Chapter Twenty-Six #2
Trevel must catch on to Joy’s distrust, because he scoffs and rolls his eyes, going for the opposite door. “Why don’t I just give you two some privacy…”
His tone has a serious bite to it, but he’s gone before I can say anything, leaving me staring in the direction he disappeared.
“Wow, so Velle wasn’t exaggerating, huh?” Joy shakes her head. “You and emo Mick Jagger are an item now? Just flitting around, free as two little lovebirds while the rest of this place is a blazing goddamn dumpster fire??”
I narrow my gaze at her, irritation causing fidgets in my limbs. “What the fuck is wrong with you guys?? I’m not doing anything. We’re down here to see Dr. Love. It’s not like we’re having a fucking party…”
“Dr. Love’s not here,” she mutters. “He’s gone for the night.”
I give her a puzzled look. Why would The Ivory tell us to come see him if he’s gone?? Maybe he doesn’t know…?
“Whatever. You’re proving my point,” I grunt.
“ Felix fucking Darcey has been freely strutting around this place for months . His sketchy boyfriend is technically still on The Ivory’s roster, but they’re treated like the goddamn president and first fucking lady of Alabaster Isle!
You know he sleeps in the mansion, right? Darcey?”
Her brow arches. “Who told you that? Benedict Arnold Cumberbatch over there?”
My scowl deepens. “What difference does it make?! You guys are all butthurt that Trevel works for The Ivory… Well, guess what?? We all work for The fucking Ivory! Excuse me for finding someone who likes me for me … For the first time since I’ve been here, I’m someone’s main priority.
And my friends , the people who supposedly care about me so much , are out here trying to make me feel bad about it! Fuck that.”
Growling, I rake my fingers through my hair, pulling in breaths while attempting to calm myself down before I really flip the fuck out.
“Side with Darcey and Dr. Love all you want, but at the end of the day, they’re here for themselves , just like the rest of us.
They’ll dime on you to save their own asses, I guaran-fucking-tee it.
There’s no honor among thieves, jeulgeoun . ”
By the end of my tirade, I’m exhausted. My heart is jackhammering, and I just want to lie down. I never thought finding someone who makes me happy would require this much fight.
Is that really what Trevel is…?
Someone who… makes me happy?
How can I tell? I guess if thinking it is a reflex, it must be true…
Blinking hard, I shake the thought away. Joy is chewing on her lower lip, looking all manners of distraught. I didn’t notice it as much before, but she’s visibly exhausted, and rigid with obvious stress. Maybe she was those things before, but never this noticeably.
“I’m sorry,” we both say at the same time, then chuckle. And sniff.
We’re so similar in so many ways, which is why we’ve clicked since day one. I truly love her as a friend, and it kills not to be as close as we once were.
“I don’t want to fight,” she murmurs. “Not with you.”
“Funny, considering how many times you’ve kicked my ass,” I tease, and she grins.
“Hey, you got your licks in.” She wiggles her brows, and I scoff.
“Pervert.”
“Seriously, though,” she says. “How are you holding up? Better than your boys, I’m sure…”
My forehead lines in obvious confusion, the twinge of guilt that’s been living in my gut since my fight with Luthor and Ren growing rapidly into a churn of acidic remorse. Naturally, it makes me defensive.
“I’m just fucking breathing, like I’ve been doing since the moment I got here.” I struggle to tone down the hostility. “What do you want me to say? They separated us… I haven’t seen either of them since that day in the rec room.”
The look on her face is worrying, and I’m bracing for impending pain. She has something to say, I can feel it. But she’s holding back too, and it’s gutting me.
So she doesn’t trust me either now??
Joy scrapes hands over her face, those black tactical fingerless gloves she always wears lingering on her eyes.
“Listen, I love you, but you’ll have to forgive us for being skeptical of your new boyfriend.
I’m fucking exhausted… We all are. I haven’t slept in days…
weeks , who fucking knows anymore. They kicked us out of the mansion last night, so it’s been—”
“They kicked you out of the mansion??” I gasp.
I had no idea…
I’ve been so wrapped up in my violet-eyed stranger, I’ve barely noticed that everything around me is deteriorating. And I’m momentarily awed by how much he’s distracted me. How deeply Trevel Fenwick has sunk inside me and filled up all those vacant places.
“If you think Trevel had anything to do with it, you’re high,” I mumble. “He wouldn’t…” My words trail off, and I swallow.
Would he…?
A noise pings—like a phone chime. Joy straightens, and my brow furrows.
“Gotta go.” She squeezes my shoulder. “Keep your guard up, gwiyeoun sonyeon .”
