7. Debrief

  (Sera)

  Firm and overstuffed with clothes, it was impossible to find anything in my fat bag. Aggressively, I yanked at whatever fabric looked like it would come free, but the knot of dresses and swimsuits tightened.

  I sighed and let my shoulders fall while I stood by the bed. The tension melted from my muscles, until Zeyna asked, “So what happened while I was gone?”

  Pausing, I ran through the night in my mind. An unexpected warmth developed behind my cheeks, and I couldn’t bring myself to look up.

  “Yes, Sera, what happened last night? I woke up in the morning and neither of you were anywhere to be found.”

  With a measured breath, I relaxed my shoulders again and lifted my head casually. “Nothing,” I said defensively. “Hellion and I were up all night worrying about you, Zeyna!” I tugged my white crochet bikini free with a huff, followed by a navy-blue romper.

  Squinting, Zeyna dropped her bag on the bed, opposite of me. “I’m sure,” she droned. “That obviously isn’t the full story. We all know Zephyr would never be worried enough to stay up all night waiting for me.”

  “Ah, but,” Lina chimed in, her finger held up, “we all know he’d be worried enough about Sera being worried sick to stay up all night.”

  “True,” Zey spat, disappointed by how valid it was.

  In fact, that was exactly what had happened, so I took the chance to drop the topic there, and asked what they’d be wearing for the barbecue later.

  “I figure we’re actually going to be dressing cute, now that Zeyna’s one-night stand is coming.”

  Amused, Lina said, “Serbear, you’re cute even in sweats, so—”

  “So you two will be dressing in sweats, and I’ll be pulling out all the show stoppers. The boobs and booty need to look—” She clucked her tongue and held up an ok sign.

  “Right…” I shifted to Lina, where she still rested on the sofa. “So, which sweats will you be wearing?”

  “I was thinking a simple sundress with some oversized shades so I can intimidate Kayo while I distract him. Nothing like having to watch your own reflection while talking to someone. And when I meet Zai’len, I can thoroughly mean mug him, y’know—ask him what his intentions are with our girl.”

  I smiled, a light snicker rumbling at the back of my throat. “I—”

  Zeyna sidestepped between us. “Okay, I like the sound of that, but don’t let her distract you. What happened last night with Zephyr?” She pointed her expectant glare at me and I groaned.

  “Nothing, obviously! Nothing ever happens between us, Zey.”

  “I want to hear exactly what this nothing was. You had several long hours to stay up doing nothing.”

  “We’re just friends.”

  “Famous last words,” Lina murmured before finally getting up to get ready.

  “Except I’m being serious. Don’t you think Hellion and I would’ve gotten together by now if there was anything between us? It’s been years. It’s not going to happen, guys.”

  “And yet,” Lina twittered, “you two are like this.” She twisted her index and middle fingers together.

  “I’ve never seen two people flirt so much in my life,” Zey added.

  “We don’t flirt.”

  They both snorted and looked at each other. “Right,” Lina commented and left it at that while she collected her clothes and makeup bag in her arms.

  Zey, with her hands on her hips, stared at me. “I’m going to take a shower, and by the time I get back, you better be ready to own up to what you did.”

  I grimaced. Why did she word it like that—as if I did something terrible? It was practically her dream—and her father’s—for me and Hellion to get together.

  “Or,” she purred, “I’m not against using my power for evil.”

  “What?”

  “I’ll force Zeph to tell me what happened last night.”

  “And you’ll find out nothing happened.”

  “If you say so. Only one way to find out for certain.” She smiled sweetly and swept her pile of belongings off the bed and strutted off to the bathroom.

  While she was gone, Lina and I changed in silence, then we both settled crossed-legged on the floor in front of the standing mirror. I watched in the mirror as she applied her eyeliner and mascara.

  One of the many perks of being a healer was that she had a flawless complexion. No pimple stood a chance, either. She whittled them away within an hour. Which meant she had no real need for foundation or concealer.

  And being her friend, I often benefited from said perk. I could get away without foundation but still required concealer from time to time. As nice as it was to have a healer as a best friend, I didn’t want to take advantage of Lina’s time—especially when she had expressed her view on the ethics of healing for family and friends. Serious issues only was my motto now.

  “You believe me, right?” I asked, as I dabbed a liquid tint across my cheeks. “You would be the first person I’d tell if something occurred between me and Hellion. Not that it ever will.”

  Lina fixed a clump in her eyelashes, then screwed the mascara back together. “I don’t think it’s a question of believing you. We both believe you. We’re just curious about what you two got up to all night.” She searched through her bag for an appropriate lip product.

  “I mean…” I side eyed her. “It’s not uncommon for me and Hellion to hang out one-on-one. We are friends. We just did what we usually do.”

  “Flirt?” she quipped. I rolled my eyes.

