BXBX NOVEL Chapter 122 122 Fare Forth
Chapter 122 Chapter 122 Fare Forth
Tayshaun slid back to her with two shopping bags filled with supplies.
A mischievous grin curled at the edges of his mouth as he bounced in her direction. In his sockets, both his eyes twinkled like a hyena as he stretched his arms towards her;
"It's crazy. All I had to say was I'm going on a mission with you, and ol' dude gave me like half off on everything! He says he wants his name to be a part of this mission when he gets back. . ."
Tayshaun shrugged- heaving his broad shoulders and bulging biceps;
". . .can't say I blame him though. Everyone's fascinated by your stardom."
Monica's arms came undone. Her leather boots slid off the wall- screeching all the way. She glowered at him;
"So, you thought it was a good idea to tell a talkative shop keeper you were going off on a mission with me?"
She hissed;
"Now every ambitious hunter who here's that is going to try to follow us. . ."
She snatched the bag in his left hand and stomped off; ". . .this is why I work alone. . ."
Dazed, confused, and slight aroused, Tayshaun watched her leave with a smirk on his face. Then doubled after her in long hurried strides.
Behind him, in the sunless alley beside the building, the shadow of a faceless entity watched from the dark. Its glowing red eyes kept its eyes trained on the duo- watching them ride off into the horizon.
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Barely an hour into the mission, Monica was already starting to regret her decision.
Swaying on the trotting horse, she clutched the reins tightly- too tightly as the sun bore down on her from above. Her veins were popping wildly on the sides of her neck, and her flushed face was twisted in a scowl.
Tayshaun was on the edge of pissing her off completely!
Smiling from ear to ear, one arm on the reins, and another in the air, he waved at every single person that passed- like some local congressman!
"Hey Tay! You off on another one?"
He boomed his reply; "Man's gotta make a living you know!"
A busty woman- clearly married, beamed at him from the side of the road;
"Bye Shaun! Be careful alright?"
"When have I never been Madam Jenny!"
Another fellow yelled; "Tayshaun you rascal! You'd better not die out there!"
"Tayshaun good luck on this one!. . .Tayshaun give em hell!. . .Tayshaun. . .Tayshaun. . .'
The voices kept coming from all sides, cheering him on, rooting for him, and occasionally teasing him. The young man's face shone like a morning star- glowing from the concern and care of his folks.
Next to him, trotting silently, Monica's face was twisted in fury. Her face puffed in annoyance.
'SERIOUSLY!!!' she fumed inwardly; 'Is there anyone this eejit doesn't know?!'
The young hunter was a popular chap, and he truly seemed to enjoy the attention throughly. Next to him, Monica felt so invisible- so inconsequential. And it irked her.
"Is it just me, or have you actually gotten pretty quiet lately. . ."
The path had gotten a lot lonelier. Big black ravens circled the skies ahead- roving with outstretched wings, gliding with the wind- searching with shiny black eyes for their next meal.
"Some of us like a little quiet every now and then mister Tayshaun."
"Hey look!" he exclaimed, startling Monica; "You got my name correct this time!"
"Oh grow up," she retorted.
"Ha," he chuckled in amusement; "You're a different breed Monica, a different breed indeed."
"Oh, so it's Monica now? No longer Lady Russell huh?"
He edged his horse close- too close;
"I can call you whatever you want," he said with a cheeky smile; "Lady, ma'am, miss, mon-mon. . ."
Her eyes rolled at the last one; "You know, I'm starting to see a pattern here. Do you ever stop talking? Or do you just love the sound of your voice so much?"
"No," he whispered quietly; "I don't. . .only reason I speak is cos' I want to hear you talk. . .I like listening to you. . .I like how you're heavy on each word, it's like you're always intentional with everything you say. . .there's just so much depth. . ."
Tayshaun's words cried into the wind like the weeping of a guitar's strings.
Robbing her of the chance to reply, he mischievously dug his heels into his horse's sides- sending it springing forward, leaving her to deal with the weight of his words behind him.
Him choosing her was no mistake at all.
He had had a massive crush on her since before he could remember. But Tayshaun was no fool.
Of course he was roguishly handsome, and he was also a B-rank hunter. Both those cards had earned him more than a few dropped panties, and a long enviable list of ravaged pussies. But unfortunately, compared to the phenomenal Monica, all those women were basic.
Everything about her sucked him in. He was drawn to her fierceness. Her flaming eyes, and raging locks of red hair taunted his dreams. He caught glances of how she turned around in sharp fluid motions, how her nose slightly upturned whenever she was irritated.
He also noticed that she almost never laughed or smiled.
Now that he was with her, alone on the road, out in the open, and on the way to an adventure, Tayshaun did everything he could to take advantage of the situation.
He teased her.
He flattered her.
He even cooked.
But the fiery noble woman was like a wall of ice. She didn't hate him. She wasn't even irritated by him. She just DID NOT SEE HIM at all. In fact, she didn't seem to see or be concerned about the mission at all.
Her eyes were always straight ahead- focused, searching, looking, as if expecting something to pop out at any moment.
"Tell me Mon-Mon. . ." he began as they entered a rocky clearing.
She rasped in her scratchy voice; "I've told you to stop calling me that."
The echoes bounced all around, reverberating her apparent irritation.
"You did, but you didn't say when. Anyway, do you have a boyfriend? Or like a fiance′ or something along that line?"
"You're cutting it close with the questions Tayshaun."
"C'mon! You know just how dangerous B-rank missions can get. I could literally die on this one. Won't you at least indulge me in this?"
Monica glanced his way, as if the brief mention of death suddenly made him interesting.
His oddly long lashes fluttered lightly over his well cut eyes. His long brown hair was tied in a bun behind his head. His eyebrows were curved downwards- connoting seriousness, and maybe even hope.
Straightening her back, she sighed;
"Why you asking me this?"
"Damn Monica, are you really going to make me say it? We've been on the road for almost two days now. . .I feel like I've given you all the signs of–"
"Look dude, let me stop you right there," she cut him off; "I'm not in this for fun, or the thrill or whatever. . ."
Tayshaun's eyes still shone like a puppy- holding out hope.
So Monica brought down the hammer hard;
"I'm looking for someone, and I've been looking for quite some time. This is the only reason I took this mission. I don't want you getting any ideas alright? His name is Ni Yang- and he's a pyromancer, possibly a B-rank."