Moon In Her Eyes

Chapter 14 – The Spark She Couldn’t Hide

The academy’s grand hall buzzed with noise, the air heavy with the scent of rain-soaked cloaks and burning candles. Students gathered for the annual Midnight Assembly, but Amara barely noticed them. Her eyes kept finding Kayden across the room, as if drawn by an invisible thread.

He leaned against a stone pillar, his dark eyes scanning the crowd… until they locked on hers. The intensity in his gaze sent a shiver through her.

“Stop staring,” she muttered under her breath, but her pulse betrayed her.

Kayden moved through the crowd like the room belonged to him, each step deliberate. When he reached her, he leaned in just enough for his voice to be hers alone. “I told you,” he said, low and dangerous, “you shouldn’t be here tonight.”

“I’m not going to hide forever,” Amara shot back.

Something flickered in his eyes — fear, frustration, and something far more complicated. “You don’t understand. They’re watching.”

Before she could reply, a loud crash echoed through the hall. A group of older students were laughing cruelly as they shoved a first-year to the floor. The boy’s books scattered, pages tearing.

Without thinking, Amara stepped forward. “Leave him alone!”

One of the bullies turned toward her, smirking. “And what are you going to do, pretty girl?”

Her chest tightened, heat building in her veins. The pendant at her neck warmed — no, burned — and before she could stop it, silver-blue light flared from her hands, whipping through the air like a living storm.

Gasps erupted around the hall. The bullies stumbled back, eyes wide with terror. The light faded, leaving only silence… and every single pair of eyes fixed on her.

Kayden grabbed her wrist, pulling her into the shadows by the hall’s edge. His voice was a sharp whisper. “Do you realize what you’ve done? They know now. All of them.”

Her heart pounded, but she held his gaze. “Then I guess hiding isn’t an option anymore.”

For a long moment, neither of them moved. Then Kayden’s hand cupped her face, rough yet gentle, his thumb brushing her cheek. “You’re going to get yourself killed,” he murmured… but the way he looked at her said something entirely different.