  Zeyna stepped out of the bathroom in her black halter bikini and blurted, “You didn’t start without me, did you?”

  “No,” I droned. “Don’t worry, Zeyna. We weren’t colluding against you.”

  “Good,” she purred. “Let’s hear it then.”

  She stopped behind us and hovered as she applied her tinted lip balm in the mirror. Zey had always been all-or-nothing when it came to makeup, either a full-baked face or a simple smear of lip balm, no in-between. Her lashes were naturally long, thick and dark. Demon genetics had that effect—gorgeous eyes more mesmerizing than the finest jewels, and alluring facial features to distract from any hellish personality traits.

  Zey’s wild ruby hair, prominent jawline and cheekbones, and curvy hips drew any man into her web well before they realized how strong-willed, manipulative and controlling she could be. As her friend, I had come to love her despite those qualities—physical or otherwise.

  If it hadn’t been for Zeyna, I didn’t know where I would be now. Dead probably, or alive but still living with Shawn, which equated to dead. Zeyna got me out of that house the first chance she could. She didn’t take my no for an answer. And I was glad of it.

  After stepping into her black overalls, cropped at her thighs, Zey took a seat between us and rested her head on my shoulder. She smiled at us in the mirror.

  “You two are so cute.”

  I pressed my chin into my palm and preened. She chuckled and wrapped her arms around my waist with a sigh.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked, knowing that sound all too well.

  “Tonight will be so awkward.”

  “So what?” Lina asked. She dabbed her lips gently with a sheer pink lipstick. “The worst-case scenario is that it’s awkward and then we go back home and you never see the guy again.”

  “I know,” Zey said, a slight disappointment at the edge of her tone. “That’s what bothers me…” We both turned to look her in the eye, and she pulled away from me. “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “He feels… different somehow from the others. I like him…”

  “You didn’t like the dozens of other guys that have come and gone?” Lina questioned.

  “You don’t like Kayo?” I added.

  Zeyna’s lips curled downward, and she sighed. She took a moment to think it through while we returned our attention to the mirror. The sun came out from behind a cloud, beaming down on us from the grand windows, and Zey’s gaze drifted to the sunshine and the cedar trees in the distance.

  “Obviously I’ve liked some of them, but other than the guys I was with long-term, the feeling isn’t the same. And Kayo… He’s nice, but I feel like there isn’t much of a spark.”

  “Felt like there might’ve been a spark yesterday…” I commented.

  But competition and adrenaline could do that to people. From what I’d seen of Zeyna and Kayo’s relationship so far, she’d had plenty of moments playing sports or going to the gym with him. That must’ve been where most of her interest came from. They didn’t seem to have much in common outside of that. Though, to be fair, Zey was an… unusual girl. I still couldn’t put a finger on her hobbies and interests. Sometimes I even questioned how we connected.

  We were fortunate to have met in our youth, when that didn’t seem to matter as much. We were united simply by a place and experience, and that grew to something more over the decade and a half.

  “Half the time, I’m not sure if Kayo is interested in me or if he’s just being friendly.” Lina hummed and nodded in acknowledgment. “And that makes me feel like I’m chasing him.”

  “Which is so not Zeyna,” I reminded her.

  “Exactly. With Zai’len, it doesn’t feel like that. He’s nice, but I know it’s not in the sense that he’s nice in order to be friendly.” Lina’s smooth brow lifted in confusion, but she didn’t speak up. “It feels like there’s something more there. He’s understanding, and I feel open when I speak to him.”

  Packing up my supplies, I turned to her. “Do you think that maybe it’s just because… he’s a Demon?”

  From my knowledge, Zey had never been with a man from her own race before. Though she was Demon, through and through, she’d expressed to us several times her true feelings on being Demon—it was all highly conflicting—and what she thought of her family’s nature. Despite what they said about Demons, Zeyna and Hellion were a little different. Maybe it was because they were born and raised in Liberty.

  But Demons were well-known for their sensuality and the bonds they created, particularly with each other. Like some of the sub-races of Deities, Demons mated for life. Even beyond that, their friends were given similar respect.

  Before Purgatory was razed, it was said that the society’s inner-workings and hierarchical structure were complex yet tightly knit, due to the relationship and respect the Demons had with one another. If Zai’len was Demon, as she’d stated, that likely strengthened whatever connection they had.

  “Probably. Except… I’ve been attracted to other Demons—like, the guys in the Mafia are fucking hot. In that aspect…” Zey’s eyes narrowed. “It doesn’t feel the same. I don’t think he’s a full-fledged Demon… I think he may be half Deity…”

  A wide half-smile spread across Lina’s face. “Ooo, I love that. It’s like the perfect balance of opposites attract and shared similarity.” Zey and I gawked at each other.

