by A. M. Hodges
Neither does Lucah.
I roll over and whine childishly into my pillow, giving up on using my womanly wiles to get him to agree. He knows the game that I am trying to play. It never works.
"Come on now. You're the one who wants to destroy the wolves, remember?"
A grunt is my only response.
"Fine, but after training it’s you, me, and a bed full of snacks," I demand glaring at him.
"My love, the only snack in this bed tomorrow is going to be you."
∞∞∞
This week has sucked. This entire month has sucked. Having to physically go to school has really started to drain my resolve on graduating. It isn't the work or the teachers. It isn't even getting up at the butt crack of dawn every morning when all I really want to do is stay curled up in Jeb's arms.
No. It’s the people. They haven't changed. They still whisper their comments and opinions when they think I can't hear them. They still avoid me in the hallways and advert their eyes when I look at them. The only difference now is that I can feel them. I can't hear their thoughts but being able to feel their emotions is pretty much the next best thing.
Day in and day out I feel the stress of the teachers. I feel like I'm living their financial and marital problems. I feel the students and their hormone driven mood swings as well as their feelings towards me. For some, mostly the girls, its jealously and hatred. I have absolutely no idea why they harbor so much hate for me, I've never spoken to any of them. I feel the endless heartbreaks that come from the girls that think they've met their soulmates and will never love again. The boys though, with their hormones and inflated sense of self, their emotions sicken me sometimes.
I feel the helplessness of the scrawny kid with glasses that just got shoved in a locker. I feel the utter despair of the overweight kid that everyone calls names even though he plays four different sports, works out and just can’t help it. I feel the bully who honestly hates what he is doing but feels like he has to so that he will fit in and no one will find out that he is really a softie who is gay and loves romance novels. Looks like I'm not the only one living a lie.
I feel his friends and their delight in the scrawny kid's pain. It's feelings like that that have me struggling to keep my rage under control.
Learning my ability also came with the knowledge that it is always there, whether I like it or not. There is no off switch. All I can do is learn how to control it and separate the emotions of others from my own.
By the end of the day, going home to Jeb with his ability to shield his thoughts and emotions from me is like heaven. The rage that I work out during our training isn't bad either.
I don't know when it happened, but everything Fae has become my solace while everything human now causes me discomfort. It used to be the other way around. I was scraping at every tiny bit of what I thought was my normal life. I don't understand why; I've never fit into this world. Every day was a struggle to feel what I called "normal." When I met Jeb and Lucah, I didn't have to try. I just fit.
Now, I just want it to be done. Because it isn't normal. Not anymore. When I lost Jackson, I had nothing left to cling on to. I walk up the stairs to the mansion and let myself inside. When I walk in, Lucah and Miles are looking particularly pissed off being fitted for tuxes.
"You haven't even gotten your tuxes yet? Prom is tomorrow you idiots!" I scold them with my hands on my hips.
"Calm down woman. We will pick them up in the morning. We are renting, considering how much money you spent on your little shopping rampage last month," Lucah snaps with a glare.
“I don’t know what you’re so upset about. Credit scores aren’t a thing in Malatia.”
He is still mad at me. When I showed him the receipts, in a framed collage, he choked, and I swear he almost cried. I don't understand what the big deal is, it isn't like they are going to have to pay off the stupid card. Once we go to Malatia, no one will be able to find them, and I highly doubt we will ever return here. I quickly push down the overwhelming sadness of never seeing my world again.
With a wave to Miles, I make my exit and head to the back yard to start stretching. Jeb is waiting for me, but the weapons rack in missing from its usual spot at the edge of the ring. Taking the hint, I discard my daggers on the patio table and walk over to him. "No weapons today?" He doesn't answer.
He motions for me to join him and releases his wings, waiting for me to do the same. Without a word, he launches himself at me beginning our hand to hand combat. We fight without rest until the sun starts to go down. My stamina has increased so much since all of this started only months ago. I couldn't even hold my wings up for thirty minutes in the beginning. Now I can last through five hours of nonstop combat with a Fae warrior without even breaking a sweat and with few injuries.
When the sun fully lowers behind the horizon, Jeb stops fighting and walks over to the patio to grab a bottle of water. He has kept himself completely closed off to me since I got here, which has me more than a little nervous. I decide to proceed with caution as I walk over to him, making a conscious effort not to wring my hands or chew on my lip.
He holds out a bottle of water when he hears me approach behind him, not even looking at me.
"Is everything okay? Did I do something?" I fight to keep my tone from wavering to mask my anxiety.
It is then that I catch the grin that he is hiding behind his long emerald hair as he looks away from me. The barrier between us drops and I feel all his emotions crash into me. Excitement. Restraint. Determination. Humor. Love. And the secret that he has been trying so hard to hide from me. We're going to fly.
"Ohhh no. No, we are not. I can't. I don't even know how," I ramble out quickly, stumbling over my words.
"Yes, you can."
I glare at him.
"You are more than strong enough now. You just fought me, and kept up, nonstop for five hours. Your wings didn't drop once. I've watched you keep yourself airborne to prevent yourself from falling into sinkholes. This is no different."
