Exordium (Emberhold Academy #1)

9. Reverie

Chapter 9

Reverie

H eading into class, I saw Chloe waving at me from the middle row. As I made my way over, I glanced to the front of the class and noticed a tall Asian man staring at me.

Jet leaned down and whispered in my ear, “That’s Professor Lee. He was a Major in the war because of his ability.”

Trying to hide my shiver in response to his warm breath in my ear, I asked, “What’s his power?”

“He’s a precog specializing in strategy,” Jet told me. “I think the war would have ended differently if he had joined sooner.”

“Why didn’t he?” I moved over slightly. If he whispered that close to my ear again, I might embarrass myself.

“He didn’t find his Faction until several years after it started. By the time he mastered his power, the war was almost over. It’s said that he is the one who told the General they needed to leave our world and travel to this dimension.” Jet told me.

The events of the day had apparently frazzled my mind. “Mom did mention him. He was friends with my dad Sly back in the day.” I tilted my head in thought, “She told me he’d written a note and gave it to them, to put in a safe place.” I stopped talking. Why did I just tell him that? I’d only met him recently and he sure as hell didn’t need to know things about my family. Also, why did he know so much about their history being a found Passive?

“That’s interesting,” Jet smiled slightly and flashed that damn dimple again. “When I discovered I was Aurathion, I studied everything I could get my hands on so I wouldn’t show up to Emberhold completely ignorant. But, if I need any help, I’m coming to you, it sounds like your parents are exceptionally knowledgeable.”

“I’d be glad to help.” Nope, I was going to avoid this guy. I had enough on my plate with Nathan and the twins. I wasn’t ready to admit Jet was most likely my Faction, too. Reaching Chloe, I sat down and tried to recenter. The day had been a cluster fuck, and it wasn’t even lunch yet. Jet started to sit beside me until Nathan cleared his throat loudly. I thought for a moment Jet was going to ignore him, but he took a seat next to Chloe.

Sitting beside me, Nathan grumbled, “Jolly and I are going to have a little talk when we get back to our dorm.”

I rolled my eyes, “He was just telling me about our professor. No need to get pissy.”

Nathan slid his hand under my desktop and palmed the crotch of my jeans. I could feel the warmth of his hand through the denim, and my panties dampened immediately.

“I saw him flash that fucking dimple again, so don’t give me that.” I heard his deep voice in my head

“It seems that you’re the one getting pissy. You seem a little tense after everything that’s happened today. Do you need me to relax you?”

“No, I do not!” I looked around the classroom, but everyone was listening to the professor review the syllabus. Nathan was facing forward, doing an excellent job of pretending he was paying attention—the reprobate. The bottom of my shirt was covering what he was doing with his hand.

I grabbed his arm and tried to pull it away from me but, I couldn’t budge it. Then I didn’t want to. He was rubbing the seam of my jeans right over my clit, and it felt amazing. Even though I was sure my face was glowing red, and I was scared someone would see what he was doing to me (thank God Chloe was a good student), it felt too good to make him stop, I wasn’t entirely sure that was even possible. His firm but small movements kept us from being seen but I needed more. I leaned closer to him so he would have better access.

“Open those beautiful eyes, my Nexi. You don’t want anyone to guess what’s going on.” He whispered in a voice that had me obeying instantly. I opened my eyes but couldn’t comprehend anything the professor was saying. I felt myself getting wetter and knew Nathan could feel it through the denim. He slid his hand up higher and undid my jeans, sliding his fingers into my pants.

“So wet, my naughty Nexi,” he moaned, then started rubbing my clit gently with his thumb. He used just enough pressure to keep stoking the burn even higher without letting me tumble off the edge. If this was his way of relaxing me, he was doing a piss poor job of it. I didn’t know how much more I could take and feeling the trembling of his thigh, that I was gripping with my hand, I wondered if he felt the same. Just when I thought the pleasure couldn’t get more intense, he suddenly plunged two of his fingers deep inside me. It was almost too much—the things my Psycho did to me.

