Page 21 of Made of Steel (Made of Steel 1)

"It's going to be a little hard to analyze someone who we know nothing about. If we choose someone more famous, we could at least find some information online about what they're like."

"Or maybe we could just figure out who's behind the hoodie. It'll be fun. We can do a little investigation of our own."

"I don't know. Why should we make the project harder than it needs to be?"

He shifted his mouth slightly to the side while he considered my point. The action almost took my breath away. I could still picture Miles smiling at me out of the corner of his mouth. Even though it wasn't a smile, it reminded me of Miles. It reminded me of my past that I was supposed to be forgetting. And this small part of me wanted to cling to that.

"Yeah, okay. Let's do it," I said without even thinking.

"You sure?"

"Like you said, it'll be fun."

He nodded and looked down at his menu.

I knew he wasn't Miles. And honestly, I'd rather be sitting across from Eli anyway. Maybe I was thinking too hard about everything though. Eli made me smile. I watched him while he studied his menu. No, I wasn't ready to date anyone. But maybe Eli could teach me how to trust again. He made me feel safe, with his warm smile and his kind eyes. I needed that. I wanted that. Maybe I should be holding on to the one small town boy in this stupid big city.

"I find you endearing too," I said before I could stop myself.

He lifted his eyes from the menu.

"It's just that I'm trying to focus on school right now. But I could really use a friend. You're right about me. The move here has been a little harder than I thought and..."

"Me too."

I laughed.

He smiled.

And just like that, the awkward tension seemed to settle. "You really were right about me. I'm worried that I might hate New York. It's stifling. I really didn't realize that you couldn't see the stars here at night until I was looking for them."

"Is that why you ran away the other night?" He wasn't making fun of me. He was just asking.

Partially. "For some stupid reason, it's the only thing that makes me feel closer to home, you know?"

He put his elbows on the table and leaned forward slightly. "I guess we just need to find a spot where we can see them then. We can research that before we start stalking the vigilante."

His smile was so warm. I'm not sure I had ever seen anything so genuine. For the first time in a long time, I didn't feel scared. New York didn't seem so bad when I was with Eli. The smile he was giving me was just as bright as any star.

Chapter 15

Monday

I looked both ways and crossed the busy intersection. My last class had let out early. I wasn't supposed to meet Kins until 2, but I was pretty sure I already knew where I wanted to work.

Looking through the windows, I could see that the diner was just as busy as it was during lunch. It was exactly the kind of place I needed to work. I would have to focus on the present in a place like this. Plus the burger I had earlier was mouthwatering. I glanced over my shoulder as I opened up the door. Why did I keep doing that? No one was following me. My heart was pounding, but it was definitely just because I was nervous about applying here. That was it. I took a deep breath as the door closed behind me.

The same hostess from earlier today greeted me. This time I wasn't mortified and actually made eye contact with her. She had curly brown hair and looked like she was in her mid-forties or so.

"Hi, I was wondering if I could have a job application?"

She beamed at me. "Thank God. I was beginning to think that none of the new students were going to apply. We're still low on staff since the end of last semester. I haven't had a day off in weeks."

I laughed. "Well, I'd love to apply."

She handed me a sheet of paper and a pen. "Just fill this out. Do you have any experience in the food industry?"

"Actually, I was a waitress at a diner back home." I started to fill out the form.

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