CHAPTER TWO — The Pull I Can’t Explain
917 Words
Elara
By the time English ends, my pulse still hasn’t settled.
Kael didn’t talk again.
He didn’t need to.
His presence said enough.
Every time he shifted, I felt the air move.
Every time he breathed, I felt it in my chest.
Every time he looked my way—even when I pretended not to see—I felt something inside me curl toward him like a magnet.
It’s unsettling.
Uncomfortable.
And yet… I don’t want it to stop.
I’m packing my bag when his chair scrapes back. I freeze, staring straight ahead, waiting—no, hoping—he won’t say anything.
But he does.
“You have next period in the East Wing,” he says as if he’s known me for years. “The map they gave you is wrong.”
I blink at him. “How do you know what class I have?”
He holds my gaze. “I saw your schedule.”
Right. Of course he did. That’s… normal? No. Not normal at all.
“You shouldn’t go through people’s things,” I say, even though my voice shakes a little.
He steps closer. My breath catches.
The space between us shrinks until I can feel warmth radiating from him.
“I wasn’t going through anything,” he says, low enough that only I can hear. “You dropped it when you walked in.”
His voice is warm velvet and cold steel at the same time.
A contradiction.
A warning.
A promise.
I swallow. “Oh.”
He studies me. Slowly. Thoroughly. Like he’s memorizing something he lost once.
“Be careful, Elara.” His eyes burn icy-blue. “This place is not what it looks like.”
A shiver goes down my spine.
Before I can ask what he means, a high, sharp voice cuts between us.
“There you are, baby.”
Lyra.
She waltzes up like a queen returning to her throne, threading her perfectly manicured fingers through Kael’s arm. Her perfume hits me—sweet, strong, expensive—and she stares me down like I just tried to steal her crown.
Kael doesn’t look away from me.
Even when she leans into him.
Even when she kisses his jaw.
Her eyes narrow. “You must be the transfer.”
Her tone is sugared poison.
I force a polite smile. “Yeah. Elara.”
“Cute,” she says, meaning not a threat, even though her expression says the opposite. “If you ever need help fitting in, I can show you around.”
Kael’s jaw tightens almost unnoticeably.
As if her voice irritates him.
“I think she’s fine,” he says.
Lyra stiffens.
I feel like I shouldn’t be here for this, but my legs refuse to move.
Kael turns back to me.
“Walk with me,” he says—almost a command, almost a request, but something in his tone brushes over my skin like a hand.
Lyra snaps her head toward him. “She literally just got here. Why would she—”
Kael ignores her.
I open my mouth. “I… I have class.”
His eyes lock onto mine, and something inside me stutters.
“You’ll make it on time.”
It’s not what he says.
It’s how he says it.
Like he already knows what I’m going to do.
Like he expects me to obey.
I shake my head hard.
“Sorry. I need to go.”
For a second—I swear—I see something flicker in his eyes.
Frustration.
Heat.
Possession.
But then it’s gone.
Lyra smirks, tugging him away. “See? She’s fine. Let’s go.”
Kael lets her pull him, but he looks over his shoulder, eyes locked on me until he disappears around the corner.
I exhale shakily.
What the hell was that?
The hallway to my next class is quieter, thank God.
I’m almost at the East Wing when someone steps in front of me.
A guy.
Tall, warm eyes, honey-brown hair.
His smile is soft in a way Kael never is.
“Hey,” he says. “You’re Elara, right?”
I nod. “That obvious?”
“New scent,” he says casually—then blinks fast. “Sorry. That sounded weird. I meant new face. New face.”
Okay… odd. But he seems harmless.
“I’m Rian. I, uh… saw you talking to Kael.”
My stomach flips. “Was I not supposed to?”
Rian laughs lightly. “No, no. It’s just… Kael doesn’t talk to anyone.”
“Oh.” I don’t know what to say to that.
“And he definitely doesn’t stare at anyone.” Rian adds it slowly. Carefully.
Heat creeps up my neck.
Rian studies me, head tilted slightly.
Almost like he’s listening to something I can’t hear.
“That’s interesting,” he murmurs.
“What is?”
He smiles again, gentler this time. “Nothing. Don’t worry. If you need help, or directions, or… anything… I’m around.”
He gives me a warm nod and heads down the hall.
I watch him go, confused.
Everyone here is strange.
Watching me.
Smelling me.
Acting like I’m something else.
And worst of all…
I can still feel him.
Kael.
His presence lingers in my mind like a shadow.
Like a mark.
Like something claiming space it shouldn’t.
I press a hand over my chest.
Why do I feel like my life is about to split open?
And why does it feel like he’s the reason?
- Writer
