Chương 182: B3. 21 - Best Friendly Punch

Good thing that we didn't meet anyone in the building. I didn't know my condo neighbors, mostly because I didn't care enough about them, but they'd surely recognize me. Wouldn't want rumors spreading about two gals covered in dust and dirt roaming around on the night of Adumbrae attacks. Deen and I didn't speak inside the elevator. We stared at the numbers ticking to twenty-two. Halfway up, Deen felt extra clingy and linked our arms.

The height difference forced my arm up to reach her elbow level, making me feel like a child dragged by my mother through a busy grocery store. I yanked my arm away from Deen. She next decided to put her arm around my shoulders, making me feel even more like a child. What the fuck is she trying to pull? Was she feeling guilty for using me as bait for the Corebrings? She should be! For one brief second, I contemplated killing my annoying best friend. Sure, her Guardian Angel would save her. But I wanted to try.

Fortunately for Deen, we reached the twenty-second floor before I committed to anything. And I didn't have the energy to clean up blood and guts, should I succeed in killing her. We briskly walked to my room, our footsteps echoing in an annoying off-rhythm because Deen had longer legs. Not one nanosecond closing the door, Deen hugged me tight and lifted me off the floor. Again,"Don't use superstrength," I hissed into her bosom. The warmth of another person made me want to puke.

Deen's sickeningly sweet perfume went up my nose when I inhaled. It took all my willpower not to kick her stomach.

"I'm so sorry, Erind!" Deen's hug started to become painful.

"I didn't want to abandon you! I-I don't know what—""Deen, shut the fuck up!" My out-of-character cursing shocked Deen into loosening her hug. I stretched my arms to the side, prying open Deen's vice grip on my body. I dropped to the floor and ducked out of her arms. I felt the walls until I touched the light switch, flicking it on. I saw Deen's eyes redden as tears streamed down her cheeks. Immediately turning on the waterworks to lessen her guilt? Classic Deen.

"Erind, I'm so—" Deen reached for me. I swatted her arms. Super dramatic, like those Mexican telenovelas that Aunt Jemma loved.

"Lower your voice. People next door might hear us." Deen nodded, her lips quivering.

"I'm sorry. For talking loudly. And for using you as a bait."

"It's fine," I said, the ever-forgiving best friend. I had to establish this first before cornering Deen with her faults.

"You didn't know that'd happen if you touched Gabe. If there was anyone to blame, it should be your Guardian Angel."

"You say that it's fine. But you're angry at me. I don't blame you."

"You didn't have control… of your power." I looked to the side to let her know I didn't mean my words.

"It's my power." Deen wouldn't let this opportunity slide to take responsibility.

"I knew that Gabe was protecting me. It's within the realm of possibilities that he'd use others for my sake. He… No. I used you to save my own skin."

"Well, your flawless skin is more valuable than mine." Play it cool. It wasn't the time yet.

"Erind, I'm being serious here."

"And so am I," I said, walking to the kitchen. Turning my back to Deen added weight to my words.

"You're the most important member of the 4Bs." I turned on the faucet before continuing the big reveal.

"It was up to me to lure the Corebrings away from you."

"Corebrings? What do you mean?"

"The danger that you foresaw. It wasn't Adumbrae. Corebrings came to the city. There'll probably be an announcement on the news tomorrow. I mean, later today. It's already tomorrow."

"Corebrings…" Deen watched me wash the dirt off my arms.

"It was only a matter of time before they came."

"It's the 2Ms' and PCM's fault," I said before splashing water on my face. Actually, it must've been my fault for wrecking the 2Ms base with my giant werewolf form. That definitely enlarged the conflict.

"Did you meet them? The Corebrings?"

"Yep. Even talked to them. And then, they chased me. I had to draw them away from you." I turned to Deen.

"You do realize that the Corebrings were after you, right?" She nodded.

"Gabe made me faint to disable my power."

"Your Guardian Angel counted on me putting my life on the line for you." The truth was that I didn't want to lose my valuable pawn. If only there really was no way to escape, then I'd sell out Deen in a heartbeat.

"Thank you, Erind. I mean it."

"And now, the Corebrings are after Red Hood." Deen gasped.

"They think you're me!"

"Yep. Whatever juju it was you were radiating, the Corebrings thought it was me. Red Hood is on the Corebrings' most wanted list."

"Oh my gosh! I didn't consider that happening. No, no. You should've left me." I sighed.

"You're my best friend, Deen. I know you'd do the same for me. I'm really proud of my insane escape from the Corebrings."

"How… How did you survive?" I dried my face with a towel by the sink. As I lowered the towel, I revealed a furious expression. I glared at Deen as I icily asked, "What's that supposed to mean? Do you think that I'm so weak that Corebrings can easily kill me?"

