I clutched the note Sin had given me and went to class to find Sirena already seated. Carefully, I moved past the throng of standing students all chatting and went to the seat next to her.
“Hey,” I greeted her.
She turned and offered me a smile, which made me relax. After the events at the watchers’ house with her freaking out, I hadn’t been able to talk to her. She’d avoided me, or I’d been out of class, doing mundane office things. My grades were the highest at Chapel Crest, so it was nothing for me to randomly be pulled out to do office work for the lazy women who should have been doing it.
I licked my lips. “Sirena? Uh, Sin gave me a note for you.” I pulled it out of my pocket and handed it to her. Not wanting to get Sin’s fist implanted in my face, I hadn’t read it.
She took the note, her face brightening.
My heart fell. She was going to give him the time of day after he’d screwed up with her and that damn mausoleum shit.
But I didn’t know why I thought differently. Sirena was a sweet girl, plain and simple. Of course, she had forgiveness within her.
I cleared my throat, watching as she read the note, her lips curling up higher.
My curiosity was getting the best of me now. She never spoke to anyone, so seeing her writing notes to a guy who tried to hurt her made me frown. And if I were being truthful, it made me have a little self-loathing because she certainly wasn’t giving me the time of day.
She’d really gotten beneath my skin and had gone straight to my damn heart since she’d arrived here. I cared about her more than I ever cared for anyone before in my life. I didn’t know how to get her to see that. To even give me a damn chance.
I knew my competition.
There was simply no way in hell I was going to make the cut.
Instead, I’d just be here for whatever she needed. I’d rather have her as my friend than nothing at all, even if it hurts.
She finished her letter and turned to me with hopeful eyes.
Like I could say no to her.
Sighing, I held out my hand, and she was quick to place the note back into it. After stuffing it in my pocket, Sister Hazel began her droning, so I sat still in my seat, tuning her out.
The damn note was burning a hole in my pocket, though. I wanted to know what was going on. If nothing else, as a way to protect her. I knew Church was gone. It made sense Sin would try to wiggle his way back in.
By the end of class, I was beside myself. My decision had been made. I was going to see what was going on. If it was bad, I’d reach out to Church and let him know. Because I’d seen Ashes and Stitches chumming around with both Asylum—or Mirage as was the current name—and Sin on campus recently, I knew they were both slowly working their way in.
I was tired of being the odd man out. My whole life was spent on the outside, looking in.
Damnit, I wanted in this time.
Even if I didn’t fit in with any of them except her. It was all that mattered. Her.
We got up when the bell rang, and I walked next to her out of the room like we used to do.
“So, um, do you want to talk?” I asked, feeling dumb as shit.
She pulled me to a stop and stared up at me, making my heart tumbled awkwardly.
“Sirena?” My throat was tight.
She gave me a sweet smile and squeezed my hand, moves that all but broke me before leaving me alone in the hall and disappearing into another class.
Sighing, I stared at where she’d gone before my phone buzzed in my pocket. Figuring it was one of my friends, I pulled it out and saw her name on my screen. I blinked in surprise at it before fumbling to check the message from her.
I do want to talk. Soon, OK? I’m trying to work through some stuff. It’s a lot for me.
I stared at her message for a moment before quickly thumbing out my reply to her.
OK. I’m here if you need me. . . cupcake.
I didn’t want to push her on it, so I tried to play it cool and add a little nickname for her like the guys had. It was a feeble attempt at connecting with her on a different level.
After I hit send, however, I felt like an idiot.
I let out a groan at calling her cupcake. We’d eaten cupcakes a few times in her room since her arrival. She always seemed to really like them. It felt right to call her that, but now that it was out there in the wild, I wanted to kick myself.
Chocolate. Cherry icing. Pink cupcake wrapper.
The memory of our first cupcake together flashed through my mind, every detail recalled in perfect recollection, right down to the soft sound she’d made when she took her first bite and the damn fly that walked along her windowsill that had driven me nuts. I’d ignored it, not wanting to ruin our evening, but man, I hated flies.
I didn’t expect a reply from her, but one came just moments later.
I still think about that chocolate cupcake with the cherry frosting.
It wasn’t her words that got me. It was the little heart emoji after them that swept me off. It probably didn’t mean anything, but it came from her, so it meant something to me.
Smiling, I tucked my phone back into my pocket, vowing to get her another cupcake, before I headed out to where I figured I could find Sin.
I didn’t open the note.
As much as I’d wanted to, I was still high on Sirena’s little heart emoji. Instead, when I reached him sitting in one of the quiet rooms I’d seen him go into a lot lately, I walked right up to him. I took a seat beside him in one of the overstuffed chairs and took out the note.
“Here.” I handed it back to him. “She replied.”
He took it wordlessly and opened it, a smile blooming on his lips.
I shifted in my seat, my guts tight.
“Must be good,” I said softly. “If it has made you smile.”
Sin folded the note and placed it into his leather jacket pocket before going back to staring at the wall.
He didn’t say anything to me, but I couldn’t let it go.
“She’s a good person. Don’t hurt her again.”
He dragged his gaze to me, his face expressionless.
“I won’t.”
I nodded, not knowing what else to say. Instead of sticking around feeling like an idiot, I got up to leave.
“Bryce.”
I turned to look at him.
“In another life, she could have used someone like you.”
I let out a soft, sad laugh. “Yeah, but here we are. In hell.”
“Here we are,” he repeated sadly.
“And now she has you,” I added.
He scoffed. “Does she? What she has is a dreamer. I’m not with her. Probably won’t get the chance to be, but I do dream of it. It’s all I have at this point.”
I adjusted my backpack on my shoulder, getting what he was saying. “I’m a dreamer too, I guess.”
He chuckled softly. “Welcome to hell, friend. You can sit next to me.” He looked pointedly to the chair beside him.
To hell with it.
May as well join another demon in this hellhole.
Wasn’t like I had anywhere else to be.