  Zey smiled, but there was a subtle sadness to it, then she said, “But… I don’t want to waste my time on this if it’s not going anywhere. Neither of us live here, and I don’t even know how old he is. We’ll get maybe a couple of days of excitement, that’s all.”

  “Seems right up your alley…” Lina muttered.

  “Not at all… If I find someone I like, I want to keep them by my side. Why do you think you two are here?”

  I scoffed, and Lina said, “I knew it all along.”

  “It’s just better if I let it be a one-night thing—not get attached.”

  “Dang.” I snapped my fingers. “You got me excited about this one. I actually wanted to meet him. It’s not fair Lina got to, and I didn’t.”

  “Pft. I met him for all of thirty seconds. He didn’t even realize I was there.”

  “What?” I shouted, my head whipping between the two.

  Zeyna nodded. “Another reason I liked him. He barely even realized Lina was present.”

  Flabbergasted and speechless, I shook my head in disbelief, but Zeyna confirmed once more.

  It was impossible for Lina to go unnoticed. She had this mystical quality about her. She turned heads left and right. Moonlight nymphs were like that, supposedly—so she said. Her aura naturally pulled the gaze of all; whether in moonlight or sunlight, she beamed.

  In high school, Zeyna complained to me about it all the time. She took it personally that no matter how good she looked, it didn’t matter if Lina was standing a few feet away—hence why we were meant to wear sweats tonight. Not that it would matter in the end.

  But if Zai’len hadn’t been drawn in by Lina’s siren aura, what did that even mean? Did his Deity bloodline negate the effect she had on him? That was the only excuse I could come up with.

  “I must meet him. You have to give him a chance, Zey. I require it.”

  Zeyna rubbed her chin, then smirked. “Well… I don’t mind giving him a chance—if you finally tell me what happened last night.”

  I glared at her. “Really?”

  She shrugged. “Win-win.”

  “Ugh, fine.” I stood on sleepy legs and groaned. “I’ll tell you on the way to the beach.”

  ***

  Last Night

  Unable to look Hellion in the eye, I shifted to the side to get a better view of the magi-graph while he tucked the fuzzy blanket around Lina and me. She linked her arm around me and rested her head against mine with a drowsy sigh.

  Hellion apologized under his breath for blocking the screen, then lowered to the floor and rested back against the sofa beside my legs. He and Zeyna hissed back and forth to each other, but I ignored them, focusing my attention on the movie. I tried at least.

  In the corner of my eye, Zey’s magi-tab glowed while she tapped at the screen with a wild smile on her face.

  The gall of her. She forced us to watch the movie, and now she wasn’t even paying attention. What was up with her that she’d been glued to her tab for most of the night? My eyes narrowed and before I realized, I spat, “Zeyna, turn your tab off! The light is distracting.”

  She looked at me, then pulled the blanket over her head.

  It didn’t take long before a light snore drifted over from the left. Lina, Hellion and I looked amongst each other as Kayo’s mouth dropped open and the sound deepened. We let out a small chuckle, then left him be.

  Not long after that, Lina’s head fell heavily on my shoulder. We had hardly made it a quarter way through the movie. Still, I relaxed back. My eyes burned from the screen’s light, but I wasn’t tired yet. Hellion and I had a long mid-day nap, so I still had at least a couple more hours in me.

  Focused on the movie, Hellion shifted to grab some gummies, and an amused smile warmed his face as the leads pretended to hate each other—as per any enemies to lovers rom-com. My heart jumped and my head snapped away when he looked back and offered to get me something.

  I swallowed, gently clearing my throat. “T-the mini peanut butter cups, please,” I whispered.

  He placed the porcelain bowl on my lap, and I thanked him. Seconds later, Zey emerged from her blanket, then silently got up and padded down the hall to the washroom. But when she didn’t return for ten minutes, I got suspicious.

  That girl better not have ditched us. She better just have diarrhea or something.

  At the fifteen-minute mark, I noticed her empty pack of Mini Fudgsters and finished milk left on the floor. Cautious of Lina’s sleeping form, I wiggled my magi-tab from beneath the blanket and texted Hellion: Zey has been gone for a while…

  Within three seconds, Hellion’s red glass screen lit up on the floor. I waited, but he didn’t even move to grab it. The glowing glass faded off while he continued to watch the larger screen above.

  I kicked him. Brows drawn, he looked back slowly to find me wiggling my tab in the air. Then he jumped to grab his and checked the message. He quickly typed out a response.

  Private | Hellion

  Hellion: Maybe the strawberry milk didn’t agree with all those citrus martinis she had

  Sera: Valid point…

  But then, at the twenty-minute mark, I realized the beer on the island had disappeared too. I re-opened the conversation with Hellion. My nimble fingers sped across the characters, typing out: Did you and Kayo drink all that craft beer?

