Page 54 of The Cursed Fae

“I'll keep that in mind,” I said.

Stares and whispers followed me the entire morning. My classmates must have spent the weekend whipping the rumor mill into a frenzy over my protection spell, or whatever it was on the beach. Thank Gaia I had friends to ward off the awkwardness. Astrid's deadpan glare did a lot toward silencing the chatter. Unfortunately, I was alone in Professor Tartan's class, which was probably why Jamila pounced then.

The younger girl was already in her seat when I entered the room. Her dark eyes followed me as I wound through the aisles to my desk. She spun to face me before I'd slid all the way into my chair.

“How are you, Winter?” she asked, faux concern oozing out of her pores.

“I'm fine,” I said stiffly.

“Aren't you so glad Laz was with you on the beach? No one new to magic could have defended herself in that situation,” Jamila went on in a deceptively sweet voice.

“Excuse me?”

This was a different take on events, and I found I liked it even less than the stories that made me out to be some hero. Laz had jumped in front of the vampire's magic and taken the hit meant for me, but the spell had rendered him useless for the rest of the attack. It was Morgan and Chance and Nana who deserved the credit for saving all our asses.

Still, I didn't like the implication that I was weak and in need of rescue.

“I'm not new to magic,” I retorted.

Jamila rolled her eyes and giggled. “Don't be so defensive. Having Lazlo Keene play savior is something a lot of girls in Arcane Landing would kill for.”

“Hey, Winter?” A shadow fell over me, and I looked up to find Ewan standing there. “I missed Gorman's seminar on Friday. Mind lending me your notes?” he asked, ignoring Jamila as he took his seat.

We didn't have a seminar together. I wasn't even sure a Professor Gorman taught at AU, and could only assume this was Ewan's attempt at chivalry. I didn't need a mirror to know that nothing about my expression said I wanted to discuss the attack with Jamila.

“Oh, yeah. Sure. Let me set up my laptop, I'll email them to you,” I said.

Jamila took the hint and started speaking to the girl in front of her, though she looked miffed at the obvious blow-off.

I pretended to find notes for a class that didn't exist. An envelope popped up in the corner of my screen. The subject line read: You're Welcome. Opening the message, I read the single sentence from Ewan.

Glad you're okay. Tell the kiddies to piss off.

The bell rang, and Professor Tartan started her lecture on the Gemini Fae, this week's focus. I hit reply and typed a message back to Ewan.

Afraid you'll go back to being the new kid without me around?

I knew the moment Ewan read my email because he cracked a smile. His fingers typed out a quick response.

I enjoy being the new guy. Makes me mysterious. But you keep life interesting. I heard three of your freshmen admirers talking about asking you to the formal. One of them is probably the love note poet.

It was just stupid banter, meant to be a funny way to pass the hour instead of paying attention to Professor Tartan's lecture. Still, I didn't want to think about the letter from my secret stalker. It reminded me that no matter what version of events the other students believed, the attack was my fault. That was the Gaia's-honest truth.

The vampires hadn't shown up on the beach purely to create chaos and wreak havoc. They'd come for me and only me.

Chapter eighteen

Way to Deflect

I successfully dodged Laz until our independent study, which was unavoidable. After spending most of the day imagining all the ways the confrontation over my magic could go, I thought I was ready to have the conversation. Then I saw him, and I couldn't find the words.

Flustered, I decided I would wait until after our session to confront him. That was better. If the conversation went badly, I wouldn't have to see him again for twenty-four hours. Worst case, I could even talk to Professor Canterwald about getting a new tutor.

If he noticed my standoffish attitude, Laz didn't let on, which just annoyed me more.

We started with deflection spells. I was pretty good at diverting small objects that weren't too weighty. The problems started when Laz hurled himself at me. My first attempt didn't even slow his progress. He caught me around the waist and grinned.

“You can do better than that.”

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