33

33
“C-Clyde,” Trevor whimpered. “I… I did this for you.”

A sort of heaviness hung in the air after that; I was literally watching someone’s life dangle by a string. Clyde, covered in blood and matted fur, with a notch taken out of his ear, looked ready to drag his claws across Trevor’s throat and be done with it.

And then, his posture shifted, like some invisible force had just whispered something into his ear. In an instant, Clyde rose to his full height and let out a snarling howl, a noise that turned my blood to ice. I didn’t need to be a wolf to know what that meant; if anyone saw his face again, there wouldn’t be any mercy left to give.

Both Aiden and Mrs. Lowell released their holds on Trevor and he took off into the night, blood trickling behind and glimmering beneath the moon’s light. We all watched him in silence, and I strained to follow him into the darkness.

And just like that, it was over, the tension melting away with Trevor’s silhouette.

Chapter Nineteen  

I

was the sort of person who thoroughly enjoyed riding as a passenger during car rides. Not that I’ve had the chance to drive a car, yet--no one really needed a license back in the city--but there was something utterly soothing about letting your mind drift alongside the racing backdrop through your window. The fire-dyed treetops had nearly shed all their leaves at this point, covering the passing forest floor with a wet decay that signaled the end of October.

The end of October. God, it felt like the longest month of my life, and it still wasn’t over yet. 

“You sure you wanna go today, Aria?” Aiden’s voice pulled me out of my head, making me suddenly aware that we’d been parked for quite some time. I glanced between the highschool’s front doors and the driver himself, fixated on me with that seemingly-permanent frown on his face. It was a recent change to his demeanor, a sort of anxiety that had etched itself deep into every expression he made. No surprise that it’d started after Trevor was chased away.

“I’m fine,” I insisted, shifting my loosely-casted shoulder through all ranges of motion. “Aurora’s been working her magic on me twice a day. I’m pretty much good to go at this point.”

God,witch magic was the absolute bomb. A part of me envied the fact I hadn’t a drop of talent in me. ‘I just got two lycanthropes fighting over me,’ my mind teased.

Aiden still didn’t look convinced. “We can just say you’re not feeling well. We’re only running drills, after all; the assistant coach isn’t really needed for that.”

“It almost sounds like you don’t want me there,” I pointed out.

A soft blush crossed Aiden’s face, his deep-blue eyes widening slightly. He ran a hand through his curls of dirty-bond hair--a bit on the messier side as of late--while trying to come up with a response.

“Aiden,” I unbuckled my seatbelt so as to lean across the car easier, trying to exude as much serenity as I could into my voice. “I don’t know how to tell you this, but you're turning into my Dad.”

He laughed a little too loudly, face brightening to a considerable red. “W-well, some people say that you fall in love with your parents, right?” He paused, his more wolfish qualities peeking through as he processed his response. His ears developed a bit more of a point, and his nose narrowed slightly as that once clean-shaven face began to grow curls of golden-blonde fur.

I put a hand against his fluffed-up cheek with a smirk. “Is this some weird, Freudian way of saying you like me, Aiden Lowell?”

I honestly didn’t think he could get any redder, but he managed to pull it off. “I...th-this isn’t exactly how I wanted to ask. But, with everything that’s happened this month, with everything we’ve gone through,” he paused, eyes flickering upwards as we stared into each other's eyes. “I just...I don’t want to regret not doing something about it, you know?”

“Then, was that your final take on asking me out,” I laughed, “or do you want to change your answer slightly?”

Aiden chuckled weakly, his hand curling around my shoulders and supporting the nape of my neck. Even with his nails sharpening, he took such great care not to scratch me. “Aria, would you be--would you like to be my girlfriend and go out some more? As a couple, I mean, cause we’ve gone out a lot, and--”

I couldn’t help myself. My lips suddenly found their way onto his, pressing deeply against his chest while his eyes widened in slight surprise. But Aiden didn’t seem against the gesture at all, returning it in full as we simply enjoyed each other’s presence.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” he laughed.

“What the hell else would it be?” I asked, giggling myself as I leaned back in my seat.

“I’d take it as a very gentle ‘no’, but with compensation,” Aiden teased, popping his buckle loose while pushing the driver’s side door open.

I followed suit through my door, intentionally reaching out and wrapping my ‘injured’ arm around Aiden’s waist. He gave me the side-eye, grinning as he did the same. We walked in step together across Ayersville High’s front lawn, following the pathway to the back where the massive gymnasium stood.