Heat of the Fire [Anzie]

I had been sent on a run. It was a common thing, especially for me since I was the youngest of the group - I was always given the tasks that no one wanted and a run was boring. I personally didn't mind it, it allowed me to move around the District and get some fresh air away from the others. When I was younger I had a guard, both to make sure that I kept my word and gave everything over and to make sure that I wasn't taken down by peacekeepers or rivals. The Man was very particular on the fact that he would be the only one to sell the best stuff, and it was my duty to get that from point A to point B. This time I was out to hand over an order and accept the payment for it. Usually they had one of the larger and older guys go, to make sure that everything went smoothly, but I was told that this would suit me just fine. The woman I was delivering to wasn't all that formidable so they thought I could manage.

The package in the waistband of my jeans, tucked under my shirt, crinkled and I tried not to let the shape be too noticeable against my stomach. In truth it probably wasn't that noticeable, but the problem was that I could clearly see it when I looked down in my self-conscious checking and each time I caught a glimpse of the corner of the bag I became more and more worried about it. Eventually I had to force myself to just not look at it and tuck it a little deeper into my pants with the hope that that would hold it tighter to my frame. It wasn't too far now to the house I was supposed to deliver to, and as of yet no one had looked at me with suspicion. I was doing worse for myself by looking down every other second than if I just let it be.

The house couldn't turn up soon enough. When I spotted it I let out a sigh and tapped my stomach in a last check that everything was in order. It was. I approached the door, knocking and stuffing my hands in pockets to steady them. I could really use what was in that bag myself, but if I took any then I would get my head smashed in. The best I could do was return back and get my cut of the money. Plus, if I remembered correctly I still had some of my signature stash so I could always use that.

When the woman opened the door I was immediately shocked to see how short she was. I wasn't exactly a big guy, standing somewhere around 5'7" I was used to at least looking people in the eye if not having to look up to meet their gaze. Instead, for this woman, I was looking down almost a foot. It was an odd feeling, but now I understood why everyone said this trip was something I could handle easily. Not to mention the fact that she looked rather fragile, like someone who used Morphling too much - for all I know, she did.

I barely had to speak. She looked me up and down once, nodded curtly, and produced the cash. Trying to be as decent as I could about it, I removed the plastic bag from under my shirt and showed it to her. Her smile wasn't directed at me, but she was pleasant enough about handing over the money. With each of us now having our respective ends of the bargain, we both stepped away from the door - her back into her house, and me down to the road. I stuffed the money into my pocket, my hands following as I walked back in a much more relaxed state than I was in on the way here.

It was a bit of a ways back to the shop but I could take my time. The Man would expect me back by sun down - he was understanding that sometimes things happen and times have to shift so he gave a drop or run the whole day before he brought hell on earth. Whatever else The Man was, he was an efficient businessman. I rubbed the money between my fingers, feeling the warmth of it from the hand of the woman and then my own body heat. It was a bit odd to think of the heat from her body and mine mingling on the money and I had to turn my thoughts away from wondering what it would be like if our heat mixed in a more direct fashion. My hand clenched around the money to remind me that it didn't matter because I wasn't going to find out. Being in the group I hadn't exactly been isolated from girls, but the ones I knew could kick my ass ten times over so it wasn't like I could have let my thoughts wander like this about them. It would always end with my nose broken.

I had, however, let my feet wander. At least I had extensive knowledge of the district so that I knew exactly where I was. Even still, I was glad that I had managed to get my deal over and done as quickly as I had. If I kept going at the pace I was I wouldn't reach the base until sun down anyway. Shrugging to myself, I let my mind slip back out of the present. I was getting really good at doing this, so much so that I found I could actually stand my withdrawal symptoms longer than the others. Of course, I had always preserved enough strength of will to keep my doses low so my shaking was never as strong as some of the others, but I still counted this as a bonus for me.

Unfortunately, my brain wasn't being all that good to me right now because my thoughts kept going back to the woman at the door. There hadn't been anything special about her, or at least nothing I had noticed at first. Perhaps it was just that I had never been able to think about a girl like this before, but it made me uncomfortable. I searched for something to look at that might help me distract myself but I knew my eyes were only falling on other girls. It wasn't working, my attempt to distract myself didn't work. Until I saw her.

I nearly stopped dead. She was just so different and I didn't know quite how or why I thought so but it was plain to me. I had enough presence of mind to make it look like I was just taking a moment to look around but my eyes kept going back to her. I swallowed, my hands clenching into fists inside of my pockets as I tried to force myself to just keep walking back to the base. Only I couldn't. I stood there staring rather openly and I couldn't bring myself to do anything else. My mind suddenly came up with a thought and I could have hit myself. I wonder what it would be like if our heat mixed.