“I… will.” My words are left fluttering in the air as she darts through a different door.
I’m frozen solid for minutes, recoiling at the fact that I clearly don’t know shit anymore.
What am I doing??
I’m a stalker, for fuck’s sake. I’m best at falling back and observing details. How could I have been so blind to all of this?
Maybe because someone covered my eyes…
Finally forcing my legs into motion, I wander, distracted, in the direction Trevel went, all the while obsessing over the events of the last few months.
All of my friends, either leaving, or dying, or betraying me. And I’m left with only one person—the mysterious stranger who arrived just in time to pick up the pieces.
It seems… almost too perfect to be a coincidence.
I spot Trevel up the corridor, propped against the wall, staring blankly at the floor. He notices me right away, uncoiling as I approach him slowly. I peek at the door he’s standing beside, a nameplate on it that reads Dr. Lemuel Love, PhD.
My gaze flits to Trevel, and the first thing I see in his eyes is an uncharacteristic flash of guilt. But it vanishes quickly enough, replaced by a forced indifference.
“He’s not in there… is he?” I blink at him.
The mound of his throat dips visibly. “Doesn’t seem to be.”
We stare at each other in silence for a moment. There are a lot of things I want to say… Questions I want to ask. And I think he can sense it.
Trevel turns and knocks on the door, sort of jittery as he presses his ear up to it. I don’t hear anything from where I’m standing, and I assume he doesn’t either because he grabs the handle and whips the door open, striding inside the office.
As I peer up and down the hallway, something feels off. It’s too quiet. There’s a vibe in the air I can’t explain that has me tensing all over, like a fight response lying in wait.
Reluctantly, I follow Trevel inside Dr. Love’s office. As expected, it’s empty.
“Joy said he was done for the day,” I rumble.
Trevel pauses his snooping to glare at me. “Did she, then?” I nod. “What else did she have to say?”
I’m taken aback by the severity on his face. “Why does it matter?”
“So you’re keeping secrets again?” He looks both hurt and enraged.
“I’m not the only one…” I whisper.
His jaw clenches visibly. “I’m going to look for Felix Darcey.”
He brushes past me, out of the office. Of course, I follow him.
Why am I always blindly following him…?
“Why do you need to find Felix Darcey?” I power-walk after him while he strides swiftly up the long corridors, toward Darcey’s room.
“Because this is all his fault,” he seethes, barely audibly.
“ What is…?”
“Everything, Byron!” he snaps, screeching to a halt and whipping in my direction. I almost crash into him. “Bloody everything is his fault, you know that! I thought we were on the same page. But now… I’m not sure what you want.”
My lashes flutter up at him. I have no idea what he’s talking about, but I’m tense and overflowing with apprehension. “I don’t know… what you want me to say.”
“Yea, no shit,” he grunts, spinning away from me to resume his storming up the hall.
What is his problem??
If anything, I should be mad at him…
I should be… fucking suspicious of him, goddamnit! Just like everyone else is. Not allowing him to fucking own me without a single shred of hesitation.
It makes no sense to be so happy… out of fucking nowhere.
It can’t be real.
I mean, look at me! I’m chasing after him… It’s fucked!
He’s not Michelangelo.
I can hear the wind thrashing against the building, even stronger than before, as we stalk the halls. The faint sound of pelting rain is accompanied by the occasional rumble of thunder shaking the walls.
The feeling is mutual.
We reach Felix Darcy’s room, and Trevel doesn’t even knock. He just bursts inside.
“Aha!” he shouts, frowning when we find this one also empty.
“ Aha? Really?” I snort.
He looks like he wants to grin, but he’s stopping himself. It’s cute, and that’s annoying me even more.
Trevel folds his arms across his chest. “Your friends don’t trust me.”
My head cocks.
“I know it’s true. You and Joy couldn’t even talk with me around…”
“Do you blame her?” I retort. “You work for The Ivory. I mean, you’re here as his spy, for fuck’s sake. Did you think they’d just welcome you with open arms??”
“That’s not why I’m here…” he grumbles, tone deep and containing his frustrations.
“How would I know??” I bark, getting up in his face. So close, I can see his pupils dilating. “I don’t know shit about you, Trevel. You could be a figment of my goddamn imagination for all I know!”
Something about those words flips a switch. In a flash, he’s no longer containing his rage. It’s lit the hell up, sparking his violet gaze and illuminating his sharp features.
“Could a figment of your imagination make you come crying ?” he growls in my face, wicked amusement dancing on his lips as they hover over mine.
“Maybe,” I hum out of stubborn agitation.
The lights flicker, and we both glance up at them before returning to our stare-down.