She was planning to remain quiet, hoping he wouldn't notice any details that would reveal her thoughts. He spoke a taunting remark, making her upper lip twitch as she hardened her gaze. What was his problem? Did he just go around preaching about the deceased Hellstrom in the hopes of altering the audience's views? Well, she wasn't going to fall for it. She wasn't going to allow herself to be so willingly swayed. Alas, he found a way to read her thoughts, and an obvious one it was. The look in her eyes gave it all away, and when he told her so, she scoffed and looked away. She would never be able to admit to him how she truly felt, if that's what he wanted from her. She couldn't do that. She had to be strong. She couldn't be weak; she couldn't allow herself to pulled under.
Her silence was his opportunity to continue talking, to her dismay. She wanted to walk away and leave him where he stood, tired of hearing the same subject he ranted about. Yet, the longer she remained, the thoughts of leaving gradually diminished. She found herself drawn to his words, as if she couldn't stop listening. He spoke of a soft, comfortable life, and as guilty as she felt, she could relate to such desires. Was her life easy? Was she soft? She didn't want to be. She didn't want to be described by any of those words. Was Fiori too comfortable? Was her friend too soft? Were her family weak? No, she couldn't say such things about her loved ones.
Her curiosity piqued when he stated his opinion on Fiori, making her finally swivel her head around to gingerly meet his gaze. So Fiori was too simple, too easy, like she had thought. That only increased her confusion. Why had her friend decided to come here if it was too comfortable? "Where will you go?" The words just left her lips, and she instantly regretted taking such an interest in his plans for the future. She didn't care where he went. Surely he didn't belong in Fiori. "Will you be following Riv in his future pack?"
