Chapter Nineteen - Stairs
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Stairs
“HEY, WAIT UP .” Caleb caught me walking out of Aura Reading. We stopped and pulled to the side while the students exited. He leaned his arm on the wall above me. He spoke quietly, “Does this mean this thing between us is over? Are you official with someone else?”
“What?” My voice faltered, coming out breathless as I looked up at him.
His hand traced my neck. A jolt raced through me when he brushed a very sore spot. “This looks fresher than the one I left you. I’m not going to lie, I’m a little jealous.”
I covered it with my hand.
“It’s right over mine,” he murmured.
Just then he looked over his shoulder. We saw Mr. Ares had stopped in the hall, just before the winding staircase. He stared at us. His face was unreadable, and he turned away.
Caleb leaned closer, his dark blue eyes bounced between mine. “I know you made it clear you don’t want anything serious, and I’m okay with that. I’m just hoping I didn’t scare you off after the lake party.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not with anyone else, and I’m not scared off. I really liked hanging out with you.”
His large body was so close, I couldn’t see anything past him. He dropped his hand to reach for mine. He let the combined feeling of our magic intertwine, not doing anything with it. That made how we stood feel so much more intimate. His magic was a rush, strong, and alive. “This can stop the moment you want it to. It’s just fun, no hard feelings.” He lowered his head, his lips hovering by mine.
A slow breath left me as I leaned against the wall behind me, staring at his messy hair falling into his eyes. A smile curled on his full lips.
“Kiss me?” he asked, but not moving closer.
I did want to kiss that stupid smile off his face. I was torn between a mix of feelings, but Caleb was easy, fun. That college experience I wanted when coming here. His calm understanding, not mad when he saw evidence I was with someone else, made it easy when I stepped forward, pressing my lips to his.
He groaned low in his throat, smiling against my lips. His hands wrapped around my lower waist and pulled me closer.
In a quick motion, Professor Douglas popped his head out, with his graying brown hair gelled back. He stared between Caleb and me for a moment. “Good, you’re here, Thorne. I need you to stay a bit after class. Emerson too, he’s already seated at my desk. I can give you a note for Magical Combat.”
“Sure.” Caleb gave him a nod before he turned back to me. He kissed me again, taking his time before unwrapping his arms from around me.
I smiled and started walking away.
He paused in the doorway. “Hey, I’ll text you to see if you want to hang out later after the weekend. Um, my parents wouldn’t drop the dinner thing. I swear, I don’t want to go, but they pay my tuition, so I’ll be going home this weekend.”
He leaned on the doorframe, looking like a sad puppy.
“Thanks for letting me know.” His words really took me by surprise.
He bit his lower lip. “Harper, I know she hasn’t been the best to you, but it’s just one dinner. It means nothing to me.”
“I get it. I’ll see you later,” I said.
It wasn’t fair for me to be upset, and as I thought about it, I didn’t really mind that much. It did get under my skin that Christina was telling the truth, there was something going on his parents wanted. It was a life I couldn’t understand, and for some reason it didn’t bug me as much as I thought it would. Though, I would be paying attention to how that dinner was going to go. I needed to know if they were going to agree to being set up like their parents wanted, because I definitely didn’t want to be a part of that.
After descending a flight of winding stairs, I spotted Mr. Ares across the room, standing on the opposite staircase. His hand gripped the banister, holding his phone in his other hand. He looked casual, lingering and walking slowly.
It was odd to me he was still here after class. Everything looked normal about him, except the way he held his shoulders, something so subtle.
I almost kept walking, then he glanced back over his shoulder. He paused, scanning his surroundings. I quickly stepped back until the wall hid me. Instinctively, I made sure my walls were up like he had been teaching me. It was all I could do to feel more hidden. Since it helped when Professor Douglas tried to do a reading on me, I had kept going to the maneuver—just in case.
He walked down the steps, still looking like something weighed on him. I tried to be quiet, following on the stairs parallel to him. A large empty floor, packed with shelves and covered in cobwebs, separated us.
Stepping off of the staircase, he looked above. We were just under the aura classroom. He was being very careful—without getting too close to the aura room, but close enough. There were still less than ten minutes before my next class started.
He was definitely up to something at this academy. It could have been any reason he was here now, but he was constantly focused on Caleb, and staying after class was really suspicious.
I kissed the professor, and he could have been anybody. I didn’t know what got over me. No one else appeared to have noticed how weird he was being. I might have only noticed because I couldn’t seem to keep my eyes off of him. I knew it couldn’t have been in my head, but that just made things worse .
He seemed to have no idea how close I was, tucked away and hiding behind a half wall. At this point, if I moved or left, he would have known. It would have definitely looked like I was spying on him because we had some random moment yesterday, where something sort of happened but sort of didn’t. Either way, I was stuck here. I didn’t want to get caught sneaking around and give anyone else something to talk about or let Mr. Ares think it was because of last night.
He stepped under the stairs he was just climbing down. Within the shadows, his stark white hair was still visible. Then, he completely disappeared, swallowed by the darkness. He couldn’t have. He had to have been there, but I couldn’t see him at all.
I froze, not daring to move a muscle. Noticeable murmurs came from above me, stepping closer because I could hear them getting clearer.
The professor’s harsh voice spoke, “Your father is pleased with the reports I’ve sent him of your progress. If he hasn’t told you yet, you and Thorne will be invited to sit in on one of the upcoming council meetings.”
“Of course, I’ve been informed they want us there,” Trevor said.
The professor continued, “This is a particularly important meeting. It will be private. They are forming the council to be stronger than ever, that requires more discretion. The meeting will require a demonstration of specific magic. You know the council must be fully aware of all kinds of magic and know just how potent it can be in the wrong hands.”
“We are both aware,” Trevor gritted out.
“Are you capable of teaching us what they want?” I heard Caleb’s shockingly sharp tone cut through .
I glanced around, making sure that where Mr. Ares disappeared to, he hopefully couldn’t see me.
Professor Douglas cleared his throat. “I cannot do what you will learn, but I can provide the instruction necessary for you. Emerson’s particular studies have already been taking place.”
“The mind blocking Ares has the first-years doing doesn’t make it easy to practice,” said Trevor.
Through the floorboards, a glimpse shone of Caleb’s dirty-blond hair. He crossed his arms and leaned on the desk. “You have years before you’re expected to be on the council,” he said to Trevor.
“He’s right. Ares is making this year particularly difficult. We’ll have to find a workaround,” the aura professor said.
I ducked even lower, hearing them walking out. Why was Mr. Ares interested in spying on this? It was already well known they were preparing to take up spots on the council someday. Caleb didn’t even sound interested, Trevor sounded as angry and tired of things as he normally did. It was just tutoring.
I was definitely going to be late for class because I didn’t move from my spot until Caleb and Trevor completely left the aura tower. Shortly after they left, Mr. Ares stepped out of the shadows. It almost looked like they dripped off him. Could that have been shadow magic, refined and controlled? Once the building looked clear, I ran for my class.
I was panting and completely out of breath by the time I made it to Realm History. Stopping myself, I decided not to put my now sweaty hair up because, apparently, there were obvious hickies on my neck .
Professor Miriam merely smiled. The students scoffed at my fifteen-minute late arrival, after also having to dust off my blazer from the place I tucked myself into.
Blythe only stared at me. I wanted to tell her, but I didn’t yet know what to make of it, or why it was so important to Mr. Ares.