Unity

Seventeen: Distance

A/N: This is a semi-chill chapter, which may just be hindsight bias for me because the next chapter is AAAAAAHHHHHHH. This chapter marks the beginning of June, where I will be published every Thursday except for one somewhere in the middle if I need a break. Go, my lovelies, read.
Comments, votes and such as you go are much appreciated!!

As everyone continued to heal, tensions grew tighter. You could sense how on-edge each person was. Without the usual flow of comforts from the outside world, they were even more upset. Lynette looked constantly cold and somehow even smaller without her jacket. She would run to put it on each time she got back to the wing. Mallory refused to look at me, or Lynette, or really anybody at all. She hardly spoke, she was reserved and clumsy during training. All of her usual fire and precision was gone.

Without anyone else to turn to, Chance as I migrated towards each other. Usually, we didn't like to spend time together because it made us jumpy. Every person who entered the room when we were alone was a threat and instantly suspicious of us. Even when we were doing nothing wrong, sitting on opposite sides of the room, it felt like people would assume things. However, the strange times and lack of human interaction provoked us into spending time together.

Although we used to spend time reading books or just chilling by the fire, relaxing, the aura that covered the Facility gave us this urge to constantly move, to train ourselves nonstop. So that's what we did, hours and hours of physical training whenever we could.

Chance took a liking to hand-to-hand combat practice, so we did that more than any other. A week and a half after the failed mission, that's exactly what we were doing. This time the style was boxing, not something we usually did as the Facility preferred more subtle methods of martial arts. We took turns wearing the punching pads, being hit while observing each other's movements, giving instruction and actually punching.

"Switch," Chance panted.

I nodded and took a step back, taking off the sweaty pads on my hands, which Chance had been thoroughly pummeling. Chance removed his boxing gloves and I strapped mine on. He put on another pair of punching pads. I began to deliver swift, repeated hooks to the rough material.

"Hey, Chance?" I asked.

"You shouldn't talk while fighting, Soarin," Chance instructed. "Bend your knees more."

I sighed and crouched lower. I was annoyed that it actually did help give me more mobility. I angrily punched at Chance's palms a couple more times.

"Have you talked to Mallory?" I said while continuing to punch.

"Training, Soarin." Chance took a step closer, forcing me to step back.

I punched his hands a lot harder than I was supposed to, making him retreat. He stumbled but stayed upright.

"Have you?" I asked again.

"No." Chance sighed. "Not really. Any luck with Lynette?"

"Hardly." I responded with a smile, punching normally again.

"They need time. We all do." Chance shook his head. "Just a minute to think a little about what they're really getting into, that's all they need."

"What about you, do you need that?" I switched to an uppercut to try and catch him off-guard but he blocked it with the pads.

"I knew what I was getting into from the start," Chance said coldly. "I thought we all did."

I hummed in a way that didn't really convey an opinion and continued to punch absent-mindedly.