Page 120 of Let Us Prey
“Rufus, you’ve run throughfiveguys since Valentine’s Day. You arenothurting,” Cori chides. “I, however, am in the midst of an epic dry spell.”
I give her a sympathetic smile. Cori is always sassy sunshine, but she's obviously struggling to find someone to connect with this year. My spunky friend doesn’t go into detail about her disappointment, but I wish I could find her someone to share the enormous amount of love she has to give. Unfortunately, I’m a walking disaster, and until I get all ofmyissues sorted, I feel like I’d be more of a hindrance than a help.
“Coco, we need to get out of this stuffy burg. We’re far too fabulous for these plebs. Maybe we can see about the Apex exchange program?” Rufus says, yawning broadly. “That is, if we survive these fucking exams.”
“Agreed. We need to get through this shit so we can graduate, and then the world is our oyster.” I rise, walking over to the coffeemaker to make another giant tumbler. I’m not going to be able to stay awake if I don’t consume more caffeine.
“Make me one, too, Dolly,” Cori sighs, as she opens a thick textbook and settles against her bean bag.
We’re in for a long night.
* * *
When I wakeup the morning of my first exam, I stretch my limbs and rub my hand over my face and down my neck absently. When the nurses helped with my birth control, they also gave me the lowdown on how to take care of mating marks, although they didn’t know much about ‘fated mates.’ Bettina gave me some cream, but even scabbed over, Nico’s mark aches, which has me wondering if the ‘fated’ aspect makes it slower to heal. Either way, paired with the grit in my eyes and ache in my bones from days of hunching over laptops and books, my entire body is killing me.
That’s not counting the hours of dance and vocal rehearsals…
“Okay, Dolly. You have four more days of this and then it’s Spring Break. All you have to do is make it through four more days.”
It sounds easy when I say it out loud, but I have no idea how I’m going to survive it.
Stumbling to my closet, I decide I don’t give a fuck about the Apex dress code today. If some asswipe wants to give me demerits, more power to them—I’m wearing the PJ pants I stole from Rennie, Nico’s worn tee shirt, and Bash’s hoodie.
And my godsdamned bunny slippers. Fuck ‘em if they can’t take a joke.
I grin to myself as I toss my hair into two messy pigtails, grabbing my bag to head for Shifter Studies. Cash won’t give a shit if I look like a trash panda, and Zhenga has been surprisingly less acidic since the guys dropped by class that one time.
It almost feels like she’s on my side…
My phone buzzes, and I realize my ‘escort’ has arrived. I jog down the steps of CHUM, sliding my sunglasses on as I walk up to the impatient looking dragon.
“Here,” Aubrey grunts, as he hands me a travel mug that smells like caffeinated heaven. His eyes slide over my attire and he quirks a brow. “That’s not your uniform.”
I snort, taking the tumbler and sipping it greedily. “I have no fucks left to give. I’m so tired.”
His hands clench at his sides as I groan at the delicious drink. “Rennie’s rebelliousness is rubbing off on you—I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or not.”
“Oh, don’t be a grumpy old man! Being rebellious is fun.” I tilt my head for a moment, studying his expression before I get a brilliant idea. “Give me one ofyourshirts and I’ll wear it tomorrow. Is that better?”
The dragon shrugs, starting to walk with me across campus toward the training ring. When we pass the library, he finally responds. “Fine. If you really want to.”
Covering my mouth with my free hand, I try to stifle my giggle. “I’ll stop by the Tower after my sex ed exam. Maybe we can have everyone over and order take out? I have to get home early because of my dance midterm tomorrow, but I could hang out for a little while. I… miss you guys.Allof you.”
Aubrey pauses, turning to look at me seriously. “It’s very quiet without you. There’s entirely too much brooding going on, and it’s not only from our poetry-loving emo boy.”
I frown, feeling the bite mark throb. I don’t like thinking my guys are having issues when I haven’t been around to help. But then… no one has mentioned a problem until now, so…
Is it about me? Have they changed their mind about sharing and someone’s mad?
“Don’t get upset, bite size. It’s okay,” he says hurriedly.
Surprisingly, he stops walking and pulls me into a tight hug. I let out a sigh of relief. This physical affection is more Rennie’s style, but I’ve been deprived lately, so if my cranky librarian wants to give me a cuddle, I’m absolutely here for it.
“Thank you. I really needed that.” I lift my head, looking up at him. “I don’t like hearing you guys are upset about something, and I hate that I’ve been away so often. I promise I’ll stay close to all of you during break.”
Aubrey finally lets go of me, looking a little embarrassed by our public display. “I think everyone would enjoy having you back, and I know Jinx misses you.”
“Rennie sends me pictures, you know. I’m aware that she’s glued toyoualmost 24/7—you can’t fool me.”