"No! I don't mean—!" I knew what she meant, but I wanted to start some drama.

"May I remind you that I've saved your life a couple of times already?" I poked a finger into Deen's chest.

"Let's add this most recent one."

"And I'm very grateful for—!"

"I've been through so much more bad stuff than you, Deen. I've survived through all of them. You shouldn't look down on me." I had so much more to say to her, but that should suffice for now. If I continued my rant, I'd blurt out stuff not in line with my current face of a disgruntled best friend.

"Erind, I'm not belittling you," Deen said, cupping my hand with both of hers.

"Don't think I'm joking about your height. I know that you're capable and—""Oh, really?" I tried to pull my hand back, but Deen wouldn't let go.

"Then why are you treating me like a child? You try to control everything that I do." Deen averted her gaze.

"I-I don't do that…"

"What about our second meeting with Auron? You kept talking over me because you wanted to control the conversation. Actually, you do that all the time, shutting down my ideas. There are so many other things you do that it feels like you're boxing me in to be safe in a corner, when in reality, I'm so much stronger than you." If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Deen hung her head as she dropped her arms to her side. She didn't have any reply.

This was the start of my make-Deen-feel-bad plan, but it was also very cathartic. I was having fun!

"I haven't forgotten that you undressed me in the tunnels," I added, touching the Core on my chest.

"You wanted me to return, I know that. But you unceremoniously did that as if I were a doll. This is my real body."

"I know. And I'm sorry. It was a very stressful situation, and I was desperate to try anything to make your soul return to your body." Fair, I thought. Though Deen was a problematic bitch, we could work out our issues. But I didn't want to. Not yet, anyway.

"You know what's your biggest wrong assumption about me?" I forcefully yanked my hand away.

"You suspect that the Adumbrae is affecting me because I take charge and assert myself." Deen jolted.

"What? I don't do that!"

"Don't deny it. Whenever I make up fake stories for our cover or show a bit more confidence than usual, you immediately think that it's the Adumbrae's work."

"I worry about you because there literally is an Adumbrae inside you," Deen quickly replied, annoyance coloring her voice.

"Everyone knows that Adumbrae will try to take over. I'm watching closely for that."

"Why can't I be brave? Why can't I improve and do my best for our survival? Am I not allowed to do that?" I added a little tremble to my voice as if I was on the verge of crying.

"Does that seem like an Adumbrae taking over to you?"

"N-no. I wasn't referring to that."

"Then what?" I asked. I knew why she was hesitating.

"Your… Your lies."

"I'm too good at making up stories, you mean? What should I say then? The truth?" Deen was about to reply, but I plowed on with a hurt tone.

"I'm twenty-three. I'm not some kid that's too scared to lie because I'll get scolded. I've fought monsters. Lying is way, way easier compared to that. Hardly a benchmark for seeding."

"But it's so out-of-character for you to—""If I wasn't an Adumbrae, you would praise me for my quick-thinking," I cut in.

"I'm doing what's necessary to survive."

"I…" Deen took a step back.

"I… didn't realize…"

"People change, Deen. After what I've been through, you should be suspicious if I didn't change." That explained away any supposed inconsistencies with my face. This also provided the transition for an evolved face someday, and I was excited for it.

"You also changed, didn't you?" Deen slowly nodded.

"Yes."

"For the worse," I bluntly said. Her eyes widened in shock.

"You became even more controlling," I went on, whispering with contempt. This must be the first time that Deen heard me talk this way.

"You're such a judger of others, but refuse to recognize your own faults. You're always right. Everyone else is wrong." Deen covered her mouth, and tears started flowing again.

"No, no, no…" was all she could mumble. She was probably too ashamed to even attempt defending herself. What could she say against the truth? Pride bubbled inside. I had made a lot of people cry during my short existence on this planet, but nothing gave me more joy than now. Maybe because most people placed Deen on a pedestal? This was like a prized catch or something. I didn't know much about fishing to form a related metaphor. And I didn't think I was being a bad guy.

I genuinely believed that Deen deserved to be called out for her bullshit. For sure, my third form, with her weirdo normal emotions, would agree with me. Friends should set each other straight—I was being a good friend to Deen. I sighed, shaking my head.

"I didn't want to say anything. But tonight… It was just too much." Deen didn't actually do anything bad now. Previously, yes. A lot. At present, she was worried about me after Gabe's double-crossing nonsense, fulfilling her best friend duties, and all that. But this might be the best time to stir some drama. Hopefully, Deen would assume that I'd been bottling up my rants for some time.

"I'm sorry if this all came out wrong," I said, pulling back to offer reconciliation. Deen might do something crazy if I cut off contact for a couple of days.

