Chapter 30: Heated Fight

Liam was someone who could not take embarrassment. He had been raised to get whatever he wanted and control everything. Seeing the attitude of Leon broke his mind, and immediately, he made a move. His fist ripped through the air towards Leon’s face.

Leon saw the attack coming. He was no longer the same person anymore, especially after taking the pill of rebirth. He pulled his head back and evaded the punch, then proceeded to grab Liam by the hand and hurl him forward. Liam staggered and barely managed to keep his footing.

He turned around in anger. Leon was already standing and looking right at him. His eyes said it all. He was done with people like Liam, and tonight, he was going to ensure that Liam understood that.

"You, you fucking bastard, I’ll make you wish for death!" Liam roared in rage. He stood like a wild beast about to pounce, his hands erupting in flames.

"I’ll burn you to hell," he roared and charged forward.

Sophia saw the scene, and she rose to her feet. Leon was a normal person. There was no way he could take a hit from a hunter. She needed to move in and help, but as she rose to her feet and moved, Scarlett pulled out a pepper spray from her purse and sprayed it at Sophia.

Sophia reacted fast. She raised her hand, and a floating wall of ice formed and blocked the spray. But that stop allowed Liam to reach Leon and attack. Liam came in with a wide right hook. Leon watched the attack coming, then he slid back and evaded it.

’He is fast. I might not be able to keep up with him, so help me, move me faster,’ Leon said to Shadow in his mind.

"Will do," Shadow replied and began aiding Leon. He dodged the second hook, hot flames passing right in front of his face. Then he spotted an opening, charged in fast, and sent a knee right into the guts of Liam, hard and fast.

Liam was thrown back. He slammed into the ground hard and rolled to a stop, coughing hard as the pain spread through his body. The rage that formed in his eyes was extreme and could burn someone if it landed on them.

He got to his feet, and his flames grew larger, scaring the people who were around. It even caused the water sprinklers to open and start raining down in the restaurant.

He charged ahead, running full speed.

"Trip him," Leon said, and Shadow moved fast through the ground. He grabbed Liam by the leg and tripped him to the ground. Liam hit the ground hard and broke his nose. The pain from it was so much that he could not keep his flames up.

At the same time, Scarlett tried to attack Sophia. She swung her purse at her, and Sophia blocked it with ease before grabbing Scarlett by her hair and slamming her face into the table as hard as she could.

Leon looked over at Sophia, seeing her standing there after taking out Scarlett. He let out a smile and rushed over to her. He grabbed her hand and ran out of the restaurant under the shocked gaze of everyone.

The door of the restaurant swung shut behind them, and the cool night air hit their faces.

Leon did not let go of her hand. He ran down the sidewalk, and Sophia ran right beside him, her hair bouncing, her heels clicking against the pavement. A man walking his dog stopped and stared as they went past. Neither of them cared.

Somewhere around the first corner, a laugh slipped out of Leon. It was small at first, and then it grew.

"I can’t believe you did that," he said between breaths. "You slammed her face into the table!"

"I can’t believe you did that!" Sophia shot back, laughing so hard she could barely get the words out. "You flipped Liam like he was nothing, and then you kneed him in the stomach!"

"He deserved it."

"He really did."

They ran past a row of shuttered shops, and a bus rumbled by, its windows glowing yellow. Sophia glanced sideways at him, her cheeks flushed, her eyes bright.

"You’re quite strong, you know," she said. "I did not expect that at all. When he threw that first punch, I was so ready to jump in, and then you just moved."

"I’ve been training," Leon said, grinning.

"Since when?"

"Recently."

She shook her head, still smiling, and squeezed his hand a little tighter.

They did not stop. They giggled and chuckled the whole way, taking shortcuts through alleys, dodging puddles, replaying every second of it. She did Liam’s roar in a deep, ridiculous voice, and Leon almost tripped. He did Scarlet’s pepper spray with a dramatic flick of his wrist, and Sophia had to stop for a moment and hold her side.

By the time they reached their building, they had run and walked and run again all the way back. They climbed the stairs together, still breathing hard, and stopped on the landing in front of their doors.

"I still can’t believe it," Sophia said, leaning against the wall. "Our first date, and we got into a fight."

"It was a memorable one."

"It was."

Her laughter faded slowly. The hallway was quiet except for the hum of the light overhead and their own breathing. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and her eyes lifted to meet his.

Leon did not look away.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. The air between them had changed. It was warmer and heavier, and the smile on her lips had gone softer.

’Is this really happening?’

His heart was pounding. He could feel the heat coming off her.

Sophia moved first.

Her hand slid up behind his head, her fingers curling into his hair, and she pulled him in. Her lips met his. It was soft at first, and then it deepened, and he felt her sigh against his mouth.

They kissed for a few seconds, passionate and unhurried.

When they broke for air, Leon did not wait. He reached behind him and found his doorknob with the back of his hand. He pushed it, and when the door stuck, he kicked it open with his foot.

BANG!

He caught her hand and pulled her inside.

She let out a breathless laugh as she stumbled in after him. He kicked the door shut with his leg, and they were kissing again before it clicked. Her hands were on his shoulders. His arms went around her waist. They moved across the room without looking, bumping into the edge of the table and not caring.

The backs of her knees hit the mattress.

They fell onto the bed together.