Page 26 of The Scars Within (Twisted Thorn #1)

I watched Shayde prepare a s’more with the ease of someone who had made hundreds before. Melted chocolate dripped down his hand, and he caught it with his tongue. As he finished his dessert, he glanced over his shoulder at me, a smirk playing on his lips.

“What?” I asked, curious.

“You’ve got a little something right—” He rubbed his own jaw in a gesture, indicating where to check.

I wiped my face with the back of my hand, but his laughter grew at my clumsy attempt.

I couldn’t help but smile at his contagious amusement.

Shayde scooted the basket aside and shifted closer to me, gently using his thumb to wipe the mess from my face.

My eyes trailed down to his lips as his breath mingled with mine.

My stomach did a series of dizzying flips.

We just sat there for a moment with his warm hand softly cradling my chin. Our eyes remained locked as the crackling of the bonfire and the distant songs of crickets filled the night air. I slowly reached up and traced his dragon mark with my fingers.

He turned his head slightly, allowing me access. My fingers ran along his mark before sliding down his neck and landing on his firm chest. His hand wrapped around my nape before pulling me closer.

And then his lips were on mine.

I have been kissed before, but never in a moment like this. And it was always so juvenile, leading up to before I was captured soon after my eighteenth birthday.

His kiss was soft and tentative at first, sending a shiver down my spine, and then he lessened the pressure of his lips as if asking for permission to continue.

I took the moment he offered to think it through.

And then I remembered that with Shayde, I can allow myself to be found.

I pulled his lips back to mine, resting my hands on the nape of his neck. He responded by running his fingers up through my hair as the kiss deepened, growing more urgent and passionate. His arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me into his lap, but his hands stayed respectfully on my hips.

Every worry, every thought vanished as I melted into the kiss, surrendering to the moment. I felt safe and protected. And I allowed myself the grace of being happy about it.

We were lying side by side on the blanket, looking up at the starry night, when Shayde said, “So, tell me more about you, Scar.”

I looked over at him and took a moment to gather my thoughts, still reeling from the intensity of our kiss.

“There really isn’t much more to tell,” I murmured.

“I had a small, quiet life back home until I was accepted into Mageia. And now… I’m here.

” I shrugged one shoulder, trying to convey just how ordinary my life has been.

“I have a hard time believing that,” he said solemnly.

“And why is that?”

“I’m not sure… but I can sense it. You’re different—” I started to protest, but he quickly amended, “In a good way. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone so mysteriously intriguing before. It’s like when I look at you… I see more than what you allow others to see.”

His gaze held mine, searching for something beneath the surface. I stayed silent, unsure of how to respond, until he broke the moment.

“What happened to your arm?” he asked, his voice gentle but probing.

“My what? Oh—” I raised my left arm and looked at my scar. He must have noticed it before tonight because the darkness made it nearly invisible, even in the firelight. “Nothing much. I had an altercation with a thorn bush. And the bush won, obviously.”

Shayde studied me, his eyes narrowed slightly as if he could see right through the lie. I quickly shook my head and changed the subject. “And what about you? Where did you grow up?”

Thankfully, Shayde picked up on my desire to move on. He looked back up to the sky. “My family is from a city called Jysper, just a little west of the war college. Both of my parents attended Mageia, so it was inevitable that Rhodes and I would do the same.”

“And how is your relationship with your brother? You two seem distant… for elemental twins.”

Shayde took a deep breath. “My brother and I,” he began, his voice quieter now, “we used to be close, really close. But... things changed. It’s like there’s this unspoken distance between us now, and I don’t even know when it started.”

His hands were lying across his stomach, and I noticed his fingers start to twist together.

“We just grew apart, I guess. We were best friends. You would never see one without the other. But as we were coming of age... he started making decisions I didn’t understand or agree with.

And I… I couldn’t just stand by and watch him go down a road I knew would hurt him.

But every time I tried to talk to him about it, it just pushed him further away. So I pulled back.”

His voice cracked, revealing the pain he had been holding back. “It’s like we’re strangers now, and I hate it. I miss him, Scar. I miss the brother I used to know. But I don’t know how to fix things between us.”

He turned his head to look at me again, his eyes were a mix of frustration and sadness. “It’s hard, you know? Feeling like you’ve lost someone who’s still right there. And the worst part is, I’m not even sure if he wants to be found. I haven’t felt our marekem in years.”

A million questions raced through my mind as I absorbed what Shayde had shared.

Anyone who’s met Rhodes would immediately recognize the complexity in his presence.

But what did Shayde mean about the different path and the choices that would hurt him?

The uneasy tension that crackles whenever they’re in the same room suddenly made a lot more sense.

“I’m so sorry to hear that, Shayde,” I said softly as I looked up at the sky again.

“I don’t have a sibling, but I always wished I did.

I’ve heard that those with siblings sometimes wish they were only children, while only children wish for a sibling.

” I raised my hand, laying it over his chest, and he intertwined his fingers with mine.

“Having a sibling must be like having a built-in partner-in-crime. Someone to cause harmless trouble with, someone to argue with but still defend and protect no matter what. It breaks my heart to hear that about you and Rhodes. ”

We lay beside each other in comfortable silence, the fire slowly dwindling into glowing embers. Between playful banter and a few more slow, lingering kisses, we both knew when it was time to call it a night.

Earlier, I’d been so anxious about spending time alone with Shayde—probably because my social anxiety tends to flare up around, well, anyone.

But I’m glad I didn’t bail. It felt good to relax and let my guard down for once.

And I got to meet Drithan, which was incredible.

For the first time in… maybe ever, I wasn’t focused on just surviving.

Tonight was about something more. It was about living.