"…This is annoying."
Janica muttered under her breath as she stood by the edge of the arena, rolling her shoulders once before gathering her red hair and tying it into a ponytail.
Her movements were calm.
Practiced.
But the slight twitch in her brow gave her away.
Normally, things like this wouldn't bother her.
Whispers. Rumors. Opinions.
She'd dealt with them for a long time now—most of it tied to Lucas… and sometimes even Riley. At some point, she just learned to ignore it.
It wasn't worth her time.
"Hey, how long do you think this fight will last?"
"Want to bet?"
"I wish they'd make certain fights longer."
"Short fights are better. You get to see how skilled they really are."
The voices blended together from the stands, but with her enhanced senses, every word reached her clearly.
Too clearly.
"…."
Janica let out a quiet breath as she tightened her ponytail.
She understood.
Most people didn't see the effort behind a fight.
