The 7 Bad Habits of Slightly Troubled Monsters

by Devin Harnois

  “What?” All Aiden could do was stare. He’d been thinking Dylan had been in a fight, gotten into trouble. This was so random.

  “One of the werewolves was bothering her again and I chased him off. And then she kissed me.” Dylan looked at him, guilt written all over his face. “I guess I kinda kissed her back— but only for a second. I swear I’m not trying to steal your girlfriend.”

  Aiden leaned against the row of lockers. “She’s not my girlfriend,” he muttered, wondering at the sense of relief that washed over him. If Hanna liked someone else, then Aiden wouldn’t have to feel guilty about liking Tiago. How screwed up was that? At least he knew Hanna liked him back, or at least she had. What were the chances that Tiago liked him? Or that he liked boys at all?

  Pretty much zero, Aiden thought.

  Something must have shown on his face because Dylan said, “It won’t happen again, I promise. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  Aiden took a deep breath and joined him on the bench. He wished he could talk to Dylan about his feelings. He wished he could talk to anyone about them. “Me and Hanna broke up. We’re friends again, but we’re not dating.” In part because Aiden didn’t want the drama of Hanna’s parents and Conner being mad at him, and in part because Tiago had shown up.

  “So you’re not mad at me?”

  “She kissed you first, right?”

  Dylan nodded.

  “Huh. I didn’t even know she liked you.” And he wouldn’t have expected her to do something so impulsive.

  “Me either.”

  Silence stretched between them.

  Aiden asked, “Do you like her?”

  Dylan shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t really think about her until she kissed me. I mean, she’s your girlfriend. And she’s so submissive it drives me nuts.”

  “She’s not my girlfriend,” he repeated. He did still like Hanna, but he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be more than friends with her. Everything was so confusing. He wished there was an easy answer. “I’m not mad at either of you. If you like her, that’s okay.”

  Dylan frowned, looking at the floor. “I don’t think she’s my type.”

  Would Tiago say that to him? Or would he freak out and never want to talk to him again if Aiden admitted his attraction? “You should tell her that then. We’ll talk to her at lunch. I’ll let her know I’m not upset, and you can tell her whatever you need to.”

  “I guess.” Dylan was still frowning.

  “Really, I mean it. I’m not mad.”

  “I already screwed up your life. I don’t want to screw this up for you too.”

  The scar on his chest itched and he fought an urge to rub at it. “Please stop feeling guilty. It just makes me feel worse.”

  “And you saying that makes me feel worse.” Dylan laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “I wish I could fix it.”

  “Me too.”

  * * *

  “Can I sit here?” Hanna set her tray down at the mostly empty table.

  “Um… sure,” Maggie said. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” Hanna lied automatically. She sat and looked at her plate. She didn’t even remember what she’d picked for lunch. Oh, roast chicken. Her stomach growled but the rest of her wasn’t hungry.

  “Then why aren’t you sitting with Aiden? I thought you two made up.” Maggie frowned. “Did you have another fight?”

  “We didn’t fight.” God, she felt so horrible. How could she do that? Slut. Whore. Cheater. She stabbed at the chicken with her fork.

  “Then what? Is Conner threatening you again?”

  Why couldn’t Maggie leave her alone?

  “He never stopped.” Hanna looked up. “I don’t want to talk about it, okay?”

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be nosy. I just want to help.”

  “Help with what?” Jasmin asked as she joined them. “Oh hi, Hanna.”

  “Nothing.” Hanna went back to stabbing the chicken.

  The lunchroom was filling up faster than usual. Oh, crap. Was it raining? That meant… Looking over, she saw Aiden, Dylan, and Tiago at their usual table. Hanna ducked, hoping they wouldn’t see her. Maybe sitting here was a bad idea. Would they come looking for her? Had Dylan said anything?

  She seriously considered crawling under the table and staying there for the rest of lunch. Maybe she could take her food and sit outside. The rain couldn’t be that bad.

  “I’m here if you want to talk,” Maggie said. “Seriously.”

