appear during my shift. And I couldn’t avoid that forever. Jace had begun asking me to show him my Kythan form. I deflected his questions by expressing how strange it was for me at this point. He didn’t fully understand, but allowed me to have my weird quirk, remaining in his human form most of the time, too. I assumed to make me feel less weird around others.
Like Devon and Mr. Liam had infused crystals with Charge in order to contain our power, I wanted to invent something that could absorb mine. Something small that I could wear or carry in case my power began getting out of control—the way it had during my first shift. Something that could divert the power away from me. I had no idea how to go about doing this, so I dove into my studies, learning everything I could about energy transfer.
Jace kept his promise, taking our relationship slow. He hadn’t attempted to kiss me again, but we held hands, sat together during dinner and breakfast, and even studied together. It really wasn’t any different than how our relationship had been before, except for the way he looked at me sometimes. And how he’d touch my hair, caress my skin, or kiss my hand. I wasn’t going to lie and say I didn’t feel anything when he was near me—the boy was hot. And maybe if I’d never met Reese and shared that amazing week with him, being with Jace would feel like enough. But when I was with him, I couldn’t help feeling like there was a void.
Reese got closer to the Shythe girl, as well. They sat together at every meal, and in every class. I never saw him hold her hand or kiss her—I never watched for that long. Whenever I saw Reese, I’d turn and go another way. I also tried my best not to look at him during class. Being so near him I felt raw, like my soul was an open wound being submerged in salt water. At times it was hard to breathe.
By Friday, Kythan everywhere were anxious for the weekend. We had a curfew, midnight, but no one seemed to mind because we actually got to leave the Academy grounds. Lana was beyond excited as she talked about finally seeing Devon, so we made plans to go to Cogs.
Although I kept in contact with my mom through my communicator, she wanted to see me in person. I felt like I should allow her to see with her own eyes that I was alive and well and that life at the Academy was safe. So I made a separate set of plans to visit her on Saturday.
I only had to make it through my last class, my power training block, and then this horrible week would be over. I finished stretching out and stepped onto the mat with the rest of the students. Our instructor, Ms. Ceylon, eyed me from behind her whistle.
“Harkly,” she called out. “Front and center. You’re power matching Patcher today.”
My heart sped, hammering in my ears as I heard Reese’s last name. I looked to the side of the mat, and he took his place in front of the targets. Great. Fighting with power had been outlawed since the Treaty Act, but we still tested our power levels, training to become more powerful Kythan. Reese was the worst person she could have pitted me against. He knew all my weaknesses.
I slowly sidled up beside him and shook out my hands. He glanced over, but didn’t say a word. As his arms ignited with a red glow, I turned up the juice on my Charge.
He ripped a ball of Flame across the gym, hitting the target dead center.
“Nice, Patcher,” Ms. Ceylon said. “Harkly, your turn. Just aim for the center like Reese.”
I really didn’t like her right then. I held out my hand, shaking a little. God, why did he have to be such a showoff? He knew I couldn’t blast that stupid target. I mean, I could, but then I’d risk releasing too much energy. Probably even blast the target to shreds. I quivered with restraint as I released a bolt. It skipped along the mat and crashed into the wall.
Ms. Ceylon blew her whistle. “Nice try, Harkly. But no one’s beat Patcher yet. Keep practicing.”
I glared at Reese, and he craned an eyebrow, a smug expression plastered on his face. So what if he showed me up here? What did that prove?