Talan awoke to a deathly quiet house. It was Saturday, about a week since the last time he saw Sonata or her friends. She played games with him the rest of the night. He had to admit she wasn’t that bad, despite her insistence otherwise. His parents came home and paid her. She thanked them for the job and talked with his father a bit before leaving. Talan wasn’t sure what about, since his mother whisked him away to find out about the upcoming Cross Country meet. Sonata gave Talan a warm hug before she left and tousled his spiked hair.

After the Cross Country meet later that week, his parents took him to dinner. Little did he know they were going to spring something on him. Something big. His parent’s company was going through a merger with another, roughly the same size. They would be flying to Europe for two weeks to finalize the merger, and set up a site that would be built in the future. Talan’s mother had to leave to meet her friends for yoga, which left just him and his dad.

Talan’s father waited a moment before continuing the conversation. Then, the unbelievable happened. Sonata walked through the door and took a seat next to Talan. She gave him a small hug and said that his father had told her to come out to dinner.

Talan’s father ordered her some food, then explained why they were meeting like this. Aside from the two weeks they’d be staying in Europe, while they were there, it was his anniversary with Talan’s mother. He planned to stay an extra two weeks to visit her relatives, and to see the sites. On top of that, he booked a cruise for the occasion. All told, it meant that his parents would be gone for over a month. Talan’s father explained that’s why he asked Sonata to come. He wanted to know if she’d be willing to watch Talan and the house for that extended amount of time. That way he wouldn’t have to call in any last minute favors. He also believed that they both got along well. He said he trusted them, and wouldn’t have a problem with Sonata moving in for the job. He would pay her more than her usual rate, and provide as much money for groceries or other expenses that were needed.

Talan didn’t know what to say, he just turned toward Sonata who was smiling down at him. She said she would be glad to take the job, and that Talan was no trouble at all. As for Talan himself, he didn’t argue one bit. And so it was settled.

It was about nine in the morning as Talan dragged himself out of bed and into the shower. After he was done he felt strange, he checked the temperature and realized it was quite hot outside. He slipped on a loose pair of shorts and a tee shirt and went downstairs to make some breakfast. After he was done eating, the doorbell rang.

Talan put his dishes in the sink, then answered the door.

“Hey Spike, how ya doin’ this morning?” Sonata asked with a happy smile.

Talan grinned, that was fast. He knew she was supposed to come this morning, but he didn’t think she would be so early. Also, Talan had a little trouble keeping his eyes off her. Today Sonata wore short shorts and a tank top that exposed her slender midriff. It was likely due to the heat, and made perfect sense to Talan. He noticed the top was one of those newer stylized things. The ones where it lacked a shoulder strap on the left side. She was also wearing sandals, something even Talan considered wearing today.

“Morning, Sonata. Do you need help with your things?” Talan asked.

Sonata nodded, “Such a sweetie, yes that would be nice. They’re in the back. I want to check to see if your parents left me anything to do, then I’ll help.”

Talan began walking to her jeep and yelled over his shoulder, “It’s in my father’s study.”

Sonata found the study and sat down at the desk, she read the note saying that everything she needed was inside. The money, the list of things to do as the days went by, and some things she was welcome to use while she was here.

Talan grabbed two suitcases and hauled them upstairs and into the guest bedroom. It was located just down the hall from his own room and on the opposite side. Sonata found him and clasped her hands to her mouth.

“Wow! This is really nice! I’m staying here?” she gasped.

Talan nodded as he left the room, “Yep, that’s what my mother and father agreed to. I’ll go get your other stuff while you unpack.”

He didn’t hear a reply while Sonata grabbed her suitcases and hoisted them onto the bed. She must have had a lot of stuff in there since they were kinda heavy. Talan grabbed the last of Sonata’s things in a few bags and shut up the house. He brought them into the room and found Sonata was still marveling at how spacious it was.

“This is amazing, and it’s all mine... “ she said while shaking her head.

“I didn’t think you’d like it so much, but I’m glad you do.” Talan said with a shrug of his shoulders.

Sonata looked over and saw he had finished carrying her stuff in. She giggled and grabbed him in tight hug, then fell onto the bed with him, still giggling.

“This isn’t at all like the apartment I share with the girls,” she said while letting go of Talan. “It’s so cramped, here I can actually have my own space. It’s wonderful! And thanks for helping me carry in my stuff. ”

Talan sat up and looked down at her, “Don’t worry about it, I’m glad you like everything. I’ll leave you alone to get unpacked.”