"That was only like five feet in the air!" I argue.
"We will practice on the ground first so you can get a feel for the movement of your wings. It'll be like learning how to ride a bike. I will hold onto you until you are ready for me to let go. I promise I won't let you fall."
"Well that isn't at all comforting. Maybe you don't know this, but parents always say that and then let you go anyways thinking they can trick you into doing it yourself. Except I won't walk away from a crash from the sky with only a scraped knee."
His features turn to stone. This isn't a face I’m used to seeing. That is a General's face, commanding and unyielding. A slight thrill rushes through my body. He rarely goes commander on me.
"You will do this, Reyna. It's not a question."
I fight the urge to say, "sir, yes sir" and give him a mock salute. Something tells me he won't think it’s very funny right now. The death glare I get tells me that I accidently said what I was thinking down the bond anyways.
I let out an exaggerated sigh and stomp over to the center of the yard, a safe distance from all trees. He struts towards me with his shoulders back and his head held high, ever the war leader. Hot damn, he looks delicious.
My eyes travel from his face, to his chest and then down to where his pants are loosely hanging on his hips. I lick my lips as I ogle him. Coming to a stop in front of me, he snaps his fingers in my face forcing my eyes up from his shirtless abdomen.
"Focus," he commands, "I am going to flutter my wings. Focus on their movements. When you feel comfortable, mirror my movements with your wings."
I nod, trying desperately to remain looking at his face while he is talking. My damned eyes traveled back to where they shouldn't have been.
"Reyna," he warns, although a cocky smirk appears on his face this time.
"Okay, okay. I'm good. I'll focus."
I shake out my shoulders and close my eyes, focusing on the steady beat of his wings.
Whoosh. Who
osh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
I cast out for his emotions and thoughts, searching for anything in his subconscious that instructs his wings to move. When we breathe, we do it without thinking. But there is still a part of our brain that instructs our body to breathe. That is what I am searching for in Jeb's mind.
I find the tiny instruction hidden within his mind and wrap a mental string around it, running the string back to my own mind so that I can plant the knowledge within it. I have a feeling this process would be a lot harder if I were being taught by someone other than my mate. Maybe I was cheating a little, but I'd be stupid not to use what we have to my advantage.
Soon, my wings began to mimic the movements of Jeb's.
"Good. Maintain your focus," he instructs softly, "I am going to grab onto you around your waist. When I say so, I need you to keep your wings moving and push off the ground like you are going to jump. Engage your core and lift, like you are going to jump high. We do this together. I won't let go; I promise."
I open my eyes to look up and focus on his face.
"Deep breaths."
I match my breathing with his. In. Out. In. Out.
"Now."
Chapter 24
We spend hours soaring through the skies, safely hidden above the clouds. I kept my eyes shut when I flew with Jeb to the hospital, but this time they are wide open. Looking at the cities below as I fly above them, surrounded by millions of stars, I have never seen anything more breathtaking. The world looks so peaceful. Not a hint of the wars or the dying planet that I know. Just the glittering lights of life. I have never felt so free. I never want to come down.
I yearn to be this free all the time, to be in Malatia where I can take flight without the fear of someone seeing. To be somewhere that I can be myself, where I don't have to hide behind stupid things like colored contacts. Something breaks open inside me when I am up in the sky. Something that has been caged inside of me for my entire life, waiting to be free.
When we finally land in my back yard, retracting my wings feels unnatural. It must be how Jeb and Lucah feel here. Trapped.
Suffocated. I hate it.
The next morning, I wake to feather light kisses being showered on my face. I quickly wrap my legs around his waist, trapping him between my thighs as his morning hardness presses against me. It startles him at first but when he sees that my eyes are open, his look quickly turns heated. I reach up and wrap my arms around his neck before pulling him down to meet my kiss, effectively ruining his plan to wake me up and then leave to make breakfast.
Needless to say, it takes us longer than normal to get out of bed for our Saturday morning routine.
While I shower and wrap myself in the warm, fluffy robe that mysteriously appeared in the bathroom, courtesy of my mate I assume, Jeb goes downstairs to make breakfast. There is also a second robe laying on my bed for Paisley when she arrives. Today, there will be no Miles and Lucah waiting at the kitchen table. They will come later tonight with the limo.
Paisley arrives at nine a.m. sharp, and Jeb politely excuses himself to the mansion with the guys while she changes into her robe in my room. Our stylists arrive at nine-thirty and set up in the living room. The blonde stylist grabs a chair from the kitchen for Paisley and begins working on her hair. I hand mine a box with two golden combs, each is encrusted with diamonds and shaped like wings, before taking a seat on my chaise.
Jeb, bless him, prepared two pitchers of mimosas before leaving and left them sitting with champagne flutes on the coffee table.
Hours go by as we sit and sip our drinks while the stylists work their magic on our hair. It is a morning full of laughs and stories. We talk about the other kids at school and joke about the various rumors we'd heard. I never noticed that Paisley had as hard a time as I did when it came to friends. I just assumed everyone loved her considering how sweet she is. I never realized that being the new girl makes her just as much of an outcast as I am.
