Fic "Serpent skin"
Chapter 2: See.
Footsteps sounded down the corridor, but the guy didnât react. The noise in his head drowned out all sounds that were outside his zone. Because of this, he could hear only himself: his breathing, which was gradually beginning to return to normal, and the beating of his heart.
TAP. TAP.Â
Raising his head, Jay glanced at the door. It was closed, but this did not prevent the person behind it from pulling it a couple of times, causing the handle to tremble slightly. The guy didnât make a sound, only let out a heavy sigh, deciding not to indicate his presence. His own speech irritated him. His throat still treacherously hurt, and his tongue felt as if it was tied in a knot. Wanting to check, Jay stuck it out and touched it with his fingertips. The tongue was not tied, but feeling the forked tip, he grimaced.
âDis-sgusting.â
âJay?â
The guy froze. His gaze quickly darted from his fingers to the door. He had just heard the voice. A female voice. One he could not possibly confuse.
âNo!â Jay shouted, without even having time to think.
His hand rushed to his lips in an attempt to shut himself up. But it was already too late. One word was enough to stop the girl.
Nya stood waiting, pressing her ear to the door. A minute, two â silence. She held her breath, when suddenly footsteps were heard and the girlâs hand immediately rushed to the door handle. Grabbing it, at the click she pressed, but the door did not yield.
âJay, I know youâre there. Open right now,â Smith said roughly.
No answer followed. The handle remained in one place, as if made of stone. Not a single sound came from the bathroom, a grave silence hung. Only the howling of the wind outside the ship and barely audible sounds of water. No one sought to break the silence, even though each of them had something to say.
Barely pressing on the handle with his weight, Jayâs nails dug into his skin, making an already terrible situation even more unbearable. He knew that if he relaxed even for a second, the door would immediately open, if not fly off its hinges. Which was possible, considering how the hinges began to creak, their lifespan becoming shorter with each time. But even this did not worry the young people. Even if it was a torn sheet, Jay would still try to close himself off. The door was simply a wall that the guy did not want to break down, even though it was the one causing him pain.
âNya, pleas-se. Go away.â
The voice was clear, so much so that it cut through the silence.
âLeave me!â
The pressure on the door eased, however the handle was still under slight tension. It seemed that here it was â freedom.
Not feeling resistance, Jayâs hand reached for the latch. But before he could even touch it, the door was pushed with such force that he was almost knocked off his feet. A red shoe appeared in the opening, blocking the closing. Nya did not plan to retreat, anger was seeping through her. The push was only a slight outburst. Inside, everything was boiling.
âLeave? Yes, I already managed to do that. I missed everything!â â the pressure on the door increased with new force. âThe way you were bitten. And those very first stages when we could still fix everything! Even without the antidote.â
A strong blow crashed against the door.
âDid you even listen to me today? Or was I talking into the void?â
After these words, Jayâs heart froze, a slight shiver ran through his body. To tell the truth, he had listened to her poorly, especially today. All his thoughts were occupied with only one thing â the invitation to a date. During the entire meeting Jay only rehearsed his speech, at times thinking about how he looked right now. The girlâs speech was only background: he listened, admired, but did not really delve into it. And he paid the price for it.
Swallowing and barely holding the door, his strength began to leave him. Without realizing it, Jay was losing his grip. The gap between the door gradually became larger. If before a foot could barely fit there, now it stood confidently, so slipping her hand through was not difficult for Nya. Now her hand dangled in the air, trying to find the guy.
âJay,â Smith said, already without aggression. âUnderstand me. I donât hold these meetings and gather information for nothing. I try for you all.â
Leaning against the door, the girl stopped pressing.
âI want to help you. To be⌠More.â
Nyaâs hand began to lower.
âDo you not care about my words only because Iâm a girl? Yes?â
Jayâs gaze shifted to the girlâs hand, slowly and uncertainly moving along it. Right now that was the only thing he saw.
Touching the female hand, a shiver ran through his body. Slowly intertwining their fingers, the guy tried not to touch her soft skin with his claws. However, the movements were confident, his fingers bent as never before, allowing him to unclench her fist.
âThe matter is not at all in this-sâŚâ
âThen in what?â
Silence fell. Every breath could be heard.
Pursing his lips, Jay looked at their clasped hands. The familiar gesture felt as alien as never before. With his fingers he could completely envelop her hand, and the warmth coming from it was not just pleasant â it seemed divine.
Yet my chest wept with an ache, my mouth dry.
My breath broke.
This was all so wrong.
His grip began to weaken, his fingers slowly slipping away. But halfway through, Nya stopped them. She grabbed Jayâs hand in a death grip, so tightly that the crunch of knuckles could be heard.
âJay,â the girl said, and at that moment a cry rang out across the entire ship. The soft part of Smithâs hand ended up in the guyâs jaws. His fangs pierced her, and a barely noticeable trickle of blood flowed from his mouth.
Jay pulled back as quickly as he had lunged forward. His eyes widened, his tongue quickly and barely noticeably flicked out. Covering his mouth with his hand, Walker recoiled from the door. Backing away, the eyes of the blue ninja darted around the room. He could hear how strongly his heart was beating in his ears, and his tongue beat against his palm. Every part of his body was tense, steps came with difficulty. He wanted to run, to hide somewhere far away, but his body did not obey. Even though it was screaming with all its might, only one thing flashed through his head:
He bit herâŚ
And it was not a light bite. He had bitten through her hand, felt her taste. But this completely contradicted him. His will.
Spreading his fingers, Jay began to gulp air with his mouth. So greedily that he almost choked, but it still wasnât enough. Things began to swim in his eyes and the guy grabbed onto the sink, his legs buckled. Walker felt suffocation, his throat began to tighten from all sides, his breaths becoming shorter and shorter.
The door swung open. In the opening stood Nya, holding her hand, which was barely noticeably trembling. Her gaze was directed at the guy, her breathing was broken. Jayâs gaze sharply focused on her figure.
HE BIT HER.
His throat began to tighten. He tried to pronounce at least a word, but nothing came out except hissing.
âSss⌠Sssor⌠Sss-s-s-sorryâŚâ
Jay again began to back away, but when there was nowhere left to go, he pressed himself against the wall, his claws digging into the wood, leaving grooves. Nya kept coming closer to him, while he tried with all his strength to stay as far away from her as possible.
Jay did not see her face, right now for him she was only one big red spot, large, warm, frightening.
Footsteps could be heard down the corridor, becoming louder and louder with every second. Voices intertwined into one indistinguishable hum. Walker froze, his eyes stopped at one point: at the open door, the only exit. But even it was blocked.
Nya kept trying to shout to him, but the words went nowhere. He did not react to her voice at all.
âWhat happened?!â Kai shouted, grabbing the doorframe.
Turning to her brotherâs voice, the girl did not have time to say anything when the sound of breaking glass was heard. It grazed her, but without hesitation she ran to the broken window. The only thing the ninjas saw was the wooden frame.
The blue ninja had escaped.