CHAPTER 26
Aelys
I slowly open my eyes, awakened by Mattheo trying to get out of bed. I let out a whimper and cling to him tighter, making him realize I'm awake. He laughs before lying back down and kissing my temple.
“Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, angel. Did you sleep well?”
I close my eyes, taking in his scent as I hug him, nodding.
“What time is it?” I mumble in a voice still full of sleep.
“It’s 7:30 am, darling.”
I open one eye and glare at him, making him raise an eyebrow in obvious amusement.
“Where were you going so early?”
He laughs and gently pushes me onto the pillow before placing his body on top of mine. I giggle as his curls tickle my face and he smiles, his eyes shining with joy.
“You know we have class, right, angel?”
I groan and shake my head. “No, come on, I don't want to go.”
He chuckles softly before gently pressing his lips to mine. I sigh against his lips and place my hands on his neck, tangling my fingers in his hair. Just as I'm about to deepen the kiss, he pulls away, raising an eyebrow and smiling.
“Oh no, seducing me won't work. I know you're still sore, my love.”
“Who said anything about sex? I just wanted to kiss you.” I roll my eyes and try to push him away, but he doesn't budge.
“Sure you did, darling.”
I glare at him and his smile widens before he starts tickling me, making me howl with laughter. I try to get away from him but obviously fail. I beg him to stop and he finally does after a few minutes.
I'm panting from laughing, he looks at me, a genuine smile on his face. He places a quick kiss on my lips before standing up and heading to put on his uniform. He begins to undress, I lean back on my elbows to admire his toned body. He smiles and laughs when he notices.
“Stop staring and get dressed, darling. We're going to be late.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I breathe.
I get out of bed and go get my own uniform. We quickly get dressed, put on our shoes and grab our bags. We leave the dorm, locking it behind us. Mattheo puts an arm around my waist and pulls me against him as we head towards the main building.
“You'll have to tell me about your day yesterday,” I quip.
He nods, promising to do it by the end of the day.
Once we arrive at our destination, we see our friends in the middle of the wizards' table and we go to sit with them. I sit next to Cameron and Mattheo sits on the other side.
“Hey guys!” I smile at them as I take a cup of tea and put two sugars in it.
They exchange a glance before smirking. I frown in confusion and look at Mattheo. He shrugs before smiling back, I roll my eyes.
I raise my cup, ready to take a sip when I'm hit by a bun. I set it down stunned and look at Enzo, who threw it. He raises his hands, feigning innocence, laughing before pointing at his neck.
“So, between you and Rigast, which one has a bite fetish?”
My mouth falls open as I feel my cheeks burn. They laugh, amused by my embarrassment. Even Mattheo laughs, but he tries to be discreet so I don't notice. I give him a scowl, he coughs to try to hide his laughter. He gives me a small smile and kisses my cheek as an apology.
“Sorry, love,” he mumbles, not sorry at all, judging by the smirk on his face.
“Yeah, yeah,” I roll my eyes before looking at Enzo and giving him the finger.
“Oh come on, you can tell us,” Cameron nudges me playfully.
Mattheo starts laughing again but quickly covers it with another cough.
Oh this little-
I smirk, raising an eyebrow. “If I'm the one with the hickeys, who do you think has a fetish?”
Their eyes widen as Mattheo's mouth opens wide and his cheeks slightly turn pink. He looks at me with a scowl, and I kiss him on the cheek.
“Sorry, darling,” I'm smiling with all my teeth, fucking proud of myself.
He rolls his eyes before returning to his cup of tea, sipping it while avoiding the others' gaze. We laugh because it's not every day that Mattheo gets embarrassed. He's always so arrogant and confident.
He gives me a small glare before placing his hand on my thigh and squeezing it, making me wince slightly. I feel my cheeks burning again and I sip my tea to hide it.
Suddenly, I feel him tense, I look up at him, frowning. His dark eyes stare ahead, I turn my head to see what has changed his mood so quickly, I frown.
