I didn’t have a chance to say bye before she teleported out of her room.
A few seconds later, Amber—Torrence’s mom—knocked on the door. At least I assumed it was Amber, since that was what Torrence had said.
I needed to remember to call her Mom while I was here. It would be strange, but I could do it.
“Come in,” I said, trying to imitate Torrence’s blasé yet confident tone.
The door swung open, and sure enough, Torrence’s mom stood in the entrance. She wore light jeans and a pink tank, and her blond hair was up in a high ponytail.
Amber looked more like me than the pictures I’d seen of my biological mother.
Except for my violet eyes. No one was sure where those came from. A genetic mutation was the best guess.
“I thought I heard you pop in,” she said with a warm smile. “I had breakfast ready a bit ago, but you’re later than expected. It’s probably cold now.”
“We stayed up super late after Selena’s birthday party and I slept through my alarm.” I shrugged, giving the story Torrence and I had planned ahead of time. “Sorry.”
“No worries,” she said. “Want to head downstairs? I can whip up something else, if you’re hungry.”
“Actually, I was hoping we could go out to brunch,” I said. “And then maybe to the beach? We could do a mother-daughter day and explore like we used to.”
“I like that plan.” Amber smiled. “When do you want to leave?”
“Now.” I bounced on my toes in anticipation of my first day experiencing the world beyond Avalon.
This really was the best birthday present ever.
4
Selena
My mother-daughter day with Amber was amazing. She had no idea I wasn’t Torrence, which meant I was playing my part perfectly.
When we got back, we had dinner with Torrence’s aunts—Evangeline and Doreen—on the outside patio. But it eventually grew late, and the others went up to their rooms to go to bed.
I went back to Torrence’s room, but I was too amped up to get ready for bed. I only had twenty-four hours, and I didn’t want to waste a single minute of it sleeping.
Unfortunately, there were gates and magical shields around the property. And while I wanted adventure, it would be stupid to explore LA at night alone. This city could be dangerous. Especially at night.
It looked like I was stuck staying in.
But just because I was stuck on the property, it didn’t mean I had to stay in Torrence’s room.
So I padded down the hallway toward the stairs. The three witches’ lights were off and there were no sounds from their rooms. They were fast asleep.
Once outside, I walked past the gorgeous fountain in the driveway and up to the gate at the end of it, placing my hands on the metal bars. The gate was supposed to be sealed shut. But it moved after the slightest pressure of my hand and slid silently open, as if beckoning me forward.
I stared at the gate in surprise. That wasn’t supposed to happen.
Curious, I headed out of the gate and down the driveway. I wasn’t going to actually try walking anywhere, but it could be fun to watch the cars drive by. We didn’t have cars on Avalon, so just looking at the different varieties of cars they had in LA was interesting.
But when I walked to the end of the long driveway, I saw someone standing at the end of the driveway next door. His back was toward me. He was tall with dark blond hair, and he was wearing jeans and a black leather jacket.
He turned around, and the moment his bright blue eyes met mine, warmth burst from my chest and traveled through every inch of my body.
He looked to be around my age, maybe a bit older. And from the intense way he was staring at me, I wondered if I was somehow having the same effect on him that he was having on me.
But he snapped out of it, shooting me a devilish smile that made my heart race faster. “Torrence Devereux,” he said my best friend’s name, his voice like music to my ears.
Like a siren’s call beckoning me closer.
How could Torrence have never mentioned her ridiculously hot neighbor? That wasn’t like her at all.
Maybe he wasn’t hot until recently? That happened a lot with guys. They had an awkward phase, they grew out of it, and then BOOM. Sudden hotness.
But I was staring. I needed to say something—anything—so he didn’t think I was a mute freak.
“Have we met before?” I asked once I had my wits somewhat together.
“We used to play together as kids,” he said. “You don’t remember?”
“It was a long time ago.” It seemed as good of an answer as any.
“It was.” He nodded, his enchanting gaze locked on mine. “You’re not around here often anymore, are you?”
“I go to a year-round boarding school up north.” It was Torrence’s cover-story, so I didn’t have to think twice about that one. “I’m only here on the weekends.”
“Got it,” he said. “So… what are your plans for the rest of the night?”
I glanced back at Torrence’s house. The windows on the second floor were still dark. “Nothing.” I shrugged. “My mom and aunts went to sleep, but I wasn’t tired.”
“So you wandered to the end of your driveway.” He chuckled, that knowing twinkle still in his eyes.
“Yeah.” My cheeks heated, since it sounded ridiculous when he put it that way. I needed to switch the conversation away from me and my weirdness, quickly. “What about you?” I asked. “Why are you just standing here?”
“I’m heading out to hang with some friends. My Uber should be here in…” He paused to glance at his phone. “Three minutes.”
“Oh.” I deflated at the realization that he was leaving soon.
Of course he was leaving.
Normal people didn’t wander down to the end of their driveway to watch the cars go by.
