Page 131 of Veiled

He knew something was wrong with me.

He didn’t look surprised.

He didn’t look confused.

He didn’t look like he was guessing.

And I have no idea how he could possibly know. He thought it was the pain that made me dissociate in class, but I didn’t get hurt just now.

As Korr moves back to the patient, Sara barking directions that he quickly follows, I can’t help but watch him for a moment longer than I should. My pulse is still uneven, and my hands are still shaking slightly.

Then I turn and leave for room three. Regardless of whatever that just was, I have patients to tend to while I’m stuck here for the next four hours.

Chapter forty-eight

Annalise

My head leans against Matt’s shoulder while we wait for everyone else to meet us at dinner.

“Can’t fall asleep yet, Lee. You need to eat to replenish your body after the beating you took in Vanguard,” he playfully chides, making my body bounce.

“You gave me that beating!” I argue before using him as a pillow again. “Just wake me up when they all get here,” I pretend to whine, but really, I’m just so damn content after getting to spend the entire day, other than combat class this morning, with my best friend.

Sasha’s been pulled for a “special project” in spell casting this week, so today was the first day we’ve had a full ‘us’ day since we got here. It was great getting to just be our old, stupid selves when we weren’t in classes.

Even though Matt hasn’t officially bonded yet, we snuck in a short flight over lunch, armed with a bag of snacks, Tyr, and Zest—the cutest yellow dragon, her scales dusted with a few playful twists of red. I’m convinced they’ll lock in the bond any day now since she’s been refusing to fly with anyone else.

Matt’s head tilts to rest on the top of mine, “Go on then, close your eyes, brat. Love you.”

“Love you, too, Mattey,” I smile to myself as my eyes fall shut.

“Time to wake up,” Josh sing-songs from the other side of the table.

“I’m not even asleep,” I yawn, opening my eyes to see Aiden, James, and Antonio standing around him, waiting for us to get up so we can get in line for food.

“I’ll never understand how you two can just fall asleep like that. I need the room completely dark with a sound machine running,” James says, shaking his head at us.

I think back to the long nights of Matt and me taking turns sleeping or only getting in short naps between my dad's drunken outbursts. Sleeping almost on demand became a key to surviving.

Shaking the memories away, I round the table and hip bump him. “We can’t all work in a fancy lab, James. Some of us are slummers who have to sleep in the field when we can.”

“I don’t feel guilty. You all made your choices.”

“Touche,” Aiden says, pulling me into his side. “Good nap, Sweetheart?”

“Mmmhmm. Combat Class and Vanguard just sucked today.”

“Learn anything good?”

“Nope. Korr’s still a dick, and I suck at land navigation.”

“What happened during land nav?"

“Noth—”

“You should have seen it!” Matt cuts me off, excited to tell everyone what happened, just like I knew he would be. “She took a spiderweb to the mouth, freaked out, and then tripped and rolled down a steep embankment!”

All eyes turn to stare at me, and then they all burst into laughter. I only manage to keep my straight face for a second before I can’t help but join them.