CHAPTER 34: ALL-CONSUMING FEELING

Oh my God.

The air between them thickened, and every nerve in her body sparked tirelessly.

The way he looked at her should be unspeakable. Those icy eyes had never looked so feverishly hot before, and her hands twitched by her side, admitting something her mind refused to acknowledge.

Her body was always admitting something her mind didn’t want to acknowledge. That there was this...intense, primal and all-consuming connection between them.

That was why she always noticed his presence, more than anyone else.

That’s why... she was helplessly drawn toward him, but every time, something at the back of her mind would pull her away. Something deep.

Just then, he inched closer.

Their noses brushed, and she sucked in a deep breath. Her gaze never left his eyes. He was definitely consuming her with that look.

"Everywhere...," He repeated, his voice a deep husk that tingled her ear and almost had her squeezing her legs shut.

"You’re supposed to be my teacher, not whatever this is," She meant for her tone to come out powerful, but it betrayed her and came out in a helpless whisper.

"Whatever...this is," He murmured under his breath, and his eyes fell to her lips again.

"Don’t...," She pressed hard against the wall, and finally summoned the strength to speak loudly and clearly, "I don’t want you anywhere, so you better stop!"

His expression shuttered instantly, the mask snapping back into place. He stepped back, just enough to let her breathe again. And that heated air vanished with him.

"You’re right," he said with a tightly clipped voice, "This was a mistake,"

He turned his back to her and began gathering the broken chain from the floor. "Your punishment is over. You’re dismissed,"

She watched him for a moment, wondering if what she did was right. But even if it wasn’t, she had no other choice.

Having that kind of closure with her Professor was forbidden, and she was supposed to be hiding from her father and Cain.

Whatever this feeling she had toward Sylas would be gone soon. But why didn’t she believe that?

Without wasting another second, she left the discipline room and headed back to the room.

She arrived at her room, dragging her legs on the floor and heading straight for her head. She didn’t notice Zeke had company till he spoke, "What’s wrong?"

She turned and saw the sandy-haired guy smiling at her. What was his name again?

Zeke was lying on his bed, looking distant and unavailable.

"What happened to your face?" He inquired curiously and came closer to her, studying her face, "You look flushed, dude. Did someone kiss you?"

Her eyes widened and heat crept up her neck and face, "W...what? The hell!"

"Why are you so flustered?" The boy chuckled, "I’m right, aren’t I?"

She ignored him and walked over to her bed, hoping he would drop the topic. As she climbed into her bed, she heard Zeke stirring in his and it sounded like he sat up.

"Good, are you ready to listen to me now?" The guy asked persistently.

Zeke remained silent.

Theo closed her eyes, hoping to go to sleep, but the guy’s voice wasn’t letting her sink into sleep. There wasn’t even a wink of sleep in her eyes.

The guy dropped onto the spare chair across from Zeke, spinning it around so he could lean his arms over the back, "Alright, serious question. What’s your excuse this time?"

"For what?"

"For missing the Ashwood Retreat, obviously." He said and leaned closer, "Don’t pretend you don’t know it’s next weekend,"

Zeke exhaled through his nose, slow and bored. "You mean that glorified frat party in the woods? Pass,"

The guy made a sound halfway between a groan and a laugh, "You say that every time it comes up, and then you stay in your room and keep this look on your face like the world is ending and you don’t care,"

"It usually is," Zeke muttered.

"Uh-huh," He tilted his head, "You know, for someone popular, you’ve got the social energy of a ghost,"

"I don’t need to waste a night watching Alphas get drunk and measure egos, Toby!"

"That’s literally the point," Toby said, "You don’t go to win, you go to forget for a bit. It’s almost like the Crimson Den. You smoke, drink, laugh, pretend we’re not expected to die early like our fathers,"

Zeke finally looked at him. It was sharp and made Toby uneasy, "You done?"

"Nope," Toby leaned forward again, "Look, I get it. You’re... you. The great Zeke Pendragon. Broody, disciplined, mysterious, all that crap. But seriously, man, you gotta loosen up sometimes,"

"That’s supposed to convince me?"

"Come on man, I’m tired of explaining to everyone why the most popular prince of Gravemont refuses to show his face at one of the few decent things we have,"

"Because I don’t need to play pretend," He didn’t even hesitate.

That made Toby pause.

He studied his friend for a long moment before speaking again, "You don’t have to pretend, Zeke. Just... be there. Sit by the fire. Watch the Moon. Try to get yourself drunk, watch me drown crates of whiskey and get drunk,"

Toby sighed and stood up to leave when he saw there was no changing Zeke’s mind, "Fine. Don’t come. It’s your choice, anyways,"

He headed for the door and paused with his hand on the knob. "Oh, and if you do change your mind, we’re starting at sundown. Same spot, same fire," He said and his voice took that jokingly edge again, "If I don’t see you there, Kai, I’m gonna come here and drag you there myself,"

"I’d like to see you try," Zeke snorted, sounding like the closest thing he ever gave to a laugh.

Toby grinned, satisfied with the smallest crack in Zeke’s thick armour, "That’s the spirit, Pendragon,"

Theo was facing the wall as usual. Listening to Zeke and Toby had taken her mind off Sylas for a bit.

Ashwood retreat. It sounded kind of fun.