gut. Sin is constantly joking, but I’ve seen him in the pit. He’s a deadly competitor. And I’m not entirely comfortable in close proximity to him. It’s one thing to laugh at his jokes and flirtations from another bench. It’s another to have our skin touching.
The next fight goes on. I run over my starting strategy, knowing I’ll likely have to adapt it during the fight. I can be sure he’ll do the same.
“It’s your face,” a soft voice blurts behind me. I turn toward Flurry, who is stretching.
“What?” I ask and watch as he blushes. It’s been worse since I kissed him on the cheek.
“Your face is your tell,” he says. “You show what you’re gonna do. It’s what Shard was talking about the other day. He uses it to guess your move. Rest of us aren’t quick enough for it to matter. But Sin is. And I bet he knows you do it.”
I go back to stretching, thinking on his words. Why didn’t I think of that? It makes complete sense. I’ve never fought with my veil off, so filtering my expression was never an issue.
My heart pounds as the warning bell tolls. As usual, I walk around the Cells to the door, passing Tricks’ bench. His men shout out at me. Not in a demeaning way - friendly. Sin stands in front of them. He bows and gestures me to enter in front of him.
“After you, Princess.”
“I can’t wait to see this!” I shake my head at Tricks, who cackles with glee.
We enter the pit side by side. The last few fights the crowd has been chanting my name, but today Sin’s name is the loudest by far.
“You’re fighting with fame here,” he drawls, dragging a finger down the middle of his chest.
“Is that the reason all the females go to your room?” I ask.
“No, that’s because I’m the most beautiful specimen you’ll ever see. And the most skilled.” He waggles his eyebrows at me. I shake my head, trying not to smile.
I grasp at focus and it comes quickly. The bell tolls. This fight is different from the others. We circle each other. His eyes move down my body. He’s trying to put me off. The crowd laughs with him.
I distance myself from my emotions. I leave them behind.
He inches closer. I smile at him and lunge forward, aiming a fake punch at his head. He moves to block. I anticipate this and my true blow flies toward his crotch. He just catches my foot before it connects.
I need to get out of this hold. I push off with my free foot and knee him in the face, then push off his chest to flip backward. He staggers, blood trickling from his nose. He drops his hand and to my surprise, he smiles. I see the first genuine emotion ripple across his face. Intrigue, anticipation. Again, I don’t flatter myself, thinking his interest is in me personally. I know because his expression mirrors my own.
We grin at each other.
He flies at me and we collide. I block his thrust and punches, taking the blows on my forearms. They’ll be black and blue later. Right now, I can’t feel them at all. One of his punches glances off my jaw. I hook a foot behind his leg, but he steps out before I finish the form. I land an uppercut instead.
We break apart and continue circling. I’m about to change direction when he does the same. Then I remember Flurry’s words. I’m letting my gaze fall where I intend to move, before I make the move. Sin is anticipating my movements.
I check to see if I’m right by flicking my eyes to the left. He moves to the right to counter my supposed movement. I keep my expression smooth, but inside I’m laughing. Got you.
I lose my focus for a split second while celebrating. It’s enough for him to rush me. I don’t have time to think. My body responds instinctively. I duck away from his long reach and swing up onto his shoulders, wrapping my legs around his neck. I throw my weight and he crashes to the ground. I roll, intending to scramble away, but he grabs my foot and in a flash, I’m pinned. He grins down at me as I try to bend my body out of the
The next fight goes on. I run over my starting strategy, knowing I’ll likely have to adapt it during the fight. I can be sure he’ll do the same.
“It’s your face,” a soft voice blurts behind me. I turn toward Flurry, who is stretching.
“What?” I ask and watch as he blushes. It’s been worse since I kissed him on the cheek.
“Your face is your tell,” he says. “You show what you’re gonna do. It’s what Shard was talking about the other day. He uses it to guess your move. Rest of us aren’t quick enough for it to matter. But Sin is. And I bet he knows you do it.”
I go back to stretching, thinking on his words. Why didn’t I think of that? It makes complete sense. I’ve never fought with my veil off, so filtering my expression was never an issue.
My heart pounds as the warning bell tolls. As usual, I walk around the Cells to the door, passing Tricks’ bench. His men shout out at me. Not in a demeaning way - friendly. Sin stands in front of them. He bows and gestures me to enter in front of him.
“After you, Princess.”
“I can’t wait to see this!” I shake my head at Tricks, who cackles with glee.
We enter the pit side by side. The last few fights the crowd has been chanting my name, but today Sin’s name is the loudest by far.
“You’re fighting with fame here,” he drawls, dragging a finger down the middle of his chest.
“Is that the reason all the females go to your room?” I ask.
“No, that’s because I’m the most beautiful specimen you’ll ever see. And the most skilled.” He waggles his eyebrows at me. I shake my head, trying not to smile.
I grasp at focus and it comes quickly. The bell tolls. This fight is different from the others. We circle each other. His eyes move down my body. He’s trying to put me off. The crowd laughs with him.
I distance myself from my emotions. I leave them behind.
He inches closer. I smile at him and lunge forward, aiming a fake punch at his head. He moves to block. I anticipate this and my true blow flies toward his crotch. He just catches my foot before it connects.
I need to get out of this hold. I push off with my free foot and knee him in the face, then push off his chest to flip backward. He staggers, blood trickling from his nose. He drops his hand and to my surprise, he smiles. I see the first genuine emotion ripple across his face. Intrigue, anticipation. Again, I don’t flatter myself, thinking his interest is in me personally. I know because his expression mirrors my own.
We grin at each other.
He flies at me and we collide. I block his thrust and punches, taking the blows on my forearms. They’ll be black and blue later. Right now, I can’t feel them at all. One of his punches glances off my jaw. I hook a foot behind his leg, but he steps out before I finish the form. I land an uppercut instead.
We break apart and continue circling. I’m about to change direction when he does the same. Then I remember Flurry’s words. I’m letting my gaze fall where I intend to move, before I make the move. Sin is anticipating my movements.
I check to see if I’m right by flicking my eyes to the left. He moves to the right to counter my supposed movement. I keep my expression smooth, but inside I’m laughing. Got you.
I lose my focus for a split second while celebrating. It’s enough for him to rush me. I don’t have time to think. My body responds instinctively. I duck away from his long reach and swing up onto his shoulders, wrapping my legs around his neck. I throw my weight and he crashes to the ground. I roll, intending to scramble away, but he grabs my foot and in a flash, I’m pinned. He grins down at me as I try to bend my body out of the
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