Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Selene
“Your sister’s coming tonight, right?” April’s green eyes gleamed with hope as she looked at me, then back at Viv. “It’s Friday night.”
“She sure is.” Viv grinned at me with a mouth full of burger.
“She’s right here,” I said, not hiding the displeasure in my voice that they were talking about me as if I wasn’t sitting next to them.
“You are going? It’s going to be great!” The blue eyes of my roommate, Sydney, gleamed with joy, but I suppressed a glare. Sydney happened to be a part of April’s friend group, and I wasn’t looking forward to frequently seeing her both in our room and outside the dorms.
I narrowed my eyes at Viv. Since our arrival four days ago, she begged me daily to eat dinner with her, which dreadfully involved sitting with her new roommate and her roommate’s friends.
Dinner was the only time I had stayed in public and near people.
I had spent my time inside my room, avoiding conversation with Sydney, running in the evening, and doing recon of the academy at night.
If we needed to escape or hide, I needed to know where we were and where to go.
“Parties aren’t my thing.” I plopped a French fry in my mouth, not giving in to Sydney’s hopeful stare. She was kind, like April had said, but she was also around more often than I thought she’d be.
“It’s Halloween weekend. The entire academy will be there.” April smiled.
“Do you think Ender will go this time?” one of April’s friends asked, her eyebrows waggling like little caterpillars.
“Seriously?” a guy with short black hair across from the girl asked.
Their names were Denise and Joseph, or at least I thought they were. I didn’t try very hard to remember everyone’s names. What was the point?
“What?” the girl asked innocently. “He’s cold, dangerous, and gorgeous. Who doesn’t want that at a Halloween party?”
“You’d just stand there all night hoping he would approach you,” he quipped, causing a scowl from the girl.
“Yeah, yeah.” Sydney waved a hand at her and rolled her eyes. “He’s a total heartthrob.”
“It doesn’t matter if he or his friends go.” April brought the attention back to me. “You have to—” She was about to say more but stopped and put her hand in the air, flagging someone over. “There’s David!”
All eyes went to the handsome blond boy who’d just finished going through the food line.
It wasn’t just our table whose attention he had caught but practically the entire cafeteria, and since it was dinner, there was an abundance of the student body present.
He waved one black-gloved hand while the other gripped a food tray, and he started making his way toward us, his boots clanking on the walnut floor.
Newbies caught attention, like my sister and me, but thankfully he overshadowed our spotlight.
David had arrived yesterday—the seventeen-year-old boy who killed his parents because he couldn’t control his fire magic and was shipped off to Fives Academy, or so the rumors said.
On the contrary, April had mentioned the council had sent him. He was an orphan.
No one knew the real reason why Viv and I had suddenly appeared at the academy—and I planned to keep it that way.
David reached our table and I sank lower in my wooden chair, not liking the attention he brought.
April had to be so friendly. It’s not like David would’ve had trouble finding friends—he could’ve started his own table.
Why did I sit here? He was easy on the eyes, had beautiful dimples, and his magic was apparently strong.
Elementals liked power. People liked good-looking people.
In books, schools were about popularity wars, and unfortunately, reality turned out to be the same way.
I spared a glance at the popular table of the strongest students, mostly seniors: Ivy Jade, Gwen Campbell, Nick Hughes, and Ender Hart.
April had discussed their skills—and appalling attitude—at dinner yesterday.
My breath hitched when my gaze met Ender’s bright, hazel eyes.
He was the only one at that table that wasn’t gawking at David—but was staring directly at me.
I looked away, an unfamiliar, unnerving feeling settling in my stomach.
David wasn’t the only one with rumors about them.
The cardboard water bottle was something I hadn’t seen before.
It was environmentally friendly, but its thick walls were deteriorating thanks to my anxious fiddling.
Add in a dash of extra magical flair, and the party seemed like a typical teenage Halloween party in the middle of the woods, but I much preferred celebrating Halloween at home with Mom and Viv.
Floating lanterns lit the area, using a mix of fire and air enchantments.
A student must have taken a sound bubble spell from class to prevent any guards or teachers from hearing the blaring music and teenage babbling.
Food, drinks, and cutlery were stacked on foldable tables next to a line of trees.
Where they had obtained all the non-age-appropriate drinks while residing in a dome in the middle of Alaska was beyond me.
No one had paid much attention to me besides my roommate. I only slightly felt bad for her and her failed attempts to get me to talk. The only reason for my presence was for Viv’s pleasure.
“I’m going to get some food.” Sydney nodded toward the bowls and snacks. “Do you want anything?”
“I’m good,” I said, not wanting to move from the shadow of a tree I stood next to.
Sydney nodded and headed over to the chips, loading a plate with an orange creamy dip.
“Hey.” David walked my way, a red paper cup in his hand. “It’s quite the scene, huh?”