My breathing became labored, and I was desperately trying not to close my eyes in pleasure. Being able to feel how turned on Nathan was on top of mine own desire was profound. He sped up the motion plunging his fingers in and out as he started rubbing my clit faster. I whispered his name not having the concentration to communicate mentally, I heard Nathan give a low moan. At that moment, I knew I was going to come. I rolled my head to the left and was suddenly caught in Jet’s molten gaze. Everything became too much, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. I closed my eyes, and my toes curled as the intense orgasm washed over me. Just when I thought it was over, Nathan groaned, pumping his fingers faster, and I experienced his pleasure, which threw me into a second orgasm.

I felt Nathan move his hand from under my shirt. Opening my eyes, I saw him licking his fingers clean.

“Pure sweetness.” He had to be one of the sexiest men on earth, my lips parted slightly, and I took a calming breath; he leaned over and kissed me gently. “Now my Nexi should be in a better mood. I know I am.” I glanced down and saw a massive wet spot on Nathan’s jeans.

“ Shit, how are we getting out of here without anybody seeing that .”

Nathan glanced down and then over at me, “ I don’t give a damn who sees. It’s like a badge of honor, showing how desirable my Nexi is .”

I heard nothing the professor said for the rest of class. This man was unbelievable, and he was all mine. What was I going to do with three of them? Maybe, I’d be the most satisfied Nexus on earth. I smiled dreamily at the thought.

True to his word, when class was over, Nathan casually got up, took my hand, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch. I avoided looking at Jet because I knew my skin was still glowing. Partly in embarrassment and partly in satisfaction.

“Hey, wait for your bestie!” Chloe yelled, running to catch up.

“If she keeps calling you her bestie, I’m going to need a little hand action in our next class to relieve my stress,” Nathan scowled in Chloe’s direction.

I rolled my eyes but was too relaxed to respond. Chloe pulled even with us,

“That was interesting. I found that class intense at first, then strangely relaxing at the end. What did you think?” she innocently looked at me with a twinkle in her eye.

Damn, I felt my face grow hot once again. I thought she was too distracted to realize what we had been up to. I had a feeling it would be a while before I heard the end of it.

We entered the cafeteria. It was a large room with cream-colored walls and large black sconces spread every few feet. The tables were of different sizes and shapes made of the same stone used throughout Emberhold. I was happy I didn’t have to move them. Hopefully, whoever did, had an established Faction. There were long windows on one wall made of stained glass with the Aurathion Triquetra on the middle panel, the outer panels had animals and plants from our home world like the ones in the assembly hall.

The food was arranged in a buffet-style spread for self-service and there was a vast salad bar. Various vending machines were lined up against one wall, with a variety of drinks and sweets offered. Nathan led me to a long table close to the windows. I was surprised at that, I figured he would sit at a smaller table with room for no more than three, or four.

“We might as well sit at a large table since you keep collecting people,” Nathan joked, and pulled me onto his lap.

Chloe stuck her tongue out at him as she sat opposite the seat, that would’ve been mine, if not for possessive Faction. Jet followed behind her and took the seat across from us.

I kept my gaze focused on Chloe, no way did I want to look at Jet. I’m sure my face was still glowing red. The more I tried not to look at him, the more I felt my eyes stray his way. I couldn’t believe I had let Nathan finger me in class. I was such a hoe. I smiled in remembrance, but an extremely satisfied one. Feeling eyes burning into my forehead, I couldn’t resist glancing Jet’s way. He was staring directly at me.

“Do you want to come to our dorm later and study? I’m sure Nathan won’t care if you come . If you don’t want to come tonight, you can come tomorrow.”

I stared at him, not amused at all. Nathan started laughing, “I don’t care when you come just as long as you do.“ Giving zero fucks who knew what we had done. Chloe died laughing, pointing to Nathan.