  He responded with a no, then looked across the space to the kitchen island. His head fell back down to his tab. Mine buzzed a moment later.

  Hellion: Maybe she put it in the fridge

  Sera: Or she stole it and went off to do something else, get with the program Hellion!

  He looked back at me, concerned. I simply stared. I knew Zeyna too well. And something was up—something she’d been refusing to tell me about earlier. Grinding my teeth, I opened up my chat with her.

  Private | Zeyna

  Sera: Where the fuck did you go?!

  Sera: Did the toilet eat you?

  Clicking off the tab, I returned my half-focus to the movie. Every few minutes, I found myself clicking the screen back on to see if I’d missed her reply. I had not. I gave her another twenty minutes; she was usually quick to get back to me, but not this time.

  “She’s not responding,” I muttered down to Hellion.

  Sighing, he put aside his candy. He got up and fixed his shorts before saying, “I’ll go check if she’s still here.” I watched him go without a word.

  Lina moaned in her sleep and fell on the pillow at the end of the sofa. She yanked the blanket to her, leaving me cold.

  Hellion materialized in front of me, and I gasped, nearly throwing the peanut butter cups into the air. The shadows wafted from him as he moved to grab the blanket Zeyna had been using.

  Wordlessly, he sat down beside me and spread the blanket over us. What was he doing?

  I looked up at him incredulously, then he admitted, “She’s gone. The washrooms were empty and her pajamas were left behind in your room.”

  My face tensed. “She did not.”

  He didn’t give much of a response except for a shrug. And while he was dedicated to watching the movie, I spammed Zeyna.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Private | Zeyna

  Sera: You did not just ditch us like that

  Sera: I cannot believe you

  Sera: Where did you go? A party?

  Sera: Because you better have a good fucking excuse why you didn’t tell us

  Sera: Or bring us!

  Sera: And you can’t use that it’s your birthday, because it isn’t anymore

  Sera: Are you okay at least?

  Sera: Just let me know that you’re safe.

  A hand fell over my screen. “Don’t worry, she’ll be back eventually. Let’s just finish the movie; if she’s not back by then, we’ll try to reach her.”

  “Fine.” I let my magi-tab fall into my lap with a shuddering sigh, and stuffed some chocolate into my mouth.

  The following fifty minutes, spent sitting in silence with Hellion while checking my tab every so often, felt like the longest of my life. I almost roared in relief when the credits rolled.

  Unfortunately, when I picked the tablet back up, the screen appeared empty. “Nothing,” I murmured to Hellion. “She never just disappears like that. She at least lets us know where she’s going or that she’s safe…”

  I didn’t hear his response as I typed out another message. But what would it matter if she didn’t even have her tab on her? She wouldn’t get them until she picked the glass back up.

  Sera: Zeyna, seriously, I’m starting to really get worried.

  Sera: Where did you go? Are you with someone?

  I clicked my tongue and ripped the blanket off us. A warm hand grabbed my wrist before I could go too far. Hellion stood with me, then glanced at the other two.

  “I’ll get them to bed and clean up, then we can go look for her, okay?”

  “Where, Hellion?” I flung my hand out. “She just got up and left. She could be anywhere.”

  “People like to have bonfires down by the beach. She could’ve gone there.”

  It seemed like something Zeyna might do, but even if she did, she would’ve asked us all to tag along with her. Even so, we didn’t have any other options. If she didn’t have her tablet with her and none of us knew where she was, that was a recipe for disaster—even if she was Zeyna.

  While Hellion quickly tidied the living room and kitchen, I quietly searched for any clues as to where she’d gone. A small pile of her clothes poured out of her bag onto the sofa, and she left her pajamas crumpled at the foot of the bed.

  A note would’ve been nice, but clearly the bitch had no time in her escape to give a shit about us.

  Sighing, I turned the lights off and left Lina to her dreams. Hellion watched my descent down the stairs while he rinsed our dishes from earlier. I pulled my hood over my hair, tucked my hands in my hoodie’s pocket and stopped at the corner of the island with a disappointed pout.

  “It’s Zeyna,” Hellion said. “What do you expect?”

  He was right. We all knew how Zeyna operated. She always thought of number one: herself. But I still expected something more… It was Zeyna, after all.

  “I know, but…”

  She may have put herself first, but that didn’t mean she was entirely self-centered. Our friendship meant something to her. And when she invited us here for her birthday, a weekend of unadulterated fun and games, it wasn’t a question in my mind that she’d disappear part way through.

  We did everything together, not because we had to but because we actually like to. Lina and Zey were my first choice for anything I had to do, whether it was for help or support or company.

  I wasn’t alone in my beliefs. Lina and Zey shared them. Everything was better together. Everything was easier together too.

  There was only one thing she could’ve gone off to do alone. And if my assumptions were correct, I was worried for the sake that I didn’t have a clue about the man she’d gone to meet.

