I think they’ve become everyone’s Emotional Support Animals at this point.”

The sheriff knew that coming from anyone else, it would be just platitudes, but Aleja was as honest as they came. At least with regards to her opinions. Something told Mick her cousin had her own fair share of skeletons in the closet. “Well, thank you,” she offered, “And I would’ve pronounced it a bit different, but yes, Old Man Grey is definitely one those too…”

“Okay, you’ve got a point there. I’m just saying, I don’t think one needs to be all that intimidating when talking with Nikki. Maybe use that intimidation with that other asshole dep I bumped into when I visited you last time.” She hummed, “Maybe I should get an emotional support animal too. They just seem to make everyone’s day better.” 

Aleja smiled, as she stirred her pan a bit before letting out a groan, “Ugh. He is just so.. infuriating. And the way he talks.” The faerie wasn’t one to badmouth someone but that man really grated on everyone’s nerves. Aggressively working on the food now, it wasn’t long after until it was done and she split the portions, handing both plates to her cousin. “Here. Take these.” Grabbing the eating utensils along the way, she took a seat. “Anyways, I hope you like the food.” 

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ivmwc​:

“Only if you want to show me,” was all Blake could respond. She didn’t feel there was ever really a ‘right’ answer to such questions, but there could certainly be many wrong ones, and the last thing that Blake wanted was to make Aleja feel like she ever had to regret having shared something so personal with her. If anything, the only thing that was keeping her anger at bay was the resolute focus on making sure that the faerie knew -without any shadow of a doubt- that this didn’t affect how Blake saw her in any negative capacity.

If anything, after seeing the aftermath on the faerie’s wings, Blake could focus on nothing but the admiration she had for the other woman. Reaching out, slowly and tentatively -giving Aleja any and all the time she needed to stop her- Blake used the tips of her fingers to trace the top of the woman’s right wing with a touch so delicate, it was hard to tell at times if she was actually making contact at all. “They’re still so beautiful,” she murmured, before turning to catch the brunette’s eyes and adding, “Kintsukuroi. More beautiful for having been broken.”

Not wanting to over do it, she retrieved her hand, and went on to explain what she meant. “Much like the Japanese have the art of mending broken pieces with gold, giving birth to the term, you, Aleja Segura, have taken to mending the pieces that person left you with by filling the cracks with such love, and genuine care for others, and joy that is just so infectious…I can only look at the faerie that sits before me now and think that if luck had anything to with your escape, it was my luck ensuring that I got to meet you.”

Time slowed down so drastically for Aleja during this entire ordeal that if it wasn’t for the shudder of air that escaped her when she felt the other’s touch, the faerie would have forgotten how to breathe. Having all of this exposed just made her feel so vulnerable and it took everything for her to not just retreat and hide away. So while the other woman took her time with her wings, Aleja just opted to stare at a spot on the wall until those warm eyes interrupted her concentration. 

“That’s a very poetic way to put it.” Her voice caught in her emotions as her wings retreated back into her back, hidden away once again. Dropping her gaze, the trainer simply shook her head, “Well if you put it that way, I’m lucky to be alive because then I got to meet you too.” She cleared her throat, bringing her attention back up, “But yeah.. because of that.. I’m now here in Fallcrest.”

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ivmwc​:

“What can I say? I guess I just like-like you after all,” she grinned, though it faltered a bit as Aleja mentioned scars again. It would have been almost impossible for Blake not to notice the scar she mentioned. Not only because of their proximity while training, but at risk of sounding like the huge lesbian she was, it would be hard not to notice something so significantly marring what was otherwise flawless skin. Blake had been around many people with scars and wounds, however, and she knew better than to point it out or ask about it without prompting. Scars always had a story behind them, and it was up to the individual to decide if and when they would share it.

Aleja apparently seemed to think Blake had done enough to earn the level of trust it took to share hers. Which, if given the chance, Blake would be the first one to point out just how much more courage it took for Aleja to share her story than it ever would have for Blake to admit her true job. And it was this open and vulnerable aspect that Blake had to force her focus on so that she could sit and listen to Aleja as she spoke, without immediately asking for a name… As much as Blake’s ire towards a coward that would go after someone like that boiled in her blood, she couldn’t let her vision go red right now because that’s not what Aleja needed.

Truth be told, Blake wasn’t entirely sure what Aleja really needed, but she worked off instinct to provide what she felt the faerie needed in this moment: reassurance. She gave her a soft smile as she reached over and took Aleja’s hand in hers and gave it a squeeze, before dropping her head to place a gentle kiss to the woman’s shoulder. She looked eyes with her and said, “You are the bravest person I’ve ever met and, if nothing else, I want you to always remember that about today. It wasn’t luck, Ale. You’re a warrior and one who has decided to make it her career to teach others to defend themselves too. You are nothing short of amazing.”

