Page 30

the hallways

T his was not my first visit to the nurse’s office, nor would it be my last. “Ah, Hyacinth.” The nurse nodded at me. “I assume your latest victim will be coming in shortly?”

I rolled my eyes. “Not a fight this time.” I cut my palm during art, yeah, no idea how. I headed over towards the cabinet, knowing exactly where everything was, the nurse knew not to touch me.

As I was grabbing the disinfectant and some wrapping for my hand, the door opened.

“Why, hello, my dear.” The nurse’s voice turned soft. “It's a bit early for your visit.”

I turned to see Celestine, but she avoided my eyes. “My stomach is also hurting,” she whispered.

He stood up, leading her to one of the beds for her to lie down. “Did you eat something bad?”

“No,” she replied, gripping onto her abdomen. “It just hurts.”

I shuffled through the cabinet for the medications.

“Are you on your cycle?”

“I haven’t gotten that yet.”

Should probably get that checked. Pretty sure that’s dangerous for women.

“Do you know what could have caused it?” He squinted his amber eyes, trying to figure out what the root of the problem was .

She curled up onto her side, holding her breath. “I just need a painkiller, please.”

I stepped towards her and held out my hand with one. “Or do you need two?”

“I can suck it up with one,” she mumbled, taking it. “What happened to your hand?”

I didn’t want to tell her, but maybe it’d distract her from the pain. “I was in art and a paintbrush assaulted me.” I dabbed the cut with the disinfectant.

She took the painkiller and chewed on it like a psycho. My gods. Celestine cracked a small smile. “Who knew a paintbrush could take you down? That’s embarrassing.”

“Don’t tell anyone.” I smirked, wrapping a bandage over it.

“What were you painting?”

“You,” I said, but my tone came out more serious than I intended.

Celestine covered her face with her hands. “Ew.”

“I’m joking,” I reassured, “we’re doing landscape.”

“Hyacinth.” The nurse got my attention. “I’m going to grab my lunch before the other students. Would you mind keeping Celestine company?”

“Yeah, I would mind.” I can’t be near her.

Celestine called me a curse under her breath.

The nurse chuckled, thinking I was joking. “Will you be alright, Celestine?”

She nodded and with that he left. Oh no. One of us is going to end up dead and I have a feeling it was going to be me.

“Are you here often?”

She gave me a look. “Is that your pick up line?”

“No. The nurse just made it seem like you're always here.”

“I usually come here during lunch to take naps.” She took my hand in hers. “It’s warm.”

“And you’re cold.” Her skin was like ice .

Celestine tugged her top out from under her skirt and forced my hand to rest on her bare stomach. Holy bloody shit. I felt my face heat. “What are you doing?” I asked, but I didn’t pull away.

“My stomach hurts.” She closed her eyes. “But this feels better.”

I think I just passed away.

“Celestine.” My breath caught in my throat as she pushed my hand to add more pressure. I quickly pulled away from her, turning towards the cabinet once again. Finding the heat pack, I cracked it so it would begin to heat up and handed it to her. “This–Use this–Just–Not my hand.”

She put it on her stomach. “It’s not the same.”

“Bloody hell,” I muttered, pushing at her shoulder to turn her on her other side. “You should lie on your left, it helps with stomach pain.”

“You know a lot,” she commented, letting out a sigh. “Lie with me.”

“I would rather you pluck my eyeballs out.”

“Please.”

It was the way she said it, desperate, pleading, melancholic, causing my heart to sink.

“Bloody move over then.” Her back was against my shoulder, and she reached behind her, searching for my hand.

I gave it to her, I don’t know why, but I did, and I let her pull me towards her.

As I shifted to a more comfortable position, her back moved against my chest, our bodies slowly melting together.

I could feel her steady breathing and she could feel my heart racing.

This felt familiar, but not like I’ve done this before, but as if we had done this before.

I instinctively dragged her closer to me, closing my eyes, burying my nose into her hair. She smelt so good. If I loosened my hold around her, even just a little, she was going to disappear.

Just like when we were kids .

I opened my eyes. When we were kids, we did this back then.

Niko even said so. A heavy feeling set in my chest, making it difficult to move.

The memory was just a picture in my head now, her hair was shorter, but it was her.

The same scent, the same cold skin, the same feeling of calm and… Something.

