Page 53 of Fated for Flames

“Pity,” I teased lightly, trying to lift his spirits. “You’d make a great Romeo.”

His face turned bright red, making everyone at our table burst into laughter.

Poor guy, I thought, feeling a pang of sympathy for him.

In an attempt to divert the attention away from Adrien’s flushed cheeks and unrequited feelings, I turned toward Theo. “Let me guess, you’ll be going as a vampire?”

Theo’s eyes went wide with surprise. “How did you know? Do you have some form of seer magic I wasn’t aware of?”

I laughed. “No seer magic unfortunately,” I said, though it would have been pretty helpful right about now, “just a lucky guess.”

“Do you have a date?” Theo asked me.

I shook my head. I didn’t want one. I just wanted to let loose and have some fun, forget about everything for a few hours. A boyfriend was the last thing I had time for right now.

“Why don’t we all go together? Like a fun group date?” I suggested. “If you guys don’t already have dates.” I quickly added, “In a totally platonic way, of course.”

Poly relationships were common in the supernatural world, given the gender ratio, but for me, these guys were just friends. I wasn’t interested in anything beyond that.

Adrien and Felix exchanged a look before nodding in agreement, their faces breaking into matching grins.

“Sounds like a plan,” Adrien said, his eyes darting to Ruby briefly before returning to me.

Theo chuckled, throwing an arm around my shoulder. “Looks like it’s a date, then, the four of us against the world.”

The conversation steered back to costume ideas and making plans for the Halloween party, as Raven, the goth witch, and her sister joined us, and everyone’s spirits were lifted. The tension from earlier in the day melted away, replaced by excitement and anticipation for the upcoming event.

33

Evelyn

After my, let’s call it a “victory” against Viper, tactical defense class turned into an absolute blast. Managing to land a mark on him felt like I’d earned the equivalent of a shifter’s feather, a mythical achievement akin to successfully sneaking an egg from a thunderbird’s nest, which according to my Supernatural History class, was pretty much impossible.

The shifters started to warm up to me. Even Viper toned down his usual disdainful sneer, although he started calling me “crazy witch” instead of just “witch.”

I was still deciding whether that was an upgrade.

And then there was Ryker.

Silent, brooding Ryker watched from the sidelines with an intensity that could have melted steel. I was starting to like my scary, silent stalker.

Yep, I have issues.

Today’s sparring sessions were different. Instead of being paired with Chad, I sparred with various other shifters. The change was refreshing and challenging. Their styles differed from Chad’s, their movements unpredictable and unique to their animal instincts.

Sure, I got knocked on my ass more times than I could count, but each fall was a lesson learned; each bruise and scrape was a testament to my perseverance. Plus, I healed fast, which was something I had in common with the shifters.

Then came the surprise of the day, Professor Tamsin’s rare compliment.

“You’ve improved,” she said simply as she passed by me after class.

Her words hung in the air like an unexpected gift. I stared at her retreating figure, a big grin spreading across my face.

It felt good to be recognized for my hard work. It gave me hope that I was becoming stronger.

I made my way over to Chad, a silly grin still plastered on my face. He was talking with other shifters, his infectious laughter floating in the air. He turned to me, his bright eyes meeting mine.

“Did you hear that, Chad?” I asked, my voice barely containing my excitement.

---