  “Thanks,” Hanna muttered. Aiden had been nothing but sweet. He’d never hurt her, never been mean to her. He protected her from Conner when everyone else had ignored what was going on. And this is how I thank him? By making out with his best friend?

  What if Dylan hated her now too? Who would help her when Conner or one of the others came after her? I’m all alone again.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Aiden looked up from his plate. It had been several minutes since they sat down. “Where’s Hanna?” Dylan had said one of the werewolves was harassing her earlier. Had someone hurt her?

  “Over there.” Dylan nodded toward the other side of the room. “Sitting with Maggie again.”

  “She’s probably embarrassed. Or afraid I’ll be mad at her. I should go talk to her.” Aiden started to get up.

  “No,” Dylan said. “Let me talk to her first.”

  “What’s going on?” Tiago asked.

  For some reason, that made Aiden’s cheeks burn. He exchanged a look with Dylan, silently asking if it was okay to share.

  Dylan sighed. “Hanna kissed me this morning.”

  Tiago frowned. “But I thought Aiden and her—”

  “We broke up,” Aiden said it with more force than he’d meant to. It was stupid, but he wanted Tiago to know he wasn’t dating anyone.

  Tiago looked between him and Dylan. “Uh-oh.”

  “I’m not mad or anything,” Aiden said.

  “Suuure.” Tiago drew out the word. “You going to fight over her?”

  “God, no.” Aiden thought he was joking, but the idea of getting in a serious fight with Dylan made his stomach turn. The sensation of warm scales made Aiden look at Dylan.

  His friend was glaring at something behind him. “Conner,” Dylan said.

  Aiden went cold. Of course people had seen what happened, and the gossip would have gotten to Conner. Aiden didn’t want to look, but he had to. He had to know what Conner was doing so he could get out of the way if he needed to. This might be the last straw.

  “So you’re trying to steal my girl now?” Conner yelled across the lunchroom. Everyone went silent.

  “She’s not yours,” Dylan shouted back.

  Oh God. Here we go.

  “Mr. Mays.” The hall monitor appeared from nowhere— how did she do that?— and blocked Conner’s path. “I think you should sit back down unless you want to be escorted out of the room.”

  She blocked most of his body, but Aiden still heard the low growl.

  “Don’t you growl at me, young man.”

  The sound cut off. “Fine. I’ll sit.”

  The hall monitor followed him, and to Aiden’s relief, she stood right behind him, arms crossed. Maybe she and the other adults really were taking this seriously now. If Conner couldn’t even cross the lunchroom without being stopped, maybe Aiden was safe.

  “Damn, I was looking forward to a brawl.” Tiago took a bite of his pizza.

  Aiden met his gaze, unable to find words. Tiago should know better. He’d told him often enough about how scared he was and how much he hated violence. Even if he was just joking, it wasn’t funny.

  It must have shown on his face, because Tiago quickly looked down.

  “Where was the hall monitor when Hanna was getting picked on?” Dylan asked. “Maybe she’s just watching you,” he told Aiden.

  He wasn’t sure if that was an insult or just a comment. “Maybe the counselor said something. I told him how much of a problem Conner is.”

  “Wit
h her breathing down his neck, that means we can eat lunch in peace.” Tiago gave Aiden a little smile that he guessed was an apology.

  “Yeah.” Except that wasn’t true because the chair beside him was still empty.

  * * *

  “Hanna, wait up!” Dylan jogged to catch her before she could escape. From the look on her face, that’s exactly what she wanted to do.

  “I’m sorry. Pleasedonthateme.” It all came out as one word.

  He grabbed her arm, but gently, just enough to hold her in place. “I don’t hate you. Aiden doesn’t either. I told him.”

  Her eyes got even wider. “Oh God.”

  “No, really. He said it’s okay. He wants you to sit with us again.”

  “Are you sure? He’s really not mad… or hurt? I didn’t do it to hurt him. It was just a stupid impulse.” She was doing that cringing thing she knew Dylan hated.

