be sore for days.
I slid the food in front of me around, glum that my life had been taken from me and angry that I was powerless to stop it from happening. Only now did it hit me that I was stuck here for two years.
Plastic clattered against the table. “Hey. Glad to see you snagged us an empty table.” I glanced up from my food to find Caden sitting across from me.
“Do you ever go away?” I asked, annoyed. He was the last person I wanted to see.
“Sorry princess,” he didn’t look sorry at all, “but we’re partners, which means we’re stuck together.”
Fantastic.
“Have you met some of the other teleporters here?” he asked, nodding his head to indicate the rest of the dining hall.
“I’ve seen some of them in class.”
“ Seen and met are two very different things. Here, I’ll call my buddies over.”
“Caden, no — ”
He turned to the table he was previously sitting at and whistled, waving his friends over and conveniently ignoring me. At least a half dozen students got up and began to move our way.
My blood pounded and my muscles tensed. All I wanted was to eat alone. I grabbed my tray and stood up. Caden’s hand shot out and grabbed my arm, pulling me back into my seat.
“What do you think you’re — ?”
He leaned in and whispered gruffly. “They’re watching us all the time, studying our behavior. If you want to go unnoticed, then you have to blend in. Being a loner will convince them you’re maladaptive. And you do not want that.”
I stared at him for a long moment, taking in this tactical side of Caden. His friends, my classmates, were almost to the table.
“If you’re so concerned about it, then why have you made yourself stand out?” I asked, thinking about the way he moved about the facility, acting like he owned the place.
“You mistake acting the part for standing out.”
The logic behind his words sounded eerily familiar. Hadn’t I done the same thing by covering up my markings with a tattoo? Plus, I had been hiding myself in plain sight for the last five years up until I’d arrived here.
“We all have roles to play,” Caden continued. “Hadn’t I just about convinced you of who I was?”
Yes. I’d assumed Caden was arrogant, egotistical, and charmed the staff and faculty into getting what he wanted. Now I wasn’t so sure that was all there was to him.
His friends began to sit down around us. “Find your role and fit in,” Caden finished, smoothly transitioning from our conversation into fist-pounding one of his buddies and laughing at something he said.
His words gave me the chills. We were being watched.
A guy with skin the color of caramel was the first to introduce himself. “Jeff,” he said, reaching a hand out from across the table to shake mine.
I’d done this often in my old life — made introductions. That was what came with moving around a lot. I’d also learned to keep my distance, to make only a few superficial friends — Ava excepted — because when you moved a lot, goodbyes inevitably followed a short while later.
“Ember,” I said, taking his hand.
His striking green eyes flashed with interest. “It’s nice to meet you, and a damn shame that you’re not single.”
I pulled my hand from his. “I’m not in a relationship, if that’s what you’re talking about,” I said. My gaze flicked to Caden.
Caden’s eyes glittered mischeviously, and again I saw a challenge in them.
Jeff raised his eyebrows. “Oh really?” A smile played on his lips, but he didn’t say anything more.
On Caden’s other side Desiree watched me. When I met her gaze, she held it long enough to let me know she didn’t care that I caught her staring, before turning and asking Caden a question.
“Ignore her,” a blonde girl to my right said.
I glanced over at her. “Serena,” she said, introducing herself, “and that’s my pair, Eric.” She indicated the blonde guy on my other side, and he nodded to me.
“Ember,” I said.
I slid the food in front of me around, glum that my life had been taken from me and angry that I was powerless to stop it from happening. Only now did it hit me that I was stuck here for two years.
Plastic clattered against the table. “Hey. Glad to see you snagged us an empty table.” I glanced up from my food to find Caden sitting across from me.
“Do you ever go away?” I asked, annoyed. He was the last person I wanted to see.
“Sorry princess,” he didn’t look sorry at all, “but we’re partners, which means we’re stuck together.”
Fantastic.
“Have you met some of the other teleporters here?” he asked, nodding his head to indicate the rest of the dining hall.
“I’ve seen some of them in class.”
“ Seen and met are two very different things. Here, I’ll call my buddies over.”
“Caden, no — ”
He turned to the table he was previously sitting at and whistled, waving his friends over and conveniently ignoring me. At least a half dozen students got up and began to move our way.
My blood pounded and my muscles tensed. All I wanted was to eat alone. I grabbed my tray and stood up. Caden’s hand shot out and grabbed my arm, pulling me back into my seat.
“What do you think you’re — ?”
He leaned in and whispered gruffly. “They’re watching us all the time, studying our behavior. If you want to go unnoticed, then you have to blend in. Being a loner will convince them you’re maladaptive. And you do not want that.”
I stared at him for a long moment, taking in this tactical side of Caden. His friends, my classmates, were almost to the table.
“If you’re so concerned about it, then why have you made yourself stand out?” I asked, thinking about the way he moved about the facility, acting like he owned the place.
“You mistake acting the part for standing out.”
The logic behind his words sounded eerily familiar. Hadn’t I done the same thing by covering up my markings with a tattoo? Plus, I had been hiding myself in plain sight for the last five years up until I’d arrived here.
“We all have roles to play,” Caden continued. “Hadn’t I just about convinced you of who I was?”
Yes. I’d assumed Caden was arrogant, egotistical, and charmed the staff and faculty into getting what he wanted. Now I wasn’t so sure that was all there was to him.
His friends began to sit down around us. “Find your role and fit in,” Caden finished, smoothly transitioning from our conversation into fist-pounding one of his buddies and laughing at something he said.
His words gave me the chills. We were being watched.
A guy with skin the color of caramel was the first to introduce himself. “Jeff,” he said, reaching a hand out from across the table to shake mine.
I’d done this often in my old life — made introductions. That was what came with moving around a lot. I’d also learned to keep my distance, to make only a few superficial friends — Ava excepted — because when you moved a lot, goodbyes inevitably followed a short while later.
“Ember,” I said, taking his hand.
His striking green eyes flashed with interest. “It’s nice to meet you, and a damn shame that you’re not single.”
I pulled my hand from his. “I’m not in a relationship, if that’s what you’re talking about,” I said. My gaze flicked to Caden.
Caden’s eyes glittered mischeviously, and again I saw a challenge in them.
Jeff raised his eyebrows. “Oh really?” A smile played on his lips, but he didn’t say anything more.
On Caden’s other side Desiree watched me. When I met her gaze, she held it long enough to let me know she didn’t care that I caught her staring, before turning and asking Caden a question.
“Ignore her,” a blonde girl to my right said.
I glanced over at her. “Serena,” she said, introducing herself, “and that’s my pair, Eric.” She indicated the blonde guy on my other side, and he nodded to me.
“Ember,” I said.
Similar Books
