Every man that looks at her deserves to be killed. Maybe I am going to kill them.
She takes my hand, and I force her to follow me onto the dance floor. The other boys don’t know how fast they have to get away. Eliane slips in my mind.
“I thought you didn’t dance,” she purrs under her smile. The music starts and we start dancing, slowly but still. The lights of the chandeliers seem to shine sharper and brighter as before.
“I don’t,”I growl again, even louder.
“Well, your body seems to think otherwise.”She chuckles. She points her finger at me and presses her face between my shoulder and neck. Goosebumps spread fast over my body. She is smaller than me, but she can just reach me there, on the spot that tickles the most. I can feel her breathing on me and the sensation that comes from that little touch is insane. I press my hand just above her glutes on her lower back and the other on her upper back. Her dress has an open back and I get all kinds of images in my head. She wraps her arms around my neck and looks straight in my eyes. My heart flutters.
“At least smile for me, please. I need to see those dimples once again,”she asks innocently, but her face says differently. She has this dorky smile on her face I like so much. I can’t help but smile a bit. That is what she does to me. Irritation rises in mychest. I hate that I can’t push this feeling away. I hate that I don’t hate this girl.
Fuck.
“Be quiet!” Kailey yells, appearing in the bathroom using her blink signet, where we are hiding from Eliane. The bathroom isn’t small, but with four people inside it, it feels too narrow. A beat of sweat swells up on my forehead and I tap my fingers on the basin. In five minutes she will turn eighteen. I might have asked some people to come here and wish her a happy birthday. It is nothing like me and that is probably what caused the shocked looks on their faces when I asked them. She deserves a celebration. I did maybe tell everyone that if they told her this was my idea I would kill them, but I don’t see a problem there. I will kill them if they tell her. Kailey and Hazel decorated our room with colorful but pastel party decorations. Annie made sure that Eliane was distracted at the dance, so we had time to get together and fix things. Fintan gave me a pep up talk by telling me he always knew I had a soft spot somewhere. I stare at my reflection and think of his exact words.
There is a knock on the door and we go quiet. I feel her coming closer. Annie and Eliane talk on the other side of the door.
“Why did you knock? It is my room,” Eliane chuckles. I can feel Annie’s tension in her voice and can imagine her turning red
“Uhm, habit I guess.” The door bursts open and the light turns on. Their footsteps stop for a second.
“Where is Braxton?” Eliane asks. Before Annie can answer I use my ability to swing the door open. Hazel, Fintan, and Kailey sing in choir. “Surprise!” They run towards Eliane. Hazel, Kailey, and Annie hug her tightly. “Happy birthday! Why didn’t you tell us this was your eighteenth birthday?” Kailey interrupts their group hug.
“I uh,” she mumbles. Fintan walks over to her and whispers something in her ear. I can’t hear what he said and I can’t read her thoughts because I blocked her out to not ruin the surprise. The clock has already turned midnight.
It is officially April 14th. Eliane’s birthday and the start of the trials.
Eliane talks to Fintan. I try to hear what they say, their whispering making it hard, but not impossible.
“Thank you so much for organizing this, Da. You know how much this means to me.” She wraps her arms around his shoulders before stepping back. The only male she should wrap her arms around like that, is me.
“I didn’t organize this, Goldie. You should thank your stubborn partner,” he responds, smiling naughtily, nodding his head in my direction.
I am going to kill him.
I clench my jaw and ball my fist. Eliane looks at me with her eyes sparred open. Her mouth has this little aperture, and my mind slips to all kinds of naughty things.
Her shock turns into a teasing smile fast. She strides toward me, and her legs make this tempting swing that almost makes me drool all over the floor. I can feel her slip in my mind.
Oh no.
That means she is going to say something nobody can hear, and I am not sure I can handle that with all these people around me. I put my poker face on and let her in.
“I didn’t know you cared for me, Brax. Am I getting your present later tonight?”she teases, pointing her finger in my chest, winking one of her eyes. I huff, keeping my face calm and collected.
“I don’t care about you, Honey. I am just pretending,”I tell her, feeling out of breath with her this close in my space. The smile disappears. Normally, I would hate it, but Hazel interruptsEliane from answering. I am scared I hurt her. But it is for the best. She shouldn’t get attached to me.
“I’m going to cut the cake for my sister’s first birthday with friends and me!” Hazel announces, swinging her hands up in the air. I watch as Fintan’s mouth drops open.
“You have a sister?” he asks. Eliane and Hazel answer at the same time. Eliane shakes her hands. It looks kind of dumb, but also very cute. She is smiling but also something that I can’t describe crosses her face, but I can’t ask her what it is. “Surprise!”
It is 1 AM and everybody has just left. Eliane has just jumped into the shower, and I am already in bed. I feel the piece of paper that I have stuck into the waistband of my underwear. The door opens and I hold my breath as Eliane steps out, wearing her silky pajamas.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” She chuckles, but I don’t miss the tips of her ears turning red as she lies down next to me. I roll onto my side so I can face her.
“I’ve got you something.” I reach down my hand to get in from under the covers. She smiles so sweetly that I stop my hand from moving. “What?” I growl, feeling the beads of sweat appearing on my forehead.
“You got me a present,” she sings, smiling from ear to ear, not being able to hide her excitement. She grabs the cover with both hands before rolling on her side so we lay face to face. She is so close I can feel her warm breath on my face. My nostrils trill as I inhale her scent.
