Page 63 of And They Were Roommates

That’s when the regret hits. Because now Jasper’s face is shifting, and the corners of his blue eyes are crinkling in a way I’ve never seen. I’m too terrified to move, to even scatter my bangs over my eyes or cover myself. Obviously, Rank One would assess this abnormal reaction. He remembered camp. Workshop. Our kiss. My first kiss.

It’s over.

“Hey, Charlie.” It’s the first time Jasper has said only my first name, and I have no clue what that means, let alone what he’s thinking that means. A fragile, almost pained look flashes across his face, but then he wipes it away with a head shake that comes off frustrated. With himself? “I think you’re ready to help me with real love letters.”

My body remains motionless, like if I shift a centimeter, he could still remember. “What comes next, then? There’s only a little over a month left until the mixer.”

“Correct.” His voice is slightly more melodic now, back to his version of normal. “There are roughly eighty patrons left to be served. Take a third of those?” He points at our bookcase. “Rip out any pages from those books and use them.”

“Once these letters are delivered, you’ll still leave our room, right?”

Jasper hesitates. “I suppose that was our deal.”

Itwasour deal. And it’s more important than ever with how close Jasper keeps getting to the truth. Yet my heart illogically sinks at the thought.

I’m tired. That’s why I’m dying.

Tomorrow, I won’t feel a thing.

Chapter 23AS I LAY DYING

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 12

Shakespeare once wrote “arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,” but that is the worst ideology for a Saturday morning. I pull my blanket higher up my face to block out the light. The chatter coming from the Halo is too loud, and the scent of burnt leaves is too strong. The academy must take a blowtorch to every single sprig to keep up appearances for donors.

I have training with Xavier soon. I almost forgot.

Groaning, I tug off the blanket. The wall beside my bed isn’t in front of my face where it should be. Same for the pillows. Instead, there’s a sleeping Jasper.

I yelp and scramble to sit up. Not my bed. The rug is still littered with notebooks and burned tea-light candles, where I must’ve fallen asleep while writing letters. Ones that Jasper approved of, that made me feel so synced with him for once. I can’t help but smile at how he lies on his side next to me, his blond hair frizzy and draped over a cheek. His blazer is wrinkled, barely on his body anymore.

I glance down at my fistful of blanket. No, sleeve. Jasper’s sleeve.

Heat burns in the pit of my stomach and explodes into my head. I flick the sleeve away and touch my cheeks.

A fever. Definitely.

Health Services. Now.

Welcome!

Health Services is closed on Saturdays!

In case of emergency, visit the checkout booth between the two academies to contact our nurses in the off-campus instructor quarters.

I throw up my hands. “THIS IS AN EMERGENCY.”

“Charlie?”

Robby stands by the gift shop next door, not a wrinkle on his blazer or curl out of place above his drop fade. His number-two enamel pin is covered up by a plastic organizational binder against his chest, which I easily recognize since he always overfills it. Too many horse trading cards, maybe.

I hide my zipping panic by summoning a very calm, very normal smile. “Hi.”

Robby inspects the Health Services door. “Are you ill?”

“Maybe. I’m supposed to meet up with Xavier, so I wanted to know if I’m contagious, but they’re closed.”

“You do look off,” Robby says to me. “Do you suffer from anxiety stress? Sleeping problems? Dizziness? Any general worry over people, places, and things?”

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