“Yes, I… I did.” Fidgeting nervously now that she was in the apartment, Veda can’t meet his eyes. This wasn’t how she’d expected this to go, not that she ever expected to be in this situation.
With Katelynn gone, there’s not even that security that came from having another person in the room, one who didn’t look so much like she had before. Biting her lip, she finally looks up, focusing on the wall behind Jack. “I… I am not sure if you would… like hearing it.”
But Jack shook his head. “That doesn’t matter. I’d r-rather have the truth, Veda.” He tried to give her a more reassuring look, but couldn’t hide how nervous he was. He’d been under the impression that the blonde woman was one of the few normal people in the city, and he’d liked that – learning otherwise was taking some mental adjustment. “Please, you can tell me.”
His try at reassuring her just makes Veda more nervous. Until now, Jack had been at least friendly. The chance that he wouldn’t be after this is nearly a certainty in her mind, and her eyes dart back and forth over the apartment, fussing with the hem of her shirt. Her hands are tight on the fabric, bunching it between her fingers. “I… I am not…” She has to close her eyes, take in a calming breath, before finally meeting his green eyes with her own. “I am not quite hu-human,” she finally manages, nearly inaudible.
Jack’s sensitive ears picked up the words easily. “W-well, neither am I,” he replied, with a nervous grin. The fact that Veda appeared shy and uneasy, instead of threatening, did a great deal to convince him that whatever she was hiding, he could handle it. “Th-there are a lot of non-humans in this city.”
The unspoken question, What are you?, hung in the air, but Jack refrained from saying it out loud. After years of being asked that himself, he knew how hurtful it could be, and how sick a person could get of hearing it.
Jack Maple 