Sparks and Flames by CS Patra

think?”
     
    “I think that’s a lovely thought. All of your thoughts have been wonderful,” he told her. “You are wonderful.”
     
    The two of them were staring at each other then. Rukia breathed softly. “I don’t think I’m as wonderful as you though. You hold everything so close to you. You live life to the fullest. I’ve never done anything like that.”
     
    “I don’t know if I live life to the fullest, but I try not to let it get in my way. There will be time to worry about things later.” He decided out loud. Inside, there was a voice telling him to mention the fact that he was a hunter. He just needed to know one thing. “Rukia, how do you feel about Elementals in general?”
     
    She snorted. “Elementals? That’s a strange question to ask me about.”
     
    “Well, they are all over the news. It seems like you can’t go anywhere without an Elemental causing trouble. I just wanted to get your opinion on them.”
     
    “The way I see it, if they aren’t bothering me, I shouldn’t be bothered by them,” she decided. “They have never caused me any trouble. Then again, I rarely interact with people in general. I stick close to my family and my sisters are my friends. I wouldn’t know what to do when it came to Elementals.”
     
    Oh, it hurt to lie to him but she had to do it. She wasn’t ready to tell him the truth about herself. She couldn’t tell him that he was dating an Elemental right now. The way he brought up the question and talked about them made her think that he didn’t really trust them. If she was going to reveal this, it had to be something that she did slowly. She didn’t want to scare him off right now.
     
    “I think you should just be careful around them,” he told her. “You have no idea how powerful some of them can be.”
     
    I think I know how powerful they can be, Kian. She wanted to tell him. Out loud, she just said. “I’ve heard the stories. Anyone that controls an element is a force to be reckoned with.”
     
    “Maybe so, but that’s why we have hunters. They’re out there to keep us safe.”
     
    “I say that some of their methods are a little barbaric,” she went on. “Have you heard of that one hunter that burned over twenty Elementals? Talk about cold-hearted. He just stood there and watched them die in front of him.”
     
    Kian couldn’t even smile at that one. He knew very well that she was talking about him, but he didn’t want to take credit for this. He didn’t want her to know that he was indeed the hunter that had set that fire. He didn’t want to talk about how good he was with a flamethrower. All he wanted was to sit there and talk with her about everything else in the world.
     
    “Let’s stop with the talk of Elementals and hunters,” he decided. “Tell me where you’d like to go the most. We’ll make a plan.”
     
    “You really want to run away with me?” She asked.
     
    “I’ll go anywhere you want to go. I haven’t seen much of this world so I’ll be happy with whatever you decide,” he said. “I know you’ll pick something good.”
     
    “You are giving me too much credit.”
     
    They spent the next few minutes talking about their favorite places and where they wanted to head on a vacation. However, both were also thinking about their individual secrets. Kian wanted to tell Rukia about his life as a hunter and Rukia wanted to reveal that she was an Elemental. However, they had both just met each other. It was too soon to talk about the different sides that they came from. Class wasn’t the only thing that was dividing them. Rukia knew that he was just a human and Kian thought she was a human being. He probably thought they had more in common than he realized.
     
    He’s going to have to learn the truth. She decided. If he’s going to be with me, he’s going to have to get used to the fact that I’m an Elemental. There’s nothing either of us can do about that.

Chapter 7
     
    Kian seriously thought