part, ma belle.”
She rolls her eyes and strolls in the opposite direction.
Teal does that a lot — walking away without so much as an excuse — but she does it more often when Ronan is around.
“That’s a record, Astor.” Xander hits his shoulder, laughing. “Never thought there will be a day where a girl will leave because of you.”
“Right? I think so, too.” Ronan scratches his jaw. “She must be an alien. No offence, Van Doren.”
“Being an alien is cool, mate.” Knox grins, but something sinister lurks underneath. “But go near her and I’ll cut you, human style.”
“Go near her?” Xander laughs. “She’ll hang his balls on a stick before you even interfere.”
“That’s actually true.” Knox appears like he just thought about that. “Even my balls aren’t safe from her.”
“Ellie,” Ronan leans in to whisper. “Are they really aliens? Do they do weird twin alien shit at home? Do I have to save you? I have my white horse waiting just outside.”
I burst out laughing. He’s such a weirdo, but a great one at that.
“Finally.” Ronan flings an arm over my shoulder. “I missed that laugh.”
The four of us walk to class together, jesting and talking about the Premier League. Knox is the only one amongst us who supports Chelsea. Needless to say, Xander and Ronan give him hell for it.
Their verbal bickering extends to class with everyone watching them as if they’re world wonders.
Kim comes in last-minute, grumbling about the traffic and how she barely got Kirian to school on time.
For no reason at all, she glares at Xander before she settles in her seat. He barely glances in her direction, though.
Weird.
Class starts, but neither Aiden nor Cole show up. That’s bizarre. They don’t skip classes. Ever.
Especially Cole.
I retrieve my phone and check the text Aiden sent me first thing in the morning.
Aiden: Morning, sweetheart. Did you dream of me?
Aiden: I did. Now I have to jerk off all alone while picturing you.
Erotic images fill my mind. Aiden fisting his cock in that rough, masculine way, thinking about me, and bringing himself to orgasm. Aiden’s godlike expression when he comes, the tightening of his abs, and the strength of his release.
I squirm in my seat.
Wrong thought in class. Extremely wrong.
I try to focus on Mr Huntington as he reads from the textbook.
“Did you punch the bitch queen again?” Kim whispers from beside me.
“No. Why?”
“She’s absent.”
I search behind me, and sure enough, Silver isn’t here either. Wait. My frantic gaze scans around the classroom.
Someone else is absent.
Adam Herran.
Oh, no.
No, no, no.
I should’ve known better after I noticed the way he watched her and how he cornered her in the car park.
Would he really hurt her?
Shit.
If both Aiden and Cole are absent, does that mean they’re helping her?
My legs bounce during the entire class. I can’t concentrate no matter how much I try as all sorts of theories jump into my head.
None of them are good.
What if Adam hurts Aiden? What if something bad happens?
I mean, Aiden is usually the type who inflicts pain, not the other way around, but what if something goes wrong?
What if he’s taken by surprise?
I’m going crazy with one pessimistic scenario after the other.
Dread tightens my stomach as time slowly ticks by.
Come back.
Come back.
Come fucking back.
I retrieve my phone and type him a text.
Elsa: Where are you?
I delete it before sending it and choose to instead send him a late reply to his morning texts.
Elsa: I don’t dream, remember?
My heart lunges in my chest when my phone vibrates with a reply.
Aiden: I’ll dream for the both of us.
The memory hits me out of nowhere.
* * *
“I don’t remember my dreams,” I tell the boy with grey eyes.
He pinches my cheek. “I’ll dream for the both of us.”
“Promise?”
“Promise, Elsa.”
18
Elsa
Aiden shows up at school during lunch.
I visibly move from my seat the moment he walks into the cafeteria.
To do what?
Hug him? Kiss him?
What the hell, Elsa? Just because I was worried about him doesn’t mean I’ll jump in his arms.
I sit back down and move the fork in my lunchbox. Telling myself to focus on my food and ignore him doesn’t work. There’s no getting rid of Aiden. He’ll always be there. A constant. A nuisance. A thrill. He’s under my skin, flowing in my bloodstream.
Xander, Ronan, Knox, and Kim’s conversation fades into the background the closer Aiden comes.
I don’t have to look up to feel him. He’s in my bloodstream, remember? He flows inside of me. I’m conscious of him whether I like it or not. My