Page 13

I touched my copy of The Hobbit as I waited for Miles.

Life was seemingly going my way again, and I was trying to think positively.

I’d received a pretty gift, had time to pick up a coffee before my literature class, and—upon learning about our reading assignment—had discovered that fate had thrown in the perfect topic to aid my quest.

I would learn much about the ways of dragons, and Titus would be pleased.

Now it was time for a small lunch with Miles, then it was onward to my afternoon class. Afterward, I would meet with Damen for our audience with Dr. Stephens.

Yes, today’s energy was proving to be quite excellent thus far.

A heavy bag was dropped onto the table next to me, and I jumped, quickly losing my place among the opening lines of my book.

“You’re at our table,” a short, blonde-haired girl said.

She was followed by two others—a long-haired, redheaded female and a gangly, brunette male.

The blonde’s deep brown eyes were accentuated by liner, highlighting the loathing-filled glare she leveled at me.

“And while we’re on the subject, you should learn not to play with things that don’t belong to you. ”

“I-I’m sorry.” My stomach dropped as I began to gather my items. I wasn’t sure what she was talking about, but I didn’t want to stay and find out.

Who were they fans of this time? Finn hadn’t been here long enough to make an impression.

“What’s the hold-up?” she asked, stepping closer. “Or are you slow too?”

I jerked away from her nearness, and the movement caused the white plastic lid of my coffee to pop off. My stomach sank as some of the caramel-colored liquid splashed onto the table.

She let out a snort. “How pathetic. What’s so special about you? Why would he even give you the time of day?”

I touched my fingertips to my chest. This was exactly what I’d feared.

I thought I’d been prepared for this consequence.

“S-sorry,” I interrupted her, apologizing. From experience, I knew that arguing would only make things worse. My hands shook as I tried to mop up the mess with the few napkins I had. “Give me a minute, I’ll—”

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” a polite, feminine voice cut into the conversation, and I bit my lip as I glanced up.

Sure enough, Jiayi Chou stood nearby in her signature frilly black dress and red flats. Her red-streaked hair was curled away from her face, framing her expression as she leveled a chastising glare at the blonde.

She returned Jiayi’s look with equal amounts of disdain. “What are you doing here?”

Jiayi raised her eyebrow as her vision lazily trailed over the other girl.

She tilted her head. “Heather Rais,” she began, and the blonde was startled, seemingly surprised that Jiayi knew her name.

“Please explain why, when I’ve arrived to have lunch with my roommate, I must witness you back to your antics? ”

“You have a roommate?” The blonde—Heather—sputtered. But she regained her ground quickly enough. “She started it. This is our table. My parents have paid good money for—”

“There are no assigned tables.” Jiayi strolled past the three of them and put her bag on the chair across from mine. “Now go away and start mischief elsewhere.”

Heather and the two others looked at each other. They appeared to be on the cusp of an argument, but something about Jiayi’s presence held them back. Then, to my utmost surprise, they turned and left.

Jiayi sat down and, without looking at me, used her handkerchief to clean up the rest of the spilled liquid. Once finished, she proceeded to unpack her tiny lunch.

I was too stunned to do anything besides sink back into my seat.

“T-thank you,” I said, my voice faint as I toyed with the edge of my braid. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I was grateful.

“You shouldn’t allow people to push you around. It makes you look weak, especially when it’s someone on their level,” Jiayi replied, organizing her lunch into little piles. “When are you coming back?”

“Soon, I think,” I replied. “I have a few loose ends to tie up on my job.”

Should I explain the ghost to her? Would she understand?

She was probably relishing her freedom without me. “I’m sorry,” I added.

There was a brief silence, and I raised my gaze. Jiayi was looking at me with a curious expression. “Why are you sorry? ”

“Because you have the room to yourself,” I told her. “And I’ll be back to being in your way.”

She hummed, picking up one of her finger sandwiches. “You’re very strange.”

How was I strange? I looked toward the double doors. Where was Miles?

“Why are you here now anyway?” she asked, wiping her mouth with a dainty lace handkerchief. “You usually don’t meet Finn until dinner. Are you two eating earlier?”

I stopped looking toward the door and glanced at her. I had no idea she’d noticed.

Had I ever told her Finn’s name? I didn’t remember.

“No.” I looked down. Regardless, the mention of my ex-best friend dampened my mood. I should probably forewarn her, just in case Finn showed up looking for me.