“Where can I find one?”

“You can’t. I’m one of a kind, baby Moon.” Nathan gave her a cocky grin. “See, my sweet, how fortunate you are.” He smirked and squeezed my thigh.

I turned and kissed his cheek.

“I never doubted that.” I couldn’t imagine my life without this man in it. Zeke and Zane showed up, pulled out a seat, and sat down.

“Hello, sweet Reverie of mine. How was Battle Strategies?” Zane smiled.

“I think she was delighted at having the opportunity to come and hear the lecture,“ Jet looked innocently over at Zane.

“Who knew you had such a sense of humor, Jolly,” Nathan grinned. “I might let some of your past behavior slide.”

“I feel like we’re missing something,” Zeke looked at all of them suspiciously.

“You definitely are.” Chloe cackled. “I would tell you, but I’m trying to solidify my best friend status.”

“There is no solidifying that. I hold that position and every other position of importance.” Nathan scowled at her, losing his grin.

“I’ve decided to take the best friend status. My personality fits her much better.” Zane stared at Nathan in challenge.

“The hell you say? Everything I’ve got fits her.” Nathan hissed at Zane. “Some things are a little tight, but we make it work.”

I face-palmed, groaning in embarrassment. These men were going to be the death of me. I was tired of their shit and moved to my own chair, giving Nathan the evil eye. Zeke and Jet left the table, presumedly to get food.

“Sure, they are,” Zane held his finger and thumb about an inch apart.

“Reverie, tell him that’s not true!” Nathan demanded. “It’s about ten of those. Add that up if you can, you soulless ginger!”

“If you want to see a ginger snap, keep calling me soulless. I’m full of fucking soul! I know the words to every song Muddy Waters ever sang.” Zane snapped at Nathan.

I sighed, and looked at Chloe “Let’s go get some food. The big dick energy in here is smothering me.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’m starving, and they aren’t showing signs of stopping.” Chloe rolled her eyes.

“That confirms it, B-I-G D-I-C-K energy!” Nathan spelled out like a cheerleader at a pep rally. Smirking at Zane.

I shook my head and turned to leave, bumping into Zeke who had plates for me and Chloe.

“No need to go anywhere, I brought food for my two favorite ladies.” He slid a plate of spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread in front of Chloe and a massive plate of food in front of me. “I just put a little of everything on your plate, since I wasn’t sure what you liked.”

Looking down at my plate, I saw a piece of pizza, a small steak, a baked potato loaded, some asparagus, an eggroll, and a small salad with ranch. I looked at Zeke and smiled, “Thank you. I like almost everything. You might have to help me finish all of this, though.”

He looked back at me and smiled shyly, “I’ll help you with whatever you need.” Did he mean that like it sounded? I blushed once again. Damn my fair skin!

“Too late,” Chloe smirked, wagging her eyebrows. I was going to kill this girl. I hope she found her Faction soon so I could get a little payback.

Giving Chloe a puzzled look, he turned back to me, “I also got you a glass of sweet tea. I thought since you were from Texas, you’d like it.”

“You thought right,” I winked at him, shooting Chloe the bird.

“Damn, Bro, you’re killing it!” Chloe high fived him, still laughing at me.

Nathan looked at Zeke and sulked, “I’m the one that has to approve you. You should’ve brought me a plate.” Standing up, he headed to the buffet. We watched him leave and then busted out laughing. He was something else, and I wouldn’t change a thing about him. Except maybe for his ability to be discreet, thank goodness Jet hadn’t returned to our table yet.

Jet and Nathan returned to the table with plates heaped full. Everyone dug in and ate like their life depended on it.

Chloe sat back patting her flat stomach, “I’m dreading these next classes, they’re going to be intense. Instructor Storm is a real bastard and doesn’t care if you pass or fail. I guess the whole family is full of assholes.” She turned to her brothers, “Why did you two quit hanging out with him?”