"I don't mean to hurt you, Deen. You're very important to me." Doing some carrot and stick stuff. Maybe I could try putting a carrot on a stick and barbecuing it? Deen lowered her hands. A wavering smile crossed her distressed face.

"I'm just so stressed," I continued.

"I can't even believe that I survived getting hunted by Corebrings. I take back my—" Deen jumped on the path to peace.

"No, all of what you said is true. I… I'm too full of myself." Weird. Deen readily admitted that? Didn't feel sincere to me, though I didn't know much about sincerity. But I had this inkling that she conceded her bitchiness because this allowed her to regain control of the situation. She also had to made herself look good.

"It's because—No! I won't make excuses." Deen offered her hand.

"Can we start over? I sincerely want to change." Yep, I was right. Politician play. I stared at her hand with narrowed eyes. I wanted some more emotional back and forth.

"I'm not too sure about this. You kinda became more overbearing after I revealed my secret side of being an Adumbrae. What change are you talking about?"

"Change to be a better person. To be more understanding of others. Of you, specifically. I was so afraid that the Adumbrae inside you was winning that I became paranoid, assuming every different thing about you was proof of it. In truth, I simply didn't know you as well as I should. If I did, I wouldn't have thought that you were changing."

"I'm changing. You're right about that, Deen. I have to be brave to survive in this new world we've found ourselves in. I probably would've surrendered to the Adumbrae in my head if I stayed the timid person you knew." Deen shook her head.

"You didn't change, Erind." She awkwardly patted my shoulder. Her change didn't include giving up her touchy-feeliness.

"You had this strength inside you all along, and it manifested itself now." And with that, I switched the narrative. Deen probably didn't realize what just happened. Things would be so much easier now that my pawn wasn't suspicious of me.

"I want to know more about you," Deen went on.

"Teach me about the real Erind. At the same time, help me change to be a better person." Wait a fucking minute. This sounded like an irritation in the making. I was game for updating my face; I loved planning character development. But Deen would want us to be closer, increasing the risk that she'd discover the true me. She'd think it was the Adumbrae's work, of course. It'd still bring problems. What if I revealed who I really was? Bad idea. For one, she wouldn't believe me.

If she did, it'd mean I was fooling her the entire time. Our friendship wouldn't survive that. She'd doubt if any of it was real.

"Sure, deal," I curtly said, making it clear that I hadn't forgiven her.

"Erind, how can I make up for my faults with you?" Deen asked. Just continuing to shine her image.

"I'm not sweeping them under the rug."

"It's fine. No need to get even between friends. I mean, I didn't ask to hit you back after you slapped me when I revealed I was an Adumbrae. Come to think of it, you also hit me when we woke up after that. Eh, whatever. It's all in the past." I started walking to my room.

"I'll change my clothes and—""Wait!" Deen tugged my shirt, cautious of grabbing my arm. I turned around.

"What?"

"Hit me." I rolled my eyes.

"Deen, don't joke about that." I was mentally celebrating how predictable she was.

"Slap—No. Punch me. Don't hold back." She leaned forward.

"Erm, hold back a little bit. You might kill me."

"This is dumb. I don't want to hurt you."

"This isn't about hurting me. I want you to punish me for my mistakes." I blinked.

"Uh, Deen… You might want to rephrase that." But she didn't seem to realize what was wrong with what she had said.

"Release your anger," Deen said.

"We'll wipe the slate clean and start anew. I know that you're willing to do this because Gabe is warning me about it." She pointed at her cheek.

"Go on." I balled my fist, wearing a conflicted expression.

"Are you sure about this?" Deen nodded.

"Here goes," I said, swinging my arm with half of my superstrength. If she wanted to be the martyr best friend, she'd have her wish. My knuckles connected with Deen's cheek. Bone dug into flesh and met teeth. I sent Deen tumbling across the small living room, crashing against an armchair. I grimaced. Thankfully, the coffee table and the TV were untouched. I didn't think that through.

"Deen, I'm sorry!" I rushed over, kneeling beside her. I spotted something white with a hint of red on the floor. Deen's teeth? I knocked some of them out of her mouth? I immediately pocketed the tooth before checking Deen.

"Are you okay?" Obviously, she wasn't. A massive purple welt covered her cheek. Her jaw was out of place. I think even her jawbone was broken. Blood ran out of her nose and mouth. Too bad I couldn't take a picture of her and frame it above my bed. Deen weakly nodded.

"I… I'm fine. I'm glad that you did it." Her words became clearer towards the end as her mouth rapidly healed.

"Best friends forever?" She gestured to hug me.

"Best friends forever." I focused on Deen's teeth that I'd turn into trophy, pushing away my revulsion as I hugged her.