Page 8 of Faeheart (Widdershins Supernatural Academy #2)

Wild

“ W ill you please stop thinking so fucking loud?” I barked across the room to the corner where Elias had barricaded himself in by his belongings. “Stop worrying so much. Fuck.”

Elias’s head snapped up from where he’d been hunched over what looked like a leather-bound journal, his brown eyes flashing with irritation. “I can’t help how I think!”

“Well, learn,” I shot back, flopping dramatically onto my bed. “Your anxiety is giving me a headache.”

“My anxiety?” His voice pitched higher. “You’re the one broadcasting every crude thought that pops into your head!”

Caden sighed from his position on his own bed, where he’d been trying to mediate between us for the past hour. “Maybe we should try Professor Blackwood’s breathing exercises again?—”

“Fuck the breathing exercises,” I interrupted. “They don’t work when Mr. Perfect over there is having a mental breakdown every five minutes about what Mommy and Daddy will think.”

Elias slammed his journal shut, the sound sharp in the small room. “At least I care about something other than my next orgasm!”

“Hey, orgasms are important,” I replied with a grin, enjoying the way his face flushed. “They’re honest. Unlike whatever bullshit facade you’re trying to put up right now.”

“That’s enough,” Caden said firmly, standing up. “This isn’t helping anyone.”

But I was on a roll now, fed up with three days of Elias’s constant mental chatter filtering through our bond. His fears, his rigid self-control, his desperate need for approval. It was all there, buzzing in the back of my mind like an angry wasp I couldn’t swat.

“You want to know what I think?” I continued, ignoring Caden’s warning look. “I think you’re terrified that you actually liked kissing me. I think you’re scared shitless that maybe perfect little Elias isn’t as straight as his parents think he is.”

Elias went very still, his knuckles white where they gripped the journal. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“I know more than you think,” I said, sitting up. “I can feel it, remember? All that repressed desire, all those thoughts you won’t let yourself have. You’re wound tighter than a fucking clock spring, and it’s driving me insane.”

“Wild,” Caden warned, but I was past caring about diplomacy.

“What?” I spread my arms wide. “We’re stuck together whether we like it or not. Might as well be honest about it.”

Elias stood abruptly, his magic crackling around him despite Professor Blackwood’s warnings. “You want honesty? Fine. Yes, I’m scared.”

“See? That wasn’t so hard?—”

“I’m scared that I’m going to be stuck here with you for the rest of the semester.

” His magic arced over his skin as he stared at me, his brows furrowed in fury.

“The last thing I wanted was to get stuck with some sloppy, egotistical fairy who’s so busy stroking himself that he can’t see that the world doesn’t revolve around him! ”

The words hit me like a physical blow, and I felt my own magic surge in response. The air between us crackled with hostile energy as our pendants began to glow beneath our shirts.

“Sloppy?” I snarled, jumping to my feet. “At least I don’t spend every waking moment trying to be someone else’s perfect little puppet!”

“Stop!” Caden shouted, but we were beyond hearing him now.

Elias stepped forward, his usually perfect composure completely shattered. “You think you’re so free, so enlightened, but you’re just as trapped as I am. At least I’m honest about my chains.”

“Honest?” I laughed bitterly. “You wouldn’t know honest if it bit you on your perfectly sculpted ass. You’re a fucking coward hiding behind Mommy and Daddy’s expectations!”

The magic building between us was becoming dangerous now. Books rattled on their shelves, and I could hear glass cracking somewhere in the room. But I was too angry to care, too fed up with his constant judgment bleeding through our bond.

“At least I don’t stick my dick in anything that moves to avoid taking responsibility,” Elias shot back, his voice shaking with rage. “And I don’t parade my pathetic insecurity like it’s something to be proud of!”

That crossed a line I didn’t even know I had, ringing far truer than I ever wanted to admit.

My magic exploded outward, wild and uncontrolled, slamming into his structured defenses like a hurricane hitting a house of cards.

For a moment, our powers clashed in the space between us, fae chaos meeting witch precision in a display that would have been beautiful if it weren’t so destructive.

“That’s it!” I roared. “I’m done with this bullshit. I’d rather risk magical burnout than spend another second listening to your prissy whining!”

I spun toward the door, my hand already on the handle, when Caden’s voice cut through my fury.

“Wild, don’t!”

“No, Caden! I’m going!” I turned back only for a second, pointing a threatening finger at Elias. “I fucking hate you.”

