anything by
making him uncomfortable, so I started to get up. “You guys want me to leave so
you can hang out?”
“I gotta split anyway.” Luka stood. “Mom likes the whole
family together for meals.” He rolled his eyes. “It’s lame, but whatever. See
you tomorrow, Curtis?”
Curtis
grinned. “Yeah, sure.”
“Cool.”
Luka nodded at me again on his way out.
I glanced
at Curtis, who quickly turned away and started fiddling with the laptop. “I
guess training didn’t go so good, huh?”
“Not
really. I kind of got my butt handed to me.” I leaned forward. “But I don’t want
to talk about that at a time like this.”
“A time
like what?”
I knew I
was embarrassing him, but this was a big deal. “Luka. He’s cute, yeah?”
He
shrugged. “I guess.”
Yeah
right, he guessed . Please. “You like him?”
“I don’t know.
We only met a few days ago.”
“But you
have the whole movie thing in common,” I said. “Come on, it doesn’t take that
long to know if you like someone or not. How old is he? Is he a dragon? I want
some details.”
Curtis
sighed as he turned to face me. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Luka is
a fire dragon.” He leaned back against the table. “He’s fifteen, so he doesn’t
have his powers yet. He lives here with his parents and his two sisters. The
littlest one is a hybrid. That’s why they’re here. They came about four years
ago, right before she was born.”
I felt
that little twinge of jealousy again. It was a feeling I hated, but one I couldn't
help. “It’s good they had a place to come to. He seems nice.”
“He is
but...” Curtis started to pace. “It’s weird. We hang out and he seems like a
normal guy, only he isn’t. He’s a dragon. Sometimes I kind of forget and then I
remember and it’s like... I don’t know what to do.”
“What do
you mean?” I asked. “So he’s a dragon. I am too.”
“Well...
yeah, but with you it’s different. You were raised by humans. Luka has spent
all his life around other dragons. He’s used to being around people with all
this...power. Why would he want to hang out with a lame human?”
“If he
thinks you’re so lame, then why was he here?”
“Maybe he
didn’t want to be rude.”
I got up
and stepped in front of him, forcing him to stop. “You listen to me right now.
You’re cute. You’re funny.” I ticked off my fingers as I spoke. “You’re
talented. You’re sweet. Don’t make a face. Sweet is a good thing whether you
think it is or not. You’re awesome.” I put my hands on his shoulders. “Any guy,
dragon or human, would be lucky to have someone like you. Don’t be afraid to go
for him just because you don’t think you fit together.”
I know,
it was kind of hypocritical of me to say something like that when I wasn’t
exactly going after Zack. But this was about Curtis, not me. And the thing with
Zack was way more complicated anyway.
“At the
very least,” I said, “I’d like to see you with a friend. Someone who likes the
stuff you like. Luka could be that, if nothing else. And he did say he wanted
to see you tomorrow of his own free will. It’s not like anybody made him say
that.”
Those
words earned me a small smile. “Yeah, that’s true.”
“And if
you do need any romantic advice,” I lightly punched his arm, “you know who to
ask.”
“Yeah.”
He snorted. “Because you’re the expert.”
That made
us both laugh. It felt good, especially after my brutal training session with
Megara. Seeing him happy made me happy. I dropped back into the chair. “Derek,
Hannah, and Brandy went out to together? All three of them?” I couldn’t really
see that happening, especially given how
making him uncomfortable, so I started to get up. “You guys want me to leave so
you can hang out?”
“I gotta split anyway.” Luka stood. “Mom likes the whole
family together for meals.” He rolled his eyes. “It’s lame, but whatever. See
you tomorrow, Curtis?”
Curtis
grinned. “Yeah, sure.”
“Cool.”
Luka nodded at me again on his way out.
I glanced
at Curtis, who quickly turned away and started fiddling with the laptop. “I
guess training didn’t go so good, huh?”
“Not
really. I kind of got my butt handed to me.” I leaned forward. “But I don’t want
to talk about that at a time like this.”
“A time
like what?”
I knew I
was embarrassing him, but this was a big deal. “Luka. He’s cute, yeah?”
He
shrugged. “I guess.”
Yeah
right, he guessed . Please. “You like him?”
“I don’t know.
We only met a few days ago.”
“But you
have the whole movie thing in common,” I said. “Come on, it doesn’t take that
long to know if you like someone or not. How old is he? Is he a dragon? I want
some details.”
Curtis
sighed as he turned to face me. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Luka is
a fire dragon.” He leaned back against the table. “He’s fifteen, so he doesn’t
have his powers yet. He lives here with his parents and his two sisters. The
littlest one is a hybrid. That’s why they’re here. They came about four years
ago, right before she was born.”
I felt
that little twinge of jealousy again. It was a feeling I hated, but one I couldn't
help. “It’s good they had a place to come to. He seems nice.”
“He is
but...” Curtis started to pace. “It’s weird. We hang out and he seems like a
normal guy, only he isn’t. He’s a dragon. Sometimes I kind of forget and then I
remember and it’s like... I don’t know what to do.”
“What do
you mean?” I asked. “So he’s a dragon. I am too.”
“Well...
yeah, but with you it’s different. You were raised by humans. Luka has spent
all his life around other dragons. He’s used to being around people with all
this...power. Why would he want to hang out with a lame human?”
“If he
thinks you’re so lame, then why was he here?”
“Maybe he
didn’t want to be rude.”
I got up
and stepped in front of him, forcing him to stop. “You listen to me right now.
You’re cute. You’re funny.” I ticked off my fingers as I spoke. “You’re
talented. You’re sweet. Don’t make a face. Sweet is a good thing whether you
think it is or not. You’re awesome.” I put my hands on his shoulders. “Any guy,
dragon or human, would be lucky to have someone like you. Don’t be afraid to go
for him just because you don’t think you fit together.”
I know,
it was kind of hypocritical of me to say something like that when I wasn’t
exactly going after Zack. But this was about Curtis, not me. And the thing with
Zack was way more complicated anyway.
“At the
very least,” I said, “I’d like to see you with a friend. Someone who likes the
stuff you like. Luka could be that, if nothing else. And he did say he wanted
to see you tomorrow of his own free will. It’s not like anybody made him say
that.”
Those
words earned me a small smile. “Yeah, that’s true.”
“And if
you do need any romantic advice,” I lightly punched his arm, “you know who to
ask.”
“Yeah.”
He snorted. “Because you’re the expert.”
That made
us both laugh. It felt good, especially after my brutal training session with
Megara. Seeing him happy made me happy. I dropped back into the chair. “Derek,
Hannah, and Brandy went out to together? All three of them?” I couldn’t really
see that happening, especially given how
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