And I was doing a terrible job at pretending to be Torrence right now. Torrence always knew what to say around guys she was interested in. But none of the guys on Avalon had ever interested me as anything more than a friend, so I’d never thought about it much.
Now I finally met someone who took my breath away, and he was a human who lived on Earth. A place I could never return to. And I was meeting him as Torrence—not as me.
Just my awful luck.
“Do you want to come?” he asked.
“Out?” I blinked, sure I’d misunderstood. “With you and your friends?”
“I can ditch my friends tonight,” he said. “I mean, I haven’t seen you in years. We should catch up. Just the two of us.”
Sometime while we’d been talking, we’d inched onto the yard between our driveways until we were standing a few feet away from each other. His eyes were an even brighter blue up close. Ice blue, although they somehow managed to be warm at the same time.
“Just the two of us,” I repeated, a small smile creeping over my lips. I might as well go for it. I had nothing to lose. “Like, on a date?”
“Yes.” He didn’t pause for a second. “I’d like to go on a date with you. If that’s okay with you, of course.”
From the way he was looking at me—like he was seeing all the way into my soul—I had a feeling he knew it was more than okay with me.
I wanted to say yes.
But going out with a stranger was reckless.
He’s not a stranger, I reminded myself. He’s Torrence’s neighbor. They played together when they were kids.
And he was looking at me like my answer meant the world to him.
I had no idea what to do. But wasn’t this the point of swapping places with my best friend? To be reckless? To have experiences I’d never have on Avalon?
Something—perhaps fate—pulled me toward him, urging me to say yes. I didn’t think I could walk away at this point even if I wanted to.
“You never told me your name,” I realized. “I can’t go out on a date with you if I don’t know your name.”
“My name’s Julian,” he said, and warm tingles r
an up and down my spine at his voice.
“Julian,” I repeated, his name sounding like music when I spoke it aloud. “Yes. I’d love to go on a date with you.”
5
Selena
We hopped into the Uber and slid into the back seat.
“Change of plans,” Julian told the driver. “We’re heading to Trevi Square.”
The driver nodded, inputted the new destination in his navigation system, and we were off.
“What’s at Trevi Square?” I asked Julian. The center seat between us was empty, and a part of me wished I’d sat there instead, just to be closer to him.
“It’s an area nearby with a bunch of restaurants,” he answered simply. “It’s a cool place to hang out.”
Was it just my imagination, or did I see a flicker of guilt in his eyes?
But then he smiled, and I knew I must have imagined it.
“I was thinking we could grab dessert,” he continued. “They have some great gelato places.”
“That sounds perfect.” I smiled, since it did.
“Great,” he said. “Then dessert it is.”
Trevi Square was just like Julian had described—a bunch of restaurants surrounding a large fountain in the middle. The fountain was built to look like the Trevi Fountain in Rome—it was huge, with beautiful statues of gods and creatures from mythology around it. I recognized it from pictures and movies, although of course I’d never been to the real one myself.
We grabbed gelato and sat at the benches near the fountain, watching people walk by and throw coins in the water.
“So,” Julian said after a fair bit of chatting while we ate. “Why do you go to boarding school up north when there are tons of great schools here in LA?”
Torrence had a cover-up story I knew by heart.
But I didn’t want to keep pretending around Julian. He hadn’t seen Torrence since they were kids, so he had no expectation of what she was like.
I wanted him to see me. Not Torrence. There was nothing I could do about the fact that I looked like her, but I wanted something about this night to feel genuine. I wanted Julian to see my soul—the person I was beneath the mask of my best friend.
Well, I wanted him to see as much of myself as I could share without mentioning the supernatural world.
“This boarding school is special,” I started, creating the story in my mind as I went along. “It’s intensely focused on sports. You see, everyone in my family is super athletic. They expect the same from me.”
If by “athletic” I meant that they were all gifted with magic they could actually use, then yeah.
“But you’re not happy there?” He scooted closer, looking at me like my answer meant the world to him.
“It’s not that,” I said. “I’m happy. Everyone there is great. And I want to excel in sports, like the way they want me to. But I’m just…” I paused, searching for the right word to get across the general idea without telling the exact truth. “I’m not gifted like they are. And to be honest, I’m starting to feel like I never will be.”
“So sports aren’t your calling,” he said. “That’s okay. There’s no point in sitting around wanting to be something you’re not. All you can do is focus on what you are good at and go from there.”
His response was surprisingly understanding. “You sound like you know a bit about this yourself,” I said, placing my finished cup of gelato down next to me.
“My family expects a lot from me, too.” His eyes went distant as he stared out at the fountain. “But it’s more than that. They need a lot from me. You see, my sister—my twin—is sick. A chronic stomach thing. There’s no cure.”
“I’m so sorry.” My heart went out to him. Especially because while there wasn’t a human cure, there might be a magical one.
Once I got back to Avalon, I’d talk to Torrence about it. Maybe she could get her mom and aunts to create a potion for Julian’s sister that would help her. Without Julian and his sister knowing it was magic, of course. They’d say it was herbs, or something.