“Finn and I aren’t friends anymore,” I informed her. “He did something… bad. So, if you see him around, you don’t have to be nice to him.”

In fact, I hoped that she wouldn’t be.

“That’s a shame,” Jiayi mused. “Hopefully it’s a misunderstanding. You said that you’d been friends for ten years. That’s a long time.”

My heart, which had previously settled, jumped into my throat.

“Our entire relationship was based on a lie,” I whispered, unable to focus on her anymore. “I can’t forget that.”

She responded a short moment later. “Well, if that’s true, then he must be an awful person. Did he tell you why he lied?”

A sense of cold filled me. I’d asked myself that same question but had no answer. I shook my head.

“That’s still a long time to be friends,” she concluded again. “I doubt that anyone could falsify a relationship for that length of time without there being some truth to it.”

She didn’t understand.

Jiayi continued speaking, “If you aren’t meeting with him, then who are you waiting for?”

I glanced at her, taken back at her unexpected question and sudden topic change. Her chin rested on her glove-covered hand, and she appeared to be genuinely curious.

“I’m—” My face turned hot, and I touched my fingers together. I hoped she wouldn’t think bad of me for moving on so quickly. “—I’m meeting another friend.”

“That’s nice.” She smiled. “You’re shy, so I’m glad you’re making friends.”

“Yes!” I agreed, pressing my hands against my racing heart. “My new friends are amazing. I’m not scared around them, and they seem to care about me. I really want to make sure to make them happy.”

She was still smiling. “That’s good.”

“You should meet them!” Suddenly, I was desperate for her approval. For another girl to think I was cool. “Miles will be here soon.”

“Miles?” she asked, her voice sharp. “Miles who?”

When her grin faded, so did my enthusiasm. “Miles Montrone…” I told her.

An expression, almost like panic, passed through her eyes. But she blinked, and the emotion was gone. “I must have missed the memo,” she said.

Memo? What memo?

“We really need to update the chat,” she muttered—too low for me to hear, but I could read her lips clearly enough. When she spoke next, her voice was normal. “Well, that explains why they were targeting you, at least. ”

I was lost again and stared at her.

She sighed. “Heather, Tammy, and Logan are members of Miles Montrone’s fan club. Miles is extremely secretive and aloof—it has increased his appeal around campus. In fact, he rarely talks to people at all.”

“Could there be a different Miles Montrone?” I asked.

I couldn’t imagine this Miles she described. Miles had been so excited about the slumber party, even though we never did have it. He picked on Titus and said… really weird things.

But he did talk.

Jiayi’s mouth dipped. “Dark-haired, tall, muscular, attractive, good at sports, and majoring in pre-law? He has the highest GPA in the senior class and is also the star of our soccer team. There’s been talk of him going professional. He’s here on both an academic and athletic scholarship.”

It sounded like Miles was the same. But I didn’t know he was such a superstar at sports—his last practice had ended in a fistfight—nor that he had good grades. My Miles was all those other things, and the likelihood of there being another Miles Montrone was slim.

I nodded. “He talks to me,” I told her.

“I’m sure he does,” Jiayi said, not sarcastically, as she packed her lunch. “I just remembered that I have class. I’ll see you when you get back.”

With that, she picked up her bag and little lunch box, and I stared after her as she left through one of the secondary entrances.

Was there something I was missing?

“ Bonjour, mon coeur ,” Miles’s jovial voice sounded behind me as he touched my shoulder. I craned my neck and looked at him as he gazed down at me with a lopsided grin. “You waited for me. ”

“Yes.” I pursed my lips. Should I ask him about the fan club—and Jiayi’s weird assessment of his personality?

“Is this okay,” I asked. Not that I cared much—but they were the ones who insisted on keeping me secret. For such a super important dude, Damen sure was ill-prepared to handle incognito work.

And I blamed Damen because he appeared to fancy himself the ‘leader.’

“Is what okay?” Miles asked, slipping into the seat beside me. He gazed at me with soulful puppy dog eyes, and I couldn’t find it in my heart to tell him to go away.

“Nothing.” I shook my head. Regardless, there was another matter to discuss. “What did you call me?”

“So,” Miles began, not answering me, as he braced his elbow on the table. His lips curled into a shy smile that caused my heart to skip. “I was looking over your schedule last night—”

When did he get ahold of my schedule?

“—and I noticed that you’re taking French,” he continued,

Damen also knew that I had an afternoon class. So, this must be his fault. As someone who was semi-faculty, he probably had access to that database.