Instead of answering Chloe, Zane gave Zeke a look and nodded his head toward me. Zeke just kept staring at him. Zane gestured with his head again and raised his eyebrows. What the hell was wrong with these two? Zeke rolled his eyes and gave a long-suffering sigh.

“Reverie, can I talk to you after lunch? We can walk to the gym together,” he asked quietly.

“Sure, is everything OK?” I was puzzled by their actions.

“I hope so.” He mumbled.

Nathan put his arm around her, “I’m coming with her.” I don’t think anyone was surprised at his statement.

“You probably need to hear it too,” Zane took a big bite of his burger. Seeming happy now that his brother asked to talk to me.

“I’m coming too,” Chloe pouted.

“It looks like we’re all coming,” Zeke said, exasperated with the whole thing.

Jet started laughing so loudly that everyone in the cafeteria looked over at them. I stared at him in shock. I didn’t think he had it in him to be this jubilant. When he could catch his breath, he grinned at me, “You’re not leaving me out this time, I want to come too.”

I rolled my eyes and stood up. Everyone was a damn comedian. Walking outside, I noticed Professor Lee standing at the side of the building, watching me. I hoped it didn’t have anything to do with what Nathan and I had been up to in class. If he told my parents, I would never be able to go home again. We left the building, and walked down the path, headed to the gym. Zeke walked beside me and grabbed my hand, stopping me before we entered.

“The instructor’s name is Oren Storm. He was a pretty good friend to us in the past, but after he graduated from Emberhold and still hadn’t found his Faction, he started acting weird. He disappeared for a while, and when he returned, he was different. He was angry and more psycho than usual. We tried to talk to him but he wasn’t having it.”

“I hate y’all lost a good friend, but what does that have to do with me?” I asked, confused.

“I bet I can answer that question,” Chloe winced. “I don’t think anyone has mentioned it before, but Kristine’s last name is Storm. Oren is her stepbrother, and you rearranged his baby sister’s nose.” Well, shit. This ought to be good.

Heading into class, I saw Chloe waving at me from the middle row. As I made my way over, I glanced to the front of the class and noticed a tall Asian man staring at me.

Jet leaned down and whispered in my ear, “That’s Professor Lee. He was a Major in the war because of his ability.”

Trying to hide my shiver in response to his warm breath in my ear, I asked, “What’s his power?”

“He’s a precog specializing in strategy,” Jet told me. “I think the war would have ended differently if he had joined sooner.”

“Why didn’t he?” I moved over slightly. If he whispered that close to my ear again, I might embarrass myself.

“He didn’t find his Faction until several years after it started. By the time he mastered his power, the war was almost over. It’s said that he is the one who told the General they needed to leave our world and travel to this dimension.” Jet told me.

The events of the day had apparently frazzled my mind. “Mom did mention him. He was friends with my dad Sly back in the day.” I tilted my head in thought, “She told me he’d written a note and gave it to them, to put in a safe place.” I stopped talking. Why did I just tell him that? I’d only met him recently and he sure as hell didn’t need to know things about my family. Also, why did he know so much about their history being a found Passive?

“That’s interesting,” Jet smiled slightly and flashed that damn dimple again. “When I discovered I was Aurathion, I studied everything I could get my hands on so I wouldn’t show up to Emberhold completely ignorant. But, if I need any help, I’m coming to you, it sounds like your parents are exceptionally knowledgeable.”

“I’d be glad to help.” Nope, I was going to avoid this guy. I had enough on my plate with Nathan and the twins. I wasn’t ready to admit Jet was most likely my Faction, too. Reaching Chloe, I sat down and tried to recenter. The day had been a cluster fuck, and it wasn’t even lunch yet. Jet started to sit beside me until Nathan cleared his throat loudly. I thought for a moment Jet was going to ignore him, but he took a seat next to Chloe.

Sitting beside me, Nathan grumbled, “Jolly and I are going to have a little talk when we get back to our dorm.”

