10
Tiv
Friday 26th January, Year 825
Friday was the worst day of the week at college. Luckily, I had daydreams to live in. I had gone the whole week and had not seen Alayna once however we had spoken every night via email. While it was filled with melancholy at first, she once more managed once more to pull me out of a depressive abyss. Our conversation was always lighthearted and jovial. However, I felt I understood her a lot more now. She wasn't hot-headed, she was simply sick of putting up with us: Central snobs. I couldn't blame her—not after Tuesday. The images haunted me. Images that she had no doubt witnessed countless times in her life.
Alayna explained that Umbrith were very present in her life, living directly adjacent to a hotspot for disappearances. Disappearances that were never reported in Central. Apparently, the only reason Sarah and Lucy made the news is because their bodies were found. Usually bodies weren't found. The notion brought bile to my throat. I pulled myself from the daydream that was slowly turning to a nightmare to focus on my History lesson.
In the cavernous lecture hall, Professor Stanton droned on as she paced before the uninterested students, her voice a monotone drone that cut through the stillness.
"The Great War," she intoned, "was a pivotal moment in our world's history, reshaping borders and societies. Lambent played a crucial role in the outcome, leveraging its unique position and resources."
"Didn't familiars fight that war?" Helen asked.
Professor Stanton's lips curled into a cautious smile. "Yes, Miss Parr, they did." She turned back to the class. "Familiars played a decisive role during The Great War. Thus why they were illegal until recently. These individuals were highly sought after by all sides to turn the tides of war. They did a lot of merciless damage." Professor Stanton paused by a dusty globe and spun it gently. "But it wasn't just about power." Her finger traced invisible lines over landmasses tainted by old bloodshed. "Vakoso's insolence was the reason the Umbrith were created."
"Queen Genoveva was the reason Umbrith were created," piped up another student from the back.
Professor Stanton's dark gaze flicked to the student who spoke up. Her lips pressed into a thin line, as though preparing to unravel layers of history with her next breath. "Queen Genoveva of Lambent sought dominance over Vakoso which was uprising and causing no end of slaughter. Her methods were unorthodox; dabbling in forbidden magics to create soldiers loyal only to her and her linage—thus birthed the first of the Umbrith. The creatures were created from the Queen's hunger for control but such measures would never have been taken had Vakoso not rebelled." She clicked a button on a remote and the projector hummed to life, casting images of ancient texts onto the whiteboard. "Here," she said, pointing at a faded diagram, "is an artist's rendering of an Umbrith. Note their exaggerated features designed for intimidation and combat."
A chill settled over me and I averted my gaze from the illustration that was far too close to reality for the artist to have not witnessed one first-hand. Pushing Lucy and Sarah from my mind, I focused on my notes before realising I had written nothing for the entire lesson.
"With sacrifice and ingenuity," she declared, "a coalition led by mortals who saw past borders drawn by men joined forces with familiars who chose redemption over the subservience of mortals." She paced once more, stopping by the grand windows where light filtered through stained glass panels. "With Queen Genoveva's fall, the common-threat that made Lambent and Vakoso work together was lost. Vakoso had the tools to win the war, their familiar numbers much higher than that of Lambent's… Their victory lasted one-hundred-and-two years before Umbrith multiplied exponentially, overrunning the country, and Lambent crushed them. The Great War was the last time Vakoso won a conflict between the two territories."
I zoned out for a particularly long time, unable to tear my gaze away from the creature pictured in front of me. By the time I finally regained my wits, half the bloody lesson had gone by.
"How did the psycho queen create the Umbrith?" Helen asked. "The textbooks say she was a leech—she could steal other familiar's magic but that doesn't explain how she was able to create an entire race of monsters."
"It's a good question that has been pondered for centuries. Honestly? Nobody knows. She was truly mad; her hunger for power led her to perform unspeakable magics and there were very few first hand accounts of what happened the day she died. The Umbrith killed most witnesses," Professor Stanton replied, seemingly disappointed she was unable to provide a more detailed explanation. The projector flickered off; afternoon light now suffused the hall with its golden glow. Professor Stanton surveyed her audience one final time before closing her textbook like a gavel concluding a the session. "That will be all for today."
