Mykael

Thunder sounded in the distance as Mykael stepped from the shower, a steadily escalating sense of foreboding came over him. He had been feeling strange for the past couple of days, but couldn't explain why. He decided not to dwell on it for now, after all, he had an appointment to keep. he walked into the bedroom and looked to the night stand where he saw his phone flashing, a text message. it was from Arianna, a girl he'd met a few weeks ago while on a run.

I think there’s abt to be a storm, I'm scared of thunder would you come over so I’m not all alone? :8:30

Sure, as long as I get to tease you for being scared of thunder. :8:31

Mykael threw on a pair of black track pants, his gray zip up hoodie, and slipped into his minimalist running shoes. Grabbing his wallet and phone he started for the the door, placing his hand on the doorknob he stopped, and looked back to the night stand, he let out a sigh of exasperation and turned back, he opened the drawer; full of receipts and unopened mail, and pulled it from the night stand, he emptied the contents of the drawer onto the bed and removed the false bottom, revealing a SOCOM Mk23, two extra magazines, and a suppressor. There was a note attached to the gun;

Keep your eyes to the shadows.

-M

Fucking Molotov, Mykael always hated it when she quoted their late master, he hated it even more when she was right about something and he didn’t listen, which was usually all the time. Her premonitions were startling, and bordered eerily on the clairvoyant so he swallowed his pride and picked up the firearm, the weight and feel of the cold steel in his hand was...familiar he dared say comforting, it had been a long time. he released the magazine from the gun and checked it; twelve rounds, he inserted it into the magazine well and seated it with the palm of his hand. Placing his hand over the slide he pulled it back toward his chest and released it, loading a round into the chamber. He raised the weapon to eye level lining up the sights and scanning the room with rehearsed grace. he clicked the flashlight on the underside of the weapon on and off to make sure it worked, when his phone vibrated. Arianna again.

r u still coming?9:00

oh man, of course I am, I lost track of time, my bad.:9:00

He'd been standing there for half an hour. checking, and rechecking the gun. Maybe it hadn’t been been long enough. Hey placed the firearm into one of his backpacks and proceeded out of the door and into the night. It had already begun to rain lightly, Mykael quicklystretchedd his arms and legs and started to run down the suburban street, running had always helped Mykael clear his head, he tried to run at least a 3 miles a day when time allowed, and as a result he was in great shape. The neighborhood was quiet tonight, save for the sounds of night Mykael so enjoyed, the drone of cicadas, frogs croaking, the occasional yowl of a cat, or hoot of an owl. Mykael found it easy to lose himself in it all. After about a mile he came to Ariana’s house, it was the biggest one on this block, from what he had gathered it was only her and her father, who was rarely home, some sort of lawyer if he remembered correctly. There were no cars in the drive way, and save one, all the lights in the house were out, he stopped for a moment to catch his breath, then walked up to the door and rang the bell. He could here footsteps coming toward the door, it opened and Ariana stood before him, a light skinned beauty, with round, expressive eyes and full lips that held a confident, if not cocky smile. She knew she was beautiful, and had no illusions to the contrary.

“ You’re late nigga.” She said as she drove her finger into his chest, shoving him slightly.

He looked her up and down with a playful scowl, “And? You want me to kiss your ass?” That one threw her off, he could tell, this one was used to getting her way. Ariana glared at him, and he smiled a lopsided smile. “Are you going to invite me in?” he said, gesturing to his wet clothes.

“ I mean I guess so, if you ask nicely” this time it was her who smiled lopsidedly, mocking him. She stepped from the doorway and let him in. The house was even nicer inside than it was out, with vaulted ceilings and white carpets. Afrocentric paintings and statues adorned the home, lending a very ethnic feel to the living space.

“ You have a very beautiful home, Arianna.” He said, admiring the architecture.

She smiled. “You think so? My dad picked out most of this stuff; I find it a little gaudy, kinda like he’s saying, ‘hey we’re black, just in case you didn’t notice’”

That made him laugh softly “Hey now, nothing wrong with embracing who you are. Buuut…the miniature slave ship replica is a little much, I have to admit.”

“Right? Everyone who comes here says that, whether it’s out loud or with an awkward glance.” Arianna noticed him trembling in his wet clothes. “Yknow, you could’ve just told me you were cold.”

“I’m fine, thank you.” Now that she mentioned, it was pretty cold.

“Oh shut up, don’t try to pull that tough guy shit. We’ll see how tough you are when you have pneumonia” Ariana strode past him shoving him onto the couch. . “Wait here, I’ll be right back.” She walked across the living room and disappeared around a corner. Mykael had really enjoyed the past couple of weeks he’d spent back in the States, they had been peaceful, and peace was something Mykael hadnt had in years; moreover he was really enjoying Ariana’s company; she was really the only friend he’d made since he’d been back. She was an intellectual; able to keep a conversation going for hours on end; funny, making him laugh when he was in one of his dark moods