“What’s happening with the guys?” I asked him, blunt in the way Axl appreciated. “Why am I getting the cold shoulder? What did Asher say?”
Axl’s face went red, and he slammed his lips closed. “I can’t tell you. But I promise, it’s for your own safety. Please trust us.” He looked over his shoulder then. “I’ve got to go,” he said quickly. “I just needed to see you one last time.”
Fury and pain … my old friends.
A growl ripped through my chest—I almost sounded like a shifter. “You’re just going to run off and follow Asher like he’s the fucking Pied Piper?”
I pulled away from him.
His hands clenched in front of him before they lowered to his sides. “I have no choice, Maddison. Trust me, if there was another way. This is for—” He cut himself off. “I’m sorry.”
Then he walked past me and disappeared out into the commons. Ilia, who had been silent for the conversation, stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me. She knew I was falling apart, but I’d cried so much in the last few weeks—so much this year—that this time the tears didn’t come.
I straightened, pulled my shit together, and forced a smile on my lips. “Let’s eat,” I told her.
She gave me one last squeeze before she did the same thing, and together we strolled out into the commons. Axl was at the Atlantean table now, and I forced myself not to look at them. Not to walk toward them. I forced myself to search for an empty table nowhere near theirs.
“Busy here today,” Ilia said, looking around as we wandered further through.
“Maddison!” someone shouted, and I turned to find Simon waving at me.
A foreign emotion—happiness, I was guessing—flitted through my chest at the sight of my friend. It had been a long time since I’d seen him, and that mop of curly hair was a welcome vision.
“Hey!” I said, hurrying forward with Ilia.
“You want to sit here?” he said, gesturing to the two empty seats beside him. On the other side of the bench were some familiar faces, including Damon. I realized that these second-year supes had all formed a friendship—probably from being in so many classes together. I’d been so caught up in Asher and the guys that I’d barely noticed what else was going on in this school. But I recognized a ton of second years in this area, and as more people saw me in their midst and waved, I remembered that I had friends and a small life outside of the Atlanteans. I waved back at Amanda, plus a few other chicks, from Attack and Defense class. We’d all stuck together to get our asses kicked.
The emptiness didn’t go anywhere, but I felt a little more okay in that moment.
“We’d love to sit here, if it’s okay with you all,” I said to Simon.
Damon was the first to nod, followed by the other two guys sitting there. I knew them both from classes too—the light-blond-haired one was Tom, and the redhead was Michael.
“You know Tom and Michael?” Simon asked, gesturing to the guys.
I nodded. “Yeah, for sure. You’re both in my morphology class, right?”
Michael smiled. He had the most perfect white teeth and so many freckles that they almost moved about on his face. “Yep, that’s the one. I also think we had the fey language class together last year too.”
“That’s right,” I said, remembering. “Feels like last year was a million years ago.”
Damon snorted. “That’s an understatement if the rumors about your current life are anything to go on.”
Bastard never did have a filter. There was a momentary awkward silence before Simon picked up the conversation, talking about the party last weekend. I shot my friend a grateful look and he winked in return.
Ilia and I wasted no time ordering. My stomach rumbled louder and louder as I waited for my full stack of pancakes to arrive. “So what classes do you have today?” Tom asked. “Did you hear they’re starting up Water Magic again? Apparently Asher is back and in full health.”
I tried not to flinch at the mention of his name; however, I couldn’t stop my eyes from moving across the commons … searching for their table. I hoped I would be far enough away to not see them from where I was sitting, but no such luck.
As I found their table, my heart stuttered in my chest. Asher was watching me, his eyes slamming into me even across the distance between us. My hands shook as I clenched my fists and tried to suck in some oxygen. I couldn’t read anything in his expression, and as hard as I tried, I couldn’t look away.
Even if someone took away Asher’s height and looks and power, it would be the same. There was something that drew me to Asher on an instinctual level. More than the physical. The emotional was the strongest part. It was his sharp wit and intelligence, his gentle touch and kind eyes that I missed. His very bad attempt at sexting and the late night swims where we pushed until our limbs were so heavy we could barely drag ourselves from the pool.
That was what I missed. That was what I mourned.
Needing to look away before he did, I jerked my head around and stared down at the wood table. Thankfully, not ten seconds later, my food appeared and I could sate at least one hunger inside me.
For now, that would have to do.