I tried to spy Alayna during lunch however she was not in the dining hall. That was not usual, she could be a shadow when she wished to be, especially to avoid the pricks in her year.
Before I knew it, time searching for Alayna ran out and it was time for Health class. It was the most mind-numbing subject of all. A familiar named Lilou taught students the biology of life through a supernatural lens however she also showed us how to make remedies and medicines. The class had only recently been introduced as a suggestion to transition familiar students into society. The problem being was there were none. None that admitted to it anyway. Until recently, I thought familiars were rare. Now I knew better. They were simply hiding. Some people still believed magic should be illegal, my father included, however times when familiars had ever hurt anyone were somewhat rare. Not like it mattered much. Though they were each born with only one power—intrinsic magic—but their abilities to cast extrinsic magic made them dangerous. Luckily for mortals, extrinsic magic had a cost, though what that cost was seemed entirely random.
Lilou was a familiar. She was also Lambentian. We were a rare breed in Vakoso. According to the Harroworth register, Lilou had the power of rapid regeneration. The other two on there could shape-shift and conjure protective barriers respectively. Apart from that, according to Alayna at least, they were regular people who lived, breathed and died like everyone else. This did not stop the media highlighting every time one of them had committed a violent crime. Those hangings were usually televised. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if Alayna was right about everything. Lilou hardly seemed dangerous, and Ian in The Grange was an annoyance more than a danger. Once more, it seemed like the media may be writing their own warped narrative. No wonder most familiars didn't advertise what they were. Lilou only ever mentioned this once saying that mortals were closed-minded and that familiars were not going to associate with things they deemed to be dangerous. She thought that we were more dangerous than the Umbrith. Her comments didn't go down well with other parents or my Father, which nearly caused Lilou to lose her job at the college. She did not bring it up again.
In this lesson, we were learning how to make a healing tonic called Venenum. Lilou glanced down at my pot of blue weeds which probably could have killed people rather than cured anyone.
She stared blankly at me before giving a disappointed shake of the head. "You never know; you might be quite good if you put the effort in."
The subject was tedious; familiars were a dying breed and I obviously wasn't one… or even a horticulturalist for that matter. Not like I was particularly trying; I hadn't even opened the textbook to look at the instructions.
Luckily for myself, I could let my mind wander off during my classes; I had decent grades in everything else bar Health—nobody recieved good grades in that—so the professors left me to it as long as the work got done. Though I had to admit, since I met Alayna the work was not getting done as often. I found myself split between spending all my time emailing her and the other half spent with a pillow over my face wishing I'd returned for Lucy.
When the two-hour session of mathematics arrived there was a dull ache radiating through my temples. While I tried to focus on algebra there only seemed to be one place my mind wandered to. The moment Alayna left my mind, the girls I abandoned entered it. It had been a week since Sarah and Lucy had died and although I enjoyed the fact Alayna made everything a bit less awful, the bitter guilt ran ramptent anyway. The news coverage was all over their deaths still. Alayna told me there was a memorial being held for them the following Wednesday and I considered going, feeling like I owed them any apology I could give. Yet I knew my being there would draw unwanted attention. Attention my Father would beat me for if he found out. The thought alone obliterated all want to attend.
After the second hour of mathematics, I was ready to throw something at Professor Davison. His lessons were nothing short of cruelty. I had hoped for some kind of ease from my thoughts which he did not provide. What he did supply were a lot of questions. He asked me any mathematical calculation he could think of knowing that I wasn't paying attention. For that reason, I had been given extra work to do for the next week. I knew I should consider myself lucky; I was living, breathing and my complaints about life were trivial. I had taken all of that potential from the Hall sisters.
I felt miserable.
To my relief, what felt like an eternity later, the bell finally chimed and I was free.
I rushed through the doorway, caught off guard by an obstacle in my path—Alayna's body which nearly toppled from the force of crashing into her. Instinctively, my arms encircled her slender waist, pulling her close to steady her before she fell. Her body pressed against mine, warmth seeping into my skin. She stared wide-eyed at me for a small moment then smiled an astounding smile as if I was the only person she wanted to see. My day was instantly brightened.
"I feel like I spend a lot of time crashing into you," I quipped.
"If you were trying to find new ways to tell me you hate my constant moods, you could have left a note," she teased back, eyes glinting with humour.