I rolled my eyes, “He was just telling me about our professor. No need to get pissy.”

Nathan slid his hand under my desktop and palmed the crotch of my jeans. I could feel the warmth of his hand through the denim, and my panties dampened immediately.

“I saw him flash that fucking dimple again, so don’t give me that.” I heard his deep voice in my head

“It seems that you’re the one getting pissy. You seem a little tense after everything that’s happened today. Do you need me to relax you?”

“No, I do not!” I looked around the classroom, but everyone was listening to the professor review the syllabus. Nathan was facing forward, doing an excellent job of pretending he was paying attention—the reprobate. The bottom of my shirt was covering what he was doing with his hand.

I grabbed his arm and tried to pull it away from me but, I couldn’t budge it. Then I didn’t want to. He was rubbing the seam of my jeans right over my clit, and it felt amazing. Even though I was sure my face was glowing red, and I was scared someone would see what he was doing to me (thank God Chloe was a good student), it felt too good to make him stop, I wasn’t entirely sure that was even possible. His firm but small movements kept us from being seen but I needed more. I leaned closer to him so he would have better access.

“Open those beautiful eyes, my Nexi. You don’t want anyone to guess what’s going on.” He whispered in a voice that had me obeying instantly. I opened my eyes but couldn’t comprehend anything the professor was saying. I felt myself getting wetter and knew Nathan could feel it through the denim. He slid his hand up higher and undid my jeans, sliding his fingers into my pants.

“So wet, my naughty Nexi,” he moaned, then started rubbing my clit gently with his thumb. He used just enough pressure to keep stoking the burn even higher without letting me tumble off the edge. If this was his way of relaxing me, he was doing a piss poor job of it. I didn’t know how much more I could take and feeling the trembling of his thigh, that I was gripping with my hand, I wondered if he felt the same. Just when I thought the pleasure couldn’t get more intense, he suddenly plunged two of his fingers deep inside me. It was almost too much—the things my Psycho did to me.

My breathing became labored, and I was desperately trying not to close my eyes in pleasure. Being able to feel how turned on Nathan was on top of mine own desire was profound. He sped up the motion plunging his fingers in and out as he started rubbing my clit faster. I whispered his name not having the concentration to communicate mentally, I heard Nathan give a low moan. At that moment, I knew I was going to come. I rolled my head to the left and was suddenly caught in Jet’s molten gaze. Everything became too much, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. I closed my eyes, and my toes curled as the intense orgasm washed over me. Just when I thought it was over, Nathan groaned, pumping his fingers faster, and I experienced his pleasure, which threw me into a second orgasm.

I felt Nathan move his hand from under my shirt. Opening my eyes, I saw him licking his fingers clean.

“Pure sweetness.” He had to be one of the sexiest men on earth, my lips parted slightly, and I took a calming breath; he leaned over and kissed me gently. “Now my Nexi should be in a better mood. I know I am.” I glanced down and saw a massive wet spot on Nathan’s jeans.

“ Shit, how are we getting out of here without anybody seeing that .”

Nathan glanced down and then over at me, “ I don’t give a damn who sees. It’s like a badge of honor, showing how desirable my Nexi is .”

I heard nothing the professor said for the rest of class. This man was unbelievable, and he was all mine. What was I going to do with three of them? Maybe, I’d be the most satisfied Nexus on earth. I smiled dreamily at the thought.

True to his word, when class was over, Nathan casually got up, took my hand, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch. I avoided looking at Jet because I knew my skin was still glowing. Partly in embarrassment and partly in satisfaction.

“Hey, wait for your bestie!” Chloe yelled, running to catch up.

“If she keeps calling you her bestie, I’m going to need a little hand action in our next class to relieve my stress,” Nathan scowled in Chloe’s direction.

