52. Dimitri
The week after the showcase, there aren’t any classes, and while I’d hoped Wren would take that time to rest, I fear she’s done anything but.
The only plus was that Nolan brought her bag for her to get ready before his competition, and she’s stayed in my apartment since then.
Never mind the fact that the rest of them have, too. After that first night, I offered her my bed and took the couch. I don’t think I could stomach waking up to see her wrapped up with Julian or Nolan again.
Joke's on me, though, because now Julian just crawls into the bed with her every night, going so far as to take Titus with him.
I don’t deserve a spot beside her yet. I remind myself as I watch Titus groan about being put in bed with the girl I’d kill people to get to hold through the night.
“You need to sleep, love,” Julian says with a pout as he moves behind her to wrap his arms around her waist. She’s sitting at the kitchen table with her books and a million assignments scattered over every square inch of available space.
“I need to ensure I pass,” she argues, giving him a look over her shoulder that tells me she isn’t impressed by his pouting.
“You could close your eyes and pick random answers on all of your finals and still pass,” Gavin says from the living room without looking up from his own homework. Shockingly, I don’t hear a bit of his usual resentment.
Wren looks taken aback by that as well, looking to me and then Julian, but neither of us can do more than shrug.
It seems to do the trick, though, because with a sigh, she gives in, allowing Julian to pull her into my room.
A second before she disappears, she looks back at me, and I see the sadness in her eyes.
I feel the distance between us every moment, and I’m not sure how to fix it, but I know I’ll damn well figure it out if it’s the last thing I do.
Wren never does fall asleep. I wait, my beast? reaching for her in sleep as her emotions run wild. I lay on the couch, feeling everything with her, wishing there was a way to help her.
“She’s resilient. She’ll get through this.” I look over to find Gavin up with a book in his hand.
I know he’s right, but I don’t want her to have to be.
“Why aren’t you asleep?” I ask, my inner parent kicking in.
“I haven’t been tired lately.”
Weird.
“Your powers?” I ask, ensuring I keep my voice down since she’s still awake.
“No,” he pauses, thinking for a minute. “I don’t think so.” He shakes his head, and I watch his nostrils flare, and his pupils dilate before he scratches at his neck.
Note to self: keep an eye on Gavin.
Not much was known about his mother; she dropped him off at the compound when he was two, and we never saw her again.
Our father didn’t even know her name.
Until now, he’s only shown signs of his sorcery lineage from Father, but that doesn’t mean that’s all he is. Most ‘gifts’ would have already manifested, but there are always exceptions.
“You should have told me. I don’t love it, but I still want you to be happy, and I don’t hate her…” He sounds like he’s trying to convince himself more than me. “Really, I don’t. I just don’t like that she’s so damn good at everything.”
“Seems like she didn’t have much of a choice…” I don’t mean to lecture him, but I also need him to realize he might have the wrong impression. Yeah, Wren is smart, and she’s given him a run for everything, but the alternative…
I blink and see the way she looked: her split lip, black eye, and that gash. She’d covered it up pretty well, and now all that remains is a scratch and slight yellowing around her eye.
“Yeah, I might have judged her a little wrong.” He huffs a sigh as if admitting that pained him as he lets the book fall closed and tosses it on the table. “I didn’t know Rose was going to do that to her. I would have warned the guys. I want to beat her fair and square, not like that.”
“I know.” And I do. I raised him better than that, and I’m not surprised Rose would try to use him. Actually, that seems exactly like something Rose would do.
“We’ll figure it out, together. If she’s important to you guys, then that’s enough for me.”
Something about the way he says it rubs me wrong, and this time when I look his way, I find he’s lying with his back to me. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he almost sounded sad, but that doesn’t make any sense.
“Yeah.”
Everyone is still staying at my apartment, but I don’t think it will last much longer. I actually only have one bathroom, unlike them, and one bed.
“You guys can’t keep sleeping on the couch and chairs. It can’t be comfortable.”
“You’ve been sleeping on the couch for months now,” I remind her, earning myself a sharp look. I hold up my hands in surrender because I’m not looking to fight; in fact, I’m looking for quite the opposite.
“I only meant that you could keep sleeping here if you wanted,” I say, rubbing at the back of my neck, feeling nervous in a way I’m not at all used to.