"You can do better than that thing, Hawes," Helen sneered as she passed.
The awareness of Alayna still in my arms—the pressure of my hand on her back, the curve of her body against mine—became acute as I reluctantly loosened my grip. She immediately took that as my response to Helen's comment and stepped away from me, glaring after the girl.
"I hope your head gets so big it chokes you, asshole," Alayna shouted down the hallway.
Helen spun on her designer heels to face Alayna, face severe. Without so much as a thought, I put myself between the two women before Alayna could tear her in half.
Helen looked momentarily shocked as I blocked her view before a coy smile curved her lips. "What are you doing? Let me at the rat."
"Helen, your words are unwarranted and unwelcome," I stated flatly, my gaze locked with hers. "Leave us be."
The corridor fell silent, the weight of my words hanging in the air. I almost rolled my eyes; nobody liked getting scolded by a Hawes, though usually it was Marco to draw people's ire. Helen, taken aback by my unexpected defence, recoiled slightly, her confidence faltering. Ignoring her sputtering protests, I turned my attention back to Alayna.
She glanced at me again, a shadow fleeting across her face as she took a step back. "I'll see you around-"
"No, you're not running off," I said, taking her hand, "Forget Helen."
Helen stiffened beside us and walked away without another word. The hallway was still too silent. Alayna's face, flushed with anger, softened as she shifted her fingers so they entwined through mine, ignoring the eyes I felt on us. I didn't think I could smile wider. We made small talk as we walked along the hallway into the courtyard eventually taking a seat on a bench outside. For once it wasn't raining.
"Thanks for that," Alayna murmured. "Nobody does that."
The hair on my neck pricked uncomfortably. "Sorry I've never done it before."
There was a moment's silence before she spoke again. "You seem off today."
Did I? "Do I?"
"A little bit down." I remained quiet so she continued. "It's been a week since the girls died. Are you okay?"
I stared at her, feeling my jaw unwillingly clench. She was too perceptive for her own good. I decided to be as honest as I could be.
"I feel like crap. I can't get what happened out of my mind."
"It's awful-" She stopped as if she was about to say something.
"What?" I asked.
"Well, I was just wondering how you knew them. You didn't know their mum or dad…"
"Marco dated Sarah a few years ago and we've spent a lot of time together outside of college since," I lied.
"Oh, sorry. I don't mean to pry…" Silence stretched for what felt like an eternity. "Maybe you should get help? Like counselling or something."
I wished for a wall to bang my head against. However, before I was able to brush off her comments, a shrill voice sounded from behind us.
"Alayna! I have delicious news!" it screeched.
Jo Anderson, the other scab girl in Marco's year, was running towards us, grinning and squealing. She was a peculiar, stout girl who had always annoyed me; she was too loud. She did not get as many problems as Alayna did because she was an insufferable suck-up. However, Jo seemed to be Alayna's only friend so I sat silently as she approached. Her muddy-brown hair was pulled up untidily into a braid and, as she finally reached us, her green eyes appraised me cautiously. She gave a wary smile which I did not return. Hastily, she looked to Alayna who immediately pulled her hand from mine. My insides clenched. After another silent assessment of me, Jo decided whatever she wanted to say was too important to wait for me to leave.
"Andy asked me out!" she giggled.
Andy was one of Marco's friends and I couldn't help thinking that wasn't mere coincidence.
"Jo, that's great! When are you going out?" Alayna responded sounding genuinely interested for no reason I could fathom.
"Do you mean when are we going out?" Jo giggled.
"What?" Alayna exhaled sharply.
"Well, Andy knows Marco so he suggested a double date," Jo's face was flushed with excitement.
There it was: the 'not mere coincidence'.
I stiffened and glared at Jo. Jealousy like a burning knot tightened in my chest. Alayna caught my gaze with her piercing, concerned eyes for a brief moment before turning back to her conversation. The fire inside me flickered and died down somewhat as her hand fell back on mine.
"Jo, I told you I'm not dating Marco."
"I know that's what I thought but Andy spoke to Marco and according to him you two are still on," Jo shrugged.
Alayna's mouth dropped open with an audible pop. Jo didn't miss it.
