“Because I was too scared to kill,” Wyatt said. I almost jumped. I hadn’t heard him approach us. His expression was grim as his gaze studied on Rafe’s tattoo. “But I’m not anymore.”
Wyattand I sat on the couch together watching Willow, Mia, and Zephyr stumbling around a beer pong table. Aiden wasn’t drinking, soany time Mia or Willow landed a ball, Zephyr would drink the cup for him. Thankfully for Zephyr’s liver, Willow and Mia weren’t doing too well. Aiden’s sobriety meant that he was sinking a lot of tosses, so the besties were getting pretty trashed.
The employees had already left, so now it was just me and Wyatt on the couch watching the other four while Rafe was glued to his phone near the apartment door.
Wyatt was grinding his teeth so hard, I could practically hear it over the music. The music wasn’t loud –it couldn’t be, given my situation– but I could still hear Wyatt. His jaw was set, his brows furrowed so deeply together, there were two lines between them.
Mia whispered something in Willow’s ear, and Willow cackled, almost stumbling but catching herself on the table. Aiden grabbed the table as the beer cups rattled, and I squeezed my fist to hold the table still while she regained her balance.
Aiden gave me a dimpled grin, then an air kiss.
I dropped my gaze, my cheeks heating because Aiden was just…ugh.
Wyatt huffed a laugh beside me, and I looked at him, eyebrows raised.
“Problem?” I asked.
“Nope,” he replied.
I shook my head. “You’re so jealous of him still.”
“Of course I am,” Wyatt said, shocking me. “You looked at me like that once.”
“I still could, Wyatt.” I said quietly.
Wyatt sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face.
“Tell me a secret,” I said.
Wyatt scoffed. “Why?”
“I’ll tell you one, too. Your choice, tell me something no one knows.” I said.
Wyatt looked me over, chewing his lip before he spoke. “Willow hasn’t spoken to me since winter break.”
Fucking fuck. I wasn’t sure why I was surprised Wyatt would come right out with something heavy like that.
I cleared my throat, determined not to let the mood die. “Why?”
“No,” Wyatt said, flashing me a small grin. “That’s not how this works. You tell me a secret now.”
I couldn’t help but grin back. “Should I tell you something heavy, too?”
Wyatt gestured with his hands. “By all means.”
“Levi hates me.”
Wyatt coughed, having just taken a sip of his drink when I spoke. Aiden looked over to us in concern again, but Willow and Mia seemed to be making every effort not to look at Wyatt at all, which was very obvious now that I knew Willow was mad at him. Her suggestion to trash his office suddenly made a lot more sense.
“Your father hates you,” Wyatt repeated. “Why do you think that?”
“One time when we were kids, Zephyr took my doll, and I chased him. My affinity had just started doing whatever it wanted, and I couldn’t control it anymore. I broke two of his fingers. I thought Levi was going to kill me.”
“What happened?” Wyatt murmured. His eyes were too intense on me, I felt like they were burning a hole in my face.
“My mom told him to fuck off, basically. That happened a lot, especially when she was having a bad day. She’d just sort of disassociate on the couch with an icepack to her chest. When she comforted me and Zephyr that day, I told them Levi hates me.”
I stared across the room, watching Zephyr, as carefree as I’d ever seen as he laughed with my two best friends. He’d never once been angry with me for my affinity. Never once judged me when I’d killed those men in the alley. Never once resented how our lives had turned out as we hid ourselves away.
