Healing means forgetting the past and moving forward.

If I move forward… I’ll forget about Iris.

Like the rest of the world did and only remembers when everyone sees me.

The Ruthless King and the Suicide Maiden.

“Fuck,” I curse and pull away, forcing myself to turn around and tame my breaths that are coming out far too fast. “This is all fucked up. What am I even doing?”

With an added huff, I ruffle my hair, annoyed with the style because I should have dyed it magenta entirely. I would have blended in a bit better than looking like some cocky fucker.

Iris would have loved it as fully magenta…

“So her name was Iris.”

I freeze.

Not because of the idea of someone overhearing what I just confessed in random segments but due to the emotionless voice that makes the statement.

Shit…

I cloak my face and look back to see Verena staring at me with an unreadable expression.

“What?” I end up saying.

“What?” She tosses the question back at me.

Fuck. I have to be hallucinating out of fucking guilt.

“Verena. Why are you in this classroom alone?” I ask instead.

“What? I can’t study and take a power nap while waiting for Ares to finish his call so we can go home?” she tosses back bitterly.

Shit. Meaning she was going to go home with Ares after the call. Not staying late to study or some shit.

I don’t want to admit it, but the wave of dread rushing through me tells me I did something utterly stupid. Something I did years ago, again and again.

Theo set me the fuck up…

“You know it’s dangerous,” I scold her as if she did something wrong for sleeping in an empty classroom. “We should know where you are at all times, especially when you’re alone.”

“That’s why I have a tracker,” she says, as if it’s a reminder. “Oh, right. You wouldn’t know that since you just became a Ruthless King. My bad. Did Matteo forget to give you the memo?”

What the fuck is this?

“Can you not give me attitude?” I growl and spin around to take three steps back to be faced with her desk.

“Attitude? You’re making it sound as if I’m high maintenance.”

“You ARE high maintenance when you’re being bitchy because I woke you up.”

“You did NOT wake me up,” she snarls back.

“You were asleep.”

“I was resting my eyes. I never said I was fucking asleep, Warren.”

“It’s Aries.”