“Smooth,” Julian says, elbowing me in the ribs with a smile that says it was actually anything but.
“The couch is fine.”
“Yeah, and if it’s ever not fine, she’s always welcome in my bed,” Julian adds, making her cheeks bloom with heat.
“Guys, we're going to be late for class,” Gavin whines, and Wren nods her agreement before turning toward the door.
“You know it’s bad when they're both on the same page,” Nolan says, shaking his head.
I move to follow them, but I stop before I reach the door.
It’s dangerous enough with them all leaving my apartment.
I can at least claim the brother card for Gavin and, honestly, his friends too.
But to walk with them all the way to class, that’s a bad idea.
Being around them, I’m not Mr. Adler the way I am with the rest of the school, and even with things a bit rocky right now, I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea.
Or the right idea, I guess.
Nolan stays back with me, and I raise a brow in question, but he shakes his head, looking toward them as they file out the door.
“She’s getting worse.”
He’s right. Even beyond her lack of sleep, she’s not eating as much. She seems constantly lost in thought, and despite spending hours on homework, she doesn’t seem to be accomplishing anything. I’d hoped she would bounce back with some time, but she’s not.
“I’m not sure how to help her.”
“Can you make her a sleeping potion?” I snap my head toward him at his request, eyes wide in disbelief.
What he’s asking is illegal, not only because she’s a dud, but to give someone a potion without their consent, well, it’s a lot like slipping something in someone's drink in the mortal world.
Could it be helpful? Sure, but is that how it’s used? Almost never.
He must see the disbelief in my gaze because he’s quick to keep talking.
“You don’t have to give it to her. I will. I’ll take full credit for doing it if something happens. I just need you to make it,” he says in a rush.
I’ve never seen Nolan so frazzled.
“I just can’t bear to see her like this. It’s like she’s wasting away before our eyes.”
His words make my chest feel tight because he’s right, and I hate it.
“I can make it,” I tell him, and watch his shoulders sag in what I can only assume is relief as he lets out a sigh.
I don’t bother telling him I’ll also be the one giving it to her. No way will I let him take the fall if something goes wrong.
Nolan had a shit hand in life, too. His father isn’t the same type of evil as mine, but evil is evil, and seeing him like this with Wren, well, she’s good for him.
“Thanks, man!” He smacks my back in what I’m sure he means to be a friendly gesture, but I nearly topple over the coffee table, and he takes a step back. “Sorry.”
I wave him off, and he’s quick to leave, no doubt to catch up with the others.
I wait a few minutes before I leave, going over a list of ingredients I’ll need to start the draught.
It takes three days to brew. I’ll give it to her after class on Friday so she can sleep on Saturday.
The only thing she has, then, is our meeting, and we can reschedule it if needed.
Waiting until Friday proves difficult when I can see her decline daily. I was tempted to give it to her last night after dinner and just have her miss my class today, but I couldn't bring myself to do it.
She’s already upset with me; I don’t want to stress her out even more. Not that I would ever let her fail my class, but still.
The students are working on their projects when I look over and see Felix making his way into class. He’s a student, technically, but he does what he wants. He’s here to serve the king and his father.
The thought of those two men makes my stomach roll, and knowing they have access to someone like Felix, well, that doesn’t help.
Thankfully, I’ve never had reason to be on their radar, but something tells me it won’t stay that way for long.
Everyone in the class notices; even Rose finds it in her to shut up as he stalks toward the front of the room before dropping into the chair next to Wren, who lets out a squeak of surprise.
Apparently, she hadn’t noticed him. It’s so strange to me that she’s able to be around him so easily. Every student in this class is a supernatural, which means they know exactly what he’s capable of and rightly fear him.
I watch the shock melt off Wren’s face as she sees who it is beside her, a smile I haven’t seen in days pulling her lips up.
My heart skips a beat when he reaches out, snaking an arm around her waist and hauling her onto his lap.
Her cheeks heat, a very noticeable red color that only deepens as she looks around the room and sees every eye on them.
That is until Felix looks up, a glare on his face that has everyone scrambling to do their work.
“Felix, what are you doing? I need to work on this assignment,” she hisses at him even though her smile is still very much in place. She looks more than happy to stay right where she is.