  Usually, I at least got a first impression of them at whatever bar, or I knew of them based on her shared impressions, or I knew them from school.

  Whoever this guy was, I’d heard nothing about him. Not from her or Lina. I didn’t get to judge him for myself. If he happened to be a shady guy, I had no idea where he lived or where she’d gone with him. And if he did anything to her… I wouldn’t know. I…

  An exasperated breath huffed out of me, and my heart thumped heavily. Brows low, Hellion offered me a sympathetic pout. He dried his hands and came over to lean beside me.

  “She’s fine, Sera.”

  “What if she isn’t?”

  “She is.”

  He didn’t get it. Bad things happened in a matter of moments. I didn’t want to get a call tomorrow morning saying she was in the hospital. Worse, I didn’t want to not get word at all, only for her to go missing for weeks or months and eventually be claimed dead.

  There was a reason why Zeyna made sure to check in with us if she was going anywhere: so I didn’t have to feel like this.

  Why was she doing this to me now?

  “Something’s wrong.” The words fell out of my mouth so quietly, and my eyes watered. Clutching my heart, I mumbled, “I can feel it. Something isn’t right.”

  Hellion’s jaw flexed. He wasn’t sure what to say, and when I looked up at him… he stared back. The smoke in his eyes swirled in his gray-brown irises.

  Why was he not saying anything?

  “What?” I said softly.

  Hellion shook his head imperceptibly. “I… I don’t want to fail you.”

  He’d said it so quietly, I was sure I’d misheard him.

  He reached past me and grabbed his hoodie. “Let’s go look.” He tugged the old red sweater on and headed to the door. I fixed his wing holes as we wiggled our shoes on.

  Hellion didn’t say much after that. He led the way through the back of the cabin to a darkened path obscured by trees and other foliage. He offered me his hand when we reached a precarious spot. Unconsciously, I took it and called up a shining spark of light to illuminate our movements.

  The night air nipped so close to the water, and I found myself savoring the heat of his hand. My grip tightened as we eased down a steep slope.

  The path flattened after that, and the walk was simple. But he still kept hold of my hand. I was the one to wiggle free when our skin turned clammy.

  In the distance, a bonfire shone, and echoes of laughter and joy reached us. “She better be down here,” I muttered to myself.

  Hellion paused when we reached the sand and scanned the beach.

  She wasn’t here. I didn’t even need to check. If she had come, she would’ve messaged one of us, demanding we join her. What fun was it to leave her best friends behind to go party with strangers?

  It wasn’t a far walk, either. There was no reason for us not to have shown up if she said she was having a great time. The only way she was at the bonfire was if the guy said he’d be coming.

  I followed Hellion from a couple of feet behind while he strolled the area. I called her four times, but she didn’t pick up.

  “Ugh,” I blurted after I hung up for the fourth time.

  Hellion slowed to reconvene with me. He shrugged. “If she were here, she wouldn’t have gone far.”

  I hoped not. The beach stretched for miles.

  Sighing, I muttered, “We’re never going to find her.”

  “Probably not…”

  “Optimistic,” I grumbled at him. “Is there anywhere else she likes to go while she’s here?”

  He shrugged again. “At night? The beach club occasionally holds events, but I doubt she’d go there without us.”

  I scrunched the hems of my sleeves while I gritted my teeth. “I don’t get it… Why would she get up and leave like that without telling anyone?”

  “I wish I had half a clue why Zeyna does anything she does.”

  I ignored the comment while I looked around one last time.

  “What do you want me to do, Sera…?”

  “What?” My brows furrowed at him.

  “What will make you feel better?” He smiled slightly. “You can ask anything of me now.”

  Again, I ignored the comment. What was I going to ask him to do? Search all night for his sister, who clearly didn’t care to be found? It wasn’t like anything short of finding her or hearing word from her would make me feel better, least of all commanding him against his will.

  “Whatever…” I hugged myself and moved closer to the fire.

  He waited for something more conclusive that he could respond to.

  An inebriated girl who danced with wild abandon accidentally bumped into him, and he stepped away. I almost laughed at how disgusted he looked. The girl didn’t catch the look, still too busy dancing.

  “Sorry,” she called, stumbling back, head bobbing with the music.

  Another girl, blonde and tanned and booby, echoed the apology with a charming grimace. “Once she gets started, I can’t get her to stop.”

  Hellion tried to pretend neither of the girls existed, so I accepted the apology for him.

  “No worries,” I said with a smile and a nod.

  The friend took it as an invitation to stop and chat. “Oh my gosh. You’re gorgeous. I love your hair!” The girl stroked a long white strand, until Hellion smacked her hand away. “Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

  Her tanned cheeks turned red as she glimpsed Hellion, then returned her big owl eyes to me. She laid her compliments on thick. She correctly attributed my hair as “so thick” and “so white.”