Dawson.
I place my hand on his and he relaxes a little, his murderous gaze still directed at the brown-haired boy. Of course, Dawson notices and looks down, his body visibly tense. I lean down to whisper in Mattheo's ear, gently squeezing his hand.
“Matt, it's not worth it.”
He keeps his eyes on Dawson for a few more seconds before looking at me and nodding. He sighs and kisses my temple.
“You're right, but I should kick his ass for disturbing you, angel,” he mutters.
“It's okay, Matt. Don't worry,” I move my lips to his ear again, lowering my voice to make sure no one can hear. “Besides, you know you can't touch him. He'll hurt you if you do.”
He realizes who I'm talking about and sighs again. The others frown in confusion, I simply tell them the name of O'Connor's little protégé. The boys tense up and look pissed, while the girls stare at the fairies’ table before looking at me with worried looks.
“Tom briefly explained what happened. He didn't hurt you, did he?” My cousin asks in a low voice, worried.
I shake my head and smile at my friends. “He was just an annoying asshole, don't worry guys.”
They nod slowly and I try to change the subject. “We have a story about the metamorphosis after breakfast with Matt, who else has it too?”
I look at the group, waiting for their answers. Cameron and Arthur are the only ones in the same class as us. Paula and Enzo have horticulture, while Nancy and Kiara have spiritualism.
I have no idea where Tom is, and I'm slightly relieved since Matt isn't thrilled that he was the one who saved me from Dawson. He's well aware of his brother's feelings for me, and it's pissing him off.
I tried to make him forget by assuring him that I am his and that nothing can change that, but he is too jealous. I think he's still angry with me for kissing Tom before we really started being together.
To be honest, I'm no better. His cheating still hurts, and I sometimes get suspicious when he goes to join Arthur in the abandoned church.
I try my best to forget my intrusive thoughts, but it's not easy. I asked Arthur if he'd really joined him.
Mattheo knows this, but he never talks about it. He's just doing his best to prove to me that I can trust him, and I'm starting to, but it takes time to fully trust again after such a betrayal. Even though we weren't really a couple at the time, he was still my fiancé.
I finish my tea and look over at the guys to see if they've finished their breakfast. They stand up, and so do I, waving at the others and following the boys out of the main hall. Matt's arm slides around my waist, pulling me closer to him as we head off to the history lesson on transfiguration.
‘Can't you stop touching me, Mr. Rigast?’ I tease my fiancé via telepathy.
He smiles softly before giving me a quick glance. ‘Never, angel.’
I roll my eyes teasingly and he laughs. Cameron and Arthur look at us with raised eyebrows, confused. I shrug and they ignore it.
We enter the classroom and sit at the tables in the back, as usual. There are already students inside.
I pull some parchment, my pen, and some ink from my bag and place them in front of me so I can take notes during class. I glance over at Matt, who's watching me, his arm resting on the desk, his head in his hand and a smirk on his face. I raise an eyebrow and narrow my eyes.
“You'd better take notes today, Rigast. I won't give you mine.”
His smile widens and he raises his eyebrows. “Calling me Rigast again, angel?”
“Just get your stuff out, Matt,” I roll my eyes.
“Yes ma'am,” he laughed.
He takes everything he needs out of his bag and places it on the desk. He looks at me with a small smile before returning to his previous position, head in his hand. I roll my eyes again teasingly, and he raises a questioning eyebrow.
“What?”
“You're going to have to stop looking at me to take notes, you know?”
“I have the right to admire my wife,” he shrugs.
I feel myself blush and I look down to try and hide it, gently biting my lower lip to suppress a smile.
That idiot.
“I'm not your wife yet,” I whisper.
He shrugs again before leaning towards my ear. His breath fanning my skin makes me shiver and I hold my breath. “You will be very soon, darling.”
