Page 64 of Above
“That was rude,” he hummed, the words sounding less chastising and more…I didn’t even know. Warm, somehow. They skittered across my skin, tingling rather than itching.
“Shut up and walk,” I ordered, shaking my head.Focus.“If you say anything stupid in here, embarrass me, or make any hateful comments about eadi, I’ll stab you in the throat so that you definitely don’t make it back to the academy.”
“Even drunk, I am a better fighter than you. You could never stab me.” His voice was sure and steady momentarily, his weight suddenly bearable as he straightened himself.
“Seeing as I had you flat on your ass, I disagree.” We were so close. I was both relieved and terrified. My bottom lip slipped between my teeth, and I began slowly tearing off the chapped skin.
“Trust me on this one, Tershetta,” Altair whispered, his finger coming up and gliding across my lip. I startled, my teeth separating. “I wouldn’t let you live if you tried to kill me.”
“Be a good boy so we don’t have to test it,” I mocked, my voice oddly thick. He was unsettling me with his heinous personality.
“Don’t flirt with me and I will.” Altair winked, removing his arm from my shoulder, his steps wobbly.
“You’re disgusting. Now focus,” I ordered, not in the mood for whatever lighthearted jokes he conjured when drunk. No matter what, I couldn’t forget who he really was. Groaning in displeasure, he closed the distance between us and the pawn shop. Both of our hands pressed into the glass doors, a bell dinging above, and I desperately wished I didn’t have to do this.
Throwing my arm in front of Altair, I stopped him in his tracks, quickly tugging his hood over his striking hair and wrapping his cloak tighter around him. Though he was still wet and the soggy sloshes on the tile could easily be heard from across the large room, I had tried my best.
“Artie! It’s me!” I yelled as I darted toward the back. Leaning across the counter, I tried my best to sound casual, though it came across more hysterical. “Hello?”
Artie popped his head around the open doorway to the back of his shop, brows furrowed in confusion. He probably wasn’t prepared to see me twice while I was meant to be at academy. Honestly, I was surprised I was here too.
“What are you doing back so soon?”
“Actually, I just need some clothes.”
“You need clothes,” he deadpanned, looking at me with slitted eyes. “What do you need them for?”
“Oh, they’re not for me. I need them for a…friend.” It pained me to call Altair such a thing, and from his loud scoff, the word bothered him too. Though I didn’t gesture towards Altair, Artie still looked behind me at the sound.
“I’ve never seen you with a friend in all the years I’ve known you.” Rude. True, but rude.
“It’s a friend from the academy.” I could tell that stunned him, terrified him. Artie didn’t trust shaytan that weren’t me.
“Well why do they need your help? Can’t they use magic?”
“They’re a little drunk. If I can just buy some clothes, I swear to the stars we will get out of your hair.”
Artie stared at me for longer than I wished, making me squirm. “What are you hiding from me?”
“I’m not hiding anything,” I quipped far too quickly.
“Really? Because you’re acting paranoid right now. Like you’re not telling me something important.”
“She is,” came the haughty voice at my back, followed by the sound of swishing fabric. Artie’s eyes looked like they were going to bulge out of their sockets, his mouth falling open in a large O shape. I turned, catching sight of Altair, bright hair on display and smile wide as he looked at us. I pivoted back around with a heavy sigh, knowing what I’d find on the pawn shop owner’s face. Fury.
“Tershetta,” he hissed.
“Listen it’s not what you think.”
“You brought a fucking core into my shop!” Artie’s voice was sharp and loud, a panic seeming to settle in.
“Some shop,” Altair murmured from behind us.
“Shut the fuck up, Altair!”
“Altair. That’s what I figured from the hair. What in the absolute stars are you doing, Nova?”
“Artie, I can explain.”
