Page 12 of Takedown Artist
I hold out my sketchbook, and he takes it with a delighted grin. Our fingers graze, and the heat from his skin draws me, so I hold on longer than I should before I move away.
“This is amazing. You’re so talented!”
I duck my head, the tips of my ears burning. I’m not used to praise. Not for this.
“It’s no big deal. Playing around, is all,” I say.
“I think it’s a big deal,” he says softly, giving my shoulder a squeeze.
If it were anyone else, I’d shrug it off. I don’t normally let people touch me. Troy seems to be the exception. His hand is comforting, and it feels entirely too good.
“Is this guy in that manga comic you were telling me about last night? Guts?”
“It’s a graphic novel, not a comic. But no … uh … This is mine. I’m … uh doing my own story. It’s not anything important.”
He gives me a hard look but doesn’t argue the point. Those warm brown eyes always seem to see more than I’m comfortable showing people.
“What’s your guy’s deal? His sword is as big as he is but it’s cool as hell. Are those horns?”
“He’s actually a demon named Nox. He’s not human, but now he’s fighting for humans against the demons. I can’t tell you the entire story. Spoilers.”
Troy nods, and despite the warnings in my brain, I keep talking. I tell him about his nemesis and how I hadn’t named him yet, but he’s also a demon.
Troy listens as though he’s genuinely interested. Maybe that’s why I can’t quit talking. I haven’t spoken to anyone about Revenant Bones. Not even Arlo. Troy’s the exception to all my rules, it seems.
“Who’s his sidekick? Have you drawn him yet?”
“He doesn’t have a sidekick.”
“So, he’s always alone?”
“Well, he doesn’t need anyone else. He’s fine on his own.”
“But all the good guys have at least one buddy.”
“Well, he’s not exactly a good guy. He’s more of a bad guy doing good things.”
Troy laughs.
“Fine, but even the bad guys have a buddy, or a pet at least. Batman has Robin.” He pauses for a second before adding, “The Penguin had all of his penguins.”
I chuckle because that’s a terrible example. Terrible but funny.
“Nox doesn’t need anyone. He’s a badass all on his own.”
Troy gets a look on his face that I can’t define. He almost looks sad.
“Everybody needs someone sometimes. Even the bad guys,” he says, giving me a searching look.
I frown. Is he talking about my novel? It almost feels as if it’s more. That can’t be right.
“He’s supposed to be alone. Look, he’s a demon—it’s not as if someone’s going to be his friend or whatever. You’re missing the point.”
“Am I?” He grips my shoulder as though he’s reassuring me about something. I like it so much more than I should.
“Dinner’s almost ready. Mom and I made chicken pot pie and homemade corn bread today. Her cornbread’s the shit. You gotta try it.”
Dinner is as delicious as Troy said it would be. It’s always fun when Troy’s parents are here for dinner. They make me feel at ease, and that’s not easy. I’m not usually very good with people, but they’re not like other people. They also have the best stories. And we usually spend most of dinner laughing. I can deal with that.
