Page 53 of Riot of Autumn

I groan, rubbing the space between my eyebrows. Am I really going to say this? Ah fuck it. “I guess I thought they might be the most attainable, so I never bothered with the most popular one.” I hold up my hand to stop anyone from responding to that. “I’m fully aware that even the lowest rung of the boy band ladder is outside the realm of possibility.”

“That might be the saddest thing I’ve ever heard, Ruby. And I weirdly relate,” Miri says, although the choked sound she makes tells me she’s trying not to laugh.

“Ezra and I aren’t keeping this a secret, but I honestly don’t know what we’re doing. That pathetic boy band crushing girl inside me keeps telling me that this is just the damn magical bond pushing us together. What if it’s not real and simply some manufactured feeling because you guys have all bonded, and now the Axis wants us to complete the circle? The square. There are eight of us, so I guess square is more appropriate.” Great, I’m rambling.

Zara reaches out and squeezes my hand, but doesn’t say anything else.

“Ruby, Ezra has chased you around for years. I thought you didn’t want him and that’s why the two of you never got together.” Lena leans forward, looking me in the eye. “You always seemed to push him away.”

Because he hurt me, because I was scared, because I knew he could ruin the last remaining parts of my heart that were still sweet and hopeful. I was, and still am, afraid to give him that power. I thought there was no way he could feel for me what I felt for him. Especially when his past actions left a dark mark on my heart.

Except those were all misunderstandings.

I don’t say any of that out loud. Instead, I just shrug again and take a long drink, the booze warming my belly. “I’m not pushing him away anymore.”

“So, what are you doing?” Lena asks.

When did she become so fucking nosy?

“We’re just feeling things out. Keeping things casual.” I’m starting to hate that word.

“Have you talked to Ezra about how you feel? You should.”

“A little, but mostly I got distracted by his giant dick. It’s really hard not to get dick-matized by it.”

“Oh my god.” Miri laughs, and Lena starts coughing on the drink that was halfway down her throat.

Zara’s smile gets a little bigger on her face. “Just have the conversation after you bone him.”

I bark out a laugh, loving when Zara picks up modern sayings. Having lived in Fairy most of her life, she was completely clueless about slang when she first got here. She’s come a long way in a short time.

“Good advice, sister.”

“All joking aside, you and Ezra both deserve to be happy,” Lena says.

“I think you’re perfect for each other.” Miri grins at me.

“I feel like there’s an insult couched in that compliment.” I deflect, but their words warm me. I just wish I believed them.

18

EZRA

“I’m just gonna say it. Why do we think it’s a good idea to continue having these festivals?” I ask as we trudge down the beach with a cooler full of beer and soda. There’s a bonfire and beach party tonight for the Hunter’s Moon. Half the town and basically anyone on the island for the weekend will probably be here.

“This one isn’t a formal event planned by the activities committee,” Lena protests as she pulls off her sneakers and dumps out a shoe-full of sand. As if that makes any difference.

All our friends are here tonight, even Davis, who always tries to get out of events like these. Ruby’s walking with Miri and Zara in front of me, and I can’t help but check out her ass in a pair of skin-tight jeans. She’s wearing a cropped emerald-green jacket over her Ziggy Stardust t-shirt and a stocking cap with one of those huge pompoms on the top. The hat is overkill, especially because her feet are bare.

She’s holding her shoes in one hand and a pizza box in the other. The sun has already set, but the light from the roaring bonfire on the beach is bright enough for everyone to see. I don’t have any issue seeing in the dark with my magic, but I’m the only one. Ruby heads straight toward a massive, downed tree near the fire. Someone dragged it from the woods years ago and it’s become a permanent fixture on the beach.

I sit down next to her as she opens the box of pizza. Rummaging around the cooler, I snag two beers, then pop the tops off. Holding up a bottle in her direction, she takes it with a “thanks” and holds the pizza toward me.

“They cut it into squares,” I grumble as I grab a piece just in time before Ruby slaps the top of the box closed.

“What’s wrong with square pizza?”

“Pizza belongs in triangles.”

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