“Yeah, well, the feeling’s mutual, jackass,” he called back.

But I barely heard him as I slammed the door behind me hard enough to rattle the entire hallway. I needed air, space, freedom from the suffocating weight of Elias’s disapproval and fear. The bond pulled at me immediately, a sharp ache in my chest that I ignored as I stormed down the corridor.

Students pressed themselves against the walls as I passed, probably sensing the unstable magic radiating from me in waves. Good. Let them stay out of my way.

I made it out to the front lawn of the dormitory before the first wave of nausea hit.

By the time I reached the main courtyard of the Academy, my hands were shaking. The pendant around my neck had gone from warm to burning hot, and every step felt like I was walking through quicksand.

But I couldn’t go back, couldn’t stand to be around Elias any longer. I hated him, hated what he stood for, and hated the pristine sharp edges of his mind, thoughts, and manners.

I collapsed onto a stone bench near the fountain, doubling over as another wave of magical feedback crashed through me. The pendant was scalding against my skin now, and I could feel my fae magic starting to unravel at the edges.

Fuck. This was worse than I’d expected.

My vision blurred as I tried to focus on the dancing water in front of me.

Students were giving me a wide berth, probably smart considering the sparks literally flying off my fingertips.

I pressed my palms against my temples, trying to contain the chaos building in my skull.

This magic was nothing like my own. This was threatening to consume me, to swallow me whole and destroy me completely.

The bond stretched between us like a rubber band pulled to its breaking point. I could still feel Elias in the back of my mind, his anger mixing with what felt suspiciously like panic. Good. Let him panic. Let him feel what it was like when his perfect world got messy.

Another surge of nausea hit me, this one strong enough to double me over completely. My magic was eating itself, consuming the very pathways it normally flowed through. At this rate, I’d burn out my abilities entirely within the hour.

But even that seemed preferable to going back and apologizing to that uptight, judgmental?—

“Wild!”

I looked up to see Atlas jogging toward me, Caden close behind. Even through my deteriorating vision, I could see the worry etched across both their faces.

“Don’t,” I managed to gasp out as they approached. “Don’t make me go back. I can’t stand it anymore…” I looked up at Caden, tears forming in my eyes despite myself. “I don’t even want to be at this school, Caden! I didn’t want to come back… but I… I didn’t have a choice…”

I didn’t understand why all my long-buried emotions were suddenly bubbling to the surface.

It was so much all at once and too much to bear.

I felt myself sway as my vision tunneled in.

But before I hit the ground, I felt a strong pair of arms catch me as if I were no heavier than a feather.

I glanced up to see both Atlas and Caden staring down at me.

“Please,” I begged, my emotions and magic consuming me. “I… I just want to be free…”

Atlas lifted me effortlessly, his werewolf strength making my weight inconsequential. “We need to get him back to Elias,” he said grimly to Caden. “Now.”

“No,” I protested weakly, but my voice came out as barely a whisper. The magical feedback was intensifying, making it feel like my very essence was being shredded from the inside out.

“Wild, you’re dying,” Caden said, his face pale with fear as he kept pace with Atlas’s long strides. “Your magic is literally consuming itself. I can see it happening. And it’s gonna start happening to me soon if we don’t get back.”

I wanted to argue, wanted to tell them I’d rather die than spend another minute with that pretentious asshole, but another wave of agony crashed through me. My fae magic was unraveling like a poorly knitted sweater, each thread of power snapping and recoiling back on itself.

“Fuck,” I gasped, my head lolling against Atlas’s shoulder. “It hurts so bad.”

“I know,” Atlas murmured, his voice surprisingly gentle for someone I didn’t know that well. “Just hold on.”

The academy grounds stretched endlessly before us, each step Atlas took sending fresh jolts of pain through my nervous system. Students scattered as we approached the dorm, probably sensing the dangerous instability radiating from my failing magic.

“Elias!” Caden shouted as we reached the door to our room. “Open up! Now!”

There was a pause, then the sound of footsteps. The door swung open to reveal Elias, his face still flushed with anger until he saw me in Atlas’s arms.

“What happened?” he demanded, his tone shifting instantly from hostile to concerned.

“The bond,” Caden explained as Atlas carried me inside. “Wild’s magic is burning itself out. You need to stabilize the connection.”

Elias stepped back as Atlas lowered me onto my bed, his brown eyes wide with what looked like genuine fear. “I don’t know how?—”