Chapter 13
We returned to the apartment pretty late.
The others disappeared into their rooms, while Airis and I made sandwiches in the kitchen before retreating to mine with our plates.
I still didn't understand how we'd managed to grow closer in such a short amount of time.
But being around him felt dangerously comfortable, even if he constantly seemed determined to provoke some kind of reaction from me.
Settling onto the floor with our food, I reached for my laptop and plugged it in.
A distraction sounded nice right now.
Because the thoughts inside my head felt like the end of the world.
They crashed into one another—
and in the process, destroyed the place they lived in.
Me.
“Does Istarus have Wi-Fi?” I asked suddenly. “And places to charge electronics?”
The question surprised even me.
Airis's room showed almost no signs of modern life.
“It does, but access is limited within the academy,” he replied, shifting into a more comfortable position against my bed. “You'll be able to charge your devices, but unlimited internet? Probably not. And you'd need a programmer to connect them to the Vuduarus network.”
I fell silent.
Should I bring my laptop with me?
It could become another anchor tying me to the human world.
To my old life.
After seeing my parents today, I felt more certain than ever that my real life hadn't begun until I met my friends.
“How are you feeling after the visit?” Airis asked quietly.
“I can't say I feel relieved,” I admitted after a few seconds. “Now I just have more questions. More confusion.”
I shrugged before meeting his gaze.
“I didn't expect you to lose control like that at the hospital.”
Truthfully, I was still shaken by it.
And I had no idea what to think.
“Dwayne and Mike told me about some of the things your parents did to you.”
I noticed his hands curl into fists as his gaze drifted away from mine.
As if he had stepped away from the invisible thread connecting us.
“I got angry,” he said quietly.
“Really fucking angry.”
His jaw tightened.
“And when I saw the way they treated you...” He exhaled sharply. “I snapped.”
For a moment, I didn't know how to react.
Or rather—
I was flattered.
Deeply.
Not many people had ever cared enough to be angry on my behalf.
“When did they even tell you all that?” I asked softly.
“While you and Gwendolyn were upstairs.”
Airis paused.
“I'm always cautious when it comes to new people entering my life, and this meeting wasn't an exception.”
His eyes found mine again.
“But your friends really are loyal to you.”
I nodded.
“We've had enough time to prove our loyalty to each other,” I said. “And I won't let anything happen to them.”
“I'll help you with that.”
A brief silence followed.
“You can always rely on me, Fireling.”
Something tightened unexpectedly in my chest.
“Thank you for arranging protection for them,” I said quietly. “It means a lot to me.”
Airis gave a restrained nod.
“Did they get settled already?”
“We managed to get the apartment across the hall.”
My eyes widened.
“Seriously? How?”
“Let’s just say that when a Vuduarus squad needs something, people tend not to argue.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if that was your personal motto,” I replied.
Without any embarrassment, I let myself study Airis beneath the moonlight spilling through the window.
Another question surfaced almost immediately.
One that had been bothering me all day.
Compared to everything else, it should have felt insignificant.
But it didn’t.
“Today I had a really strange feeling about my magic,” I said. “It was like my emotions were dulled. Like everything was... muted.”
The silence that followed was broken by a heavy sigh.
“I’m sorry.”
I frowned.
“For what?”
“I acted on instinct.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I was suppressing your magic.”
For a moment, I just stared at him.
Not quite sure how I was supposed to react.
“How?”
“I was subtly limiting the amount of oxygen you inhaled,” he said calmly. “Your body and brain would focus on getting enough air instead of fueling the demonic gene.”
I froze.
I was angry.
And unsettled.
And, against my better judgment, impressed.
What kind of power did someone have to possess to influence another person's body without them even noticing?
“And you think that's normal?” I asked, fixing him with a glare.
“In critical situations? Yes.”
I opened my mouth, caught completely off guard.
But Airis continued before I could answer.
“You need to understand how much responsibility rests on me. I'm used to acting the moment I see something I can fix.”
“And you need to understand that I'm not some girl you can control whenever it suits you,” I replied, forcing myself to stay calm.
“I'm not a problem for you to solve.”
The room fell silent.
“I'm not disposable.”
I held his gaze.
“And I'm not your subordinate.”
Airis said nothing.
But his expression said enough.
“I forbid you from affecting my body in any way.”
“Even when your flames are seconds away from slipping free of your fragile control and hurting everyone around you?”
This time, I was the one left speechless.
Damn it.