“Yeah.” I glanced at everyone’s costumes and then at Sydney’s. She had chosen to be a dragon, which suited her fire magic. “You didn’t want to dress up?”
“This isn’t dressing up?” David waved at his jeans and buttoned-up shirt, which were nicer than my workout clothes, then held up his nearly full cup. “Would you like me to get you something to drink?”
“Not a chance,” I said without holding back my disgust at drinking random liquid from who knows where. He frowned, and I realized how my social awkwardness had struck. While Vivian was a natural extrovert, I wasn’t. “Sorry. I don’t mean it like that.”
“Nah. It’s okay.” David laughed and scrunched his forehead, glancing at his drink and making a repulsed expression. “This is completely horrid.”
I smiled, then looked toward the fire where Viv sat with April and her friends.
She hadn’t smiled this much since we were kids making castles on a sandy beach.
With her soon-to-be-classmates, she was happy.
In private, when we were alone, she showed her grief.
It was brief and consisted of some tears, but it was there.
“April informed me that there are no sports at the academy, since finding a nearby school to play would be difficult.” David nodded in her direction. “So these parties, training sessions, and the occasional events the academy holds are the main source of excitement for students.”
“Doesn’t seem too exciting to me,” I commented and David laughed, his blue eyes brightening.
Nearby chuckling caught my attention, and I looked over to see a group of girls, all with cups in their hands, giggling and pointing at David.
Uh-oh. I’d better make my exit before they bring their ogling eyes over here.
David’s gaze caught what I was looking at, and he frowned. The three girls made their way toward us, as if his seeing them was an open invitation.
“That’s my cue.” I winked at David. “Enjoy your delicious drink.”
David grinned—his dimples at full force—and went to say something, but the girls had already started to surround him.
I secretly thanked them for saving me from small talk and made my way over to the chip table, where Sydney was.
I’d already been at the party for an hour, and I couldn’t suffer any longer.
“I’m going to take off,” I told her.
“What?” Sydney spun around, her felt dragon tail brushing my leggings. “Already?”
“Yes.” I started to walk away. “Let Viv know I left if she asks.”
“Okay.” Sydney frowned as she pushed down the hood of her dragon-themed hoodie. “Catch you later!”
I didn’t want to just blend in. I wanted to be invisible, and Operation Go Unnoticed was in effect. Viv, on the other hand, wasn’t following that plan very well. After four days, she had fit right in with April and the others.
The probability of anyone noticing my absence at the party was slim, and that included Viv.
Once I was farther away from the party, my feet pushed against the rough terrain, and I broke into a run.
My lungs were heavy as I sucked in air, blood pumping through my veins.
Something about running through the woods at night was intoxicating.
I headed toward a quarry that I had found on the second night during one of my runs.
It was a good twenty minutes from the school, the distance giving me space to feel at peace.
Suddenly, my foot snagged on something along the trail, launching my body toward the ground.
My hands flew out just in time to soften my fall.
I went to stand, cursing at myself, but froze, holding myself in the push-up position.
Through the dark, a sharp stick merely inches from my eye came into focus.
One more inch and I would have been impaled.
I rolled over and lay on my back, staring at the dark leaves hiding the majority of the night sky, and closed my eyes. I wasn’t usually clumsy, but fatigue had been wearing on me.
After a few moments, I sat up, searching for what caused me to trip. A gnarly root poked out of the ground. I gave it a quick kick and then cursed under my breath at my throbbing toe. Smart move.
I stood, brushing off my dirt-caked hands, and decided to head back to the academy.
It had been six days since Mom was killed and four days at the academy—my classes hadn’t even started, and I was already unraveling.
I started running again, slowing once I reached the tree line that opened to a field leading back to the academy.
Sweat dripped down my neck and I flapped my shirt, trying to increase airflow, and wished some of the snow outside the dome was inside.
The dorms and gym were on opposing sides, both quiet, which had been good since I looked like I’d just taken up a fight with a mud creature.
I glanced at my dirty running clothes and debated jumping into the lake I had just passed—I was sure the otter I had spotted swimming the other day wouldn’t mind.
The hair on the back of my neck suddenly rose, alerting me that I wasn’t alone.
I looked up. Someone was walking across the field toward me.
It was Ender Hart, and he was heading in the direction I had come from—which was nowhere near the party.
As he got closer, I could make out his deep black hair and sharp jawline, and his features hinted at his Asian roots.
And he was shirtless.
I averted my gaze. After he passed in silence, I lowered my chin to my shoulder, taking in air through my nose.
I couldn’t place his scent. April had said he had trained extensively prior to the Academy, and apparently, he was the strongest student at Fives Academy.
Not only did he rank high at a level four, but his skill set surpassed his peers.
Yet he didn’t have the fresh spring scent of most air mages, and I wondered what he could be hiding.