“I hate seeing her like that,” he said. “She’ll never be able to live the way she wants to. She’ll most likely never be able to support herself. So the pressure’s on me to live for both of us. To do everything I can to make sure she never has to worry about anything. Even if those decisions take away from my own happiness. Even if they’re the hardest decisions I’ll ever have to make in my life.” He watched me intensely, like he needed me to understand.
“That sounds hard,” I said, and he just nodded, turning to stare blankly out at the fountain.
Talking about his sister was clearly upsetting him.
Time to change the subject.
“So, what’s your ring stand for?” I asked, motioning to the chunky band around his right ring finger. It was inscribed with words—Latin, it looked like, although I wouldn’t be able to make them out unless it was right in front of my face. “It looks important.”
“That’s because it is important.” He focused on me again, although he lowered the hand with the ring on it down to his side. “It was a gift from someone with a lot of influence. A promise that I’ll be given an opportunity for greatness. An opportunity to make sure my sister never has to worry about anything again.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what he meant. But then he placed his nearly finished ice cream down and focused on me, like I was the only person in the world who mattered to him. His gaze was intense, and my breathing shallowed, my eyes locked on his stunning light blue ones.
“I’m really happy to have had this night with you,” he said, each word full of meaning that I had the feeling I was barely touching the surface of understanding. It was almost like he knew—as I did—that we’d never see each other again.
I was about to say I was happy we’d had this night together, too, but before I had the chance, he moved closer and gently lowered his lips to mine.
6
Selena
Electricity hummed through my body, as if Julian’s touch had awakened the magic I knew was in there. Every inch of my skin prickled with awareness, and I leaned in, pressing my lips harder to his in encouragement.
He pulled me closer and deepened the kiss. He tasted sweet, like vanilla and honey, and I savored every moment that we were together. It was like our bodies knew each other, even though that was impossible.
Julian was lighting my soul on fire, and I never wanted this moment to end.
But all good things had to end. So eventually, he pulled away.
I gazed up at him, and my lips parted, craving more of him.
How could I feel so connected to someone I’d only met a few hours ago? It made no sense. And yet, it was there. Like a bolt of lightning fusing his heart to mine, jolting my soul awake with emotions and feelings too sudden and strong to fully understand.
At the same time, my chest hollowed at the knowledge that I’d never see him again. The emptiness hurt. I missed him already, even though he was still next to me.
He looked at me like he was in a trance. Whatever I was feeling, he was feeling it, too. I didn’t know how I knew it. I just did.
Then he became more focused, his fingers grazing my cheek as he studied me. His eyes were full of so many conflicting emotions. Like he couldn’t settle on just one.
I looked up at him in question, also unable to put my racing emotions into words. How could I, when I couldn’t tell him who I truly was, and why I was actually here? When I couldn’t tell him that next weekend, the Torrence who came back wouldn’t be me, but someone else entirely?
When I returned to Avalon, I’d be leaving a part of myself behind with Julian. And knowing that felt like a fistful of daggers piercing my heart at once.
From the pained look in his eyes, I suspected he felt the same.
But then, his expression changed into something else.
Resolve.
He reached into pocket and pulled out two golden coins. “We should make a wish,” he said slowly. “In the
fountain.”
I reached for one of the coins and picked it up to take a closer look. It was gold, the front of it engraved into a detailed profile of a man. He had a strong jaw, hair nearly to his shoulders, and a wreath around his head. The word Devyn curved around the side, along with a few other letters that meant nothing to me.
“What type of money is this?” I asked, since I knew enough about American coins to know this wasn’t one of them.
“They’re euros,” he said quickly. “From a trip to Italy I took this summer.”
“Are you sure you want to waste them on a wish?” I said it jokingly, but the coins looked valuable. Like something he’d want to hold onto.
“It wouldn’t be a waste,” he said, closing my hand around the coin. “Maybe because they’re euros, our wishes will be more likely to come true. What do we have to lose?” He reached for my other hand and took it in his, raising me up to my feet and leading me toward the fountain. Once we were there, he stepped up onto the ledge and helped me up, too. It was like we were gods staring down at the shimmering water below.
I held the coin tighter, since he was right. I might as well toss it into the fountain and make my wish count.
“Are you ready?” he asked, a flash of dark intensity crossing his eyes as he stared down at me.
It was like he was daring me to say no.
“Yes,” I said determinedly, my other hand still locked with his. We hadn’t broken contact with each other since the kiss.
“Perfect,” he said, although he didn’t sound like he believed it. “Let’s throw them on the count of three.”
I wasn’t sure why he sounded so torn about this. It was just a wish. It was fun and all, but it wasn’t like the wish would actually come true.
Still, I wanted it to be able to come true.
So I nodded, and he counted off. After three, we tossed our coins up in the air.
As mine arced upward, I thought, I wish I’ll get to continue seeing Julian after tonight.
The Faerie Games (Dark World: The Faerie Games Book 1) Page 2