I rolled my eyes but was too relaxed to respond. Chloe pulled even with us,

“That was interesting. I found that class intense at first, then strangely relaxing at the end. What did you think?” she innocently looked at me with a twinkle in her eye.

Damn, I felt my face grow hot once again. I thought she was too distracted to realize what we had been up to. I had a feeling it would be a while before I heard the end of it.

We entered the cafeteria. It was a large room with cream-colored walls and large black sconces spread every few feet. The tables were of different sizes and shapes made of the same stone used throughout Emberhold. I was happy I didn’t have to move them. Hopefully, whoever did, had an established Faction. There were long windows on one wall made of stained glass with the Aurathion Triquetra on the middle panel, the outer panels had animals and plants from our home world like the ones in the assembly hall.

The food was arranged in a buffet-style spread for self-service and there was a vast salad bar. Various vending machines were lined up against one wall, with a variety of drinks and sweets offered. Nathan led me to a long table close to the windows. I was surprised at that, I figured he would sit at a smaller table with room for no more than three, or four.

“We might as well sit at a large table since you keep collecting people,” Nathan joked, and pulled me onto his lap.

Chloe stuck her tongue out at him as she sat opposite the seat, that would’ve been mine, if not for possessive Faction. Jet followed behind her and took the seat across from us.

I kept my gaze focused on Chloe, no way did I want to look at Jet. I’m sure my face was still glowing red. The more I tried not to look at him, the more I felt my eyes stray his way. I couldn’t believe I had let Nathan finger me in class. I was such a hoe. I smiled in remembrance, but an extremely satisfied one. Feeling eyes burning into my forehead, I couldn’t resist glancing Jet’s way. He was staring directly at me.

“Do you want to come to our dorm later and study? I’m sure Nathan won’t care if you come . If you don’t want to come tonight, you can come tomorrow.”

I stared at him, not amused at all. Nathan started laughing, “I don’t care when you come just as long as you do.“ Giving zero fucks who knew what we had done. Chloe died laughing, pointing to Nathan.

“Where can I find one?”

“You can’t. I’m one of a kind, baby Moon.” Nathan gave her a cocky grin. “See, my sweet, how fortunate you are.” He smirked and squeezed my thigh.

I turned and kissed his cheek.

“I never doubted that.” I couldn’t imagine my life without this man in it. Zeke and Zane showed up, pulled out a seat, and sat down.

“Hello, sweet Reverie of mine. How was Battle Strategies?” Zane smiled.

“I think she was delighted at having the opportunity to come and hear the lecture,“ Jet looked innocently over at Zane.

“Who knew you had such a sense of humor, Jolly,” Nathan grinned. “I might let some of your past behavior slide.”

“I feel like we’re missing something,” Zeke looked at all of them suspiciously.

“You definitely are.” Chloe cackled. “I would tell you, but I’m trying to solidify my best friend status.”

“There is no solidifying that. I hold that position and every other position of importance.” Nathan scowled at her, losing his grin.

“I’ve decided to take the best friend status. My personality fits her much better.” Zane stared at Nathan in challenge.

“The hell you say? Everything I’ve got fits her.” Nathan hissed at Zane. “Some things are a little tight, but we make it work.”

I face-palmed, groaning in embarrassment. These men were going to be the death of me. I was tired of their shit and moved to my own chair, giving Nathan the evil eye. Zeke and Jet left the table, presumedly to get food.

“Sure, they are,” Zane held his finger and thumb about an inch apart.

“Reverie, tell him that’s not true!” Nathan demanded. “It’s about ten of those. Add that up if you can, you soulless ginger!”

“If you want to see a ginger snap, keep calling me soulless. I’m full of fucking soul! I know the words to every song Muddy Waters ever sang.” Zane snapped at Nathan.

I sighed, and looked at Chloe “Let’s go get some food. The big dick energy in here is smothering me.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’m starving, and they aren’t showing signs of stopping.” Chloe rolled her eyes.

