Page 26 of Curse of Thorns

“I am a Seer and Fae?” I ask.

Nodding, Headmaster Patricia smiles warmly at me. “Yes, you are very powerful and I know that you will do great things with this knowledge,” she explains.

I make my way back to my table where I am embraced with a warm hug from Candi.

“This is incredible,” Candi whispers in my ear. “This is what we thought all along.”

I take my seat, my heart swelling with pride and love. I feel a heated gaze on me; and I know that when I turn my head, I am going to find Ason staring at me.

His proud smile causes butterflies to flutter deep in my belly. I have no idea what to make of this, but I can’t worry about that now. I just discovered that I have true powers and I can’t wait to share this with my mom.

The rest of the ceremony flew by in a blur -- there were speeches, performances, and dancing. As I sat watching everyone enjoy the evening, I felt a heaviness take over me.

Sensing him even before he made his way to me, I saw Ason standing beside me.

“It looks like you actually do have powers,” he says, reminding me of my fears from earlier.

Nodding, all I can do is smile. “Yes, I sort of had a feeling I may be a Seer. I’ve been researching.”

“I’m aware,” Ason says.

His eyes dance around the room and I wonder what he is up to.

Ason offered me his hand and I just stared down.

“Look, everyone is dancing. Maybe we should, too,” he says.

Is he asking me to dance? I hate how elusive Ason is, but I don’t have the heart to turn him down.

Placing my hand in his, a spark tears through me, and my eyes shoot up to look into Ason’s.

He leads us to the dance floor where the candlelight glows all around us. For a moment I felt beautiful.

The music wrapped around us as Ason placed one hand on my waist and the other, taking my hand in his again. I did not need to know him to follow his lead, as if we were one body dancing across the floor. Ason, tall and handsome and so different than anyone else I knew, held me tightly like he was never going to let me go. I could feel the stares of those around us, but I didn’t care. At this moment, it was just the two of us.

“Why did you ask me to dance?” I blurt out.

Cringing, I hope that I didn’t ruin the mood, but I desperately needed to know.

Ason doesn’t loosen his hold on me, but sighs deeply. “I’m proud of you and wanted to dance.”

“Proud of me?” I question.

“I thought you hated me,” I almost laughed.

Ason looks deeply into my eyes, all hints of anger long gone.

“Trust me, what I feel for you isn’t hate,” he says, through clenched teeth.

I stop for a moment, but Ason continues to twirl me around the dance floor. I don’t know how to respond to what he just said, so I just keep my mouth clamped shut.

"I know we're supposed to be rivals, but I think I've been wrong about you all along." Ason’s words ring loudly in my ears.

Stifling a laugh, I had to smile at him. “Rivals, huh? Is that what we are?” I asked.

He chuckled and it was the sweetest sound I had ever heard. I have no idea how this shift between us happened, but something has changed.

“To be honest, I have no idea what we are. You are so hot and cold at times,” I admit.

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