Maybe Fate: A Novel (New Adult Paranormal Romance) (12 page)

Grinning,
I took it, feeling comfort in the weight. “I know, right?”

Squinting
at it, she rubbed her hands on her pants. “What is it? A giant
dictionary?”

Thumbing
the torn edges, I placed it on my desk. “Not exactly. Just...
something for research.”

Laughing,
she tossed her hair with an exaggerated shake of her head. “Ugh.
It's the weekend, this is the time for fun! Not extra class work or
whatever. Come on,” she said, leaning down and gripping my
shoulders. “I was thinking of going out tonight with Ethan,
why not come with? Stewart will be there again.”

Her
wink made me gag. “Oh, uh, no thanks.”

“
Then
invite your secret boy there, Nethiun or whatever.”

Imagining
the blonde twaelin hanging out at the club brought a nervous sweat
across my back. “I don't think that's going to happen.”

Folding
her arms, she leveled her eyes at me. “You walked in on me
having half-naked makeouts. You owe it to me to come out tonight.”

Gaping,
I shook my head slowly. “Becky, that's not fair. We went out
last night! Also, I thought I was forgiven?”

“
Nope!
Now you have to come, or I'll give you the silent treatment.”

Lowering
my eyebrows, I cupped my cheeks petulantly. “You're awful.
Fine. But keep that Stewart guy away from me, got it?”

Laughing,
she dug into the closet, pulling out a pair of particularly tall
heels. “Let me help you get ready, and it's a deal.”

Groaning,
I rolled across my bed like a kid whining about dinner. “Becky,
no.”

“
Let's
look our best if we're going to hit the town! Besides,” she
said slyly, holding up a slinky piece in emerald and gold, “I've
got just the thing for you.”

I
immediately regretted asking for her forgiveness.

****

The
club was called something ridiculous, the 'Pink Leopard' or some
such. I didn't know, I wanted to forget the night already.

Squeezing
through the crowds of people, dressed only in the form-fitting dress
Becky had essentially blackmailed me into wearing, I wanted to
scream.

Wanted
to scream at people to move, to get off of me, to put on better
deodorant. Everything was sticky and humid and smelled like ham.

Why
didn't I just notice the dumb sock.

Sighing,
I followed Becky until we broke through into a slightly less packed
section of the dark club. It was hard to see, everyone was dimmed by
the lack of good lighting. Occasionally, an awful black light would
wriggle to life, lighting my dress and peoples' teeth in electric
blue fire.

“
Hey!
Ethan!” The raven haired girl, dressed in a silver mini-dress
that made mine look like a nun's habit, pulled away.

Blinking,
I saw her hug someone tight, giggling against his neck. It wasn't
until she planted a fat wet kissed on his sculpted cheek that I got
a good look at him.

Like
every guy I saw Becky with, this one belonged in some sort of
fashion magazine. The bones on his face were set high, giving him an
exotic look that matched what I thought was richly tanned skin.

Lean,
his body displayed in skinny jeans and a form fitting V-neck, I
wondered if he was from another country.

He
saw me staring, met my boring grey eyes with his own burning orbs of
rich gold. Taken aback by the intensity of his gaze, I just stood
there, full on deer in headlights mode.

Smiling
so wide her gums showed, Becky wrapped an arm around his thin waist
and looked my way. “Gale, this is Ethan.”

Is
my mouth hanging open?

Clearing
my throat, ignoring the odd flutter in my belly, I stepped closer.
Instantly, I regretted my heels. My ankle shifted, sending me
stumbling on a one way trip to the hard floor.

Wincing,
I threw my arms out, ready to hit. Instead, something caught me
around my shoulders, stopping my descent.

Even
with that, I crumbled slightly to the floor. Lifting my head,
half-kneeling, I found my nose almost touching Ethan's.

Oh,
shit.

Staring
into the hot centers of his eyes, I couldn't breathe. “That
was close,” he chuckled, lifting me up until I found my
balance.

Looking
over his shoulder, I saw Becky was watching me with an expression
I'd never seen her aim at me.

Is
that... jealousy?

“
You
okay?” he asked, leaning in to get my attention. An awkward
laugh exploded from me, my hands pushing him away as I retreated to
create space.

“
Uh,
yes! Totally fine. Not—not even a thing. Haha.” My tiny
laugh faded, but my humiliation lingered firmly.

Becky
stepped between us, her hand going possessively to the chest of the
chestnut haired boy. “Well then, glad you guys met. Let's go
get a drink Gale, hmn?”

“
I...
yes. Sure. Let's do that.” Deliberately, I made myself look at
her face instead of Ethan's. Letting her grip my wrist, we pushed
back into the writhing crowd.