I blush even harder and open my mouth to answer him when I jump at the sound of loud voices entering the classroom. We both turn towards them and my eyes widen when I see Tom walk in with Pryce Payne and Sean Clayton at his side.
Since when has he been friends with these two?
‘I have no idea, angel. They're assholes and Tom hates them.’Matt's voice echoes in my head, as confused as I am.
I glare at him for reading my mind again, but he shrugs innocently. I roll my eyes and watch the three boys walk to the other side of the classroom and sit at the far tables at the back. I'm even more surprised to see Tom sitting next to Payne.
What the fuck is going on?
The day is going well, the classes are boring as always. Although I did enjoy the dead languages class a little.
Matt took notes during the Transfiguration story, but he didn't take any in other classes. I scolded him, but he brushed it off, saying he'd just borrow mine.
I swear this boy is going to drive me crazy one day.
He's smart, but he hates using his brain in front of people who aren't our friends or me.
He never takes notes, never participates in class, and hardly ever does his homework.
I don't even know how he passes his classes, but amazingly, he does. He passes every single one.
When I tell you this boy is smart…
We enter the main hall for dinner, my eyes fall automatically on the three wizard boys sitting apart from the others, making me frown. Tom hasn't left Payne and Clayton's side all day.
They were practically glued to his sides, and we all found it suspicious. Matt tried to read his brother's mind, but he blocked every time.
I'm pulled out of my thoughts when Nancy grabs my wrist and forces me to sit next to her, making me squeak in surprise. I give her a scowl as she laughs. Matt sits on the other side and we begin filling our plates.
“So... There's a party tonight,” my cousin starts.
“And we're all going!” Kiara adds in a playful tone.
Matt and I exchange a look. He's supposed to finally start training me tonight. We haven't been able to before, now we finally have the chance. I need to learn how to defend myself with my hands and with weapons. Going to the party means we can't practice.
“Whatever you have planned for tonight, forget it,” Nancy points at us sternly. “You're both coming.”
We sigh and roll our eyes before muttering a 'good', which makes her smile happily.
‘We'll train tomorrow, angel. It's fine.’
I squeeze Mattheo's hand that’s resting on my thigh to let him know I agree, and we begin to eat, chatting happily with the others.
We finish preparing for the party while he explains to me that he has been sent to eliminate a group of O'Connor's followers who were planning an attack on a small village where several families of disciples reside.
This is how I learn that the Master has developed numerous towns and villages to provide a place to live for his most destitute disciples.
Not all of them are part of the magical high society and many have modest incomes.
This is why Darkvis offers them accommodation in a protected area in exchange for their loyalty.
Suffice it to say that those skeptical about following the Dark Mage are quickly convinced once he offers them the chance to finally leave a life of misery behind with a roof over their heads and food on their plates.
I choose to wear a green, off--shoulder, mid-thigh-length, sleeveless dress. My heels are black and not too high, my hair is in a messy bun with two loose strands framing my face. My makeup is more elaborate than I'm used to, but I'm happy with the result.
I applied green eyeshadow to match my dress, green mascara and black eyeliner to accentuate my eyes. I chose my usual lipstick, not wanting to overdo it either. I spray on my cherry perfume and turn to my fiancé.
Mattheo is wearing a black blouse with black pants. He has, of course, left the top buttons of his blouse undone, revealing a bit of his torso. He still has his rings on his fingers and his hair is left natural, with a few curls falling untidy over his forehead.
My lips part at the sight, I fight the urge to press my thighs together. I've said it before, but he truly looks like he was carved by the gods. I feel aroused just by looking at him.
He smirks and gives me an amused look before walking over to me, his hands automatically landing on my hips. He kisses my forehead before eying me up and down, his smile widening.
“You look stunning in that dress, angel,” he leans down to my ear, shivers run down my spine as I feel his warm breath on my skin. “I can't wait to rip it off later.”
My breath catches as my heart skips a beat. He gently kisses my neck before pulling away. He reaches out to me and smiles devilishly.
“Ready, my love?”