Some Thing Called Myself (Complete)

LIII: Something Burnt

Ch. 53: Something Burnt

Then, after a long moment, he smiled. "You, uh, forgot these in the training dens." He showed her the cans of paint and the construction paper in his arms. "Is Falchi okay?"

It was hard to ignore the strange feeling taking shape in her chest. Bernardo was worried about something. But what?

"Yeah, already up and running around."

Beh placed the painting materials on the closest cupboard and took a careful step back. "And are you okay?"

Following his eyes, Mara glanced at her hand. Shit. The smile on her face hollowed. "O-oh, this is...nothing. The baking dish wasn't that hot anymore."

"I'm...glad. Should I take a look—?"

"No. But thank you," she rushed to add. Mara turned around and grimaced. "Are you hungry? I know the chef left something around here somewhere, but I was really in the mood for some rice farofa and a veggie pie." She gestured at the stainless bowl forgotten in one corner of the marble counter; the batter inside already looked like a kid's layered liquid experiment.

Beh shook his head. "I already ate."

"It's quite late."

"Yeah."

Silence. The lights in the kitchen buzzed and blinked off and on. Since the mermaid invasion, the electricity in the HQ had been acting up.

They began and stopped in unison, "Do you—?"

Beh chuckled. "You can go first."

Mara placed her burnt hand on the counter and rested her hip beside it. To be honest, she didn't know what to say; all she wanted was to dispel the tension between them. She turned around to face him. "Have you talked to your father? How's the preparation for the election going?"

He massaged the bridge of his nose. "Pretty rushed—one day is not a lot of time to organize something like this."

"One day?" Mara felt her burnt hand with her other one. Despite the thicker patch of skin and the small blisters on her finger pads, it seemed to be in one piece. Lucky.

Beh chuckled. "Last time, we had even less. Dad simply disappeared, so the Sents voted Elena as acting director in less than an hour."

She laughed, and something at his feet caught her attention. Mara walked up to him and crouched to take the brush Beh had dropped earlier. He stumbled a step backward; when Mara stood, she found his face averted to the side, his cheeks tinted in a dark shade of red.

The reaction had been so out of character, Mara couldn't hold back a laugh. Beh always seemed so composed and cool, it was a treat to see him flustered like that, and all because of...some sudden proximity. She smirked. "What's with that face? Did I scare you?"

"N-no."

Her smirk widened. "What did you think I was gonna do, Bernardo?"

"N-nothing! I swear, I—!" He stopped himself and took in a deep breath. "Sorry."

"Okay," she whispered, her smirk widening into a full smile. Mara tossed the brush with the others.

Beh nodded and cleared his throat. "So...you're making the posters for my Dad's campaign?" He gestured at the art supplies.

Mara nodded. "I wanted to put up something tomorrow during the debate. These posters are a great way to spread ideas super quickly, you know? With just one glance. Like that." She snapped her fingers. "Besides, I miss painting. I think it'll be good to...relax. Take my mind out of all the shit happening with the tree."