"Please Aly. We've had a shit week! We need some fun! Just do this one date for me and then you can break it off with Marco properly considering you obviously haven't," Jo tried to smile but didn't quite commit under the weight of her friend's scowl.
I focused on not balling my fists.
"Break it off with him? It wasn't even half a date! And it was a disaster!" she seethed. "I've spoken to him once since and made it clear-"
"Please, I saw you two on Tuesday, half the damn courtyard did. I'm not sure what you think making it clear is… We both know what you're like," Jo's words echoed in my mind with a sharp sting. What did that mean? Had I misread every signal? Was there more between Alayna and Marco than she let on?
Jo's face fell when Alayna's grimace darkened and tried another tactic, "Aly please, I'd do it for you."
In that instant, the urge to confess everything—to blurt out how deeply Alayna affected me—clawed its way up my throat. I almost choked.
"Fine, I'll go on the damn date. Now leave me alone before I change my mind," Alayna admonished.
Disappointment settled like lead. The taste of it was bitter on my tongue and I swallowed hard, trying to banish it away. Alayna's burning gaze was on me however I could not take my eyes off Jo who reluctantly met my gaze. Realisation swept over her face before she looked back to Alayna.
"What are you doing? Are you insane?" she hissed.
"Jo…" Alayna said in a warning tone.
"Alayna…" Jo returned with the same tone.
"Pardon me, do you two think I'm deaf?" The words burst from me before I could rein them back and Jo recoiled like I had physically slapped her.
"I'm sorry, that was so rude of us," she stuttered quickly.
"No, it wasn't rude of us. We're having a conversation, sweetheart. You have ears. If you don't want to listen, leave," Alayna challenged.
Her calm facade hiding the anger she undoubtedly felt reminded me of how little I understood her. I had no notion as to why I was the one at fault. All I knew for sure was how hard resisting the temptation to kiss Alayna was when she wore her that defiant expression.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
"I was the one being rude," I replied carefully to Jo with a wry smile. "My apologies."
Jo simply stared wide-eyed between the two of us.
"I'll call you later," Alayna said, dismissing her friend.
With one last appraising look at me, Jo walked away. I watched her go and was not sad to see the back of her.
I could not stop my eyes narrowing at Alayna as she returned the same icy stare.
"Well, go on then, call me a vicious name so we can move on," I barked.
"Excuse me?" she breathed, eyes widening.
For an excruciating moment, I wrestled with the jealousy, feeling it coil in my guts like snake. Its presence was an unwelcome reminder of how far Alayna was under my skin. Yet as I gazed into her fiery eyes the desire to pull her close and silence all other thoughts with her lips pressed against mine surfaced again. It took every fibre of self-control to sit still when every instinct urged me to close the distance between us.
"You heard me," I said, forcing a smirk. "Get it out your system."
"You're a brat," she beamed like sunlight through leaves.
I let out a breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding and returned her grin, pushing the jealousy down into the pit of my stomach. There was no point in dwelling on it; Marco would no longer be interested in Alayna in five days when his imbecilic bet ran out. As much as part of me wanted to hide away until then—to not witness any interactions that might twist the knife deeper—I knew isolation would only invite darker thoughts to fill the void Alayna left behind.
"We're skipping again today," I announced abruptly, desperate for an escape from everything but her. "Where shall we go?"
Alayna paused, and for a moment, it seemed as if she might refuse outright. She shuffled her feet, biting her lip as if weighing her next words against an invisible scale inside her head. "We have classes, Tiv. Maybe that's not a good idea. Not after last time."
"Come on! It'll be fun. I have another Health lesson today which I was planning on skipping anyway."
"It costs your dad a fortune to send me here. I don't want to risk that. I could get in real trouble." Her gaze darted around nervously as if already envisioning getting caught by some unseen authority figure hovering just out of sight.
"Please," I scoffed, trying to ease her concern. "I assumed you would not mind wasting a rich old man's money. The man has more ven than sense. If we get caught I shall take the blame and bribe the guard."
Her resolve dissolved under my playful grin as contemplation gave way to temptation in those expressive eyes. Considering me, her face brightened and transformed into a mischievous grin.
"Let's go," she beamed.
This time we drove to a local café in Central. As we approached, a sign in the window read 'no scabs'. Alayna halted at the door.
"They won't even know, simply keep your sleeve down," I muttered uncomfortably.