Sonata shrugged, “Alright, Talan. There’s no chores on weekends apparently, so do whatever you want.”

Talan nodded, “That’s good, I was going to go hang out with some friends today. I’ll probably be gone most of the day.”

“Alright,” Sonata said, “When you get home I’ll make dinner and we can hangout if you want, sound good?”

“Sounds great!” Talan exclaimed.

He left the guest room and went back to his own. He shut the door and picked up his cell phone. Alex was usually the one who made the plans, so he decided to call him first.

“Hey, Alex.”

“Oh, hey Talan, what’s up man?” he asked.

Talan yawned, “Nothing much, just wondered if we were doing anything today.”

“Nah, can’t get enough people. We decided not to.”

“Oh, really?” Talan asked, “That’s a bummer.”

“Yeah, sorry. I’ll talk to ya later, Talan.”

Talan hung up and fell back into his computer chair. Well that was lame, what was he going to do now? He turned to his computer and realized there was a content patch for one of his favorite games coming out today. He shrugged and opened Mist, the digital distribution service and began the download. At least that was something. He walked downstairs to make a snack and realized they were out of some good stuff, he made a note to run down to the market later and get something. No need to have Sonata do it, and he would probably want to go do something later anyway.

After some time on the computer and some studying, Talan decided to go down the road to the grocery store. He wanted some cookies and some candy bars for later.

Talan walked into the kitchen and saw Sonata flipping through a cookbook, “Sonata, I’m going to go down to the store. I’ll be back soon.”

Sonata looked and shrugged, “Alright, are you sure you don’t want me to take you?”

Talan shook his head, “Nah, I’ll ride my bike. It’s just down the road.”

“Do you have the money?” she asked.

“Yeah, my mom gave me some for occasions like this.”

“Alright, Talan.” Sonata said with a laugh. “Don’t be too long or I’ll worry.”

Talan nodded with a sigh and walked out to the garage. He lifted the door and road out of the driveway and into the neighborhood. Talan’s house was situated in a gated community atop a large hill. He coasted down the road past the gates and continued on until he reached the edge of the suburbs, and then the store.

He walked in and quickly went to the isles to find the candy and cookies. He also saw some nacho chips that were on sale. He figured Sonata could make something taco related with them, like a taco salad or something, so he grabbed them too. After paying at the register, Talan stuffed the groceries into his backpack and got on the bike. Just before he got on and started to pedal, he caught a glimpse of something across the street.

On the other side of the grocery store was the diner and donut shop, Joe’s Donuts. It was a favorite hangout for kids in the area. In one of the booths near the window he saw Alex sit down, and across from him was Ryan. Two of their other friends from school were also there. They were laughing and enjoying themselves. Talan scanned the parking lot and saw they had their downhill longboards resting against the building. They were going to go downhill skating across town later. Talan had a board for that, and it was one of his favorite things to do. Why hadn’t they called him?

Things began to click into place as Talan got his bike and pedalled away. They didn’t want to hang out with him, for one reason or another. Alex lied, and others didn’t say anything. Granted, they might not have known, but still. Would they have texted him with a lie if he asked what they were doing? Talan grunted as he pedalled up the hill, it was much harder than going down, and he was riding into the sun. He had no idea why they would act this way. It was making him really depressed.

Talan finally arrived back at his house, completely out of breath. He coasted into the garage and walked inside, the cool air feeling oh so good. Talan made his way into the kitchen and was joined by Sonata coming in from the other room.

“Hey! So what did ya get?” She asked.

Talan frowned and slowly sat down his backpack. “Just come cookies, candy bars, and these,” he said while sliding the nachos over to her. “Figured you could do some taco stuff with that.”

Sonata smiled, but then realized Talan was looking down. “Thanks, but what’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”

Talan shook his head and began to walk away, but was stopped by Sonata’s hand on his shoulder. “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”

Sonata squatted down, “Talan, please tell me. Maybe I can help, whatever it is.”

Talan looked into her eyes and realized it wouldn’t matter if he told her, “You know how I said I was gonna hang out with friends later today, and that they said they were busy?”

“Mhm,” Sonata replied.

“Well, I saw them at our favorite diner just now. All of them. They lied to me.”

Sonata gasped, “Why would they do that?”

Talan’s head and shoulders drooped, “I don’t know. Apparently they don’t want to hang out. Maybe they’re tired of me. Doesn’t matter. I’m going upstairs.”

