Page 55 of The Cursed Fae

Stepping out of his reach, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I wasn't ready. Let's go again.”

He stared at me curiously, as if just realizing we weren't as close as he'd thought to using “Lanter” for our relationship name.

“Yeah. Okay.” He backed slowly across the room, wiggling his eyebrows in a way that made me roll my eyes. I eventually cracked a smile, despite my mood.

“Ready?” he asked, dropping into a stance that reminded me of a sprint runner coming off the blocks.

Magic gathered at my center, and I nodded once. This time, I was ready for him when Laz charged. Golden light shot from my palms and hit him in the navel, knocking him backward onto his ass.

“Oh, Gaia. Shit. I'm so sorry.” I rushed over to help him up.

Laz accepted my hand, though he didn't actually need help. “Right idea, wrong execution.” His fingers intertwined with mine. He brought his free hand to my stomach, sending the butterflies aflutter despite my best efforts to temper my hormones.

I was mad at him, damn it. I needed to get it together.

“Your power comes from here. You've got that part down, but you need to channel it more effectively. Spell craft isn't about raw energy. It's an art form, like painting instead of heaving a bucket at a canvas.”

The words popped out before I could stop them. “I thought my power came from water. You know—because I'm a water fae.” I regretted the outburst immediately. This was not how I wanted our talk to go down.

Laz stepped back and tilted his head to the side. “What am I missing? What's going on?”

My internal lie detector didn't get any pings. It felt like he was truly clueless. Not that my intuition was always great with Laz—almost like I had a blind spot when it came to him.

“On Friday night, that wasn't a shielding spell I used.” I tried and failed to keep the accusation out of my tone.

Laz's laugh sounded forced and awkward. “Okay. Then what was it?”

“A pocket dimension.” I propped my hands on my hips and gave him a pointed glare. “Because I'm a dimensional fae.”

His eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “Who told you that? I mean... I guess it's not impossible. Just really rare. I have only ever known two fae with dimensional powers. Although...” A light sparked behind his gray eyes. “That would explain a lot.”

It was my turn to look confused. “Like how I could create a pocket dimension?”

“Well, yeah, that too.” Laz shook his head. “I was thinking more about the aptitude test. You drew power from all four elements, which isn't uncommon for a lot of fae. Most of us can actually pull from at least two different sources, though one is always stronger than the other. You tend mostly toward water even though you can use the other three elements as well.”

I watched him closely for signs of deception and found none. My bad mood lessened.

“You really didn't know?” I asked.

“That you're a dimensional fae? No, not at all. I swear.” He made a small cross over his heart with one finger. “I should've considered it. I feel sort of stupid for not considering it.” Laz narrowed his eyes as though just realizing the reason for my sour attitude. “Wait. You don't think I lied, do you? Come on, Winter. That's ridiculous. Why would I?”

Laz moved closer and rested his hands on my shoulders, pulling me into his arms. I didn't shy away. With everything out in the open, I felt a little ridiculous. Between Laz's explanation and Archer's insistence, it seemed like the entire thing was just a big misunderstanding. A simple mistake. Everyone made mistakes, right?

“I'm sorry,” I said, arms winding around his waist. Resting my head against his chest, I added, “I just let other people get in my head. I didn't mean to accuse you of anything.”

He kissed my hair. “You don't need to apologize. I'm not mad. Just talk to me next time. This is a small school in a small town, and people love to talk shit. I know it's hard but try not to let it get to you.”

He leaned back and brought his mouth to mine in a long, lingering kiss that made my head spin. I felt stupid for doubting him. Laz had been so nice to me, so inviting compared to a lot of others. Including his own sister.

“Let's call it a day,” Laz said when we finally broke apart. His hand slid into mine. “I'll look up some stuff on dimensional fae, and we can start your training fresh tomorrow. The source of your magic doesn't change much for the spells we've been working on, but it will make a difference once we get into the more complex stuff.”

“It'll be awhile before I'm ready for anything more complicated.”

Laz grabbed both our bags on the way out the door and carried them in his free hand. “I don't know about that. A pocket dimension is pretty advanced. I'll talk to Canterwald and see if she knows a dimensional fae who can help us once you get past the basics.”

I almost told him not to bother, since I'd already found a dimensional fae willing to tutor me. Something stopped me, though. I liked my one-on-one time with Archer. He was the sounding board for all my problems, and I wasn't ready to share our friendship with a third party. Archer seemed to be an outsider at the university, and I didn't want to hear the reasons why. If I'd learned anything at Arcane U, it was not to believe everything I heard.

When I got back to my room, I pulled out my phone before I could talk myself out of it. Since the talk with Laz went so well, I decided to venture a similar conversation with my family. It was time to lay all the cards on the table. Maybe then Nana and my mother would finally stop whispering behind my back. Unfortunately, Nana Essie didn't answer her cell. Or the house phone. My mom's number went to voicemail too.

---