Page 43 of Monster's Pet

Aiden nodded soberly. “For someone who found everything easy, it must have been really confusing the first time you came across something that you had to work at in order to become good at it.”

“Exactly!” I exclaimed with a huff. “Maths, for example! Everything was fine, I barely had to study to get it. Algebra, geometry, you name it, no problem. And then in twelfth grade,bam!Calculus, physics, forces. It didn’t make sense! And I wasn’t used to studying, so I didn’t know I had to! I expected it to just fall into place overnight like the previous stuff, you know?”

Aiden didn’t say anything, but his eyes were focused on mine, so I knew he was listening to every word I said.

“Skating was different. The first time I stepped onto the ice, I fell so hard that I smacked my head, too. I wasn’t allowed back on that day because my parents were worried I had a concussion. Neither of them have healing magic, and we weren’t in a town where we could go see someone who did. A couple days passed, and I just didn’t want to try again. It was too embarrassing.” I lowered my voice. “It’s hard to not be perfect when you’re a perfectionist.”

“I believe it.” Aiden pulled me in close to his body and tipped my head up with one gloved hand. “You’re allowed to try new things with me. If you’re not perfect, we’ll work on it. Together.”

“I love you,” I whispered into the space between us, a cloud of my air forming as it left my lips.

“I love you, too.” He joined our mouths for a heated moment, leaving me clinging to the sides of his sweater. He pulled away just as suddenly. “Now, let’s get you more confident on these blades.”

My eyes widened. “You’d teach me?”

“Sure. What’s the point of being good enough to skate in circles around you when all I want to do is skatewithyou?”

I wrinkled my nose. “I’m not sure that’s a compliment.”

“It’s a bit of a tease combined with a brag,” Aiden said sheepishly.

“You’rethatgood?”

“I am.”

“Show me.”

Aiden hesitated a moment, before gliding away from me. Making sure he had enough space, he headed for the center of the ice. Most of our classmates stayed near the edge, slowly skating in circles. But when Aiden did his first jump, everyone stopped and stared at him. He moved seamlessly from that into a spin and then another kind of jump, spiraling across the ice, his footwork flashing and sending up a spray of ice when he reached the end.

I felt like I needed to scrape my jaw off the ice by the end of his performance, and nobody clapped harder than me when he finished.

“I love it when you show competence,” I said, wrapping my arms around his neck once he’d skated back to me.

He was sweating lightly, but looked so happy to have been able to let loose.

“How can you do all that?” I asked.

“I’ve been in figure skating classes since I was little. My parents thought it was a good way for me to let off steam.” Aiden beamed at me. “Are you ready for your lesson?”

I swallowed hard. “Yes. Okay. Let’s do this.”

CHAPTER 12

“I hate Valentine’s Day,”Rhiannon whispered to me as we walked through the hall behind Una after classes.

I could kinda see her point. Despite the ley lines still being missing, it seemed as though everyone was desperate to continue as though everything was normal. Today, that meant candygrams and flowergrams were given to your crush.

Una’s arms were overflowing with gifts from her admirers, so much so that she had made a basket for the flowers, a bag for the candy, and was still carrying several stuffed animals.

“What would the stuffed animal telegram be called?” I mused aloud. “Animagram?”

Rhiannon huffed quietly. Her arms were empty, as were mine. I told Aiden I didn’t want any silly telegrams, and he had taken me at my word. I was glad now, because it meant that Rhiannon was confiding in me.

“Would it mean less coming from a friend?” I asked her.

She was silent for a moment, thinking about my question. “I don’t think so. I don’t want the admirers that Una has. It would make me uncomfortable.”

A plan started bubbling in my brain. “I can’t imagine you ever acting like Una.” I linked our arms. “You wouldn’t be you.”

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