289 The One Before You

GAHRYE

Gahrye didn't know whether to marvel at this place they'd walked into, or at Kalle's strange scent—that he could only just catch and decipher over the strong plastic tang of the hallway they walked. It was lined in some kind of covering that made it hard and shiny, but it stank enough to wrinkle Gahrye's nose.

"Thank you, but that really wasn't necessary. He's an asshole, but a harmless one."

"Do males in your world always handle females in that way?" Gahrye said through his teeth.

"No. I mean—he really didn't hurt me. He was just trying to stop me leaving. I would have done the same to him."

"The difference is, should he not wish to be stopped, you would be incapable of stopping him. Those who are stronger have a responsibility to take even greater care for their effects on others."

Kalle stopped walking and turned to face him, her jaw slack. "Where… who told you that?"

He frowned. "You disagree?"