Chapter 54

I knock lightly on Steven’s door. He calls me in. Mia is sitting on his lap, watching something on the projector he has put up against the wall of his lab. I see a pink pig and smile.

“Peppa?” I say.

Steven nods. “Her favorite,” he says. “I don’t know if there’s any education to be learned from such a rotten pig but, it makes Mia happy.”

“Agreed,” I half laugh. I kneel down in front of her and give her a gentle kiss on the forehead. She half notices me but is completely invested in Peppa. Steven rolls his eyes.

“TV is rotting the kid’s brain,” He says.

“Better than the one truck show that Beau has her watch,” I say.

“Hey!” Steven raises a hand. “Blaze the Monster Machine is a great show! Teaches kids all about engineering and science.”

“Steven,” I say. “Mia can barely speak. What does she care about engineering for?”

As if on queue, Mia starts to babble something. She points at the pink pig on the screen, standing next to a zebra. Both are chatting in posh accents. Mia starts bouncing on her feet and squealing louder.

I smile softly. I then drop my smile and sigh. Steven frowns at me.

“What’s up?”

“Got my biology test back,” I say. “Seventy-three. Better than my fifty-nine but still not great.”

“I love bio!” Steven says excitedly. “What subject?”

“Cells?” I say. To be honest I’m not even that certain. “Something about a mitochondria.”

“The powerhouse!” He says with a bright grin. Mia mimics him and he encourages her. He then turns back to me. “My first thesis was on how the mitochondrial DNA works.”

“Oh so you’re a genius?” I ask.

Steven shrugs. “Nah, just a guy interested in nerdy stuff.”

“You got time to help an uninterested girl with said nerdy stuff?” I flash him a smile.

“I’d love to,” Steven smiles brightly.

The two of us leave Mia in her playpen in front of the projector and start to work on my physics homework. Its especially hard that day and my altercation with the twins before is not helping my brain focus. Steven notices this and sets down his pencil.

“Something wrong?” he asks.

I gnaw on my lip before answering. “Do you really think a woman can’t be a warrior?”

Steven sits back in his seat. He scratches the underside of his chin. He looks incredibly uncomfortable.

“Well,” he starts. “Historically, there’s never been a reason to have one. Women were always as less strong than men. Statistically, it’s true with about only thirty-percent of women being able to compete on the same level as normal men.” He cocks his head. “Warriors are the top tier men, amassing one-point-seven-eight-percent of our population. So to be a woman warrior, you’d have to be in the top point-oh-five-percent of all women.”

I blink at him. “Forget the numbers,” I say. “Is it impossible?”

“Not impossible,” Steven says with the shake of his head. “Just improbable.”

I slump back in my hair. My hand goes through my hair. It’s a knotted mess, falling off the top of my head. “Well,” I say. “Then I better get better as physics.”

“That’s the spirit!” Steven says with a smile. He face then drops suddenly. “I’m sorry my brothers have been so hard on you. You must know they mean well.”

“They mean well for Mia,” I say, motioning to the zombified toddler. “They’ll destroy anyone in the path to her success.”

Steven sighs. “You’re right,” he says. “But it doesn’t mean they’re right. Sometimes they’re downright mean.”

“Oh, yeah,” I say, gently. “That reminds me. I’m sorry about accusing you of telling Archer about my invite to combat club. I took it out on you.” I grimace slightly. “Though you did call me dumb.”

Steven is back to looking uncomfortable. “Yeaaaah,” he drawls. “It was supposed to be a joke. A badly timed, improper joke. I’m not known for my jokes.” He and I both chuckle slightly. Steven sits up straight. “But I am sorry, too. And I accept your apology.”

I smile brightly at him. His eyes crinkle up behind his glasses.

I always thought Steven was the less attractive of the four brothers. Then again, it was like placing four gold rings next to each other and saying the one shaped like a square wasn’t as nice as the round one. All of the rings are still made of gold.

Regardless, Stevens beauty really strikes me there. He has honey gold hair, unlike his brothers. It’s swept back off from his face except for a single curl that bounces in front of his right eye. His eyes are this hazy blue-green just like his brothers. His veer more towards green on the outside. His nose is straight and gently. He’s all the soft parts of his harsh older brothers, a delicate mash of Neil and the twins. His limbs are more lean than the twin’s and longer than Neil’s. His body looks delicate like it could snap. He’s a poetic looking man and I find myself staring in that moment.

“Uh, Chloe?” Steven waves a hand in front of my face. I blink a few times.

“Sorry,” I say. “Lost my brain for a second there.”

Steven shrugs. He puts his hand over mine and squeezes gently. “Come back to Earth, won’t ya?”

It’s not the same feeling as when Archer kissed me in the library, but Gods is it good. I feel a tingle spread up my arms and flush my cheeks. I can feel every groove in his palms and they’re all radiating a warmth. A whimper starts to work it’s way up my throat.

I clear it to avoid the sound and gently, but quickly, move my hands back to the desk. Steven frowns for a second before turning back to the physics problem in front of us. As he drone on about circuits, my brain starts to wander again.

I picture all four boys lined up, roses in hand, presenting themselves to me. I keep asking myself which one I’d pick. At this point, the answer is all of them.