We
hadn't gone far before she turned back to me, hurt boiling in her
big blue eyes. “Gale, what was that about?”

“
Sorry?”
I asked, knowing what she meant, but not sure how to address it.
“What are you—”

“
Back
there, with Ethan! I've never seen you flirt before, but that guy is
off limits for practice.”

Clenching
my hands at my sides, I gave my head a wild shake. Becky had tamed
my ginger locks somewhat, weaving them into a tight braid. Now,
those heavy tresses slapped against my shoulders. “I wasn't
flirting!”

“
That
was definitely flirting!”

“
I—no!
No no no! Ugh, Becky,” I growled, my hands slicing the air in
anger. “I wasn't, and wouldn't, flirt with the guy you're
seeing.”

Glowering
at me, she surveyed the set of my eyebrows, seemed to find it
convincing. “Alright. Just... stay out of his arms, that's my
place. I live there, okay?”

I
went to tuck my hair behind my ears out of habit, finding I
couldn't. “Of course. You got it, don't worry.”

“
Besides,”
she mused, returning to her normal teasing mood, “I thought
you had a guy you were interested in.”

Staring
at her blankly, I realized what she was talking about. “Nethiun?
Oh, no, it isn't—”

Waving
her hand, she cut me off and pushed towards the bar. “I'm
going to try and get them to serve me an
actual
drink, wish me luck!”

Left
alone in a sea of people, the lights flashing over my head, I
watched my roommate vanish among all the bodies.

The
music pumped through the air, but I hardly heard it. I was stuck in
my thoughts, thoughts that kept repeating the same words through my
head.
A
guy I'm interested in...

Breathing
in till my belly hurt, I let the air whoosh past my lips. The inside
of my eyelids were a calming darkness. All together, taking a moment
to myself, I felt a bit calmer.

Becky
means well, but she just has no idea what's going on right now. How
could she?

Maybe
I should just go with it tonight and try and have some fun, though.
It isn't like I can really do much else. I'm too tired to go back
and pour over the pages of that giant book.

The
truth was I really
couldn't
do anything about my situation, so why not just sink in and enjoy
the change of scenery?

Letting
the tension release from my shoulders, I opened my eyes with a sense
of freedom. A freedom that was smashed on the virtual rocks
immediately when I saw the person standing right in front of me.

Nethiun.

“
What
are you doing here?” I gasped, staring around in a panic.

Blinking,
he lifted his eyebrows to his hairline. “That's not much of a
greeting.”

Covering
my mouth, I stared at him in the dim lighting. Even here, his grin
was curved as a scythe. “You can't be here. Becky will see
you!”

“
Is
that a problem?” He didn't seem worried one bit. Dressed as he
was, that same pair of crisp trousers and his slick, tight button
down, he would have fit right in with the young crowd of people.

But
I knew better. I knew what he was.

Stepping
forward, I tried to lower my voice, but the place was roaring with
music and I needed to be heard. “Your eyes,” I hissed.

Lifting
a hand to his ear, he leaned closer to me. “Sorry, my what?”

“
Your
eyes!” I shouted, nose almost brushing his temple. When he
turned back to face me, the tip of his actually did touch mine.

Shocked
at the abrupt contact, the feel of his marble skin, I found myself
looking deeply into those severe orbs of his. Only...

Only,
this time, they looked almost normal. Still far lighter than any
human eye should be, but they didn't seem to eat the very glow of
the lights away.

It
was like hot-white silver dollars looking back at me, shiny and new.
I was transfixed, and might have stood there stupidly if Becky's
voice hadn't piped up beside me.

“
Gale?”
She moved into the corner of my vision, letting me break away. My
face was flushed, I could feel it acutely. “Oh, Becky!”

Blinking,
she tilted her head, dark ringlets falling over her throat. “And
who is this fine gentleman we have here?”

I
didn't have time to speak up. The twaelin leaned towards my friend,
tucking his chin in a tiny bow. “Now,
that's
a greeting. I'm Nethiun, and you're Becky, it seems.”

Understanding
washed over her face. An awful, gut wrenching understanding. “
You're
Nethiun? Oh my gosh, wow, I guess it would take a guy as cute as you
to break Gale out of her shell!”

I
wondered how many people I could knock down if I ran away right
then.

Chuckling,
the blonde glanced at me knowingly. “Shell, you say.”

Giggling,
the busty girl offered me up one of the cups she held. “Here,
I got this for you. Drink up, come join Ethan and I when you're
ready.” The way she drawled the word 'ready' made my belly
seize.