Page 55 of Shattered Illusion

Looks like my reign of avoiding the library will be coming to an end earlier than I wanted it to.

“Ehh.” She waves her fork in my face. “You’ll do fine. If you haven’t failed out of the class yet, you’ll pass easily.”

Or so she thinks. While I haven’t failed out, it hasn’t been the easiest class to pay attention to. My mind always veers elsewhere. More-so in the past month. I can’t help but think that if I step outside of the academy walls, there will be someone else ready and waiting to take me into captivity or kill me for what I am. But I can’t tell Marion that.

The bell rings, making me jump and my heart rate to kick up a few notches. Marion shoves the last bit of food into her mouth before waving bye and disappearing into her muscle fortress once more as they leave the dining hall.

Snatching up my bag, I exit the dining hall and trudge slowly toward portal class, knowing exactly what Thaddeus’ face will look like when I get there.

Thaddeus doesn’t disappoint. Concern rests heavily in his ice blue eyes the second I step foot into the room, but I avoid his gaze, putting my bag against the wall. He starts to make his way over to me, but I’m saved by the same girls who have a thing for him, rushing to stop him from getting anywhere near me.

Any other time, them doing that would piss me off. But today, I’m almost grateful for it. Because I know, today is the day he will have finally said something.

He tries to bypass the doting girls, but the bell rings before he can get around them. He huffs, shooting me a pointed look, and all I can do is shrug my shoulders. Class isn’t a time to be asking me about my eating habits. He should know, though. I can almost guarantee someone else spilled the beans of what happened. And if he doesn’t know about the mall incident, maybe he credits it to the Professor Asshole fiasco.

“Alright, class. Let’s get started. A few of you have been close to fully forming your portals, so we’re going to jump right in. I want to test the stability of those of you who can form yours before we try sending something through.”

Everyone shifts to their positions around the room, and magic sparks in the air as students get started on their portals.

As I step into the small area of the room reserved for me, a calmness—something I have never experienced before—settles over me. It infuses my limbs and clears my mind of everything that’s been plaguing me the past month, washing it away almost like it never existed. It’s still there. I feel it at the edge of my mind, but for the first time, it’s not the center of my thoughts.

When I close my eyes and delve into the place where my magic resides, it sprouts up, zipping through my limbs. I giggle at the feeling of it, the sound surprising me since it’s felt like forever since I’ve had a reason to laugh. As it comes to a stop, my pink magic coils around my heart for a moment, giving it a squeeze that feels almost like a hug from a long-lost friend. The tension in my muscles loosens even more from the action, making me feel like a brand-new person. Or as brand-new as one can be.

Thaddeus’ voice filters through my thoughts, reminding me what I’m supposed to be doing. And while his lessons are important, if I had a choice, I’d stay right here with this feeling of nothingness weighing me down. No worries about…well, anything. Just me and my magic coexisting as one.

But I don’t have a choice—not if I want to live to see my next birthday. The whole mall incident put everything in perspective for me. That I didn’t truly take Axel’s words to heart. I got too lax listening to my own gut and put myself and Marion in danger. But never again. I will master my magic and my destiny. Because my destiny is what I make of it, and it sure as hell won’t be rolling over and allowing others to take advantage of me.

With that thought in mind, I ask my magic to come to my aid. And while it knows we aren’t in any danger here in the classroom, it zips through my body again before settling over the portal rune on my ass. I have to swallow down my giggle that wants to break free, pushing myself to focus. To get this right for once.

The rune sears itself into my skin, making me wince before the feeling falls away altogether.

“Miss Matthews, open your eyes,” Thaddeus breathes, the heat of his body warming me from behind.

Disappointment rears its ugly head, already knowing that I’ve failed. Once again. I truly thought I had it this time, but I guess I was wrong. I did everything right, just like Olga taught me when healing myself. But maybe that doesn’t work the same way with portals.

“Bailey.” Thaddeus’ breath ghosts over my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. “Open your eyes, sunshine.” Excitement laces his tone this time around, and my eyes snap open to see what has him so excited.

Holy shit.

My mouth drops open, and all I can do is gape in disbelief at the perfectly formed pink portal shining brightly before us. “You did it, Bailey.”

“I did it,” I mutter to myself, my voice thick with awe. “I. Did. It!” I squeal, jumping up and down and clapping my hands.

Spinning around, I throw myself into Thaddy’s arms, excitement coursing through my veins. He swiftly catches me, his grin transforming him from the surly teacher to the amazing mentor he’s been for me. His happiness mirrors my own until the door opens, and a feminine throat clears, reminding us both we’re in his classroom with other students and not in the magical containment room.

Thaddeus swiftly drops me to my feet and takes a step back, putting much-needed distance between us.

“Congratulations, Miss Matthews. Your portal was viable, perfectly formed, and stable.” His voice rises above the mutterings of the other students, drawing their attention. “You’re dismissed for the day.”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. I’ll see you next class.”

“Thank you, thank you.” I barely keep from flinging myself into his arms again, and instead of embarrassing myself, I skirt around him and snatch my bag from the floor, heading for the door.

It’s then I see who interrupted us. None other than Miss Izzicle. I slip past her where she continues to stand in the door, but she doesn’t look at me. No. Her fiery lavender eyes are pinned to Thaddeus as he continues around the room, checking other portals like she’s not even here.

There’s a sinking feeling in my gut that this is his girlfriend, and because of my excitement, I caused strife between the two of them. I have to hope that’s not true. The last thing I want is any animosity in my History class because she thinks there’s something going on between us.

---