As amazing as Blake, and other people had described her to be, Aleja felt nothing of the sort. Aleja didn’t even deal with her problem. Her ex was still out there somewhere and all she did was skip town to hide out here without doing anything else. Her cousin was a sheriff and even then, she only asked her help to move to Fallcrest. She was clearly trying to just put it all behind her and move on the best she could... without actually dealing that her ex could show up at any time. 

Feeling quite the opposite of brave, Aleja barely held her gaze long enough before it dropped to their hand. Even now, she had no idea how she escaped. She may know how to fight, but her ex was a hunter who was definitely trained longer than she had. For the longest time, Aleja was adamant that it all boiled down to luck that she made it out alive. 

“..Do you want to see the other one?” She asked, whether or not she was genuinely asking or convincing herself to do so. Unbuttoning the first few buttons of her shirt so she had enough leeway to slip it off her shoulders, revealing her tattoo. Letting out a shaky breath, her wings emerged out from her back - the right slightly slower than the left. 

While the left look as any normal wing would, it wasn’t hard to spot what the problem was with the right. The wing was crooked due to the large gash from the edge to the almost the center. While it might seem like her ex tried to cut her wing off, it was more so that the knife only punctured her wing.. and Aleja, in attempt to escape, sacrificed her wing but letting the knife tear through the wing. 

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ivmwc​:

“Okay, mom! Geez, it’s not like I did it on purpose. Every now and then I get a little too direct in my approach to things and I forget to dial it back when it comes time to hit up forensics. She knows I don’t mean anything by it….and I usually get her ice cream as a penance.”

Mick let out a sigh. “It’s not that I don’t enjoy it. I love my job, I really do. But when you’re a human in the top spot of law enforcement for a county that houses mostly supernatural beings…you start to feel like maybe you’re in the wrong position…..I don’t know, maybe I’m just hungry and it’s making me depressed.”

“Poor girl, you must be very intimidating to make her cry even though she knows you didn’t mean anything by it.” She made a face, pitying the woman. “Those cats must be her comfort animals now.” 

Aleja leaned on the counter with her palms on the edge, “Mick, you’re doing a fantastic job and being human or not, it has nothing to do with how good you just are at the job. For example, I wouldn’t trust Evan Sr. with any job in this town and he’s a witch.” She snorted, and continued cooking. Grabbing her ingredients she tossed them into her pan in order. 

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ivmwc​:

“Oh, so what you are saying is that I’m not good with English after all,” she retorted, knowing full well that wasn’t the point. “Look, in all fairness, it doesn’t really take all that much to make her cry, so it’s not like it would necessarily be a direct reflection on you as a person…at least I hope it wouldn’t be, because i’m sure I’ve made her cry on quite a few occasions…”

Mick thought about it as she finished with the vegetables and nodded. “Yeah, I mean, the position of Sheriff is mostly meant to be a political one to begin with, so it wouldn’t be completely out of left field for me to take more of a back seat there and do something else.”

“I didn’t say that!!” She laughed, “Oh? Why are you making Nikki cry?  What did the poor girl do? The girl is so sweet and is doing well at her job, AND she’s now taking care of the cats. Don’t pick on Nikita.” 

She turned on the stove, and turned back towards her cousin, “Yeah but don’t you like your job despite how busy you are with it everything? Not that I wouldn’t love opening a food truck with my favourite cousin, I don’t want to pull you away from something else you enjoy doing.”

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ivmwc​:

“The only thing I care about holding in my hands right now, is this really, really good food,” she replied, taking another shameless bite to prove her point. She chuckled a bit before saying, “I don’t know about feeling flattered, but you should definitely know that you are the first and only person that I’ve told just because I wanted to. Ollie may be family, but he only knows because it’s part of his job to know. Hartley knows because we don’t keep secrets, but you? You definitely got to know because I wanted you to.”

It was Blake’s turn to put her fork down, the plate following shortly after as she set it back down on the coffee table. “In my personal experience, luck rarely has anything to do with survival. Luck is a fickle thing and by its very nature has as much of a direct effect on whether one survives as it does on whether one ends up in a survival situation to begin with. We can attribute things to luck all we want, but at the end of day, when push comes to shove, it is a person’s own strength of will and determination to live that gets us out of a bind. And, in my humble opinion -don’t at me- I don’t think that’s something that should ever be diminished.”

“Well, definitely flattered then.” She smile, reaching out to wipe the sauce off the side of Blake’s lips. “I’m just glad that you felt comfortable enough to share that with me.” And she meant it. Aleja didn’t know when or how, but Blake trusted her enough and she wouldn’t dare ruin that. And trust went both ways. While she knew Blake wouldn’t hold it against her if she had a secret or two, Aleja knew she should learn how to drop her walls and let the woman in as she did. 

