Page 130 of Endless Anger
Crossing my arms, I lean on the sink, gritting my teeth against the urge to defy him anyway. But if there’s something dangerous on the other side of that door, without clothes or a weapon, I’m not going to be much help.
Slowly, he pulls the door open, keeping the front of his foot pressed against the bottom in case it’s suddenly shoved wider. He sticks his head out into the hall, glancing left and right silently for several minutes.
My body tenses as I wait, and suddenly I’m back in the forest, fear keeping me paralyzed. It isn’t until he lets the door swing shut, coming back and grabbing my face, that I realize I’m trembling.
It’s easy to forget about the violent crime when everyone else seemsto, doubly so when there’s other stuff going on in your personal life. Staying busy means not having to think about the things no one on campus wants to talk about and not having to face the reality that life is more out of your control than you ever noticed before.
“Did you see anything?” I ask.
“Nothing. Probably just a prank.”
I let that sink in, wondering if he’s being honest. For my sanity, I choose to believe him, but other thoughts still nag me.
“What were you doing in the forest that first day?” I question, even though I’m not sure I really want the answer.
Asher exhales, but he doesn’t seem to hesitate, really. More like he’s trying to decide how much of his soul to bare.
As if it doesn’t already belong to me.
Always has.
“I was looking for you,” he says, and when he leans in to kiss me once more, I wonder if it’s the whole truth.
And if it really even matters.
37
ASHER
“What’s your game here?”
Blinking, I squint into the sunlight spilling between the marble statues lining the quad. An angry blond puts a manicured hand on her hip, glaring at me from behind big, pink designer sunglasses.
“Mygame?” I hold up the sketchbook in my lap, pointing at the wordless comic strip across the page. “I’m not sure this qualifies.”
Aurora rolls her eyes. “You know, Foxe is the only person in the world who has ever found you funny.”
“Yeah? He tell you that himself?” I balance the book on my legs, brushing some pencil debris off the drawing. “Howisour favorite rock star, by the way?”
Scoffing, she turns, plopping down on the metal bench beside me. “Rock star is a generous term.”
“He does okay.”
She doesn’t respond, and I wonder if she thinks I don’t know about them. As if Foxe would ever be able to keep it a secret.
Across the quad, situated a few feet from the front steps of the Lyceum, Lucy hands out flyers that I mocked up for her, detailing the adoption day she’s organizing with the Fury Hill Animal Shelter.
She doesn’t smile, and most of her interactions with students involve her simply shoving the flyers into their hands, but I can tell she’s excited anyway. When they contacted her about setting it up, she’d immediately called her mom for tips, and for a moment, the darkness at Avernia lifted just a little bit.
I should’ve known the reprieve would be short-lived.
Stretching my arms over my head, I crack my spine and then lean my hands on the back of the bench, glancing at Aurora. “You don’t need to worry about me hurting Lucy, you know.”
Aurora’s green gaze swivels to mine. “I’m not worried about her. She’s stronger than all of us kids put together. Lachlan, Logan, River, you, me, and Foxe? We don’t hold a fucking candle to Lucy, and you should be terrified of her.”
I am.“Then what’s the problem?”
She kicks at the ground with her black Mary Janes. “There’s noproblem. I just…”
