Elara's POV
I was watching the third match of the day when Kael found me in the bleachers, he was still in his House Ravencroft uniform, looking like he had just come from competing in one of the earlier events. He sat down next to me without asking, which was typical Kael behavior — confident, like he knew I wouldn't mind him sitting there.
"Hey," he said, his voice low so nobody around us could hear. "Can we meet up after the games end today? I want to talk to you about something."
I knew what this was. I had seen the way he looked at me sometimes, caught him watching me across classrooms or hallways.
The way he would find excuses to be near me or start conversations that could have waited. But I wasn't interested in him like that, and more importantly, I wasn't available.
"Kael,