Sonata’s hand fell away as Talan quickly turned and walked up to his room. She winced as she heard the door slam. She felt terrible because she knew exactly what it was like. Aria and Adagio had done that to her before, at least a few times. It all worked out later, but that didn’t make it feel any better.

Talan sat slumped over in his computer chair staring at one of the online collectible card games he played. He was losing badly, but he didn’t care. What would make his friends abandon him and lie? What did he do? Was it because of his wealth? That couldn’t be it, he didn’t consider himself a stuck up brat, and his cousin wasn’t stuck up either. Even though she could be a bit stuffy with her knowledge and desire to learn. Plus, Ryan’s family was pretty well off, too. Talan quit the card game and slouched down even further.

Wait... Talan thought as he got up, it didn’t have anything to do with Sonata... did it? He thought back to how Alex and Ryan reacted when he told them they shouldn’t come over to meet her. They weren’t pleased. Was it because they were jealous? At the moment, that made more sense than anything else, and it really irritated him.

After a few more minutes of contemplation, Talan was broken out of his thoughts by a knock on the door. It opened revealing a concerned Sonata.

“Hey, Talan. How ya feeling?” she asked.

Talan sat up and shrugged, “Not so good, but I’ll be okay.”

Sonata walked forward a bit and leaned over, resting her hands on her knees. “I’m sorry about your friends. But I think I know something that will cheer you up. Want to go to the beach with me?”

Talan looked up, a stunned expression on his face. “Th-the beach, with you?”

“Mhm!” Sonata nodded with a playful grin.

“Like with water, sand and uh... swimsuits?”

“Yeah, all of that. You have been to the beach before, right?” she asked with a confused look.

Talan looked Sonata up and down. Her attractive figure being shown off by her outfit. His friends were jealous of him? Well, now they had every right to be...

“Do you have beach stuff?” Talan asked.

“I certainly do!” Sonata said with happy clap.

“I’d love to go,” Talan said. “Let’s go right now. Let me get my stuff and I’ll meet you downstairs.”

“Yay!” Sonata exclaimed, then ran into her room.

Talan grinned and went about gathering his swim trunks and a few other things, then went downstairs to wait. In a few moments, Sonata joined him with a backpack of her own and some sun glasses.

“Ready to go?” she asked while getting out her keys.

“Hold on a sec,” Talan said. “Want to see something cool? We don’t need to drive. Follow me.”

Sonata looked at Talan and raised an eyebrow, “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” Talan said with a chuckle.

The two of them left his house and locked up, then walked to the group of trees that sat behind the community. Behind the group of houses near Talan was a small park for the community. It was a switchback trail that ran down a rather large cliff face. Sonata smiled as she followed Talan down the trail and eventually came out on the other side. They were greeted by a serene and secluded beach that wrapped around the cliff to their left, and stretched out to the horizon on their right. The sand was warm and inviting, as was the calm sea.

Talan turned to Sonata and looked up at her, “So, what do you think? Probably better than the beach you were thinking of, right?”

Sonata couldn’t tear herself away from the ocean. Even though she had been here a long time with Adagio and Aria, she never had a chance to visit it. Distant memories of her former home came flooding back to her. Endless oceans and the life teeming within. Talan’s voice eventually tore her from the reverie.

“Oh, yeah...” she muttered. “Sorry, Talan. I was just daydreaming a bit. This place is much better.”

Talan smiled proudly and began to unpack his stuff. Sonata did the same and spread out some of their beach towels.

As Sonata was going through her bag, Talan decided to grab his trunks and go change in the trees where they just came from. He jogged over and took off his shirt and shorts, then put on his trunks. A light blue pair with schools of fish on the front.

Talan emerged from the trees and was greeted to something he still wasn’t prepared for. Sonata stood up and slipped off her shorts, and then her top revealing a purple bikini. She stretched and turned around to see him gawking at her. Talan closed his mouth and tried to hide his immense blush. She was absolutely beautiful. Not to mention in tremendous shape.

How can she eat so many tacos and have a body like that?! Talan wondered as she smirked and beckoned him over with a finger.

“Whatcha starin’ at, cutie?” she asked while leaning on her hip.

“I- uh, nothing.” Talan stuttered then became suddenly preoccupied with the sand at his feet.

Sonata chuckled and bent down, “Nothing to be ashamed of, Talan. Now, it’s bright out here. We should put on some sunscreen.”

Talan looked up at her and nodded. He took a bottle from Sonata and began covering himself. After he finished he turned around to see Sonata smiling at him.

“What?” he asked.

“Could you get my back?” Sonata asked innocently.

