Page 7 of The Mist of Stars
I turn around, rubbing my knee, and peer out of the foliage. He’s standing only a few feet away with his phone pressed to his ear.
“I know, but they’re getting weirder. And it’s happening every night.” He gives a short pause. “No … Well, there are these stars in it, and this girl is also there.” He picks at a leaf on the tree branch. “Yeah, I know her really well … I don’t know … Okay, yeah, fine, let’s meet up at lunch, and we can talk about it more.” He hangs up and blows out an exhale. “Things would be a lot easier if she would just talk to me again,” he mutters to himself.
I’m not sure who she is, but his mention ofstarshas me weirded out, considering what I was just doing. Maybe it’s a freakish coincidence, but in a world where vampires come out at night and werewolves howl at the moon, coincidences are about as rare as meeting a genuinely nice faerie—trust me; faeries are about as sneaky and malicious as they come.
I need to look into this more, but I’m unsure how far I want to take it.
Should I let it go for now?
Or spy on Alex at lunch?
3GEMMA
I meet up with Aislin in the parking lot. I have the book stuffed in my bag. Hopefully, no one busts me with it, or I’m in so much trouble.
“You waited for me?” Aislin asks as she climbs out of the Jeep.
“Kind of,” I say as she bumps the door shut.
She eyes me over. “Something weird happened—I can tell.”
Many weird things happened, but I decide to start with Henry asking me out.
I give her a brief recap of what went down, minus the reason we were meeting up. By the time I’m finished, we’ve reached the top of the main stairway, and the second bell has rung, so people are wandering around, waiting for their next class to start.
“Yeah, I knew that was coming,” Aislin says once I’m finished.
I blink at her. “What? How?”
She shrugs then digs a stick of gum out of her pocket. “It’s pretty obvious he’s obsessed with you.” She offers me a stick of gum.
I take it. “He is not.” I pop the gum into my mouth.
“Gemma, Gemma, Gemma.” She shakes her head as we start toward the main doors. “He does favors for you all the time, he always shows up where you are, and he stares at you during class.”
“Okay, I know the first two are true, but he doesn’t stare at me during class.”
“Yes, he does. Pay attention today, and you’ll realize I’m right.”
I grimace at my own obliviousness. “I don’t like this.”
She reaches for the door handle. “Like what?”
I shrug as she pulls open the door. “That he likes me, and I see him as just a friend.” I step inside and she follows, letting the door shut behind us.
Like the outside of the building, the interior is equally as godly with columns that line the plastered walls, the cathedral-like ceilings that are painted with various magical places around the world, and black and white checkerboard floors. Lanterns and crystal-esque chandeliers illuminate the hallway that stretches before us and is lined with archways that lead to classrooms.
My next class is in the first room in the hall, so I slow to a stop in front of it. She does, too, and studies me while chewing on her gum.
“You know, I was thinking: have you ever had a crush on someone?” She blows a bubble. “Because you’ve never mentioned having one, and it’s making me feel like you might not trust me, which is crazy.”
“That is crazy. I so trust you.” But then I grow quiet as I consider her question.
Have I ever had a crush on someone? Sure, I notice guys who are attractive, but that’s about it. Then the buzzing feeling I feel toward Alex randomly makes a grand appearance in my mind, along with his stupidly gorgeous green eyes and cocky smile.
She points a finger at me and playfully gasps. “Wait … Youdohave a crush on someone.”
“No, I don’t,” I reply way too quickly. “I have to get to class.” Then I hurry inside the classroom with her laughter hitting my back.