  Hellion rolled his eyes.

  Oh, purred through my mind. She’s into me, not him. It was a first.

  “Carmen.” She touched her chest. “You?”

  “Seraphina. Nice to meet you.”

  Her expressive face beamed. “That’s such a pretty name. It’s a fairy name, right?” She didn’t leave me a chance to answer. “And who’s your boyfriend?”

  “He’s not my boyfriend, just—”

  “Yet,” Hellion mumbled, and I harassed him with a look that said, what are you talking about? Shut up.

  Carmen giggled awkwardly. Her palm fell on my crossed arms. “How can he not want you? You’re so pretty! Are you here for the summer?”

  “Just a few days.”

  “Your friend might kill herself,” Hellion claimed nonchalantly.

  She passed a glance to her friend, who was straying to the water. “Shit.” She smiled back at me. “Hopefully I’ll see you around?” She stumbled a few steps away.

  “Unlikely, we have a busy schedule,” Hellion answered before me.

  “Oh, that’s too bad.” She paused and took out her cellphone. “Maybe I can get your contact now?”

  “She’s running into the water,” Hellion commented.

  Carmen gasped. “One second, sorry!” She rushed off. “Nora! Nora, stop!”

  Once she was gone, I gave Hellion a blank stare. He turned me and led me away.

  “Let’s just go. Zey might already be back at the house.”

  “Uh-huh,” I droned.

  I shook my head to myself. Unbelievable. Guys were one thing, but now he was even threatened about girls liking me?

  When we turned about fifteen years old, Hellion had become territorial of me, back when boys started to understand the appeal of girls. Where he was rather cold to the other girls in our high school—aside from Lina and Zey—I was warm to anyone who I interacted with, except Audrey Walsh and Gianna Ellis, who were mine and Zeyna’s greatest rivals.

  Rumors, of course, made their rounds, and any of the bad ones I’d heard about myself I usually attributed to Audrey or Gianna. Most of the inconsequential ones were usually about some boy having a crush on me. Regardless of Hellion’s interference, I had no desire to act on those rumors.

  Hellion’s audacity grew with age. He wasn’t even subtle about his attempts anymore, just like he wasn’t subtle about his affections for me. In a way, I was glad of it. I appreciated the transparency.

  He didn’t need to worry much about the boys in our high school; most didn’t have the courage to ask me out, not when I was always with Zeyna and Lina. But now, in college, that had changed.

  It was as if the world opened up. We all had our own classes to attend. There was no sharing homework answers or studying for the same tests. I didn’t walk the halls constantly sandwiched by Zeyna and Lina. And the guys… Somewhere between fifteen and twenty, they found some courage. They weren’t scared to stop the pretty girl they saw walking down the halls if they got the chance.

  Hellion made it a point to stay as close to me as possible, whenever possible. Short of the guys in my classes, I was never alone in any other guy’s presence without Hellion—or Zeyna and Lina, who were intimidating in their own rights.

  Zeyna was intimidating in the way that she knew who she was, and she knew her power. I didn’t know anyone as confident in their body as she. If I were a man, I would’ve been terrified to approach someone like her, a girl excited for any sort of confrontation.

  Lina was a little different. With her stature, most wouldn’t expect her to be intimidating, but she was, probably more so than Zeyna. Where Zeyna gave off the impression of danger, Lina gave off the impression of judgment. She was so put together and aware of how she carried herself that even I questioned what I was doing with my life in her presence. She had an intensity to her that I imagined any guy who had the balls to approach her, or me while with her, at least had a resume and a list of references to vouch for the quality of his character.

  Needless to say, Hellion wasn’t the only territorial one. My friends made it next to impossible for anyone to enter my sphere without first being thoroughly vetted by them.

  I should’ve cared more, but I was happy with how it was. There wasn’t anyone I loved more in the world than Zeyna, Lina and Hellion. What more could I ask for?

  Zeyna’s location.

  She still hadn’t returned by the time we got back to the house, and I received no new messages. The notification-free screen of my tab boasted 1:34 AM.

  We padded back to the living room, and I flopped onto the long sofa in front of the magi-graph. I stared at the small slab of glass in my palm, willing a message to suddenly come in.

  “Maybe my magi-tab is broken,” I said to Hellion, wherever he was.

  It really made no sense to me why she chose this time to suddenly go silent. It took two seconds to send a reassurance.

  I lifted myself up. The place was empty. Hellion was gone too.

  “What the…? Hellion?” I hopped up and went to check the other sitting area and the scary dark hallway. “Hellion?” I called, more concerned.

  “What?” He materialized behind me, and I yelped.

  Breathless, I asked, “Where’d you go?”

  “Checking if she was upstairs. Or if she came back.”

  “Oh.”

