IGNATIUS The Colors of Rage

Chapter g Reflex

“Seriously? Nansen gasped hopefully.

“Oh, God no,” Baine corrected. “You know what he'd do-”

Emi softly cleared her throat. “Excuse me,” she said with a newly found respectfulness. Nansen and Baine simultaneously looked at her. “Who is your father?” She looked up at the ceiling, clicking through all the faces that she had seen since her arrival, but not finding anyone worthy of the title. 

Nansen’s eyes narrowed specifically hard on hers. He loved to play games, but their father was a sensitive topic for all of them. She could easily say something unforgivable about him… but then again, Nansen hated women. He wouldn’t mind holding a real grudge against her. So, he tightened his vocal cords and spoke to her as if she were much smaller than him. “Our father is The Undying Race. The father of us all.” 

Throughout her whole life, Emi had learned much about the origin of the virus and all in an instant she found herself utterly let down in her preparation. “The Undying Race… is a person?” she asked. “I always thought that it was just a figure of speech. The virus itself is titled The Undying Race in most literature, because the people are practically immortal.”

Nansen belched a laugh. “Now, who’s the i***t? Yes, he is a very real person. And as the Silgria Heiress, you will probably get to meet him one day, if we’re all lucky.”

“Or unlucky,” Baine countered. 

“Yeah, or unlucky…” Nansen agreed. 

Baine poked his head in. “Anyways, that’s not going to happen right away. For now, we’re here. So, when you two are done, meet me in the lobby. Dress lightly, it’s a nice night.” He turned his back on everyone and walked away into the hall.

Nansen came closer to Iggy’s side with the scissors. He snipped away without asking him a single question about how short or long he wanted it to be, just taking control as he always had. Emi lowered herself down to the floor with her knees bent up and crossed. Her thighs hid her breasts, and her elbows pointed outward awkwardly. She struggled to hold her shins into her body. The position was easier for her when she was twiggy, but now she needed to learn how to bend and fold her adult body. Deep in thought, ripples wavered across her forehead. 

Iggy thought about the pink mark on her cheek from the slap. It was long gone already, but he still asked, “Emi, are you alright?” 

“That was probably the first time that this little princess has ever gotten hit,” Nansen snickered.

She sighed and tilted her head. Her voice was soft and angelic, truly pure, but her thoughts were still outside of herself. “What is your father like? Everything that I’ve ever read about The Undying Race becomes really distorted when I think about it as a person. I mean, one person? How could one person begin this huge family tree all on their own in less than a hundred years? It’s impossible. Let alone start the plague of-” 

Nansen shot her a glare that passed right through her and she shut her mouth. 

Iggy peered down at his empty palms, seeing everything that he had to offer her on this topic. Since he knew virtually nothing, except for the snidbits overheard from other conversations, he closed his hands. “Sure, he’s a person,” he chimed in, “but, I don’t know anything other than that. I’ve never met him. We’ve never been introduced. Everyone else seems to know him, though.” 

Her lips split and she leaned dangerously close to the hill of glass on the floor. “What? How is that possible? The Undying Race is like a God to us. The beginning, the sustaining and ending of life. You’re saying that you, his very own son, have never even met him before?” Her fingers hooked onto his arm and she pulled herself nearer. She looked deeply into his face. “And who is your mother? Where is she?”

Iggy drew in his eyebrows and looked ahead of himself. “My mother?” he thought. “I don’t have any idea who that is. I mean, I could say that Nansen is like my mother… and Baine is like my father and mother, now… but…” He met her confused stare again with his own. “I guess things are much more mixed up, now. All I know is Nansen, Baine, the house, and the lawn between the house and the walls. I read and watched videos to learn.” 

“You watched videos?!” she blurted back. “But you were blind!”

He hooked his hand around his neck. “Yeah… I haven’t experienced much, really.”

She propped herself up and leaned in even closer. Her palms rested on top of his sensitive kneecaps. The edges of her eyes waved, creating an expression of sympathy more than anything else. Iggy’s breath was captured. Women must have a way of showing every little smidge of emotion that they feel. They’re readable, which is certainly a tool worth handling. 

“I’m sorry.” Sincerely, she bowed her head. “Your life must have been very lonely… I wish I could change that for you and give you my amazing memories of picnics in the sun with my sister, and the wonderful family massage sessions.” She lifted her chin, and came up onto her knees. Their faces aligned before she whispered, “even though we have different pasts, we can start our new life together and make many great memories. Will you do that with me?”

Staring into her hopeful selfless eyes, Iggy said, “I… guess… so?”

Then, her soft lips pressed against his in a kiss. And not just any kiss, but a real kiss. One between a man and a woman in a way much different than that between family members. Sure, Nansen had kissed him thousands of times on the forehead and cheeks, especially when he was ill. Even Baine might have kissed him once or twice in his whole life, but it was nothing similar to this. 

Somehow, her touch seemed to be the most appropriate thing to happen at that time and what seemed to be the most important thing in that moment was that he submitted to her. It was a drive that had never pulled him before, not by anyone. He wanted to do what she told him to do. He wanted to be given opportunities to do good by her. He stared closeness in the face and allowed it to happen, willingly. He was changing into a person that he didn’t know, which would be frightening for most, but it wasn’t for him. As a matter of fact, he hated himself and the entire world right before this moment. 

Her touch not only gave him interest, it gave him hope. 

After a moment or two of connectedness, Nansen’s jaw dropped when he realized that Iggy wasn’t resisting her advances as he had expected. Startled, Nansen gripped Iggy’s shoulders and tugged him back. “Get off of my brother, you w***e,” he cursed. She pulled her head away. It may have been a done kiss for her, but Iggy wasn’t ready to let it end. He caught her by the back of the head and pulled her closer. He laid his wet lips back onto hers, and extended the kiss, again. She moaned into his mouth, and although he thought it was a moan of passion, Nansen pinched the back of his neck, and whispered, “let her go.” Iggy jerked away, releasing her. 

She retracted, touched her upper lip with her fingertips, and smiled. Almost out of breath, as Iggy was, too, she whispered, “I will wait for you downstairs. I think it’s best to apologize to Baine for what happened.” She glanced up at Nansen. “I was being very immature… but now I'll act ready to be my age.” 

“You’ll act ready to be your age?” Nansen lifted a skeptical eyebrow. “Oh, so impressive.” 

She ignored him, and gathered herself up to standing. Iggy turned his head and watched her dance out of the room, merrily. Her long blonde hair was practically snowy gold, shimmering through any shadow. The door shut behind her, yet he couldn’t help but sit and stare at it long after.

“How’s that for making everything a little bit more complicated?” Nansen snided. “It looks like you have a real girlfriend, now. By the way, who taught you how to kiss? That was way too hard. You’re going to end up becoming a sadist or something.” 

Iggy looked up into his golden eyes and tapped his index finger against his own forehead, right where he had been kissed last. “You did.”

Nansen’s smile crooked. “Exactly… A sadist.”