She glanced down at her attire, at her faded jeans and well-worn jacket that hugged her slender frame. "Look at the state of me. They'll know."
How couldn't she see how absolutely bloody beautiful she was? "You are no state."
At my words, Alayna seized the sign with defiance and sent it spinning through the air like a frisbee. My sheer mortification at the action barely had time to surface as laughter bubbled from her lips and I watched her dance over the establishment's threshold. She was a lunatic and I adored it.
Inside, clean white tables gleamed under the soft glow of pendant lights, each one paired with padded red chairs. It was the polar opposite of Piker's bar in the Grange. This time it was her turn to be ogled at like a circus sideshow by the patrons, who grimaced when a scab entered any premise in Central. Though they eyed me sceptically, they didn't make any attempt to remove her.
We sat in a booth as Alayna looked around the premises as if searching for something—perhaps an escape route.
"What would you like to eat?" I prompted gently.
She fished a few coins out of her pocket, putting them on the table. It was barely enough for a coffee.
"I'm fine," she shrugged off my concern.
"I haven't brought you here so you can sit and watch me eat. What do you want?"
"I said I'm not hungry," she lied.
"Alright." I leaned back against the seat's plush upholstery. "What would you recommend I have?"
She barely spared a glance at the menu before pushing it aside dismissively. "You're a big boy. Decide for yourself."
I felt my jaw tense against irritation. "Tell me what is wrong."
"Nothing."
"Stop being stubborn."
"I'm headstrong, not stubborn."
"Semantics," I argued. "What's so difficult about having a meal together?"
Her response was nothing more than an intense glare that conveyed volumes without uttering a single word.
"Fine," I snapped.
We sat in a stagnated silence for a while until the waitress took our order, her steps soundless on the café's polished floor. I ordered two plates of food despite Alayna's narrowed eyes piercing into me.
"It's bloody food Alayna," I stated flatly as my patience wore thin. "I'm not buying you a car or a house. You can pay me back if you simply cannot tolerate someone buying you food on a date."
She recoiled slightly at my tone before retorting, "This isn't a date."
I fought to ignore how her words lodged like barbs within me. "Call it whatever makes you comfortable enough to share a meal with me."
With reluctance slowly melting away from her features, she finally relented with softness creeping into her expression, "Okay."
She watched the snow begin to fall outside and shuddered as if it were falling directly into her skin. Whatever she was thinking was quickly discarded as she spoke. "So what are you into then if you never leave the house or socialise?"
I cleared my throat, caught off guard by her mischievous smile. "Well, I do have my interests. I suppose I'm more of an indoors person. Reading, playing the piano, following sports."
"I bet it's all sophisticated polo matches and hunting for you," she laughed.
"Oh hush," I grinned. "I cannot bear either."
She giggled a beautiful sound as she put on her attempt of a posh accent, impersonating her depiction of a polo match loudly and drawing the attention of the patrons. They scoffed irritably at her and, like she couldn't help herself, she stood and beamed at them before bursting into song.
I know you cannot face me,
Erase me or replace me.
I know your useless power,
It plays right to my hands.
I know you think me little,
And so brittle and so fickle.
You just hide inside your tower,
In my kingdom, I'll still stand.
My kingdom made of rubble,
In my kingdom, I'll still stand.
If any other person I knew had stood in a crowded room and started singing, I would have hidden under the table. Yet all I did was beam wider at her, ignoring our spectators. Her voice was warm and crackled like fire. After she finished the verse of her tune, she took a bow before outstretching her palm to a particularly obnoxious older couple who sat at the table opposite us.
"I don't perform for free," she smiled, batting her eyelashes at the man.
Immediately, they stood and moved tables. I laughed at her as she waved at them. Her carefree spirit had absolutely no shame.
"Sit down, you lunatic. You'll get us thrown out," I grinned.
She giggled, "Right, sorry. Where were we? Yeah, polo and hunting."
"I like football and rugby," I smirked. "Also, how would you muse we hunt in Vakoso? The moment we go in those trees, we'd be dead."