***

I stood in the centre of the salt flats again, the sky just as brilliant and vivid as it looked the last time I was here, the sun on the verge of rising. The Stygia mountains were North of me and behind was the same little wooden house.

I still hadn’t made it inside and I was determined this time. As I took a step towards it, something in the water’s reflection caught my eye and I paused.

Two figures stood near me, but when I looked up, they weren’t on the surface.

I turned back down towards the water. It seemed as though they were on the other side.

Stepping closer revealed a younger version of Niko with another man, his face blurred by rippling water from an unknown source.

They stood next to an open door, but there were no walls.

“Niko,” the blurred man called him over in a deathly low voice. It sounded as though he were behind a thin glass wall.

Niko approached him and froze. “What on all the stars?” He breathed.

In the water, appeared a nine-year-old version of myself and Celestine sound asleep on a bed, close and facing one another, holding each other’s hands.

“If you don’t–”

Niko pulled the man away, quietly closing the door, and the two kids disappeared. “Hyacinth won’t let anyone touch him, ever.”

“That’s my daughter, Niko,” the blurred man said through clenched teeth.

I crouched down and touched the water, thinking I would be able to get to the other side and see everything more clearly. But I was stopped by the wet sand.

Niko shook his head, speaking in a low voice.

“He went through something horrible last year. His foster family… they hurt him. Badly.” He hesitated, unable to say more.

“He had his reasons for killing them.” Glancing at the closed door, he sighed.

“I’m honestly shocked he wants to be around Datura at all.

He barely wants to be around me.” A pause followed before he added, “Hyacinth doesn’t have friends—at school or anywhere.

He barely speaks, always picking fights.

Whatever comfort he finds in Datura… please, just let him have that. ”

“I forbid them sleeping on the same bed together.”

“They’re only kids, what do they know?”

***

Blinking my eyes, I woke up in the nurse’s office. I couldn't believe I fell asleep with her. Again. How does she make me feel relaxed enough to do so? It’s careless, someone could have killed us or worse, seen us. I glanced at the window, dark and gloomy, hail crackling against the window.

Reaper had shifted in her sleep to face me, her arms and legs tangled with mine.

Bloody hell.

How long have we been here? Carefully getting off the bed, I noticed the curtain had been closed around us. Strange. I pulled open the curtains, but no one was in the room and the clock said it was way past school hours.

“Celestine,” I called.

“What?” she asked, her voice tired.

“It’s six.” We slept for seven hours, but it felt like only minutes had passed.

“How?” Celestine sat up from the bed, rubbing her eyes. “Did the nurse not wake us?”

I pulled out my phone to multiple texts from Niko asking about my whereabouts. “You need to go home.”

“We're not training today?” She hopped off the bed, fixing her clothes and setting the heat pack, no longer warm, on the nurse’s desk. Even with all that sleep, she still looked exhausted.

“It's Tuesday, you have the day off.” I walked out with her into the hallways.

“You don't want to hang out with me?” she teased.

“Go home,” I muttered, pushing the door to get outside of the school. “I’m meeting some people tonight.”

“Can I come?”

“No.” I’m not sure if I trust the Underworld people around her, and these two had a misogynistic view on women.

She sighed. “I’m not allowed to do anything, am I?”

So dramatic, oh my gods. “Go home, relax or do your bloody homework.” I pushed her in the direction of the station. “Pester someone else for blood’s sake.”

“Rude,” she muttered, leaving.

I went home before heading out to the West side. Walking into Neon Nights, I made my way to the reserved circular booth in our usual corner.

“You got here earlier than we thought you would.” Symeon looked at his watch, snapping his fingers. The night ladies scooted out of the booth and left so I could sit across from Symeon and next to Kahlik.

They raised their drinks, and I nodded in acknowledgement, remembering Cassius. We lost him about a year ago, and since then, Jerome had stopped coming around, and I cut back on my visits too.

I took out a cigarette for myself and lit it. Then popped a pill, the noise giving me a headache, especially with all the flashing lights .

After catching up a bit, them telling me about their lives and recent jobs, Symeon turned serious. “There’s an assignment.” He looked to Kahlik, nodding before turning back to me. “That we want you to join us for.”

“Who is it?”

“Silias, leader of the Kokkino clan,” Kahlik whispers.

Finally.

“The pay is extremely high, our grandchildren wouldn’t even need to work,” Kahlik said with a sigh.