My dress arrives, hand delivered, as the stylists begin to do our makeup. Paisley's hair is stunning. Half of it hangs in loose curls down her back, while two braids that wrap around her head pull the other half up to be loosely arranged into an up-do on the crown of her head. A few strands have been pulled free and curled around her face.
My hair is left down in large flowing curls over my shoulders. It seems to have grown, which is strange, and now hangs down to my chest. She teases the top before laying it back to give it more volume and the sides are swept back and pinned with my combs. My face is left open except for the two strands that are pulled free and curled at my temples.
Our nails and makeup are finished by three giving us plenty of time to change into our dresses and hang out. We sit in the living room, getting more than a little tipsy, and talking about random things. By the end of it we are probably well on our way to a drunk and giggling mess.
"Alright. Time to sober up and get dressed," I say through a laugh.
She gives me a fake pout and we melt into another fit of giggles.
I drag her upstairs and help her get into her dress before putting on her jewelry. The light makeup accenting her eyes makes her look like an ice princess in her dress. I strap her shoes on her feet before going to my closet and stepping into my dress and shoes. Securing my sheath around my left thigh, I walk out.
"Zip me up?" I ask over my shoulder while I stare into the mirror.
She stumbles over in her heels before zipping up my dress. The designer earned every penny of what I spent on this dress. It is more beautiful than I ever could have imagined.
The scale pattern shimmers in emerald green, clinging to every curve before slightly flaring out near my thighs and pooling at my feet. There is a slit on my right leg that stops at the middle of my thigh. The Queen Ann neckline make the dress look elegant while still complementing my ample cleavage. A gold teardrop, diamond neckless hangs perfectly on my breastbone.
"Oh. My God. Jeb is going to shit a brick," Paisley blurts before clapping a hand over her mouth. It causes another fit of laughter.
We are interrupted by a knock on the front door. That must be the guys.
The front door opens as I walk down the stairs and Jeb starts to walk in. When he sees me, he stops dead in his tracks causing Miles and Lucah to run into him with a grunt. A grin tugs at the corners of my mouth.
"Stunning," he marvels down the bond causing my face to break out into a smile. His knees are honestly looking a little wobbly from up here, I’m worried he might fall at any moment. Lucah shoves his way around Jeb's frozen frame.
"Woah, you look amazing Princess."
A low growl rumbles in Jeb's throat.
"Oh, calm down Kugo," Miles pushes around Lucah, "We know she's yours."
Paisley comes down the stairs and we arrange ourselves by the fireplace for pictures. Miles and Lucah are shoved out of the way while I take a couple of pictures with Jeb. The four of us are heading for the door when Jeb grabs my hand and yanks me into his chest. Cradling the back of my neck, he gives me a kiss full of promises for later. My face is flushed, and my blood feels like fire in my veins when I finally walk out the door and join my friends. ~*~
The town's square is decorated in hundreds of white lights and flowers of all colors. A DJ has set up in the gazebo and all my classmates are around it, dancing and laughing. Tables full of appetizers and punch line the sidewalks in front of the stores. The town seems to spare no expense when it comes to these shindigs.
Not that I would know, I've never been to any of them.
The four of us go over to the photo booth rental and take four different sets of stupid pictures, splitting them up so we each have one. For the first time in my life, I don't feel like an outcast. There is no one whispering nasty comments or shooting me dirty looks. No one is acting afraid of me or adverting their eyes.
We are dancing, horribly in the guys’ case, next to the gazebo when I start to feel strange. It's suddenly become a bit too hot for my liking.
"I'm gonna g
o sit down for a minute," I shout to Miles over the music before turning to walk towards the tables.
I am overtaken by a wave of heat that has me stumbling.
Everything hurts. My blood feels like its boiling and my eyes are burning. I make it a few more steps before my brain feels like its bursting into flames. I clutch my head and let out a blood curdling scream before falling to my knees.
Miles and Lucah rushing towards me is the last thing I see before everything goes black.
Jeb
I'm sitting in the recliner reading a book when I hear the front door crash open. I spring out of my chair as Lucah comes through the door carrying Reyna in his arms.
"WHAT. HAPPENED," I bellow feeling downright murderous. I shouldn't have let her go alone. Lucah was supposed to protect her.
"I-I don't know," Miles stammers, "we were all dancing and then she said she was going to sit down for a minute. We heard her scream and turned to see her clutching her head before she fell. We ran straight to her and brought her here. She was unconscious before we got to her."
"She feels like she is on fire," Lucah shouts.
"Is she going to be okay?" Paisley shrieks in a panic from the front porch.
"Miles, get her the fuck out of here," I roar immediately going to Lucah.
I watch him usher her out mumbling apologies and promising to call her with an update. Inhaling her scent, trying to find who attacked her, I get an answer to what is happening.
"Lucah, get me ice. A lot of ice," I yell as I take Reyna from his arms and run upstairs to her bathroom.