“I admit it was unethical,” he said. “And yes, your body is none of the things you just listed.”
His gaze never left mine.
“But you're impulsive. Emotional. You act before you think.”
The words stung because they weren't entirely wrong.
“Imagine what would've happened today if I hadn't restrained you.”
I wanted to set him on fire out of pure frustration.
Mostly because I hated how right he was.
“I'm not an idiot,” I snapped. “I know I can be dangerous. What pisses me off is that you keep treating me like a problem instead of a person.”
“I've never forgotten you're a person.”
His voice turned cold.
The tension between us sharpened instantly.
God, he was stubborn.
But I wasn't exactly easy to bend either.
Still...
One of us had to be smarter.
I let out a long sigh.
“Fine. In critical situations, I'll allow you to interfere with my abilities.”
Until I learned to control myself...
I needed an anchor.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then Airis gave a single nod.
Not victorious.
Not smug.
Just relieved.
As though he'd been expecting this argument from the moment he confessed.
Something stable.
Something stronger than panic.
For a moment, Airis simply watched me.
“I’m not generous with compliments,” he finally said. “But I’m glad that beneath all that recklessness, you’re still capable of thinking clearly.”
I raised a brow.
“The first time we met, you called me stupid.”
Airis shrugged.
“You played the role convincingly.”
A pause.
“Almost too convincingly.”
Seeing the outrage on my face, Airis smiled.
Actually smiled.
And God, his smile was something else.
The moment I realized I'd been staring, I quickly looked away.
My laptop had finally finished loading, and I muttered,
“I can't deny that I'm kind of shocked after learning about this ability of yours.”
“Only elemental mages can manipulate another person on a physical level,” Airis replied. “That's one of the reasons we're considered dangerous.”
“So I could do that too?”
“You could.”
His expression darkened slightly.
“If you practiced forbidden magic.”
I straightened immediately.
“Wait. We actually have a forbidden magic course?”
“For the strongest group, it's mandatory.” Airis nodded. “Though there are strict rules and limitations surrounding it.”
I was already preparing my next question when my laptop chimed softly.
The sound immediately stole my attention.
“That’s enough information for you today, Fireling,” Airis said.
His voice was quieter now.
Softer.
“You spent the entire day trying to stay strong. Now it's time to rest.”
He slid the plate of sandwiches closer to me before taking a bite from his own.
As though he hadn't just said something that settled warmly beneath my ribs.
As though a single sentence hadn't made me feel more cared for than I wanted to admit.
Or more cared for than I could remember feeling in a very long time.
******
And once again, after dinner, Airis and I were sharing the same bed.
Only this time, it was mine.
And unlike the bed in Airis's room, mine wasn't nearly as large, which meant I could feel his warmth and scent far too clearly.
Surprisingly, that wasn't what kept me awake.
For what felt like the hundredth time, I replayed my parents' words in my head.
Their expressions.
Their confusion when I mentioned the psychiatric hospital.
I hadn't even needed to call Adeline to confirm their story about the ski resort.
I believed them.
But then what had really happened?
Who had tried to lock me away?
Whose blood had turned the pool water red?
Was Harold Moss involved in all of this—
or did I have another enemy entirely?
With a sigh, I glanced at the clock on the wall.
Almost one in the morning.
I slipped out from beneath the blanket and sat up.
The mattress shifted slightly beneath me.
After pulling on my soft slippers, I was about to stand when Airis's voice stopped me.
“Where are you going?”
His voice was rough with sleep.
Apparently, he'd fallen asleep the second his head touched the pillow.
Which only proved how exhausted he really was.
For the first time that night, my irritation softened into something closer to sympathy.
How much responsibility was he carrying?
How many people depended on him every day?
And now I'd become one of them.
“I'm just going to the bathroom,” I said quietly. “Go back to sleep. Nothing's going to happen to me.”
For a second, he simply watched me through half-lidded eyes.
Then his shoulders relaxed.
“Good,” he murmured.
The word was barely audible.
A moment later, his eyes closed again.
As if simply hearing my answer had been enough.
And somehow, that tiny display of trust unsettled me more than all of our arguments ever had.
As I spoke, I pulled the blanket a little higher over him.
His body gradually relaxed again.
The sight made something warm tighten unexpectedly inside my chest.
Then, hoping Gwen was still awake—
though, honestly, Gwen was never asleep at this hour, even if she had to be up at dawn—
I headed toward her old room on the first floor.