51 | BEAUTIFUL DISTRACTIONS

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51

MICHAEL

I find myself watching Ember Chapman more than I'd care to admit.

Cameron and I are puttering around Skyfall with lessons. I've been coaching Noor on the advanced walls for a few hours now and she complains a lot. Cameron's been pestering Vanessa as she works at something on her laptop at a small table near the entrance, poking her as she giggles.

Ember separated herself from the rest of us. Well, not me. She tried to get me to stay with her by the front desk, but I couldn't. Noor wouldn't leave me alone.

While Ember's roommates seem to notice everything—eyes alert, shoulders straight, heads swivelling—Ember's not like that. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it's like she's never really here; her mind floats in a different universe, one only she can see.

And when she looks at me, it's hard not to be sucked into that universe, too.

It must be the eyes. One grey like ash, but sometimes blue like a stormy sky, and the other one bright brown like the cinnamon she uses to bake. It must be the eyes that disarm me when I look at her.

Even now, as I instruct Noor to flatten her feet against the wall, my attention is drawn to the front desk where Ember perches on a counter, legs crossed under her. Loose papers are scattered around, resting over logbooks for Skyfall. Her hair is bright red like the only colour in a grey world, and wild, too, reminding me of rolling storms and driving with the windows down, two things I used to love.

"Hey!" Noor bites, clapping her hands in front of my face. "I'm over here!"

I flinch, clearing my throat. "Sorry. Uh, when you're ready."

Noor pops a hip, jaw taught. "I've been ready for a while. You're the problem."

Even though I know it won't help the situation, I can't help but glance back to the freckled woman studying topics I'll never be able to understand. She studies physics and calculus, space and engineering biology. She studies everything.

With the amount of time I've been spending with her recently, on rooftops and in the restaurant kitchens, I've learned so much more about her.

Ember's always loved school, and always hated it, too. I told her I almost failed out of school when mom died. She admitted she actually did fail tenth grade. That's when I found out she's nineteen, not eighteen.

She's worked for every cent to pay her way through school, and without the scholarship, she'd have to leave. I told her about loans, like the ones I had to take, but she said she wouldn't get enough to stay—not with residence fees and tuition.

I learned that Ember will drink coffee in any form—iced, hot, in a cake, black, creamed, or with sugar. She said that it's not about what it tastes like, only about the affect it has. Gross. I told her that coffee should be enjoyed! Made with passion! She just laughed at me.

Sitting on the front counter, Ember runs a hand down her face, pawing at the hair in front of her eyes. Her cheeks are puffed out, too, making her nose turn upwards. I laugh lightly at that. She looks like a Who from Whoville. If I had my camera, I'd capture her in a photo to show her later. Maybe she'd smile at me, or maybe she'd glare and shove my shoulder. I wouldn't mind either way.

"HEY! MIKE!"

Does Ember like The Grinch? I'll have to ask next time I—

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"

I jerk back into my surroundings, finding a very irate Noor. "Sorry," I breathe out, plastering a smile on. "Ready when you are."

Her jaw drops, her sharp face open in shock. And anger. "You're unbelievable," she grumbles, stomping away.

What did I do?

I turn back around, but Ember's gone, only books and papers in her place. I frown and start glancing about the place, between the crowds and out the doors, but I don't see her.

After walking around a few obstacles, I catch her scaling a wall without a harness in jeans and an ugly flannel shirt. There's a kid, maybe seven or eight, bawling his eyes out above her. His shoulders shake, round face soaked with tears.

Ember's getting too high. My heart rate is triple time in my chest, drowning out everything else. If she falls...

She grabs the kids' right leg and guides it down. Then again. She mutters encouragements.

Shit. That's my job.

"You got it," Ember says to the kid. "Just keep going."

"I—I—I can't," the little boy says.

"Of course you can," says Ember, hands shaking on the climbing holds. "Trust me. Give me your right foot. No...No, your other right."

I stand tense under Ember, heart pounding. The kid is in a harness, so he's fine regardless, but she'll get seriously hurt if she falls. There are no mats here. It's a harness-only wall.

