For a second, her composure slips, and I catch a glimpse behind the mask she wears.
As much as I hate to admit it, I’m starting to like Beth. She still scares the hell out of me, but there’s something there. Not friendship exactly, more like respect. She’s blunt, honest, easy to talk to. She surprisingly doesn’t gossip and she’s careful and controlled with her words, like someone who actually knows how to keep a secret.
Though, I’d never say this to Ezzy. It’s bad enough when Finn even glances in Beth’s direction, no need to make it worse by letting her think I’m getting close to her.
I snap the cap back on my flask and turn toward the door, then stop short.
Talen’s leaning in the doorway, brow’s furrowed, mouth set in a hard line, one leg hooked over the other like he’s been standing there a while. His arms are crossed, but his fingers are working his talisman, rolling it over and over.
He looks pissed off. At first I think he’s angry at me, then I notice, he’s not even looking. Just staring past me, jaw clenched like whatever’s on his mind hasn’t let go yet. And of course, he still looks stupidly hot. I’ve been holding it together for months now, but god, he is not helping. Looking like that should be illegal.
His eyes flick briefly to Beth; he gives her a simple nod and my gut twists. I’d almost managed to erase those bloody sketches of her from my head.Almost. And it’s stupid, Talen and I aren’t even together, the whole thing is fake. But seeingthemtogether, knowing she’s had him. That he’s drawn her...
Beth shifts beside me, “Everything good with you two? Looks a little tense. Trouble in paradise?”
“Oh, you know. Nothing out of the ordinary.” I keep my tone flat, bored, like the question doesn’t dig under my skin.
Beth gives me a knowing smile. The kind that saysdon’t worry, I’ve been there.Which only makes it worse, because she has. And I haven’t.
I want to know, I want to know more about them, I want to ask him, but we're not even in an actual relationship, so I just bite my tongue, pretend it doesn’t bother me. Pretend I’m not just some emotionally erratic girl with a crush on someone Ireallyshouldn’t even want.
“I'd better go. Thanks for today, and for not taking it easy on me. Same time tomorrow?”
“Oh, I’ll never take it easy on you.” She grins. “Don’t worry about that.”
I give a nod and head for the door.
As I walk towards Talen, his eyes catch mine, and some of the tension in his face eases as he gives me a small smile, uncrossing his arms and sliding his talisman away.
But as I get closer, I can see he has a bandage wrapped around his left bicep, and he looks tired. I stop in front of him, eyes already moving—his shoulder, his side—scanning for anything else bleeding or broken.
“Are you hurt?” I ask, words more worried than I mean them to be.
When I look back up, the small smile he was wearing before has twisted—lips curling up at the corner, left first, then stretching into a full-on grin.
“Thorn... are you worried about me?”
“No. I mean... Yes. Well,maybe.” I clear my throat. “You’re training me, remember? I’d rather not have my teacher drop dead halfway through.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not planning on dying anytime soon.” His smiles stays. “Just a few scratches, but I’m flattered you'd be so concerned.”
For a second, our eyes catch—and this time, they hold. Dark hazel, rimmed in gold. Focused. I’m standing closer than I’d realised. Heat flickers low in my stomach before I can stop it, but I force myself to look away.
“What happened?” I ask, breaking the tension, eyes fixed anywhere but his.
He hesitates, just long enough to notice. Then his grin fades, lips pull tight. Of course, he’s not going to tell me. What was even the point in asking?
“Come on,” he says finally. “We should go before it gets dark.”
“Where?”
“You’ll see.” Then he turns and walks off, so I grab my pack and hurry after him.
Talen slows just enoughfor me to catch up, his boots echoing against the stone floor. We’re halfway down the corridor—light bleeding in through the narrow windows, soft and dull, the kind that clings to the end of day. It’ll be sunset soon, but spring means longer hours, and the sky outside still holds on to the last light. His strides are longer, damn near double mine, so I’m half-jogging to stay beside him.
I didn’t think we were training tonight. I’m wrecked from Beth, and all I wanted was to crawl into bed and let the silence take me. I'm too tired, too tired to keep tiptoeing around, holding back things I want to say, do, pretending like the kiss never happened. Like it didn’t mean anything. It was a mistake. We both know that. But right now? I don’t have the energy to fake it.
“Looked like you were struggling with Beth in there,” Talen notes as we keep walking. “Everything okay?”