I regretted speaking as Sarah's face flashed across my mind. Redirecting the conversation towards safer waters, asking about her hobbies instead. Or her hobby. Unsurprisingly, she had one thing that she enthused over exuberantly. Music. She used to perform with her brother and father in The Grange, explaining her boldness. She talked about old folk songs I had never heard of, encouraging me to listen to a few bands as quickly as I was able. She talked about the imaginative storytelling of the music she liked, explaining they were like romantic history lessons wrapped in pretty folksy tunes.
When the food arrived, the waitress gave us a stern warning about upsetting the other customers, which I quickly silenced with an unpleasant look. Alayna opened her mouth to speak but at the last moment changed tact. I was beginning to find her a closed book; only what she wanted people to see would be shown, unless she was angry.
Regardless, when she spoke I listened. She was interesting. I found myself drawn to her authenticity. The world I knew was polished and refined yet surrounded by disingenuous people who used my family constantly. Whereas she seemed wholly unperturbed by my last name. Alayna's unabashed passion for life was entirely refreshing. We spoke for almost an hour about many different things, the conversation never running dry. Eventually, she continued to enquire about my life.
"When was the last time you saw your Dad before last week?" she asked.
"I saw him for my birthday last August because he had work in the area. Though I'm not sure he realised it was my birthday until he returned to a party. Mother certainly didn't invite him. Before that, I had not seen him in nearly nine months," I replied truthfully.
"Wow," she murmured.
"I know. He has only seen Beau five times ever. Did not even bother attending her birth," I chuckled darkly.
Alayna shook her head sympathetically then graciously changed the conversation again, "What about your Mum?"
"To the public, my Mother is Father's assistant. She took time out to have a family. Now she just does the job he is supposed to do here when he is in Thruck. Though they battle constantly. They have very different opinions on how Harroworth should be run. He only comes back here for emergency press conferences if he can avoid it," I stopped myself before the conversation could circle its way around to the Hall sisters. "Twenty-five years married and I don't think they've spent any of it together."
"Wow, they got married? That's pretty cool though," Alayna mused. "I'd love to see a wedding."
I looked at her in bewilderment, "Pardon?"
She rolled her eyes and smirked, "My parents aren't married. In fact, I don't think there's a single married couple in Outer Harroworth."
"But they're both called Jameson?" I questioned.
"Nah, Dad's name is Thornton. He just didn't want to have a different last name to me and Ben so everyone calls him Jameson. It's what us lot do. It's not legal or anything but I haven't ever heard him called Thornton in my life."
I shook my head, "You, your father and brother have your mother's name?"
"Yeah?" She cocked her head to the side in a confused manner. "She grew us and birthed us. Doesn't make much sense to give Dad the credit, does it? Wait, so Hawes isn't your mum's name?"
I grinned as I shook my head, "She was Sulsie."
"That's mad," she remarked.
"Why did your parents never marry?" I knew the answer before the words were out of my mouth.
"We've had a leak in our roof for six weeks. We can hopefully get it fixed with Mum's next wage… and we're considered rich in Outer Harroworth. Weddings aren't the type of extravagance we usually do," she shrugged. "Sometimes for significant anniversaries, we throw big parties in the Grange."
"Why doesn't your mother ask mine for a raise?" I asked.
"I'm not pushing that with a ten-foot barge pole. If your mum wants to pay her more, she can," Alayana said matter-of-factly. "Mum already has the best wage of any scab we know."
Her use of the slur made me uncomfortable and I quickly changed the subject.
Speaking with deliberate lightness, I segued into an amusing anecdote from earlier in the week. "Speaking of pushing," I started, "you should've seen Beau's face when she somehow managed to topple our pool attendant right into the water. She stood there with her tiny hands on her hips as if she had planned it all along."
Alayna's laughter rose like a song, dispelling the lingering tension as her features softened.
"You have a pool? You really are from another planet-"
She stopped abruptly, her attention snapping away from me towards something outside. She pulled her hood over her face, all joviality quashed and her little spark smothered. I turned to where her gaze had been moments earlier and rolled my eyes—a gaunt man with a camera pressed against the café's window like some famished creature desperate for sustenance.
I slid my car keys across the table and she took them. Without another word, she stood and left through the side exit. I threw a few notes on the table and approached the paparazzi focusing on keeping my cool; I knew how it would end if I fought with them.
"Who's the singing scab, Tiv?" he jeered.
I ignored his barb and the fact he knew my name.