But, if she falls, I'll catch her. Of course I will.

Ember guides the kid until I can reach up and grab him. "Where are your parents?" I ask gently, unclipping his harness. The kid's breathing is hitching as he comes down from the violent sobs.

"Over—over—over there," he gets out, pointing with shaking shoulders. Just then, a middle-aged man shuffles over, eyes glued to the phone in his hands. "Daddy!" the kid cries, running into his arms. The father doesn't pay him much attention, but they walk away together, leaving me to look up at the climber without a harness that's still too high for me to release a breath.

"Ember?" I say carefully. She glances down, gripping two rocks with white knuckles.

"Oh, hey. Didn't, uh...Didn't see you there." Her left leg shakes, a tremor in the underdeveloped muscle.

"You're not supposed to go up without a harness," I remind her, my voice hard.

She tensely laughs. "And you think now is the time to mention that?"

"If it makes more of an impact, then yes." I step in, ready in case her body fails her.

Ember's hands start to slip. "The only impact here will be my head on the ground if you don't shut up, 'kay?"

I shift foot to foot, rolling my shoulders. "Okay," I mutter. She's tall, but I can do it. If I have to, I will.

She starts to work her way down. It's not her strong suit, so at one point I'm sure she's doomed when she leans backward, but she catches herself on a rock, just barely holding on. The muscles and tendons strain under the skin of her forearms, but she just grits her teeth and doesn't stop.

"Ember you're freaking me out," I rush in a breath, threading my hands through my hair.

"You're not fucking helping, Blondie!" she calls down. A few families around the corner glare at us, but I can't focus on anything but her.

Then, she has two feet on the ground, face red with exertion, staring at me with wild hair all around her while trying to catch her breath.

"You did it," I breathe, letting my shoulders relax. "You—You did it."

She flexes her fingers, wincing. "Of course I did."

My lips turn up. Of course you did.

"Isn't that your job?" she sighs, rubbing the ache from her hands. "You know, lessons and stuff? I should start getting paid."

"We're paid by muscle mass," I inform her. "You'd get five cents on my every dollar."

She narrows her eyes and pushes me by the chest. "I'm trying to eat more," she defends.

My mind lights up at the opportunity.

"I'll take you to group tonight," I offer, "then come with me to Otto's retirement home. It's the annual autumn harvest dance and dinner."

"I have an essay," Ember dismisses, walking past me back to the front desk.

I blink. What?

I run after her like a lost puppy.

"Wait, wait, wait," I say, watching her pack up her papers. "You're not going to come with me?"

"I have an essay due," she repeats, shoving the random papers in her bag. "It's half my grade."

"I'll help."

She turns around with a brow raised. "You want to write my Engineering Management essay? Go for it. Three-thousand words. It's due November 30th."

I roll my eyes. "Ember, that's three weeks from now! You don't have to start it tonight!"

"It's actually almost done," she says nonchalantly, throwing her bag over her shoulder.

Fine. There must be another reason she doesn't want to go.

I watch her eyes, and just as I'm about to drop the subject all together, a flicker of fear shows in her face.

"They won't force you into bingo or anything," I joke, studying her face closely.

"Good because I'd beat them all," she counters easily.

"It's a game of chance," I point out, leaning against the counter. Cameron walks up to us with a large grin on his face.

"Noor's gone, so Panda and I are leaving," he says. "We're going to a hotel." He wiggles his eyebrows at Ember, who turns her face away, fiddling with a pen on the counter. She's uncomfortable.

And Cameron. He's not right. Hasn't been for a while.

I straighten up and throw an arm around Cameron, leading him towards the front doors where Vanessa waits outside. Once we're far enough away, I turn to him.

"What's going on?"





A/N

This chapter rolls into the next!

Any thoughts on Ember through Michael's eyes? What about his thoughts?

Thanks for reading ❤️ (seriously, thank you, because every comment and vote, every reader, it all makes me smile)

-Laurel

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