  He smirked at me. I ignored it and went back to the sofa. This time, he actually followed. I placed my magi-tab on the table in front of me.

  “You should go to bed. There’s no use worrying,” Hellion suggested.

  “No, she’ll be back soon—probably. I hope.” I needed to give her a piece of my mind when she did.

  “I can wait up until she gets in.”

  “I won’t be able to sleep, anyway.” I got comfortable.

  Done arguing the point, he went to the wall-unit at the back and searched a few of the wicker storage boxes on the bottom shelf. He came back with a stack of board games and sat on the floor.

  “Want to play something to get our minds off it in the meantime?”

  I eyed my tablet. No change. I was pretty tired, but at least a board game would hold my attention enough to keep me from passing out on the sofa. I slid onto the ground and scooted closer to the coffee table.

  “What do you want to play? Something short or long?”

  The stack of options included: a pack of playing cards, Trivia Time, Stick-Stack, Blurt It and Tycoon.

  “What kind of masochist do you think I am that I’d play Tycoon with you right now?”

  In the history of our friendship, the group of us had probably played Tycoon about twelve times. Of the twelve times, Hellion had bankrupted us all at least eight times. Lina claimed two wins. Zeyna and I vied for third place with one win each. But the time Zeyna had won, Hellion hadn’t been playing.

  Even being his greatest weakness, I failed to beat him. He didn’t just let me win, either. Actually… when I thought about it, he somehow always got me into third place, likely because he didn’t want to have to duke it out with me one-on-one only to win.

  Hellion chuckled. “I was curious myself. How masochistic are you, Sera?”

  “No more than 5 percent.”

  “Oh, good. I’m only 5 percent sadistic.”

  I laughed. “Sure.”

  I slipped Blurt It from the pile and lifted the lid. The box contained only four stacks of cards.

  “Which cards do you want to play with?”

  Both options were fun. The random topics always came with a bunch of brainless slip ups, but there were also the personal cards, which forced you to swiftly reflect on yourself, or drew out crazy answers about each other.

  “Oh… Zeyna intermixed them last time she played. I don’t think anyone has sorted them since.”

  I gasped and scanned through the cards. They were indeed all mixed together, and I didn’t have the patience to sort them. That was something better left to him or Lina.

  “I guess we’ll play as is.” I shuffled one of the piles, and he shuffled the other even though we weren’t likely to run out of cards.

  I put my cards to the side once I finished with them. Cracking my knuckles, I smirked. “Ready?”

  “Wanna make another bet?” He put his cards down.

  “Again?”

  “I’d like to revisit you sleeping in my room tonight.”

  I rolled my eyes. “No,” I whined.

  “Damn, Sera, what do you have against my room?”

  “You’re in it.”

  He laughed. “Fine. I’m ready.”

  Slowly, I took a card from the deck. Whatever it requested on the other side we quickly needed to yell out, then snatch the card to get the point. Of course, the other player could contest the answers afterward.

  The first card read, three types of transportation.

  “Car, bike, metro,” Hellion blurted.

  “Car, pegasus, wings!”

  Our arms flung out, and our fingers collided. I slipped the card out from under his hand.

  “Wings?” he teased incredulously. “I don’t think that counts.”

  “That counts! Those wings have transported you plenty of places. Don’t lie!”

  “Fine.” He took a card and placed it down.

  Player to the right’s age minus 7.

  “Uh…” he said while we both calculated in our heads.

  “Thirteen!” we both shouted, but when I reached for the card with him, he made a buzzer sound.

  “No, I’d be fourteen now.”

  “Aw, shit! No!” I forgot it was his birthday.

  Hellion snatched the card for himself. I sighed but smiled.

  He waited with bated breath as I put the next card down. Three palindrome words.

  We both stalled. “Hannah,” I said, then followed it by, “Anna.”

  “What?” he muttered. “Uh… Mom, Dad…”

  “Wow.”

  “Nun!”

  The card was already in my hand.

  “Nah,” he drawled and beckoned for the card. “I deserve it. ‘Hannah, Anna’? No way.” He shook his head.

  I scoffed. “As if Mom and Dad are much better. They’re practically the same word.”

  “The same word?” His eyes grew. “Yeah, I don’t think any parent would accept those words being interchangeable.”

  “You know what I mean!”

  He snatched the card from my fingers and stuck his tongue out at me. My eyes narrowed as he flipped the next card.

  Player to the left’s shoe size.

  “Ten!”

  “Six?”

  I took my time picking up the card. “Seven. Nice try.” I snickered.

  Five flowers.

  “Roses, carnations, lilies, lilacs, sunflowers.”

  Hellion didn’t even try for that one. He didn’t utter a single word until he put the next card on the table.

  Your favorite book.

  “Oh, I don’t read. Uh…” he said.

