Chapter 9: Just Us Two
1072 Words
The sun was beginning to set over Blackthorn when Ryker led me away from the fencing building.. away from the noise, the crowd, and everything familiar.
Students still lingered across the lawns and walkways, their voices carrying—most of them still talking about the match. A few heads turned as they noticed me beside him, whispers trailing in our wake.
I glanced at him.
“Is this where you kill me?”
“You wanna tell me where we’re headed Kane..?”
Ryker didn’t slow, hands tucked casually into his pockets.
“Shh. You’ll ruin the surprise.”
“That usually means trouble.”
“Relax.”
I huffed a quiet laugh, but followed anyway as he led me off the main path and behind the arts building.
With every step, the noise of campus faded.
Voices blurred into nothing. Laughter dissolved into the distance. The energy of Blackthorn slipped away until all that remained was the soft rustle of trees overhead and the faint echo of music drifting from somewhere far off.
It felt like stepping into a different world.
One that not everyone knew existed.
I glanced at Ryker again, more curious now than cautious—but I didn’t ask anything else.
Eventually, the path opened.
Stone with a few patches of green moss replaced gravel beneath our feet, as the trees thinned, revealing the old observatory quiet, forgotten, and cast in the warm glow of the setting sun.
Ryker stepped aside slightly, like he was waiting for me to see it first.
I moved forward
and stopped.
The valley stretched endlessly before us, golden light spilling over the hills while the first evening lights flickered on across campus.
My breath caught.
“Ryker,” I whispered . “This is beautiful.”
Ryker leaned against the stone railing beside me.
“I figured you deserved something better than the cafeteria.”
I turned to him, a small smile forming.
“You planned this?”
“Maybe.”
“You definitely planned this.”
He shrugged, but the quiet pride in his expression gave him away.
I rested my elbows on the railing, looking out at the view.
“For the record… beating Torin felt like a weight lifted off my shoulders.”
Ryker chuckled.
“I can imagine.”
I glanced at him.
“What do you mean, you can imagine?”
“I watch everything.”
I smirked.
“That sounds slightly threatening.”
“Only if you’re my enemy.”
My expression softened.
“And if I’m not?”
He held my gaze for a moment.
“Then you’re the reason I’m watching.”
Something shifted between us.
I turned fully toward him.
“You’ve been unusually nice today.”
“Don’t get used to it…”
“I might.”
He stepped closer, shaking his head slightly.
“You were a force out there today.”
My heart skipped.
“You already said that.”
“I’m saying it again.”
The fading sunlight caught in his eyes.
“You didn’t just beat him,” he said quietly. “You broke through something.”
Warmth spread through my chest.
“Careful,” I teased. “You’re starting to sound like my personal hype man.”
Ryker smirked.
“I could be worse things.”
I tilted my head.
“Like what?”
His voice dropped.
“Your biggest distraction… if you let me.”
Before I realized it, I was stepping back, the railing pressing lightly behind me as he moved closer.
His hands braced on either side of me.
My breath caught.
“You’re staring again,” I murmured.
“Can you blame me?”
My pulse quickened.
“Ryker…”
He reached up, gently taking a strand of my hair between his fingers, studying it like it fascinated him.
“I like your hair,” he said softly.
The simple touch sent a spark through me.
“You won today,” he added.
“And?”
“And I think that deserves a proper congratulations.”
My voice dropped to a whisper.
“What kind?”
He didn’t answer.
He just leaned in.
Close enough that I felt his breath before his lips met mine.
Then he kissed me.
The kiss was slow at first.. careful, like he was giving me time to pull away.
I didn’t.
Instead, I moved closer, my hands gripping lightly at his shirt as the kiss deepened.
The world fell away, the academy, the rumors, the chaos.
It was just us.
His hand settled at my waist, drawing me in as the kiss grew warmer, more certain. My heartbeat pounded in my ears, every thought dissolving into the moment.
His lips trailed from my lips to my chin, my jaw line, and soon reaching my neck.
I let out a labored moan uncontrollably, but I didn’t care. It felt good.
“f**k” He practically growled against my skin.
Licking and sucking
His hand moving from my waist to my ass, squeezing gently.
When we finally pulled apart, we were both slightly breathless.
“If that’s your version of congratulations, I’m not complaining, I might have to win more often,”
Ryker smiled, softer now.
“We’re not done celebrating yet.”
He took my hand, leading me toward the small setup he’d arranged—food laid out like he’d been planning this longer than he’d admit.
I laughed quietly.
“Wow… who are you and what have you done with Ryker Kane?”
“I’m not-,” he said, sitting down.
“There’s just a lot you don’t know about me yet.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Mysterious, huh?”
“Exactly.”
“Whatever” I laughed.
“And you love it.”
I didn’t deny it.
“I just don’t see the Kane everyone whispers about; someone to fear.” I said quietly. “I just see the Ryker I’ve always known.”
He leaned back and looked at me.
“Let them be afraid of Kane,” I said softly. “I’m not.”
I leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips, my hand resting against his cheek.
We sat together, eating, talking, laughing about everything and nothing.
Above us, the last of the sunlight disappeared behind the hills.
And for the first time since coming back to Blackthorn, something inside me felt stronger than the chaos.
Something steady.
Something real.
- Writer
