I was no less confused when I left the rink than when I’d showed up. But if Amantha could get over her bond… couldn’t I?
She said not to do it until I was ready, and I wasn’t ready yet. We still had a few more weeks until the demon took over Ethan completely. If that happened, reality would make the decision for me.
I slowly climbed the staircase back up to the dormitories. Stairs usually didn’t bother me, but I had to take it easy. Typically, such a climb would only take me a minute, but I found that taking the stairs today resulted in nearly five, as I had to pause on each step to take a breath. Practice had really wiped me out.
Yep, this was me. The all-powerful Worldweaver, the girl fated to fight Droga… who couldn’t climb a flight of stairs without getting winded.
Oh, yeah. The dark god should be real scared of me.
Delmare was at the top of the staircase with her arms crossed. Her hunched position and wrinkled nose told me she was pissed.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
Delmare fumed. “Oh, nothing, just that my mate thinks my new book fucking sucks.”
“I did not say it sucked.” Stefan popped his head out of his dorm a few rows down. He walked over, demeanor calm. “You asked me to read it, and give you an honest opinion. I just said it needs a few changes, that’s all.”
“A few changes! You want me to rewrite half the book!” Delmare shouted. “Do you know how much time it took me to finish? I can’t just dump all those chapters in the trash!”
“Babe, every book needs to be edited. It’s good, but I know you could do better,” Stefan emphasized.
“You’re unbelievable,” Delmare growled. She threw her arms up and stomped away.
“Babe,” Stefan whined again, and he started after her. Their argument didn’t look like something I wanted to get into. They’d sort it out. Stefan chased Delmare down the stairs, and I retired to my dormitory.
I dropped my stuff off in my dorm. Tygrys purred, and I scratched him underneath the chin before he curled up on an orchid leaf for a nap. I was going to get an early start on my paper for Enchanting class, before I heard annoyed voices in the hallway.
Gods, was everyone fighting today? Because it was really annoying.
I poked my head out. In the Rec Room was Odette. She was arguing with Igor, who looked like he’d cornered her against a wall.
My nose scrunched in distaste. What was Igor doing here? He wasn’t even a student.
It wasn’t my business, but I hated Igor with such a fucking passion, I knew I wouldn’t get any work done if he was hanging around. I left my dorm and stomped toward him, fully intending on chasing him off.
“What do you expect me to do? I’m so out of place,” Igor hissed at Odette. “You know I don’t like these sort of things, and you insist on dragging me along anyway.”
“It’s just dinner with a few friends.” Odette shrank under Igor’s frame. “I thought it’d be nice if you came.”
Igor rolled his eyes. “Always with the friends. I asked you to move in weeks ago, and you haven’t brought over a single box!”
“I’ve been busy.” Odette’s eyes darted to the side.
“Yeah, right. Everyone else is more important to you than me.” Igor crossed his arms. “Don’t you realize you’re better off without those losers you hang with? I need more attention, and you aren’t giving it to me!”
What a jealous jerk. Could he fuck off already? Igor turned around when he heard me coming, while Odette sagged in relief.
“Odette, I need your help with some homework,” I lied. “It’s urgent.”
Igor shot dagger eyes at Odette, but she quickly said, “Sure, Emma! I’ll be right there!”
She tottered to my dorm as fast as her little legs could carry her. I flipped Igor off— his cheeks flushed as he left, mumbling under his breath about what a bitch I was. He was too big of a wimp to confront me to my face.
I closed my dorm room door and locked it, just in case the asshole came back. Odette was sitting on my bed, nervously brushing out her hair with her fingers.
“Odette, what is it going to take for you to dump this guy?” I asked her. “Because at this point, I’ll seriously pay you to break it off with him.”