Talan dropped the bottle and quickly picked it back up. “S-sure.”

Sonata stretched out on her stomach and handed him her own bottle. “Don’t miss a spot, I burn easily.”

Talan quickly nodded and got down on his knees. He squirted some of the lotion onto his hands and began to work. He started at her shoulders, then worked his way down. He marveled at the silky smooth touch of her skin and her curves. As he worked lower he heard her sigh in contentment. He reached her lower back and finished, somewhat sad that it didn’t last longer.

“Done,” Talan said.

“Oh, could you get my legs, too?” she asked, looking over her shoulder.

“L-legs? Legs, yes.” Talan said and reached for more sunscreen.

Running his hands up and down her thighs, Talan realized the muscle she had. It was deceiving. From the way they dressed, Sonata and her friends looked the like typical hot teenagers. It wasn’t that they were bodybuilders or anything, but Sonata looked like she ran cross country with a body like that. Or, perhaps she was a swimmer? That would also explain it. He wondered if Adagio and Aria were the same.

“Ahh, that felt nice. Thanks, Talan.” Sonata said with chuckle while looking over her shoulder again.

Talan smiled, then felt his trunks starting to stretch. He looked down and quickly got to his feet, his cheeks burning crimson. He carefully laid down on his stomach next to Sonata. His towel was already warm from the sun and sapped him of energy.

“Uh, don’t mention it.” Talan said. “Now what?”

“Well, I’m gonna get some sun for now. You can do whatever you want.”

“I think I’ll just take a nap.” Talan said with a yawn.

“Kay,” Sonata said while rolling onto her back and raising one leg.

The amount of time dwelling on why his friends would lie must have really tired Talan out. A sound coming from nearby roused him from his nap. He opened his eyes to a big blue sky, though the sun was starting to go down over the ocean. He didn’t realize he napped for so long.

The sound brought his attention to the water where he saw Sonata floating and waving to him.

“Come swim with me, Talan!”

Talan grinned. Like she even needed to invite him.

He ran down to the beach and jumped into a wave as it broke to shore. He swam out a ways until he was near Sonata and came to the surface. The water was cool, but not cold. It was nearly perfect.

“This is great. Thanks for this, Sonata,” Talan said with a grateful smile.

Sonata swam forward and grinned. Her hair was out of it’s ponytail and hanging low down her back. She looked absolutely stunning.

“I called you earlier but you slept right through it,” she said.

Talan rolled his eyes and looked up at the sky, “Yeah, sorry. I - argh!”

He spoke the last of what he was saying underwater as Sonata playfully shoved him under. Talan broke the surface and shook his head. Sonata giggled and stuck out her tongue.

“Oh, so that’s how it’s gonna be?” Talan asked while slowly swimming toward her.

Sonata shrugged, “Yeah, what you gonna do about it?”

Talan swam up to her then sprang up out of water as high as he could to shove Sonata’s head under. She remained there for a moment, then swiftly spun around behind Talan and wrapped her arms around him. She broke the surface and threw him backwards slightly out of the water, dunking him behind her.

They both played around for a while wrestling back and forth. Talan had a hard time keeping up with Sonata in the water. Whenever she wanted to get away there was little Talan could do to stop her. It was like she was born in the water, she was a natural. He swore it literally parted in front of her as if by magic.

Sonata finally grabbed Talan from behind and gave him a playful squeeze. She brought her legs under him and leaned forward. “Truce?”

Talan, who was out of breath at this point, decided to accept. He slumped back in her embrace and nodded. “Truce.”

They bobbed up and down for a bit without a word, watching the sun go down. Then Talan decided ask something.

“Hey Sonata, I noticed something the other day when your friends were here. Aria and Adagio, they make fun of you and run you down... do they do that a lot?”

Sonata looked down at the boy in her arms and shrugged, “What makes you ask that?”

Talan put his hands on her arms, “I dunno, I just didn’t like to see it. If they do that a lot, why do you hang out with them?”

Sonata paused, curious as to why he was asking her this. And also curious that she never really considered it before. She felt Talan slipping so she adjusted her grip and propped him up on one leg. She rested her chin on his head and looked off into the distance.

“They’re kinda all I have. We have each other, it’s complicated,” she said. “They do make fun of me a lot. Sometimes I think it’s because I try to be happy when they kind of... aren’t.”

“Why do you take it?” Talan asked. “You don’t have to, you know.”

