Warrior of the Wild(50)

“What?”

“Pull me closer.”

I bend my elbows, tugging Iric near my chest. He gives me a devilish grin before reaching forward and tucking a strand of my hair behind one ear.

At first, the motion sends goose bumps along my skin—and not pleasant ones. Torrin would touch my hair this way and—

But then there’s a sound, and Iric and I both turn our heads. Soren has dropped his whetstone onto the rocks. He bends down to retrieve it, and when he looks back up, he’s got a glare fixed on Iric.

Iric lets out a low laugh. “Priceless.”

“That’s not funny,” I snap. I take my arms back and cross them over my chest.

“Just because Soren and I are working on things, that doesn’t mean I don’t get to provoke him. Besides, he knows you’re not my type, so the fact that he’s getting worked up only makes it funnier!”

“You are a horrible person and—” I break off as I realize Iric is drifting away from me. “You’re floating.”

“What do you think we’ve been doing for the last half hour?”

“No, you’re floating on your own!”

“I am? I am!” Iric fumbles for a moment, as though knowing I’m not there suddenly throws him off balance, but he quickly rights himself, and continues floating. “Soren! I’m floating! Look!”

But shouting seems to have been too much for Iric, for he goes under in the next second. I step through the water as quickly as possible to reach him, but Iric gets his feet under him before I get there.

When he breaches the surface, it’s to hear Soren laughing at him.

Iric pulls himself out of the water and flies at Soren, tackling him with his soaking body. Then he’s pulling on him, trying to force him into one of the pools.

“Raz, I could use some help!”

We’re supposed to be learning how to swim, but what the hell.

I get myself behind Soren and push.

“No!” Soren shrieks.

Too late. We fling him into one of the midsized pools, armor and skins and all. He was smart enough to drop his ax before it got too close to the pool.

Iric was able to let go in time, but me? Soren clamps a hand down on my arm and pulls me in with him.

I kick to the surface and glare at Iric. “This is what I get for helping you? You abandon me?”

“I have swimming to practice,” he says innocently before taking off for the pool we’d been using.

Soren stands next to me, the water reaching up to our shoulders. Good thing, since he still has all his armor on. A calculated decision on Iric’s part, I’m sure. He didn’t want to drown his friend, only drench him.

“Traitor,” Soren says to me.

“I don’t owe you any loyalty.”

“I saved you from Peruxolo! That doesn’t earn me any loyalty?”

“No.” I raise my arm and send a wave of water crashing onto his head.

He glares at me for a moment, before watching Iric try to float in the far-off pool some more. I’m amazed and proud of Iric’s confidence in the water alone.

“I’ve never seen him like this,” Soren says. “It’s a nice change.” With a smile on his lips, Soren turns from Iric to me.

With Soren standing so close to me, I remember just how close in height we are. Our eyes are on par with each other. Our noses.

Our mouths.

I’m startled by the thought. Where in the world did it come from? Soren has always had a mouth, obviously. But now I’m noticing it as an individual entity.

His lips look so soft, a stark contrast to the rest of his muscled body.

If Soren notices a change in my demeanor, he doesn’t show it. No, he sucks in a big gulp of air and goes under the water. I watch his body closely, trying to figure out what he’s doing. A hand darts in my direction, and I realize too late—

I’m sucked under.

I send a punch Soren’s way. It doesn’t gather much force underwater, but it’s enough to make him release me.

We both breach the surface.

“You ass.”

He laughs again.

I jump, get my hands on either side of his shoulders, and push back. He might have been stable enough to withstand me without the armor, but with?

His armor drags him down.

He sinks rapidly to the bottom. It takes him some time to get his feet under him to drag the extra weight to the surface. He rubs water from his eyes, which are no longer filled with mischief.

The smallest of smiles rests at the corner of his lips, and I realize then that I’d almost forgotten what it was to have fun. Strange that Soren, a boy from the wild, should help me to remember.

“Truce?” he asks.

“For today.” I return to Iric and monitor his progress.



* * *



IN ANOTHER WEEK, Iric is swimming. He’s by no means a strong swimmer, but he knows how to float both on his back and stomach. He can paddle himself through the water and even manage big strokes above it. The most important improvement, however, is his confidence.

That lack of fear, his ability to put his head under the water and hold his breath without worry, it bolsters him. Gives him a sense of freedom he didn’t have before.

Despite the improvement, I don’t let up on our practices. Swimming muscles need to be exercised regularly, until they’re strong. Iric gets tired out far too soon, but I will make a strong swimmer of him yet.