The faerie listened to what the other had to say about survival and luck - not too different from what her family had told her either. And they’ve told her many times after her last incident yet the faerie still thought it was luck. “Well.. Speaking of scars.” She threw a hand over her right shoulder, “One of mine.. I don’t know if you noticed, but it’s where my tattoo is.” The tattoo originally was slightly bigger than the scar, but Aleja made the decision to enlarge the area as evidence showed. “I met someone.. before coming here - and I found out that she was a hunter.” Her expression was pensive as she recalled the memory. “At first I didn’t know.. and at the time, I thought that we were at a point where I should reveal to her that I was, you know, a faerie.. and so I did. And at first, she seemed okay with it. So I showed her my wings..” Her voice caught in her throat. “Yeah.. It wasn’t okay.” 

The faerie looked away, “My other scar.. from the same incident, mind you.. is on my wing.” She moved on, “But even Mick doesn’t know about it since I didn’t tell her.” Aleja had kept the second wound a secret from most people.  The one on her back had to be explained since it was very noticeable at the time. The other was easier to hide from everyone. And for some reason, it had been decided that she would not reveal to anyone the damage that had been done to her wings. Even now, she hadn’t taken out her wings to look at it. “And I guess you’re the first person I’ve told about it.”

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ivmwc​:

“See?! Exactly! No one wants to talk about that shit once the meetings are said and done, which we used to be able to do with relative ease, but fuck if I know what the hell has gotten in the water lately,” she said, exasperation clear in her tone. She took a deep breath before making a face and saying, “I will definitely not be telling Myers you said that, because there is a very real possibility that she might cry and I need her to watch the cats so…”

Making her way over, she made quick work of picking out a knife from her cousin’s block and beginning the work of getting the vegetables taken care of. “You know, if you go through with it, maybe I can do early retirement from the department and come be your soup-chef instead,” she said.

“I’m not saying that Nikki is bad at cooking! You just made it sound like she was doing science experiments or something since you don’t even know what she was giving you AND you didn’t say that it tasted good - just that nothing bad has happened yet. That’s not very reassuring, Mick.” She chuckled, “I would never want to make Nikki cry. What sort of person do you think I am?” 

She looked up from what she was doing, “You would want to retire the Sheriff job to come work the food truck with me?” 

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ivmwc​:

“Oh, you mean the Council that we’re both in?” she teased, before taking another bite of food as a means to stall any possible physical retaliation. Blake shook her head as she finished chewing, before finally saying, “Yeah, Ollie knows. He’s the one that worked it out with my boss to get me in as the Town Secretary. Mick knows, as we have to alert local law enforcement in case anything goes awry, and Hartley knows because she’s my soul-sister, I couldn’t keep anything from that girl if I wanted to.”

Blake chuckled at the remark and said, “I actually think that whole ‘chicks dig scars’ thing is completely subjective. Not only does it not apply to all girls, but it really also depends on the scar. Personally, I tend to think of significant scars less as ‘hot’ and more as impressive. Like, here is proof that the person before you not only met a fate that caused them such a wound, but they survived it. They lived, and the proof is in the fact that the wound healed and has left behind a scar to remind them they’re survivors.” She glanced at her plate a bit sheepishly as she realized she’d rambled on a bit. “Sorry, that was probably far more of a serious answer than you were aiming for.”

“Yeah, still connections. You have everyone at your disposal. Such power you hold in your hands.” She joked, “Okay, I guessed as much.. As flattering as it would be, I would think your family at the very least would know... And of course.. i should have known Mick already knows. Sheriff and all.” She chuckled softly to herself.

Aleja couldn’t help but fall quiet during the talk about scars. It really was a reminder of what happened but she didn’t know what to make of it to have a permanent reminder that she somehow survived. “It’s fine.” She shook her head, putting down her fork, “I feel like it has a lot to do with luck as well that they survived.” 

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ivmwc​:

There was look in the faeries eyes that let her know she’d struck a bit of a nerve or maybe touched on a sore subject, but Blake decided not to pursue it. Aleja was very much capable of speaking her mind, so if in this instance she was opting not to, there was likely a reason and Blake would respect it. She did, however, snort at the comment and said, “I work for the local government as an undercover assignment for the federal government. If I wasn’t a psycho before the levels of bureaucracy I have to deal with might just push me over the edge.”

Blake a face at the request and said, “That’s a bit easier said than done in my line of work, but we can certainly aim to ensure that you aren’t the reason for them.” She tried to speak around a bite of food, “I am! Geez, I can only eat so fast if I also want to savor the flavor of all your hard work.” She then added, “Might motivate me more if you, I don’t know, ate with me?”

“Yeah, but that also sounds like it has its advantages. Not to mention your connections to the Council as well.” She pointed out, “You literally could be the person that people could go to for any sort of help. Who else knows you’re undercover...? Does the mayor know? He’s your cousin - It’d be.. weird if he didn’t know...”

Aleja rolled her eyes because she knew it wasn’t possible to avoid it all especially in her line of work “At least try.” She chuckled, “Or were you trying to get more scars because that thing about ‘girls loving scars’?” Using her free hand, she grabbed her fork and took a few bites from her own plate. “Well, one shouldn’t eat too fast either. I swear, I’ll have to make sure that both you and Michaella are eating properly. I’m surrounded by workaholics.”