“Aria isn’t so bad,” she said with a warm smile. “She’s... well...” Sonata paused, seeing a school of fish swim away in the clear blue water. She noticed the smaller fish lagging behind a bit and frowned. “She’s had a rough childhood, let’s just say that.”

Talan nodded, “Okay, but what about Adagio? She seemed... odd...”

Sonata frowned again, “Adagio is... complicated. She’s the one who found Aria and myself. She’s also the one who discovered we work well together.”

“I just... you’re a really nice girl, Sonata. I don’t like it when nice people get taken advantage of.”

Sonata felt a pang of guilt run through her. Taking advantage of people is how they survived in this world. Normally no harm was done, and they were careful who they used their powers on. A little money here, a free cab ride there. A job interview goes smoothly, one of them gets a raise. But she always tried to talk Adagio out of doing harmful things, and Aria was usually in agreement, if perhaps for different reasons.

“I don’t know,” Talan said. “With what’s happened with my friends, I don’t know if they’ll be my friends anymore. Maybe I should stay away from them. We shouldn’t be around people who hurt us, you know?”

Sonata leaned forward and ran a hand through Talan’s green hair, “I don’t think that’s the answer, Talan. You know, there’s something I learned a long, long time ago. It’s from where I grew up. You could say that I practically grew up in the ocean. We should learn from the sea.”

Talan turned around, “What? The sea?”

Sonata chuckled before letting go and swimming around in front of him. “Think about it, Spike. What’s with the sea?”

“It’s... a lot of water,” Talan replied.

“Yes, but what else?” Sonata asked while carefully taking Talan’s hands. She pulled him along as she gently swam backwards in a circle.

“I don’t know,” Talan said.

“The seas change, Talan,” Sonata said with a gentle smile. “They can be calm like this. They can be a little windy, really windy, downright nasty with horrible storms, and everything in between. But in the end, they return to this.”

“So what are you saying?” Talan asked.

Sonata grinned and rolled her eyes. She stopped swimming and floated in front of him. “I’m saying that life is like the sea. Sometimes it’s calm, sometimes it storms. But in the end, it comes back to normal. Sometimes your friends can be jerks, and sometimes mine can, too. But Adagio and Aria have always returned to normal. They aren’t so bad, and I’m guessing your friends aren’t either. Give it some time before you decide to do anything.”

Talan pondered what she was saying, then nodded. “That’s some pretty good advice, Sonata. I will. Thanks.”

Sonata smiled and wrapped him up in a warm hug, “Aww, you’re welcome. As much as I love the ocean, we’re starting to get pruney. I think it’s time to get out.”

Talan nodded and began to swim to shore. Sonata followed, but then turned around and looked at the vast ocean one last time. She would have to return here with the girls once they got more power. Perhaps then they could... no, it would be too risky...  

As Talan got to the beach he felt the sand and rocks beneath him. He began to walk out of the water, wondering when they would be able to do this again. He was sure to think on Sonata’s sagely advice, too. She was right, he didn’t know why his friends were acting this way. He shouldn’t act on anything until he found out what’s up.

Talan began to think about how he would approach Ryan when his concentration was snapped like a twig. An intense pain ran up his left leg all at once, like he was stung by a bee. Only it was ten times worse. He looked down and noticed a red mist forming in the water around his foot. He slowly moved away and noticed a sharp piece of beach glass the size of dinner knife sticking out of the sand and rocks. He had stepped right on it.

“Uh- uh-I d-don’t... So- Sonata!” he shouted.

Sonata saw him stop and swam faster, she ran up beside him and saw the red water. “Oh my gosh! What happened?!” she exclaimed. “Is that beach glass?! Here, lean on me, c’mon...”

She lead Talan out of the water and to their towels. Talan wasn’t afraid of blood, but he was afraid the cut was deep. “What are we gonna do?” he asked.

Sonata sat him down on the towel and made him hold part of it to his foot. “Try not to get any sand on it.” she ran over to her bag and pulled out a first aid kit, then ran back and got on her knees.

Talan was impressed, he didn’t think she would bring that with her. But he was glad she did. “How bad is it?” he asked.

Sonata furrowed her brow and examined the cut, “I don’t think it’s too bad. I need to clean it out.”

Talan winced as Sonata cleaned the wound for bacteria then pressed it shut with the towel. After about ten minutes, the bleeding seemed to slow down at least a bit. Sonata but on one of the larger bandages and tied some tape around his foot to keep pressure on it.

She sat back and rubbed her forehead, “That should do for now.”

“I’m sorry, Sonata.” Talan said with a long sigh. “I should have been more careful.”

