Chapter 30 #2
“Actually,” Coach started, but then a deep voice spoke.
“Why would you be in an advanced class? You only have one affinity.”
Aiden and I turned at the same moment, ready to do…something, and I groaned.
It was the hot asshole from the quad.
Of course, this must’ve been Mac.
Aiden tilted his head in that way that freaked me out, and I stepped in between the two guys against my better judgement. Hot guy raised his eyebrows while Coach let out a loud, dramatic sigh.
“Do you two know each other?” Coach asked.
“No,” Aiden replied.
I squeezed Aiden’s shoulders. Everything is fine, angel. Relax.
I don’t fucking like him, Aiden snarled back.
“I just know she’s a little clumsy,” hot guy said, and what the hell? Fuck him. “She won’t hurt me, right?”
As if he’d be so lucky, Aiden said darkly and I stifled a laugh.
Aiden left with Coach, who looked like he was considering retirement, and I was left with Mac.
He wore a stupidly tight black t-shirt with some gray athletic joggers, not quite as stupidly tight, but tight enough. He looked me up and down, then made a face as if my outfit offended him.
“What the hell kind of name is Mac?” I snapped, instantly regretting how annoyed I was. I didn’t even know this guy, but his disdain while checking me out really pissed me off.
He raised his dark eyebrows at me. “My surname?” he said slowly. “Name’s River.”
“River,” I repeated.
My first instinct was to tell him that was a stupid name, but seeing as mine was Skye, I wasn’t really in a position to do that. He stared at me, keeping his eyebrows raised, and I realized I hadn’t replied.
“I’m Skye,” I said, my voice sounding a bit more normal.
“You’re Skye?” he asked. Something like shock flickered across River’s expression, but it was gone so quickly I could have imagined it. His blue eyes roved over me assessingly, and I almost had the urge to curl in on myself.
It was totally the eye color. It was shocking and intense, and that was totally why I was rattled.
“What, you’ve heard of me?” The joke fell flat, my tone only half-teasing. The awkwardness of this conversation almost made me feel like I was back in highschool. Like I had no idea how to talk to a guy, even non-romantically.
“What would I have heard?” he asked.
“It was a joke,” I muttered.
River didn’t reply. When we stopped in an empty corner of the gym, he only stared at me.
“So…what are your affinities?” I asked. “I have air and water.”
River’s eyebrows raised slightly, then his face went blank.
That was freaking me out a bit. His expressions were all over the place.
“Air and water?” he repeated. “Hmm.”
I blinked. “You also have air and water? Or…”
“Both, yeah.”
We stared at each other again.
Okay…I was going to die, this was so awkward.
“So, we match?” I tried.
River’s face finally changed into a sneer. “No, we don’t match. I have more affinities than you.”
I barely held back my laugh. “And yet we’re still in the same class,” I said slowly. After he didn’t reply again, just kept staring, I continued, exasperated. “So…you have more than air and water?”
“I’m a full elemental affinate,” he said a little robotically. “I can do air, water, fire and earth.”
“Cool,” I replied a little sarcastically. “Well, let’s try them out.”
River scoffed. “I’ll hurt you.”
This time, I couldn’t hold in my laugh. I slapped a hand over my mouth, my shoulders shaking as I tried to stop myself.
I couldn’t help it. The idea that a full elemental could do anything to me was funny, even if it shouldn’t have been. He thought I only had two affinities, so–
Actually, why the fuck had Coach paired us up?
I finally settled, and River was looking at me with a weird mixture of concern and…awe? His lips were slightly parted, his eyes wide as he watched me.
I cleared my throat, looking away and breaking the moment. “Anyway,” I said softly.
River’s gaze hardened like he’d just realized how he was looking at me, and he turned away sharply. “I need a new partner.”
I scoffed. “We haven’t even done anything yet!”
“What are you going to do, Aria? Drown him?” A grating voice sneered.
With an audible groan, I turned to face…holy fuck.
I’d thought Carla looked bad, but I’d been wrong. Anton looked like shit.
“Are you okay?” I asked on reflex.
Anton glared at me like he hoped I’d disappear.
“What is your fucking problem?” I asked next. “What the fuck did I ever do to you?!”
Anton was in my face a moment later. “I know what you did. Everyone will know soon. You’re a murderer.”
My heart leapt and I pushed him back with some air, but because he was practically skin and bones, he nearly stumbled. His eyes widened, and he raised his hands to…
I didn’t actually know Anton’s affinities. I tilted my head curiously, and my affinity seemed to do the same.
“Stop!” Carla Martin of all fucking people threw herself into Anton, and this time, he did stumble and they fell onto the mat.
