"Nate! Behind you!"

Luke's voice cut through the chaos, but it was too late. I barely had time to turn around before a fist slammed into my face. It sent me flying, sprawling onto the cold, hard ground. Ouch. My ears rang, and blood trickled from my nose, the sharp tang filling my mouth as I wiped it away with the back of my hand.

"Oh no, you don't."

SMACK!

I glanced up just in time to see Luke take a brutal kick to the gut from Mara, who looked entirely too pleased with herself. He hit the floor next to me with a groan, clutching his stomach as he sat up, his face twisted in pain.

"I know we said not to go easy on us," he whined, rubbing the back of his head and pouting like a sulky child, "but come on!"

Mara and Blake shared a victorious high-five, completely unfazed by the fact they'd just wiped the floor with us. Again.

"You two really should pay more attention in Mr Holt's combat class," Nilla chimed in, skipping over with a smile that was far too cheerful for all the pain I was in. She handed Mara and Blake water bottles like they were heroes returning from a quest, while Luke and I were left panting in the dirt.

"Where's ours?" Luke stuck out his lower lip, grabbing at the air like a toddler denied a toy.

"Only the winners get a break," Nilla said sweetly, her smile turning sly. "Come on, you two. No rest for the losers." She tossed her water bottle aside and nodded at Alec, who stretched lazily and cracked his knuckles.

"Great," I muttered, staggering to my feet as I tried trying to shake the dizziness. Another round of punishment from Nilla and Alec was just what I needed.

***

By Friday, we'd been training every day after school for the past two weeks straight, and somehow Luke and I still hadn't won a single match. Not once.

It was starting to feel a bit ridiculous, to be honest. Mara and Blake, despite barely speaking to each other, fought like a well-oiled machine, while Luke and I stumbled through every hand-to-hand drill like newborn foals on ice. How could we be this bad?

After training, we retreated to our usual café, stuffing ourselves with whatever food we could get our hands on in a desperate attempt to restore our energy.

Even Blake had come along, though she sat in her usual silence, sipping her drink quietly. She wasn't exactly a social butterfly, but it was becoming clear that she didn't mind our company. That was something, at least.

Since Alec had joined the team, we'd been spending a lot more time together. Despite his confident swagger and fierce competitiveness, he was surprisingly likeable. He and Nilla seemed so alike—both loud, energetic, and undeniably contagious in their enthusiasm. But unlike Nilla, there were times when Alec would withdraw, growing cold and distant. It was the only time he ever really reminded me of his sister.

"Your turn." Luke emerged from the bathroom with his newly treated wounds.

I groaned, barely managing to pry my tired eyes open. "Can't it wait?"

"You know it'll only get worse if you don't clean them."

"It's just a few cuts and scrapes, I'll be fine. I just want to sleep." Refusing to give in, I collapsed onto my bed.

I was relieved when I heard Luke go back into the bathroom but he clearly wasn't going to take no for an answer because soon enough he came to sit beside me, already preparing a cloth soaked in antiseptic.

With a groan, I let him pull me up from the warm embrace of my blankets, and into the soft glow of lamplight.

"Sit still," he muttered as he began to gently dab at the cuts on my face.

"I could've done it myself," I grumbled, though I made no real effort to move.

"But you weren't going to, were you?" he shot back without looking up, his focus entirely on my scrapes and bruises. The alcohol stung, but Luke was careful, his touch light as he worked his way across my battered skin.

Frustration bubbled up again, the same question that had been gnawing at me all week slipping out before I could stop it. "Why can't we beat them? Why can't we work together like they do?"

Luke paused, his eyes flicking up to meet mine. Something flashed in his gaze—hesitation, maybe—but it was gone before I could pin it down. "I don't know," he said finally. "Maybe we just need more practice."

He sounded convincing, but I wasn't buying it. Still, I let it go. I was too tired to press for answers.

"Now lift your shirt," Luke instructed, and my heart skipped a beat, a sudden jolt of awareness snapping me out of my daze.

I blinked at him like a doe in headlights, confused until he clarified. "There's blood there. I can see it seeping through your shirt."

Right. I remembered the wound now and the pain I felt when Alec's hard boot collided with my side. With a sigh, I gingerly pulled my shirt up, exposing the nasty bruise that was already spreading across my ribs. Luke winced sympathetically but set to work cleaning the gash with the same gentle care as before.

I flinched as the cloth brushed the raw skin, hissing at the sting. He murmured a quiet apology, pressing down even lighter than before. When he was done, he gently stuck a plaster on the cut, which might have been considerate if it weren't covered in pink unicorns.

"Unicorns?"

"What? No one's gonna see it." Luke grinned. "Coco got them for me."

With a sigh of defeat, I yanked my shirt back down and collapsed into bed, too exhausted to care anymore. Sleep dragged me under before I could even think about getting changed.

***

"Oi, wake up, Nate."

Luke's voice pierced through my dreams, and I cracked open my weary eyes, blinking at the blurry figure looming over me.

"It's lunchtime," he said, smirking. "You should probably get up now."

I shot up, panicking. "Why'd you let me sleep so late?"

Before Luke could answer, a loud pounding rattled the door.

"Shit!" We both cursed at the same time, sharing a look of panic. We'd missed morning practice, and Mara was going to kill us.

Luke, the big baby that he is, dived under the covers of his bed, abandoning me to face the wrath alone. I scowled at him and opened the door, bracing for impact.

But it wasn't Mara on the other side. Instead, a tall girl from our physics class smiled at me brightly, thrusting a flyer into my hands. "We're having a party tonight. You should come. Bring friends." And just like that, she skipped off before I could even process her words.

Luke's head popped out from under the covers. "A party? Cool, let's go. Please?"

I didn't have a chance to answer before another knock threatened to break down the door. This time, Luke rushed to open it, only to dodge a punch as Mara stormed in, her face murderous.

No parties for us then, just funerals.

"I'm going to kill both of you," she growled. "How do you expect to win the Proelium if you don't even come to training?"

Luke, ever the diplomat, held up the party invitation with a grin. "Sorry, won't happen again. Want to come to a party?"

Mara lifted an eyebrow, intrigued. One blink later, and suddenly we were all going—except Blake, of course. No surprise there, large social gatherings weren't really her cup of tea.

By the time we were ready for the party, I had thrown on a mix of formal and casual clothes—black suit jacket, white shirt, black jeans. It wasn't exactly party attire, but it was all I had. I'd never been to a house party before, what were you even supposed to wear to these kinds of things?

Luke, however, took one look at me and shook his head. "Nope," he said, stepping over to loosen my tie, ruffle my hair, and unbutton the top few buttons of my shirt.

"There," he said, standing back to admire his handiwork. "Much better."

I couldn't argue. I mean, I figured he knew best when it came to stuff like this. He looked effortlessly cool, his leather jacket and ripped jeans perfectly complementing his wild, messy hair. He looked good—really good. And before I realised it, I was staring.

It wasn't a secret to me, or anyone, that he was good-looking. Pretty much all of the girls in our classes sat there drooling over him, something he definitely enjoyed just a little too much. But only in that moment did I really get it, you know? He'd never looked so... how would you put it? Handsome? Yeah, he'd never looked so handsome before.

"Come on," Luke said, pulling me from my thoughts. "Let's go."

What is Luke hiding and does it have anything to do with why he and Nate can't work properly as a team? Maybe taking some time to relax and have a bit of fun will help them work it out? Thanks for reading and don't forget to vote!