“That confirms it, B-I-G D-I-C-K energy!” Nathan spelled out like a cheerleader at a pep rally. Smirking at Zane.

I shook my head and turned to leave, bumping into Zeke who had plates for me and Chloe.

“No need to go anywhere, I brought food for my two favorite ladies.” He slid a plate of spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread in front of Chloe and a massive plate of food in front of me. “I just put a little of everything on your plate, since I wasn’t sure what you liked.”

Looking down at my plate, I saw a piece of pizza, a small steak, a baked potato loaded, some asparagus, an eggroll, and a small salad with ranch. I looked at Zeke and smiled, “Thank you. I like almost everything. You might have to help me finish all of this, though.”

He looked back at me and smiled shyly, “I’ll help you with whatever you need.” Did he mean that like it sounded? I blushed once again. Damn my fair skin!

“Too late,” Chloe smirked, wagging her eyebrows. I was going to kill this girl. I hope she found her Faction soon so I could get a little payback.

Giving Chloe a puzzled look, he turned back to me, “I also got you a glass of sweet tea. I thought since you were from Texas, you’d like it.”

“You thought right,” I winked at him, shooting Chloe the bird.

“Damn, Bro, you’re killing it!” Chloe high fived him, still laughing at me.

Nathan looked at Zeke and sulked, “I’m the one that has to approve you. You should’ve brought me a plate.” Standing up, he headed to the buffet. We watched him leave and then busted out laughing. He was something else, and I wouldn’t change a thing about him. Except maybe for his ability to be discreet, thank goodness Jet hadn’t returned to our table yet.

Jet and Nathan returned to the table with plates heaped full. Everyone dug in and ate like their life depended on it.

Chloe sat back patting her flat stomach, “I’m dreading these next classes, they’re going to be intense. Instructor Storm is a real bastard and doesn’t care if you pass or fail. I guess the whole family is full of assholes.” She turned to her brothers, “Why did you two quit hanging out with him?”

Instead of answering Chloe, Zane gave Zeke a look and nodded his head toward me. Zeke just kept staring at him. Zane gestured with his head again and raised his eyebrows. What the hell was wrong with these two? Zeke rolled his eyes and gave a long-suffering sigh.

“Reverie, can I talk to you after lunch? We can walk to the gym together,” he asked quietly.

“Sure, is everything OK?” I was puzzled by their actions.

“I hope so.” He mumbled.

Nathan put his arm around her, “I’m coming with her.” I don’t think anyone was surprised at his statement.

“You probably need to hear it too,” Zane took a big bite of his burger. Seeming happy now that his brother asked to talk to me.

“I’m coming too,” Chloe pouted.

“It looks like we’re all coming,” Zeke said, exasperated with the whole thing.

Jet started laughing so loudly that everyone in the cafeteria looked over at them. I stared at him in shock. I didn’t think he had it in him to be this jubilant. When he could catch his breath, he grinned at me, “You’re not leaving me out this time, I want to come too.”

I rolled my eyes and stood up. Everyone was a damn comedian. Walking outside, I noticed Professor Lee standing at the side of the building, watching me. I hoped it didn’t have anything to do with what Nathan and I had been up to in class. If he told my parents, I would never be able to go home again. We left the building, and walked down the path, headed to the gym. Zeke walked beside me and grabbed my hand, stopping me before we entered.

“The instructor’s name is Oren Storm. He was a pretty good friend to us in the past, but after he graduated from Emberhold and still hadn’t found his Faction, he started acting weird. He disappeared for a while, and when he returned, he was different. He was angry and more psycho than usual. We tried to talk to him but he wasn’t having it.”

“I hate y’all lost a good friend, but what does that have to do with me?” I asked, confused.

“I bet I can answer that question,” Chloe winced. “I don’t think anyone has mentioned it before, but Kristine’s last name is Storm. Oren is her stepbrother, and you rearranged his baby sister’s nose.” Well, shit. This ought to be good.