Kian blinked.
“But I guess that’s not the point. With feelings.”
“No.” He smiled, his gaze steady on her. “And I know you’ll say it’s all the curse. But even so—Ilikehow I feel when I’m around you. The noise in my head finally gets quiet. And I don’t want to go back to how things were.”
Riya’s hands stilled on the table. She wanted to argue. To tell him he was wrong, wrong, wrong. But the words felt tired in her mouth.
He leaned back, rubbing his face. “Honestly, even if it’s fake, it’s still better than being... alone.”
Alone.
Was that why he acted like he didn’t care to break the curse?
Riya liked being alone—her fortress of solitude was warm and curated and entirely her own. But maybe that was the difference. She chose solitude. Kian’s was forced.
She thought back to what Mel had said: how Kian had been suspended in eighth grade. How he’d showed up again with a shaved head and a chip on his shoulder. If he’d had friends back then, he clearly didn’t now—he’d said it himself.
Maybe the curse hadn’t changed him so much as it had just cracked something open. Not obsession. Not magic-induced delusion.
Butloneliness.
Riya shifted, unsettled. For all her complaints about how little he knew her, she hadn’t exactly done anything to remedy it. And now, with them being almost halfway through October, time was running out.
Tactically, keeping him close was the best remaining option. He needed someone. She needed assistance. It didn’t mean trusting him. It just meant increasing her odds.
“Given the circumstances,” Riya said softly, “I guess it would be... mean to keep expecting you to stay away.”
Kian stared. “Wait—are you saying—?”
“You can help me find a way to break the curse,” she said evenly. “The faster we undo it, the faster we can test the veracity of your feelings.”
“Test the—Okay. Yes.” Kian’s eyes widened.“You’ll actually let me help?”
“Onlyif you promise to actually help. No sabotaging my notes. No weird romantic nonsense.”
“Yes! Okay! I promise!” He pumped his fist softly, like he was afraid to scare her off. “Aw, man, this is going to beawesome. Should I call you Professor?”
“Unnecessary.”
“Professor it is.” He fished out the green notebook—the one she’d seen before—from his backpack, practically vibrating. “And I’ve already got some ideas, too. Maybe weswitch up the scenery. Go to a café. Or maybe my place! I can make you dinner and—”
Riya droppedMythological Beings and Forgotten Loreon the table with a thud.
“Start with this. Write down anything even remotely useful about peri spells and curses. Scan everything twice.”
Kian nodded, scrambling for a pen. “God, you’re so cool. Who even says ‘veracity’ in normal conversation?”
“Get to work.”
“Yes, Professor.”
But for the first time in days, the knot in Riya’s chest loosened—just a little.
Chapter 18
Student Council meetings were one of the few highlights of Riya’s week.
Their meetings were usually held on Tuesdays in the Bio Lab, a room divided by rows of long, heavy, black-topped desks. Riya would arrive ten minutes early, taking it upon herself to rearrange some of the desks in a circle and place copies of the agenda at every seat, the paper still warm from the printer.
