Itug my jacket tighter around me as Holly and I make our way back to our dorm, our shoes clacking off the concrete.
“You seem…” Holly tilts her head, smirking at me out of the corner of her eye. “Good. Steady. Or at least less likely to throw a chair across the dining hall in the past few days. Should I be worried?”
I laugh under my breath, shaking my head. “No chairs are in danger. I just…”
My words trail off because I can’t tell her about Maddox and his promise yet. That whole conversation is something I keep tucked away. I don’t know how to explain Maddox and I’s friendship, and Cleo’s trauma from her own families run in with the gangs of Gluttony still feels too fresh.
“I don’t know how to explain it. Something inside me feels… more settled.”
Holly arches a brow like she doesn’t buy it but lets it go, humming as we climb the steps to our floor.
I have felt more steady. Maddox’s promise, Ryker’s friendship… I feel like I have leashed the out-of-control bonds from a few weeks ago. I was able to exchange my book with Professor Gabriel. His fresh scent on it is helping me sleep at night.
Holly stops short and pulls me out of my thoughts. “Uh, Arwen?”
I follow her gaze. There’s a vase sitting right outside our door. Six roses, stems long and straight, petals a buttery yellow.
“What the hell—” I start, but Holly’s already scooping it up with all the delight of someone who lives for scandal. She plucks at the little white card tucked between the blooms.
“Ohhh,” she sings, her voice dripping with triumph. “They’re for you.”
My stomach flips. “What?”
She thrusts the vase into my hands, grinning like a cat who just caught a mouse. “Read it. Out loud.”
I sigh, but my curiosity wins. Sliding the card open, I clear my throat. “‘Princess—’”
Holly chokes on a laugh at the annoying nickname Ryker has forced upon me. Clapping a hand over her mouth with a guilty look, she urges me to go on.
I glare at her before continuing, "I hope you’ll meet me tomorrow at our spot. I’ve got an idea for a… friend’s date.–Ryker.”
By the time I finish, Holly looks like she’s about to explode from holding in squeals. I bury my face in my hands, groaning. “Oh, gods. Roses do not scream ‘friend date.’ They scream, ‘I’m trying to woo you in the most dramatic way possible.’”
“They’re yellow,” Holly counters, pointing at the bouquet like she’s presenting evidence in front of the council. “Yellow means friendship. Or maybe sunshine? Either way, not red. You’re safe.”
“Safe?” I peek at her between my fingers.
“Well,” she says with a shrug, “safe-ish. Because now I need to know everything. Like—what’s this ‘spot’ he’s talking about?”
I groan again, dragging the vase into the room with me as Holly trails behind like a detective on a fresh case. “It’s not a big deal. He just—he wanted to get away from people. We ended up at this little spot near a pond on our last outing. Fireflies. Quiet. Nothing… dramatic.”
“Fireflies?” Holly drops onto her bed, eyes wide with gleeful suspicion. “That’s a romantic backdrop handed to you by the universe. And now, roses?”
I plunk the vase down on my desk and point at her. “Don’t start planning a wedding. This is just Ryker.”
“Just Ryker,” Holly echoes, smirking. “Yeah, sure. Keep telling yourself that, Princess.”
“What happened to ‘He’s dangerous’?” I ask Holly exasperated.
“Oh, I still think he’s dangerous. But all your bonds are dangerous too. And at least he’s not being an asshole and is treating you the way you deserve.”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, well, I’m still being cautious.”
***
I’m halfway to the casting grounds to meet with Ryker when the sharp clink, clink of steel against steel makes me slow. Two figures are fencing just off the main path, blades sparking under the late light.
The tug in my chest hits before my brain catches up. One of my bonds.