  “I think he’s sorta confused about how he feels about you.” Dylan frowned. “I think we’re all confused.” The kiss had felt nice, but he wasn’t sure if that meant anything. Kissing Indira had felt nice too, but he sure as hell didn’t like her. Not anymore.

  Some of the tension eased out of her. “Yeah.” Then she looked up at him with sudden fear. “Conner. That hall monitor can’t watch him forever. And there’s the rest of the pack…”

  “I’ll walk you to every class if I have to.” He wasn’t sure if he was attracted to her, but he did feel protective of Hanna.

  She blushed and looked away. “Thank you.”

  He let go of her arm. “I’ll walk you to your locker and make sure you get on the bus okay.”

  They walked in silence until they were almost there. Something was written on her locker door. After a few more steps he made out the word “Slut” in thick black marker.

  Dylan clenched his fists. “That’s it. Get your things, quick.”

  She followed the order without protest, tossing in a book and grabbing her raincoat and umbrella. They were almost to the front door when she asked, “What are you going to do?”

  “End this.” Tiago’s comments about having a duel might have been a joke, but it wasn’t a bad idea. There wouldn’t be any slapping with gloves or pistols at dawn, but Dylan was going to call him out.

  He went outside and scanned the kids. No sign of Conner. Dylan went and stood at the bottom of the steps and watched the stream of students coming out of the building. The rain hissed as it hit his body. Hanna stood behind him, huddled under her umbrella.

  Conner stepped through the front door, the rest of the pack behind him. “Conner!” Dylan shouted.

  They all turned toward him.

  “You’re going to fight him right here?” The scent of Hanna’s nervousness carried over the rain.

  “No.” Dylan went up the stairs as Conner came down.

  Little more than a foot away, Dylan stopped. Conner’s expression was all toughness, but he smelled of fear. “You and me,” Dylan said. “You know the gravel pit?”

  Conner blinked before going back to a frown. “Yeah. Why?”

  “Meet me there in an hour. Your minions can watch, but if they interfere, I’ll make them sorry.” He glared at the werewolves to emphasize his point.

  “You gonna kill me like you did all the others?” Still with the false bravado.

  “I’ve never killed anyone, and you’re not worth it. Just gonna make sure you know your place.”

  “By burning me alive?”

  “Coward.” Dylan sneered. “I won’t use fire.” A small crowd had gathered, and Dylan looked around at them. “Hear me? I’ll fight him without magic. I don’t need it to kick your ass.”

  Conner’s eyes pinched at the edges. He knew he was caught. “Fine. One hour.”

  Dylan smiled, slow and full of dark promise. “See you soon.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Toby hurried onto the bus with wide eyes. “Oh, man, you missed it.”

  “What?” Aiden asked.

  “Dylan totally called Conner out. Like the Wild West! Gunfight at noon!” He mimed a pistol in each hand and made shooting motions.

  The blood drained from Aiden’s face. “They’re going to fight?”

  The other kids on the bus murmured, some of them pulling out phones to text.

  “Yeah.” Toby dropped his voice to a growl. “The gravel pit. One hour. I will kick your werewolf ass.”

  Aiden stood on shaky legs. “This isn’t funny.”

  Toby frowned. “You don’t think Dylan will win?”

  “That’s not what I’m worried about.” Aiden pushed past him and hurried off the bus. The flow of students coming out of the building had slowed to a trickle. He couldn’t see Dylan anywhere. He’d probably gone back into the building to cut through to the parking lot.

  Aiden stood on the stairs, wondering if he could catch up. His phone rang, and he lifted it to see an unfamiliar number. “Hello?”

  “It’s Hanna.” She’d had her phone taken away, so she must be using someone else’s. “Dylan’s going to fight Conner.”

  “I know. I heard.” He chewed his bottom lip. “We have to stop him.” Aiden looked back at the bus. It would leave soon. He rocked, taking a half step toward the school, then a half step toward the bus.

  Hanna’s voice was soft. “Maybe we shouldn’t.”

  “What? Do you want him to get in trouble?” He’d thought Hanna would understand.