"How much for the camera?" I growled.
"Two grand."
I barked a laugh, "Even I do not carry that around with me."
"How much you got?" he asked.
I opened my wallet and thumbed through the ven notes.
"Four hundred."
"Not even close, sorry kid."
I resisted the urge to pull the camera from his grimy hand as he said, "I'll take the watch."
Staring down at my Mother's gift, I almost unhooked it yet faltered and shook my head. Before any more negotiation could be done however my car screeched around the corner and mounted the curb, almost hitting us both. In his shock, the camera slipped from the photographer's hand, smashing to the ground. I felt compelled to crush it with my foot for good measure however Alayna revved the engine causing the car to lurch forward. Both the photographer and I jumped backwards and he groaned as the front left wheel crushed the camera.
I cocked an eyebrow at him, "I bet that four hundred is looking beautiful right now."
Not waiting for his response, I jumped in the car and Alayna sped off.
"My poor bloody car. I better not have a puncture," I whinged.
She giggled uncontrollably, "You're lucky I didn't hit you both. This thing is fast!"
After the second time she accidentally mounted the sidewalk, I made her pull over and let me drive. Her brother was quite clearly not a great teacher.
"We don't have the best of luck skipping college," she mused playfully, straddling me to climb into the passenger's seat rather than getting out of the car. I kept my arms painfully pinned by my side rather than grabbing her hips.
"Where's the most abandoned place you can think of?" I replied quickly, trying to push the image of her on top of me from my mind, repositioning my pants and desperately hoping she wouldn't notice why.
"Pick a meadow," she shrugged. "They're all frozen bogs at this time of year. Nobody uses them."
We spent the rest of the day walking around in the snow through the Rowe Meadow, the largest in Outer Harroworth. She was right, we saw not a single other person while we were there. The huge clearing was covered in a soft blanket of white, hiding the carpet of muddy grass. The meadow's tall grasses and wildflowers had long since withered, leaving behind delicate, dried stems that poked through the snow's surface. The air was crisp and still as the soft crunch of our footsteps sounded underfoot and snowflakes continued to fall gently from the sky. The meadow was surrounded by skeletal woodland, housing hidden birds, chirping loudly and other creatures I dared not think of.
"I bet this place is beautiful in the summer," I said, pushing the image of what lurked beyond the trees out of my head.
"It is," she agreed. "Probably not as pretty as Lambent. Can you remember much of it?"
"I've been on a few holidays there when growing up to see my Grandmother, but I've not been for a few years; it takes about eighteen hours to get to Granny's. It's always bright and hot. Unlike here. Everyone is nicer too… However, that's probably what happens when people live without the stress of the Umbrith…" Alayna did not speak, snowflakes gathering in her hair, so I continued, "Mother always takes us stargazing; they are so bright, it was like having the sun out all of the time… A sparkling, white belt that crosses the entire sky. We used to spend hours watching the stars cross the sky. I think Mother misses that most."
Alayna looked at the cloudy, grey sky, "Unfortunately, stars appear at night. And don't often shine through clouds."
"You can use your imagination," I smiled bashfully. "Mother used to do that with us when we first moved here. We'd sit in the garden in the middle of the day, staring at the sky and making up constellations."
Alayna shrugged off her jacket and arranged it neatly on the frozen grass. She lay down and stared up at the sky, wearing only a T-shirt under her leather jacket. I followed suit, placing my coat on the ground, and revealing my jumper and scarf.
"Do you want my jumper? You must be freezing," I muttered.
"I'll have the scarf," her lips curved into an impish grin, pulling it from around my neck and wrapping it around herself.
I lay down next to her on my coat; our shoulders brushed, sending a jolt of warmth that contrasted sharply with the surrounding cold. We spent a while making up ridiculous names for stars that did not exist.
"It's hard for Mother to live here I think. We are used to it; it's all we've ever known however she lived in Lambent for thirty-three years," I said eventually.
"Yeah, that must be so difficult. This place is a dump," Alayna pulled a face. "I can't wait to try and get out of here and get a job in Lambent. I'm so lucky your family gave me that opportunity."
