“She knows we’re training together.” I watch his face carefully. “And she was surprisingly chill about it.”
“Ah.” He runs a hand through his dark hair, the small motion making my stomach flip. “Evie’s secrets aren’t mine to tell, Jade. Just like yours aren’t mine to share. But I promise you, she won’t say anything about our training sessions.”
“You can’t know that.”
“Yes, I can.” His eyes catch the torchlight, the intensity in them making my heart pound faster. “Now, do you want to spend our time talking about your roommate, or do you want to learn how to keep your electricity under control during the tournament?”
When he puts it like that...
“Fine.” I follow him through the passages, but the silence feels heavy. Every time we turn a corner, he stays ahead of me, never letting us walk side by side.
“Can I ask you something?” I finally say.
“You’re going to regardless.”
“What’s it like?” I ask before he can change his mind. “Being proctor? Having everyone look up to you?”
He’s quiet for so long I think he won’t answer.
When he does, his voice is soft.
“Lonely.”
The simple honesty of it stops me in my tracks.
“They don’t look up to me, Jade. They see a threat that’s keeping them from being the best.” He keeps walking, not turning to face me. “Do you know what it’s like to be surrounded by people and still feel completely alone?”
“Yes.” The answer comes out before I can stop it, and he stops walking, finally turning to face me. “When my friends dropped me, when my parents looked at me like I’d always be adisappointment, when I was thrown into a witch academy where I’m different from everyone because I never knew I had magic, not to mention the magic I have to hide from everyone... I know exactly what that’s like.”
“You don’t have to hide it from everyone,” he says, quiet but fierce. “You have me.”
The tension between us is so thick I can barely breathe. “And you have me.”
We stand there in the dark tunnel, looking at each other, and something passes between us. Understanding. Recognition. Whatever it is, itmeanssomething. And in that moment, I have full faith that the connection he keeps shutting down is still there, no matter how hard he tries to lock it away.
Then he turns and starts walking again, as if that exchange never happened, and my heart feels like it got hit by a sledgehammer.
“Speaking of people we have in our lives, you’ve been spending a lot of time with Oliver,” he eventually says, his voice casual.Toocasual.
I blink at the sudden change in topic. “What?”
“Lunch. The halls. The library.” Each location comes out clipped and precise. “The whole school thinks you’re together.”
Oh.
Oh.
He’s jealous.
I can’t help but smile. Because Logan Ashford is jealous of Oliver Thorne? It turns out the impossiblecanactually happen.
“Oliver’s my friend.” I watch his back tense at the word.
“I suppose you could do worse.” The words sound like they’re being dragged out of him.
Electricity sparks at my fingertips. “Are you trying to set me up with Oliver?”
He stops so abruptly I almost run into him, and when he turns to face me, the orange flames from the torches reflecting across his gray eyes make him look positively livid. “No.” The word comes out harsh before he moderates his tone. “Oliver doesn’t know what you are. Oliver can’t help you control your power. Oliver can’t help you get through Kieran’s tournament. But I can, and I will, starting in the Scorched Circles tonight. And the more time we spend talking in these tunnels, the less time we’ll have out there.”