  Toby leaned out of the bus door and waved at him, urging him to hurry. Aiden clenched his free hand. He could get home and grab his bike, be at the gravel pit before the fight started.

  “No. But I want Conner to stop. I want all of them to stop. I’m so tired of being afraid.”

  Her words hit him like a punch. How often had he thought the same thing over these past months?

  Toby waved more frantically, and with a frustrated sigh, Aiden jogged for the bus.

  “Next time I’m not waiting,” the driver grumbled as he shut the door.

  Aiden took his seat. “There has to be a better way to solve this. There’s a hall monitor watching Conner all the time now.”

  “But what about the others? They pick on me all the time, leave me notes, write on my locker…”

  “Talk to your parents. Maybe you can get a hall monitor to follow you around and keep you safe.” The bus pulled away. He’d be home in fifteen or twenty minutes. The gravel pit was five minutes by bike if he pedaled fast.

  “I just want this to be over.” She sounded so sad he wanted to reach through the phone and hug her.

  “But what if this makes it worse?”

  “It won’t. Conner is challenging Dylan’s dominance, and he’s been getting away with it. Dylan needs to put him in his place.”

  “So Dylan beats the crap out of him and then everything is fine?” Aiden didn’t believe that. Violence led to more violence.

  “Yes. You undermined Conner when you… took me away. Conner needs to get me back and punish you and Dylan. Or Dylan needs to prove he’s the alpha.”

  She talked like it was logical, but it sounded so stupid. But then again, things were different in Shadow Valley. Believing in magic was supposed to be stupid, but he lived with the truth of it every day.

  “I don’t care. I need to stop him.”

  Hanna was quiet for a moment. “Um, about what happened with me and Dylan…”

  “It’s okay, Hanna. I’m not mad.” He thought maybe he should be jealous that she wanted his stronger, braver, more handsome friend. A spark of something kindled in his chest, but he didn’t know if it was actual jealousy or if he was trying to force the feeling.

  Her voice came out soft and little muffled, like she was pressing her mouth to the phone or partly covering her lips with a hand. “I swear I’m not a slut or a cheater. I’m so sorry.”

  “You don’t have to be sorry. It’s okay. We broke up.” If there was a real chance Tiago liked him back, Aiden might have tried kissing him. He’d certainly thought about it plenty of times.r />
  Wait. What if Hanna had liked Dylan more all along? Now that was a terrible thought.

  “We only broke up because my parents made me. Why didn’t you fight for me?”

  His stomach tightened. “I didn’t want to fight. I wanted you to want me enough to say no to them.”

  “Is there anyone you would fight for?” She didn’t sound angry, just hurt.

  Dylan. But he didn’t say it out loud because that would sound… gay.

  * * *

  Aiden didn’t even go in the house. He went straight to the garage for his bike and pedaled as fast as he could for the gravel pit. There was half an hour, maybe a little less before the fight. It was still raining, but it had lessened to a faint drizzle. When he arrived there was no one else at the pit. Aiden paced for what seemed like for forever until Dylan appeared, sliding down the gravel-covered hill on his bike.

  “I thought you wouldn’t want to watch,” Dylan said as he dropped his bike on its side.

  “I’m not here to watch. I want you to stop. You’re both going to get hurt and you’ll get in trouble. This is stupid.”

  “It’s not stupid. Waiting this long to have it out was stupid. I should have taken care of him the first time he came over to our table.” Dylan’s eyes were normal colored, but warm scales slid against the place inside Aiden that sensed magic. “No, I should have done it in the field that night we rescued Hanna. Should’ve ignored you when you told me to stop.”

  Aiden thought of the talk they’d had at the pit months ago. “You said you’d listen to me if I told you to not to do something stupid. You swore you would, right here, after that night you burned me.”

  Dylan looked away. “This isn’t that bad. It’s just a fight.”

  “So you were lying?”

  Dylan’s jaw flexed and he clenched a fist. “No. I need to do this. For you, for Hanna. Conner won’t leave any of us alone unless I do this.”