science experiment. My skin prickles uncomfortably with all of the attention. I’ve done everything I can to blend in for the last five years, suddenly being the center of attention is… jarring. Uncomfortable. Fucking weird.
There’s a Rolls Royce with a driver sitting at the curb, and I take a second to pray that it’s not here for us.
Of course it is.
North freaking Draven has a driver for his Rolls Royce. I want to puke. No wonder everyone hates me. I knew he was a Councilman but I wasn’t expecting this sort of… wealth. The sort that comes with drivers and suits and hell only knows what else.
My parents had been well-off but even they didn’t have a freaking driver.
“Are you getting in the car, or do I need to force you in? Are you going to fight me at every step today? I’m attempting to be civil.”
This is civil? Fuck me. “I got distracted by your obscene show of wealth.”
He opens the car door to usher me in, a completely fake show of chivalry. “Obscene? This is a necessity.”
My stomach rumbles as I move into the car. “So glad your driver is a necessity but letting me eat isn’t.”
He slides in next to me and glances at me. “They didn’t feed you?”
I squint at him. “They’re your people, right? You should know then that it’s been four days since I last ate. I have a little money, I offered to buy something myself but was told I had to wait for you. So yeah, can we hurry this up because I’m about to fucking pass out.”
He doesn’t react at all, just blinks at me. “They know better than to just starve you. If you’re aiming for sympathy, then you’re woefully mistaken.”
Right.
Fuck him, I’m done being civil.
I cross my arms and shut my mouth. I don’t speak another word to him for the rest of the drive over to the college campus, the scenery outside beautiful but not enough to cheer me up. Fucking Bonds. I knew it was going to be bad but I wasn’t expecting to feel so… much. I feel everything through the bond inside, every glare and harsh word cuts through my soul like a knife.
When the car finally pulls up, North gets out and opens my door for me again, the perfect mockery of a gentleman, because I’m now feeling woozy with hunger.
Fuck him.
I’ll just keep thinking it until he disappears.
He walks me up and into the building, charming his way there with those same warm smiles, and I start to feel like I could puke watching him. It’s all so freaking fake.
The dean sees us straight away, seating us and then hurrying out of the room to grab paperwork. I guess this is the best time to tell North that I dropped out while I was on the run and there’s no way I can get into this place, not even with his help.
His name is on the freaking building.
North's eyes are cold as he takes me in. "What do you mean you didn't finish high school?"
Despite all my efforts, my cheeks heat with embarrassment. Damn him, why do a few simple words from him have the ability to cut my freaking heart to ribbons? "I moved around too much to stay in school."
I spent all of my spare time in libraries, doing what I could to always stay learning, but I don't want to say that to him. What if he laughs at me? What if I just look freaking pathetic to him, even more than I do now?
His jaw tightens and I wait for his scathing comment, my heart back in my throat no matter how hard I swallow to move it. I need to find my freaking spine around this guy. Why do the others not affect me like this?
The door to the office opens again and the dean walks through, a stack of papers in his hands. "I have everything you need here to enroll, you just need to supply your SAT scores and identification."
Neither of which I have.
I open my mouth but North cuts me off. "We will have everything to you by this afternoon. If it's ok with you, we have other appointments we must get to today."
The dean nods and hands the files over as we both stand. I'm not sure how North is planning on handing stuff over that doesn't exist, but I keep my mouth shut. No need to poke the bear.
I wonder if he is