“Don’t apologize, Talan.” Sonata said with a comforting smile. “We didn’t know they were there. I could have stepped on it, too.”

“Yeah, but now I feel dumb having us walk down here. How am I going to get back with this stupid foot?”

Sonata got up and put her shorts and top back on, then gathered up their things. She put Talan’s stuff in her bag and gave it him. “Can you sling this around your back?”

“Yeah,” Talan replied.

Sonata helped him up and bent over, “Jump on my back, I’ll carry you up.”

“What?” Talan asked, almost with laughter. “I’m kinda heavy, and besides I can walk.”

Sonata gave him a pat on the shoulder, “You’re not that heavy, and if you walk up that hill it’s just going to open up again. C’mon, once we get to the top you can hobble along with my help. You won’t get embarrassed...”  she said with a wink.

Talan sighed and jumped on her back. She hooked her arms under his knees and began the ascent back to the gated community.

“You know, you’re one of the nicest girls I’ve ever met, Sonata.” he said while hugging around her neck.

“Do you know many girls, Talan?” she asked teasingly.

“It’s just I expect them to be self centered jerks, because a lot of them are.”

“You expect them to be like Aria?” Sonata asked while glancing around her shoulder.

“Wha-? No. I mean, not really.” Talan stuttered.

“It’s alright,” Sonata chuckled, “She could easily fit that description. She’s got another side, though. I told her about your game collection. She was impressed.”

“She was?” Talan asked.

“Mhm, next time they come over maybe you two can play. Would you like her as a friend, too?”

“Well sure!” Talan exclaimed, “The more girls the better!”

Sonata shared a hearty laugh with him as they continued up the bluffs. “You’re too funny, Talan. But really, it means a lot that you’re willing to put up with my friends while your parents are gone.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Talan replied. “But speaking of them, Adagio said you have a beautiful singing voice when singing by yourself.”

“Oh, she said that did she?”

“Yeah, you sounded great together. But uh, I was wondering...”

“Wondering if I could sing for you?” she cooed.

“Well, yeah...” Talan said while looking away.

Sonata stopped and looked over her shoulder. Talan attempting to hide his blush was beyond adorable. She adjusted her grip so he wasn’t slipping as much, then continued up the path.

Talan smiled when she began to sing. It was soft at first, then a little louder. Just a soft hum of a gentle melody, then with some words. No talk about control or spells this time. Instead it was about letting go and watching the wind and stars. Talan found himself nodding his head to the side along with Sonata as she swayed just a little bit with the melody. He let out a yawn and rested his forehead against her neck. She really was a good singer by herself. Talan yawned again, bigger this time.

“Hey, don’t fall asleep back there, we’re almost home.” he heard Sonata say.

Talan rubbed his eyes, they were so heavy.

The next thing he knew Talan was being let down on his porch as Sonata unlocked the door. “We- we’re back already? When did that happen?” he asked groggily.

Sonata lead Talan inside and smiled down at him, “I told you not to nod off, silly.”

Talan stretched and shook his head. He felt strange, kinda like he did when all three of them sang for him. “I didn’t nod off, I’m fine.”

“Good,” Sonata said. “Go upstairs for me. I’m gonna put our stuff away then come up to check your cut and rebandage it.”

Talan nodded and hobbled upstairs. He splashed some water on his face then took a seat on the edge of the bathtub. Sonata came in a few minutes later and cleaned the cut again.

“How does it feel?” she asked.

“Hurts a little, but not bad at all. It was stepping on it that hurt the worst.” he replied.

“Well, it’s not bleeding as much. This new bandage will last the night. If it doesn’t look any better tomorrow, we’ll go to the clinic.”

Talan hopped up and shrugged, “I think it’ll be fine. Thanks, Sonata.”

“Don’t mention it, Talan. I’m gonna take a shower then start dinner. Sound good?”

“Yeah, I’ll shower when you’re done. Call me when it’s ready.”

Sonata smiled and walked out, leaving Talan to ponder the day’s events. It was the first day with her and already so much had happened. But most of it was fun, so he didn’t have anything to complain about.

Talan gingerly walked down the hall to his room and plopped in his computer chair. He booted up his rig and noticed his phone. There was a message from a number he didn’t recognize. He opened it up and couldn’t believe it.

Hey stud, have a good first day with Sonata? She’s a lot of fun. Aria and I are a little jealous you get her all to yourself. We’ve got more practicing to do, so we’ll be around soon.  <33 Adagio