Page 15 of A Sky of Storms
“To be friends?”
“Yep. Unfortunate, I know, but the law is the law.”
“You’re lying,” I said, adding another wink for good measure.
“Am I?”
He turned away from me, but not before I saw his lips quirk. 1-0 to Zane. Not only had he given me some insightful commentary, but he’d offered me his hand! I’d finally cracked the dude’s exterior and was ready to dive in and explore the treasures within. We were each other’s competition, I wasn’t delusional, but there were multiple trials which would mean weeks at the academy. Being a loner just didn’t suit me. I was collecting friends like a pirate collected jewels. Might as well add my fighting fish to my loot.
Looking around the training area, I spotted the other person I wanted to enjoy my time with. Fallon was sparring with Kendra, seeing as Kayden had been told to use some other Potential as a punching bag. I had to admit, I was pretty relieved when he’d walked the other way and chosen some other poor dude to spar with. Kayden was one massive unit and I didn’t like the way he had been crushing my little starfish, Fallon, beneath him. She could have gotten seriously hurt. Kendra was holding her own, but she was no match for Fallon, who had her on the ground within seconds. It was fucking hot watching her move like that. Confidence and skill were such a turn on.
I retied my long golden hair, watching Kendra get a few good hits in. The girl struck as quick as a snake. Grabbing Noah by the bicep, I tried to drag him along with me to where the women stood.
“No way,” he said, shaking me off and striding away. “Give it a rest, man.”
I sighed. The poor dude really needed a shoulder to lean on. I looked back at the girls, who were now sitting on the ground casually chatting like old friends. Why wouldn’t Noah give in and chill with me? Couldn’t he see that we were surfing a wave towards the shore that was our friendship?
A whistle sounded, the noise shrill in my ears.
“Time’s up!” Master Nolan declared, blowing the whistle once more. He stood in the middle of the training area, hands on his hips. He looked like a high school PE teacher with his matching tracksuit, rounded stomach, and a look of fallen dreams in his eyes. Nolan was definitely the type to mope aboutalmostbeing someone special if it hadn’t been for blowing out his knee or something like that. I guessed that was the reason for the constipated look on his face all the time. “You’re dismissed!”
I headed towards my room, grabbing my hoodie and cuff on the way. I passed a few familiar faces from Tritosa City as they made their way from the training area. My father had nominated a few people from Neptune House, and I smiled at each of them when I caught their eyes. There were a lot of people here, so I didn’t blame them for not noticing me. I’d have to send them a text through Acadameet and organise a catch-up. They’d be part of my pod in no time.
My dorm was on the top floor of the residential building, which was probably the fanciest part of it. The room was nothing to text my brothers or sisters about, not that I could anyway. There would be no bragging coming from me in that department, which was bogus because you’d think they could have organised some lux rooms for the possible future ruler of this country. Unfortunately, we were stuck with plain walls, bunk beds, and a communal bathroom.
After a hot shower and a good clean of my dusty gills, I dropped onto my bed and slid on my cuff. I tapped the screen on my wrist, sending a couple of texts to those from the water city, before drafting one to Fallon. I hit send then stretched my arms behind my head just as my little starfish strolled in.
I waved her over and she smiled. She was so cute in her little black short-shorts and tank top, and I bet she had no idea. Maybe it had something to do with how most people kept looking at her like she was some evil bitch. Sure, her parents were the owners of one of the most successful companies in Terrulian history and usually where there was a huge profit margin there was some form of exploitation, but could Fallon really be to blame? I was pretty sure she was younger than me and I hadn’t had the time to build a trillion-dollar company. My plan had always been to make my mark on the world by becoming king, so other than learning what I could do to make that happen, I spent most of my free time surfing with my dolphins. Pip and Delilah were the best friends a dude like me could ever have.
“Hey Merman,” Fallon said with a smirk, coming to stand beside our bunk. She waved her cuff at me. “Were you feeling lonely here all by yourself?”
“Maybe.” I shrugged. “Get into any more fights today?”
“Nope,” she replied, popping the ‘p’. “Though I haven’t seen our friendliest of roommates.”
“He’s probably avoiding you after you totally showed him up and bruised his giant ego,” Kendra said with a smile as she strode in and headed for her bunk.
“Ha! What a blowfish.” I chuckled, rolling onto my side and patting my bed. “Sit for a bit.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s early afternoon and we’re stuck here with nothing to do until dinner,” I replied with a grin. “What else is there to do with our down time?”
“How about we go exploring instead?” she asked, tapping her plump bottom lip. “I wanna check out the rest of the grounds.”
Aw, how cute, my little starfish playing all hard to get. I did want to check out the lake though and get all deep and personal in it. “Fine,” I said with a sigh. “But next time, I get to choose our activity.”
“What makes you think there will be a next time?” she asked, raising a brow at me.
I grinned. “You’ll see.”
“Indeed we will,” she said, her lips quirking. “I’m going to shower and change. Give me a minute.”
While Fallon collected her things from her bunk and showered, I grabbed myself a t-shirt, shoes, and brushed my hair. I hated when it got knotted, so I made sure that it was brushed properly before I tied it up. By the time Fallon stepped out of the bathroom, I was leaning against my bunk and ready to go.
“Want to join us, Kendra?” Fallon asked.
Her friend waved her off with a lazy yawn. “Nah, I’m good. Time for a nap.” She winked at Fallon. “But you two have fun.”
