My heart started to pound, and I hoped she couldn’t feel it through the bond. “Can we just stop talking about this?” I asked.
“Fine,” she agreed. “I didn’t know you were so anti-dick. Are you done with your drink?”
“Yeah,” I said quickly. “Let’s go.”
Ava and I stood, and she reached out to take my hand. A red-hot sensation like burning coals seared my skin. I jumped backward, slamming into the corner of the table behind me.
“What is it?” Ava asked, sounding worried. It was clear she hadn’t meant to burn me.
“Pidge, you’re burning up,” I said.
“I am?” She seemed so oblivious to it.
Ava gasped the same time I caught the scent of burning paper. Her cup clattered to the ground. “Oh, shit! I have to get out of here.”
Ava ran out of Commissary. I rushed to follow, but it was so crowded that I couldn’t get a good feel of my surroundings. I ran straight into an empty chair and tripped over it. I toppled to the ground, and people around me started laughing.
I didn’t give a shit. I only cared about Ava.
Oberi barked, to let me know he was still at my side. I scrambled to my feet and grabbed his fur, so he could help guide me out of the room. We hurried into the hall and found Ava pacing back and forth. Her feet landed with loud noises on the carpet, and she sucked in deep breaths.
“Pidge, what’s wrong?” I asked.
“I-I don’t know, Charlie.” Her voice wavered. “I didn’ttryto burn you. My Fire magic is coming to the surface. I can’t control it. I ran out, because I was worried I was going to burn the place down.”
I feared she was going to have another panic attack. I placed my hands on her shoulders to steady her. Her shoulders were hot, but her shirt helped insulate some of the heat. “It’s going to be okay. Focus on me.”
“I’m sorry I left you,” she said in a rush. “I just had to get out of there. I didn’t want my Fire exploding and hurting anyone— or hurting you.”
“Listen to me,” I said firmly. “You’re not going to hurt anyone. I’m right here, and I won’t let that happen.”
Ava shook, as if trying to get rid of the extra energy inside her body. I could feel her anxiety through the bond and noticed she was trying to hold it back.
“Don’t resist it,” I encouraged. “That’s what’s going to make your magic explode out of you. Feel through it.”
I demonstrated by drawing in deep, calming breaths. All I wanted to do was take her fears as my own. If I could do anything to make her feel better, I would.
My hands heated the longer I held on to her, and my arms began to tingle. Her shoulders turned to ice. The heat should’ve hurt like hell, but I barely felt a thing. It was as if her Fire magic was moving through me. I could feel her magic rippling along my form like my own did.
“Charlie!” Ava cried in alarm. “What are you doing?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Is it helping?”
Ava hesitated a moment, like she was apprehensive about the whole thing. “Yeah, it’s helping. I feel calmer now. Are you okay?”
I contemplated the question, paying close attention to the magical sensation tingling through me. I drew away from her, and the Fire seemed to settle into my gut. For a few moments, my abdomen felt warm, until the magic faded away.
“I’m totally fine,” I said. “What just happened?”
“No idea,” Ava replied thoughtfully. “It was like you just…tookmy magic from me. Must’ve been the bond.”
Oberi barked, but I wasn’t sure what he was trying to tell us.
“Strange,” I thought aloud. We still had so much to learn about our bond. “Maybe we should take it easy the rest of the day.”
“Yeah, that’s probably best,” she agreed. I was surprised to hear her say it, because Ava wasn’t the kind of girl totake it easy. But whatever had just happened between our bond must’ve shaken her, because she remained quiet all the way to class.
We returned to our dorms that night without discussing the matter the rest of the day.