Anton shoved Carla off of him, and then as he turned back to me, his eyes…began to glow fucking red.
My affinity was awake in an instant, and on reflex, I grabbed my right hand with my left, pointing it downward like that would keep it from doing whatever it fucking wanted.
But in the next moment, the red glow faded, and Anton turned his glare behind me.
“River,” he hissed.
Of course they knew each other.
“Chill out, Davie-kins,” River said, mocking Anton’s last name.
Anton threw out a hand, and one of the wooden wall-benches groaned before skidding across the gym floor.
River scoffed, stepping to the side as the bench scraped past him, then it stopped.
Anton waved another hand, but River lunged and punched him.
My jaw dropped as Anton crumpled into the floor, out cold. Carla tried to break his fall, but she ended up going down with him in a heap of bony limbs.
Silence descended over the gym. A few students whispered. Someone ran for the door to the affinity gym to get Coach.
Carla shook Anton, then looked at me, then dropped her gaze as River glared at her. Carla trembled, keeping her head down in a pose that almost resembled some form of prostration.
That was…weird.
“Jesus, Aria, again?” Coach’s voice boomed across the gym.
It took me a moment to figure out what the hell he meant.
“What?!” I said, exasperated. “That wasn’t me!”
“No shit?” Coach raised his bushy brows as he took in the scene. I was almost offended that he didn’t believe me.
Coach eyed the purpling skin around Anton’s cheek where River had hit him. He sighed deeply, then swiped some sweat from his forehead. Aiden was right behind him, and he glared at River before pulling me into his chest.
River held Aiden’s eye contact for a little too long before his blue eyes locked onto me, then darted away when he noticed I was watching him.
What the hell.
Coach scratched his head. “Mac, I paired you with Aria because you’re equal in strength, not so she could instruct you on how to knock people out.”
“He didn’t do it,” Carla piped up. She shakily got to her feet, then scratched at her elbows. “It w-was me. I didn’t want Anton to fight.”
That’s not what happened, I told Aiden, who made a sound of surprise.
I glanced at River, who only looked bored. Coach’s expression said he didn’t believe any of them, but then he pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed deeply.
“Hit the showers,” he muttered.
Several students fled as soon as he spoke, not wanting to stick around for whatever was about to happen.
Coach lifted his ball cap to scratch as his shiny bald head while Aiden and I slowly tried to blend in with the crowd.
“Aria, Brandt, give me a break,” he barked. “Stay here.”
I groaned out loud.
“I didn’t do anything,” River said, sounding bored.
“Sure,” Coach replied.
Carla had already called a Health aide, and we all stood around awkwardly while the aide tried a few different tricks to wake Anton up. When nothing worked, another Health aide was called to bring a stretcher.
“God, this is stupid,” Aiden muttered.
“I know,” I replied.
“Yeah, at least Iykos woke up.” Coach muttered, then grimaced when I winced slightly.
“Damn. What happened?”
“Dani?!” I whirled around to see that it was in fact Dani, my secret Healer friend who’d fixed up Aiden last term when Wyatt ditched us.
Dani wiggled her eyebrows at me. Her braids were pulled up into a thick bun on top of her head.
“Seriously, though. What happened?”
“We don’t know,” Coach said, giving River a pointed look.
River stretched from beside me, bored as a black cat. He yawned, then crossed his arms.
“Blondie isn’t in this class?” Dani asked, glancing around as if she could’ve somehow missed Willow.
“Nope,” I replied. “This is the baby class.”
Coach made a disgruntled sound.
Dani snorted. “Well, tell her and Mia I said hi.”
I nodded, watching as Anton was loaded onto a stretcher. They carried him out of the gym a few minutes later, with Carla scrambling after them.
River chewed his thumb as he watched them leave, then stopped when he caught me looking again.
“Alright, listen,” Coach said when the gym was empty.
“I don’t have time for this,” River said immediately.
“Yes, you do.” Coach replied. “Listen. I’m not going to punish anyone, I’m just going to put in counseling orders.”
“No fucking way,” Aiden’s jaw dropped.
My heart rate spiked. “Coach,” I started. “I didn’t do anything–”
Coach sighed, exasperated, and ignored me. “Stop cursing in front of me, I’m gonna get in trouble if another staff member hears that!”
“Sure,” I said sarcastically.
“I’m not seeing a shrink,” River mumbled.
“Yeah, you are,” Coach said firmly. “Well, sort of. Look, Craig is the best we have. I’d send you to Flynn, but I want actual results.”
Flynn is Carissa’s last name, Aiden told me.
Great.
Just great.