I knew, just as well as she, the chances of a Vakosian civilian getting a job in Lambent were atrocious. My Father had been incredibly lucky; in fact, he seemed to be the only person I knew from Vakoso who had ever done it. And that was simply regular Vakosians, not the slum-dwellers with their brands. I decided not to point that out.
Alayna's fingers found mine as we spent a long time lying in the peaceful meadow. When the sun started to dip below the trees Alayna began shivering; we were both soaked to the bone. Her cheeks were red, nipped by the chill. I stood up and requested she put her jacket back on, insisting she keep the scarf and offering her my coat too. She responded not with words but by arching an eyebrow playfully and darting backwards into a fresh canvas of snow, making an outline of herself in it, waving her arms and legs around like a lunatic. I laughed and pulled her to her feet before she froze to death and didn't offer the coat again.
Alayna was incredibly easy to be around, even when she wasn't. She was stubborn, antithetical and quick to anger however that just meant we playfully bickered which led to a lot of laughter. That hadn't dawned on me until I realised my cheeks were hurting from the smile I had worn for so long. All worries of the previous Friday disappear. All thoughts of her and Marco gone. I chastised myself for ever believing the rumours of scabs.
"If I get home late once more this week, I'm pretty sure my parents, or worse, Ben, will never let me leave the house again," Alayna groaned, staring at the sun beyond the trees.
"I'll drive you back," I suggested.
"Thanks but by the time you drive it will be quicker for me to just walk. I know the shortcuts," she smiled at me the way she'd smile at Marco.
"That's not true, is it?" I asked sceptically.
Her smile turned into a wider, sincere grin, "It's probably not a good idea for your car to show up to my house three times in one week. People talk and apparently you're followed by an entourage of photographers. I don't want them knowing where I live. Ben said there's a load of those nasty mosquitoes with cameras buzzing all over The Grange now looking for you. It's ruining a lot of business. I don't want that on my street… If Marco finds out I'll just make everything worse for everyone."
She was right and it made me frown.
"Are you really going to go on the date with Marco?" I asked shyly.
She flushed, "Not if I can avoid it. But I told him no on Tuesday and he just ignored me. I don't want to upset him in case… Honestly? In case college gets worse. But it's not like that with him. You know it's not like that."
A horrible stagnated silence stretched between the two of us, only distant birdcalls to interrupt it. She was still placating him because of who he was. Because of who she was. Because simply telling him no in her eyes was deemed dangerous.
I didn't know what made me say it. "You're life—it's not more important than mine. Or any of ours."
Unexpectedly, she wrapped her arms around me in an embrace. My brain didn't catch up as her warmth enveloped me. Slowly, involuntarily, I leaned closer, running my nose along the soft skin of her neck and breathing her in—wildflowers. She inclined her head subtly back, offering more of herself as my lips grazed her jawline tenderly. The world seemed to hush around us. I did it again, tracing her neck and jaw with my lips until she angled her head to face me. Her presence thrummed across my skin as my lips found hers. Soft and gentle yet simultaneously set me on fire. Her back curved gently, pushing herself nearer as her fingers traced paths of electricity down the back of my neck. It was brief—far too brief—before my mind kicked in again.
Marco... anger... consequences... Shit. Marco is going to maim you.
The thought jolted me back to reality as I realised where I was and what I was doing. I pulled back with a start, leaving Alayna wide-eyed with a faint trace of a smile touching her lips. She was soaking, her hair plastered to her skin, and still looked phenomenal.
"That was probably a bad idea," I whispered.
"Probably," she breathed, putting the tips of her fingers to her lips. I beamed trying to hide the embarrassment and she began laughing, "Just let me sort this Marco mess out first please."
My grin widened, "Yes, darling. Just hurry up."
Alayna took off in the opposite direction and I cocked my head to the side watching her go. I did not take my eyes off her until she had disappeared beyond the trees. I continued to beam like a moron.
It was good to feel good. I realised I had no memory of experiencing such happiness in Harroworth. Alayna made me feel good in ways I did not realise I could.
The feeling was fleeting as a knot formed in my stomach made of elation at Alayna's touch and dread at what might unfold if Marco discovered what happened. The cold began to seep back into my bones as I stood alone now, watching where Alayna disappeared among the trees. All I could do was wait for her; hope that Marco's obsession would wane with his bet and free Alayna to be mine without consequences… I doubted it.