  I laughed, and had to think for a moment. Neither of us had an answer, so I named any random book I could remember.

  “The Kid in the Wheat by D.J. Lingerer.”

  Hellion gawked at me. “That is not your favorite book. That’s just some book we read in high school.”

  I dragged the card closer to me and shrugged. “I loved it. It really stuck with me.”

  “Oh, yeah? What was it about?”

  “Honestly, I don’t think the author even knew what it truly was about, Hellion.”

  He grinned, then returned his attention to the table as I put the next card down.

  Player to the right’s three favorite sports.

  Hellion cooed, then named, “Volleyball, tennis… and skating.”

  “Basketball—hm…” I let him take the card uncontested, but asked, “Do you even have three favorite sports?”

  From what I could remember, he didn’t really enjoy doing any contact sports. He unironically liked golf, but was that even a sport?

  “Probably not. I don’t mind baseball.”

  We played for a while longer until we didn’t have the brainpower to think on the fly. Afterward, we played a relaxed game of War with the regular playing cards. We drew out cards reflexively while we spoke.

  Hellion brought up some of the highlights of when he’d stayed at their cottage. I wished I could’ve had similar experiences, but with the family I had, I was lucky to have any of the nice memories I did. Shawn would’ve preferred I think this world and this life to be terrible.

  As the hours passed, I slumped on the table. My heavy eyelids threatened to close for good. But with Hellion’s face merely twelve inches away, I didn’t want to fall asleep and drool all over the table.

  “Sorry your night didn’t end so fun,” Hellion said.

  I shrugged a shoulder. “It was still fun.” I’d forgotten to look at my magi-tab at the very least. “Thanks for playing with me.”

  His smile came free. “I’ll play with you any time.”

  I groaned and readjusted my head on my arm. His watch ticked toward 4:00 AM.

  “Tell me your secret,” he whispered.

  “What secret?”

  “The one you were going to tell me earlier.”

  I smirked. “Did you really think I had a secret to share?”

  “I hoped.”

  “I have no secrets.”

  “Yes, you do.”

  “Mmm, nope. Not that I can think of.”

  “You have some.”

  “Why are you so certain?”

  “Because—”

  My magi-tab’s screen flashed on, and we both glanced at the bright blue glass. I grabbed it, and it buzzed in my hand. No notification came to the screen, so I swiped to my conversation with Zeyna.

  A new message appeared at the bottom. The user you have contacted has not viewed your messages and is no longer connected to their device. Your messages will be delivered if the user comes into contact with a magi-tab device in the future.

  I sighed and put the tab back across the table. Hellion waited patiently for an update.

  “Unread. It was a disconnection notice.”

  “Oh.”

  “You’re her twin; are you not worried?”

  “No, my twintuition isn’t tingling at the moment.” He smirked.

  “That’s some reassurance.”

  “If it’s her safety you’re concerned about, you should be more concerned for whoever she’s with if they say the wrong thing to her. Spirits save them if they ignorantly throw some recycling in the garbage.”

  I snickered. “True.” I yawned in his face. “Ugh, I’m exhausted. I’m doing absolutely nothing today.”

  “Good thing you’ll have a butler for the day.”

  “Right… I keep forgetting.” I rubbed my eyes. “What were you saying before? That message interrupted you.”

  “Oh, I was just going to say I knew because… there’s still a lot I don’t know about you—or what you think about certain things.”

  “Those aren’t secrets, though. If you asked, I’d tell you.”

  “Really?”

  “Mhm.”

  “Then… why aren’t we together yet?”

  A red blush instantly surfaced. “Maybe not.” I chuckled awkwardly. “That was so direct.”

  “What about—actually, never mind.”

  “What?”

  “Do you… Do you mind that I’m always around?”

  Technically, he wasn’t always around. It wasn’t like we lived together. He was just around whenever I had a free minute at school, whenever the girls and I went out and whenever I was at work. It felt like hardly ever…

  “No, I don’t mind. With you around… I feel the most invincible I’ll ever be.”

  That didn’t mean he didn’t scare me. I appreciated the transparency of his feelings, but those feelings worried me. Anyone’s feelings worried me because one day I needed to reciprocate or risk losing them.

  “I want to stay with you all as long as I can,” I murmured. “I hate being alone, so you and the girls are the greatest gift of all.”

  “You’re a gift to us too, Sera.”

  I nodded. “We’re lucky to have met.”

  “I’ll remind Zeyna of that when she gets back. You should go to sleep.”

  I shook my head. “Lina will be up soon, anyway. I’ll wait for her. She might have some ideas if Zeyna isn’t back by then.”

  Hellion gave me a pitying smile. I ignored it and crawled over to the sofa Zeyna had left so suddenly. I only wanted to give my sore butt a break, but as soon as I pulled the blanket over me, I passed out.