Uh oh. “Now I’m worried.” I rake the last tangle from my hair and get up again, putting my hairbrush away and taking out a little handheld mirror.
I’ve fought with my skin for years, never able to get the right combination. It’s either too dry, too oily, or an annoying mixture of both, dotted with acne that just wouldn’t go away no matter what I tried.
But now…now my skin is clear. Flawless. Smooth. Practically glowing, in fact.
“I should have died years ago.”
“Stop.” Cass goes to nudge me with her foot, and it passes right through my arm. I don’t get as bad of a chill this time. Trading the mirror for my toothbrush, I go back to my bed and put on the boots.
I can hear people talking and laughing in the hall, giving me flashbacks to my freshman year at Columbia College when I tried to stay in a dorm. To make a long story short, it didn’t work out. I quickly became known as theweird girl who you should be nice to because there’s a chance she’s crazyafter I mistook a ghost for a real person and got into a heated argument with him about women’s rights.
But things are different now. I’m different now.
I twist the doorknob and step out of the room. The hallway is wide, and bright sunlight pours through a large floor-to-ceiling window. Several students mill about, all dressed in uniforms similar to what I saw Maxon wearing the first night I saw him.
Holding my head up, I start down the hall, eyes on the lavatory. I’m almost there before I’m spotted.
“So the rumors are true,” a guy says, emerging from his room. He’s tall, with dark blond hair and a devastatingly handsome face. He’s dressed in an academy uniform as well, complete with a cloak. The red velvet ties hang in a big bow against his firm chest, and the sleeves of his button-up are rolled to his elbows.
“I’m Blaze.” He holds out a large hand to shake.
“I’m Addy.” His hand swallows mine whole. “Nice to meet you.”
“You caused quite a stir this morning,” he says with a cheeky grin. “Way to make an entrance.”
“I was thinking more along the lines ofway to fuck up my first impression,” I admit with a laugh.
“Nah, we all know how she is.” He gives me a wink. “Are you on your way down to breakfast? I’ll walk you.”
“Um, yeah, that would be nice.” I smile and feel a bit of color come to my cheeks. “Give me a minute.” I hold up my toothbrush and toothpaste and hurry into the bathroom, pausing before pushing the door open. This is the male section of the dorm, and while I’m no stranger to the naked male form, I know all too well I could walk into something I won’t be able to unsee.
The coast is clear, so I hurry in, brush my teeth, and try to smooth my hair down as best as possible. Blaze is in his room when I dash out to put my toothbrush and paste away.
“Shall we?” he asks, appearing in the hall right as I walk by. He holds out his arm for me to take. All eyes fall on me as I walk down the hall, but for the first time, I don’t feel like I’m being judged for being the school freak.
“Have you gotten your schedule yet?” Blaze asks.
“No, I’m meeting with Headmistress Messor after breakfast to go over all that.”
“If I’m lucky, we’ll have some of the same classes.”
Is he hitting on me? It’s been so long since anyone flirted with me I feel all rusty at this.
“And if you need some private tutoring—” Okay, now I know he’s hitting on me, “—I can help you with that as well. I’m sure you’re eager to get all caught up.”
“That won’t be necessary.” Maxon rounds the corner, and I jump, startled by his sudden appearance. “I’ve been assigned to her.”
Blaze lets out a snort of laughter. “Are you sure Celeste will allow that?” He makes a whipping motion with his hand.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve been assigned to her.” Maxon grits his teeth as he falls into step with us, following the stream of reapers making their way from the dorm to the mess hall for breakfast. He glances at me for half a second, as if I’m barely worth his attention. “Blaze is the last person you want tutoring you if you want to catch up, unless you’re looking for an in-depth lesson on the kama sutra.”
He raises his eyebrows at Blaze, who grins, looking completely unrepentant. “Like she needs much tutoring anyway. I heard how you took out a demon.” Hunger blazes in his eyes as he looks down at me, making me a little breathless despite myself. Beside me, Maxon snorts.
“I heard it was three,” a girl with wavy red hair quips as she passes by. “Blindfolded with one hand tied behind her back.” She gives me a wink and shakes her head at Blaze.
“It was one the first time and two the second,” I say. “And while the blindfold makes for a cool story, I was able to see them clear as day.”
Blaze, Maxon, and the girl all stop dead in their tracks.
