Page 73 of Elas

“Yeah, August. I do.”

Silence hangs thick over our heads for a long stretch. “I have to tell Elas.”

He scoffs, crossing his arms over his chest. “Yeah, I figured. Guess I’ll cherish my head while it’s still attached.”

“He wouldn’t—” I start to argue, but he silences me with another glare.

“Better get going, August,” he says as he turns and walks into the shower stall. “If Elas is already planning to murder me, it won’t hurt for me to give you a show, will it?” He yanks his shirt over his head and glances at me over his pale, bare shoulder. I sigh, recognizing the conversation is done. The rings on the shower curtain whip closed, and I squeeze my fingers around the dirty scrubs fisted in my hand.

My head is a muddled mess as I enter the hallway and approach the laundry. Faint rhythmic whirs grow louder as I step inside and toss the used clothes into a machine, and a sense of dread falls over me as I make my way to thesupply closet. The day crawls by, and I’m on edge, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

When I take my lunch, Kopros and Flynn sit in the break room, and both of them nod before returning to their conversation. No one speaks to me as I grab a plate from the fridge and sit at a small table in the corner. I eat quickly, forcing my cramping stomach to accept the food.

Xeni flashes me a quick, disinterested smile as he enters, then joins the other two. I stand and hesitate, uncertain what I’m waiting for, but no one pays me any attention. I head back to work, only stopping to move the laundry to the dryer.

The rest of the afternoon goes by without incident, aside from my heart palpitations at every noise. Every footstep convinces me someone is coming to whisk me away, and by the time the day is over, my stomach has tied itself into knots.

Shortly after I return from sneaking the spare scrubs back into the pile, another set of footsteps thuds down the hallway. They’re heavier, more determined, and when the door flies open, I yelp. Elas’s heavy brows bunch as I will my heart not to leap right out of my chest. “You okay, doc?” he asks, his concern growing as I take a few steadying breaths.

“Yeah, I’m… let’s just get out of here. Please?”

He studies me for a moment before giving me a slow nod. “Of course. We’ll go home.” He walks beside me as we navigate the corridors, and when Xeni steps out of an exam room, Elas snarls at him. Xeni glances at me, but seems to understand we haven’t had the conversation yet. He purseshis lips and darts past us, careful not to touch me as he whizzes by.

“Fuck that guy,” Elas mutters, and it’s loud enough to carry.

“Elas, come on.” His eyes whip to mine, surprised by the annoyance in my tone. “I just want to go home.”

“Alright,” he says after a pause, but nods and leads me towards the exit. The entire walk to the barracks is tense. He glances at me every few seconds, but doesn’t say a word. Once we get inside, though, all bets are off. As soon as the door is shut, he whirls to face me.

“What’s going on?” He crosses his arms over his barrel of a chest and hikes a brow.

“I, uh, well… something happened today that I need to tell you about. Something with… Xeni.”

His lip lifts as he drops his arms and takes a step forward, but I hold my ground. “What sort of something?” he asks, his face nothing but clenched teeth and savage eyes.

“He, um… okay, well, he kind of… walked into the shower while I was changing.” Elas’s expression turns positively murderous as I hurry to continue. “It was an accident… he didn’t know I was in there.”

“Were you naked?”

“Well, uh, not all of me…”

“I’llkill him!” The last two words come out as a bellow as he whips around, and his intentions are clear. He’s going to storm back to the clinic and hunt Xeni down.

I grab for his hand, yanking on his wrist. “Wait a second, Elas. Please, just… that’s not the worst of it.”

He pauses with his hand on the door, his chest heaving with his heavy breaths. A predatory stillness overtakeshim as he slowly turns, his eyes narrowed and intent. “August, you should start talking before I make it out that door, because if I find him right now… I can’t promise he’ll be in one piece once I’m done with him.”

I move closer and guide his arm around my waist. His expression softens marginally as he waits, and I brace myself for his reaction. “He saw my mark,” I finally say, and that predatory air is amplified by a thousand as he freezes, so still he could be carved from stone.

“He what?” he growls, his anger so palpable I can barely decipher his words.

“Please, El, I’ll tell you everything, but I need you to come sit with me. You can’t leave me right now, okay? I’ve been stressed and scared all day, and I’ve just... I’veneededyou.”

He whines low in the back of his throat, like my words have physically hurt him. “I’m here, baby,” he murmurs as he scoops me up. He carries me to the couch, cradling me in his lap as he sits, and I tuck my face into his neck and breathe in his calming scent. “I won’t go… I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking.” Strong, steady arms circle my back and hug me against him, and his touch dissolves the tension from my muscles.

“It’s alright now,” I whisper, and his fingers thread through my hair as he lifts my head, pressing a gentle kiss on my lips. He’s acting calm for my sake, but his hand trembles against my scalp as he holds me there.

“Tell me what happened.” I recount the entire conversation, including the part where Xeni confessed he’d had real feelings for me. Elas’s breathing becomes strained, but he calms himself enough to let me finish. When Iexplain the black, lifeless mark on Xeni’s hip, he frowns and confirms he doesn’t know any more about it than I do. I finish the story, up to Xeni swearing he’ll keep our secret and refusing to say anything more.

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