Chapter Fifty-Five

We barely make it to our first class in time, earning us an unamused expression from the professor as he begins the lesson for the day, mercifully allowing us to slip through the doors. The lecture hall isn’t as crowded as some of the others we’ve attended, so we don’t have an issue finding a couple of empty seats. I open my laptop to the textbook that’s required for the class, struggling to pay attention enough to jot down notes from the lesson. Even with the caffeine buzzing through my veins, my mind feels sluggish from my lack of sleep. What I do manage to focus on has nothing to do with the class at all, but gets me thinking about how to get Adrian to leave my side long enough to speak to The Dean. Since Serene and I were obvious enough about our plan to go shopping after classes for home decor, maybe I can use that as an excuse to spend some alone time with Serene.

The hour and a half-long lecture nearly bore me to tears, but it gave me enough time to focus on concocting a proper plan to get Adrian out of my hair for a few hours. Remembering how tenderly he looked at me in the car makes guild gnaw at my gut, screaming at me to just tell him the truth, that he’ll understand if I just explain my feelings to him. I snap my laptop closed and stuff it into my bag, pretending that it’s the second-guessing thoughts that I’m shoving back into place. I’m done allowing other people to make decisions for me. Now that I have a purpose outside of myself, I refuse to let it slip away.

Adrian watches me with a curious look, observing the way I carelessly pack up our things so we can head to the next class. Since he’s sitting on the outside of the bench, I have to turn and wait for him to move in order to leave. As soon as I turn to face him, he snatches my chin to gently force me to look at him. He narrows his eyes as he searches my face, mouthing tugging into a slight frown. “What’s up with you?” He asks, tucking some hair behind my ear.

I exhale and give him a reassuring smile, feeling bad that I worried him. Sometimes I forget how perceptive he is, so I have to be more careful about controlling my expressions. “Sorry, I’m fine,” I say, passing the school bag off to him. “I’m just tired. I didn’t sleep well.”

He accepts the bag but continues to observe me, reaching to brush his fingers against my eyes. “You do look a little tired. Was I snoring or something?” He asks, sounding genuinely concerned about his sleeping habits.

I chuckle, reaching to touch his arm to assure him that isn’t the case. “No, it wasn’t you. I was just thinking about everything,” I admit, ushering him to move forward so we can exit the lecture hall with the others. He listens to my silent request and takes my hand, lacing his fingers through mine as he leads the way out.

“Oh,” He says, glancing back at me as he holds the door open for me. “That makes sense. I’m sorry it kept you awake.”

I shrug noncommittally, pulling my coat closer around my shoulders. At least now I understand why the school building is kept so cold, considering that nearly half of the student body is constantly as warm as Adrian. I wouldn’t be surprised if they intentionally lowered the temperature just because they found out that the Alpha’s son was going to be attending, just to make sure he’s comfortable. I still can’t believe that he’s only here for me and doesn’t even have to put any effort into the classes in order to pass, as long as my grades are good.

Despite my efforts to remain neutral, my eyes scan the hallways for any signs of Jasper. I know I’m supposed to act natural, but it’s hard to imagine my goofy best friend is slowly losing his mind but manages to hide it so well. The gruesomely curious part of me wonders what an episode or bad day for him would look like, but I decide that I actually don’t want to know. That’s a hard thing to imagine, and I hope I never have to see it for myself. I glance up at Adrian, wondering if he’s ever had to restrain Jasper to keep him from hurting anyone. I can’t even picture Jas trying to do that, but if this Madness managed to grip his own mother tightly enough to make her try to kill her own son, I would assume that it could make anyone do anything.

The thought of Adrian witnessing the macabre sight of a dead body when he was only a child makes me grip his hand a little tighter. No child should have to see something like that. Even as I have the thought, a voice in my head softly adds, ‘You saw something like that, too, didn’t you?’
I frown at the voice, willing it to go away. Intrusive thoughts are nothing new to me, but I’ve managed to stave them off without a problem. This one seems stubborn however and insists on lingering.

Adrian pulls me aside out of the traffic in the hallway and checks his watch. “We still have a few hours before the next class. Are you hungry or anything?” He asks, giving me another concerned look. “Or should we head back a let you nap for a bit?”

I stifle a yawn at the mention of a nap, my stomach still comfortably full from breakfast. I still see no trace of either of my friends, so I decide it’s safe to assume that they’re in class or off-campus for now. “Okay, let’s go back home for a while,” I agree, unable to deny my exhaustion for much longer. Once I get some sleep, I’ll be able to think more clearly and actually focus on what information I can gather today, both from lectures and from Serene.

We make our way back to the Mercedes and head home, the warmth of the car gradually lulling me like a baby. I’m glad we decided to head home in between classes because I would be miserable later tonight if I forced myself to stay awake the whole time. We exit the gates and turn onto the main road, giving me a beautiful view of the snow-covered conifer trees again. Despite being colder than hell, Montana really is beautiful. “Hey,” I say, looking out the window. “Where do you want to live once I graduate? I assume you’d want to stay somewhere colder.”

Adrian glances at me, seemingly enjoying the unexpected question. “I never gave it much thought,” He admits, clearing the windshield from the snow that slides up from the hood of the car. “I’ve lived everywhere as a kid since we kept moving around to help the Pack where they needed us. California was the worst,” He adds, giving me an apologetic look.

“Oh yeah, that’s right,” I realize aloud, turning to look at him. “You lived near Beverly Hills when you were a kid, didn’t you?” That’s where I met Jasper, which means that’s probably the place that his mom was killed. I never heard anything in the news or from gossip at school about a murder in the area, so whatever Adrian and his father did, they managed to cover it up so the media never caught wind of what happened. It’s a good thing they knew how to hide a murder because that would have been an odd headline. The thought brings a shiver creeping up my spine as I try to push the thought away, but the damage has been done.

“I didn’t live there,” Adrian clarifies, turning the heat on my side up a little bit more upon seeing my shiver. “Just came into town once. It was during the summertime too, which made it even worse. I don’t know how anyone can enjoy that type of weather.”

“Well, I could same the same thing about your climate preference,” I say, raising an eyebrow pointedly at the snow outside.

He chuckles as he flips the wipers on again to clear the windshield. “I guess we’ll have to settle on somewhere in between, then,” He says, casting me a suggestive look. That’s right; we’re Mates. It’s easy to forget that this isn’t a typical relationship where things have to move at a slow pace. How does someone date when they know the other person is their literal soul mate? I’ve never given the thought of a future with him too much entertainment since none of my other relationships have ended well. Once he finds out about my plans to go behind his back, maybe he’ll change his mind and decided to break up with me.

I can’t explain why the thought brings a lump to my throat, but it makes me feel frustrated by it. I swallow hard, willing it away as I turn back out the window again. “I guess so. What happened there?” I ask, finding the perfect distraction to turn the conversation too. We’re coming up to the spot where I saw the woman the other day. “It was a ghost, right?”

Adrian glances at the spot as we go by, his expression darkening a bit. “Yes, and no. There are things other than Vampires and Werewolves out here, things that we don’t associate with. Just take my word for it and never get out of the car on this road, okay?”