Breathe in the Embers

Part 35

Martin didn’t knock on Margaret’s door right away. He went to it immediately, but once there found he lacked the courage to actually knock. For some reason, this visit was much more difficult than any previous ones. For one, this was her bedroom rather than the front door of her house. But that wasn’t the entire reason. Something else had his mouth dry, his heart hammering. Perhaps it was guilt over Tessa, though he’d not really done anything. Perhaps it was just anxiety over Margaret being upset earlier.

He couldn’t be sure why, but this visit was charged in a way previous ones had not been.

It wasn’t until he heard shuffling about, then footsteps approaching the door, that he raised a hand and hastily knocked. The only thing worse than waiting for Margaret to answer would have been her opening the door to leave and finding him standing there like an idiot. So he knocked, and held his breath, and he waited.

The door opened. Not the metal visor slot, but the door, all the way without care. Margaret was always confident like that. So when she visibly hesitated upon seeing Martin standing there, he knew she was far from over their earlier encounter.

“Hey Margaret.” he greeted lamely, his voice barely above a whisper. Even meeting her eye was difficult.

Margaret on the other hand practically stared him down, face set in a frown. “Hey Martin.”

He glanced around the hallway, which was rapidly filling with students heading to dinner. He assumed that’s where Margaret herself was heading. The point being, it was hardly a private place for a conversation. He glanced past her into her room, a fairly spartan place still, but with family and friend photos placed all around. The only other decoration was what seemed to be a living plant beside her bed. He looked quickly back to her face, feeling as if he were peeping or something by looking into her private room. “Do… do you mind if I come in? So we can talk?”

Margaret pursed her lips, clearly tempted to refuse, but then she stepped aside and waved him in. Martin darted anxiously past her taller form. He noticed she didn’t close the door behind him, not all the way. She just pushed it shut until only a crack remained. Then she leaned against the wall beside it with her arms folded.

Martin turned to face her, noticing one of the photos on her desk was tilted face down. He sighed, easily able to guess who was in that frame. “Look Margaret, I wanted to apologize for Tessa earlier. She isn’t… I mean we aren’t… look I talked to her a little during class. She seems to have no concept of personal space at all! I wouldn’t encourage something like that… and it… well, I wanted you to know it doesn’t mean anything.”

“Mean anything?” Margaret asked, feigning ignorance.

“Yeah, like, it doesn’t…” How could he say this without accusing her of being jealous? “You seemed upset with how she was hanging off of me earlier. I just wanted to make sure you knew that I hate it as much as you do.”

“Perhaps you should tell her to stop.” Margaret suggested with dangerous calm.

Okay, he hadn’t precisely done that, but she should know how to read social clues! “Look I… I will, alright? I don’t like having to say anything because if I do I’m going to be pissed off and yell at her about it. I tried to just make it clear she wasn’t welcome to touch me at will.”

“It doesn’t seem like she got the message.” Margaret replied, exhaling and moving her hands down to rest in her jean pockets.

“Yeah, no.” grumbled Martin. “She is either an asshole on purpose or just oblivious. I have no idea why she singled me out for this treatment either. I’m just… I’m sorry that it upset you.”

Margaret sighed, pushing off from the wall and taking a couple of steps toward him. Martin was suddenly, and contradictorily, aware of her being both between him and the door, and the bed being directly behind him. “Look, I’m sorry too, alright? I didn’t mean to get bent out of shape over it. It just… I mean, it’s the first day of school and you already have some girl following you around.” Her jaw clenched with irritation. “You have barely mentioned our mission at all. You were talking about classes and Azimuth all the time. I’m just concerned… I’m concerned that…”

She took a deep breath, Martin could see it, then darted forward before he could react. Her lips pressed to his cheek lightning fast, then she drew back to a safe distance, cheeks flushed bright. “I’m worried you’re losing sight of everything else.” Then she turned and fled her own room, leaving Martin there, face burning.

Well… damn. What the hell should he do now?