AVEL
“Fia!” I dashed after her, my socks slipping on the hardwood as I rounded the corner into her room, but she did not stop. She slammed the door shut just before I reached it, but it wasn’t locked. So I pushed it open and found her pacing, both hands tangled in her hair, breathing fast and shallow like she couldn’t get enough air.
“He’s not human,” she choked out before I could speak. “Avel, he’s not—he has a tail. I saw it. You were right—oh my God, you were right!” I froze in the doorway for a moment, my heart sinking at her terrified expression, before taking a cautious step forward.
“Fia, what are you talking about?”
She whipped around to face me, eyes wide, trembling. “Kai! He—he has a tail. A tail, Avel. Like a fish. Like a, what the hell even is he?!” My throat tightened, an
