Chapter 63 Petty satisfaction
Chapter 063
DARIUS
Both Dorian and I immediately turned our full attention to her, our argument forgotten. "Is she alright?" I asked quickly, hating how desperate I sounded.
"There is no serious injury to worry about," the healer explained in that patient voice all medical professionals seemed to have.
"Her ankle has broken a joint and will need to be properly fixed and given time to heal. She also has a few cuts on her head from the impact, but overall she will be fine with rest and proper treatment."
Relief flooded through me so intensely it made my knees weak. "Can we see her now?"
"Yes, you may both go in," the healer confirmed, stepping aside to let us pass.
Dorian moved first, practically running into the room ahead of me.
I followed more slowly, suddenly uncertain about what I would say to her or how I would explain any of this.
When I entered, Dorian was already at her bedside, his voice full of concern. "How are you feeling, Ravenna? Are you in much pain?"
She laughed softly, though the sound was weaker than usual. "I am fine, Dorian. Really. You do not need to worry so much about me."
Then her eyes shifted past him and landed on me standing awkwardly near the doorway. "Darius is here too," she observed, and I could not quite read the emotion in her voice.
I just stood there like an idiot, not knowing what to say or how to act. Finally, I managed to mutter, "Sorry about the fall. I did not mean for that to happen."
Ravenna laughed again, this time with a bit more energy. "Okay. That is accepted, I suppose." Then her expression shifted to concern. "Is Bonn going to be angry at both of us for missing his important meeting?"
"Three of us actually," I corrected automatically. "You were supposed to be part of that meeting too."
Her face immediately shifted into accusation as she pointed at me. "This is your fault. You caused my fall because you decided to run away like a child instead of waiting for me like I asked."
Defensiveness rose in my chest hot and fast. "I never told you to chase after me, Ravenna. You made that choice entirely on your own."
"Asshole," she muttered, glaring at me with those eyes that always seemed to see right through every defence I put up.
"Human," I shot back automatically, the insult rolling off my tongue before I could stop it.
Dorian suddenly turned away from me and focused entirely on Ravenna, deliberately cutting me out of the conversation.
"Leave Darius alone for now. You need to rest and recover." Then his expression brightened considerably as he changed the subject.
"Actually, I wanted to ask you something. There is a weekend event coming up, and I was wondering if you would like to join me? It should be fun, and you could use a break from all this academy stress."
I watched Ravenna's face light up with genuine excitement and happiness. "Yes, I would absolutely love to go with you, Dorian. That sounds wonderful."
The eager, happy tone in her voice when she accepted his invitation hit me like a physical blow to the chest.
Jealousy exploded inside me, hot and violent and completely irrational.
She had never sounded that excited about anything involving me.
She had never smiled at me the way she was smiling at Dorian right now.
I could not stay in that room for another second.
Without a word to either of them, I turned and stormed out, my footsteps heavy and angry against the floor.
Jealous fury boiled under my skin, making my hands shake and my vision tint slightly red at the edges.
Atlas kept snarling inside my head, demanding I go back in there and claim what was ours. "Go be with her. Stop running away. She is our mate. She belongs with us, not with him."
"Shut up," I growled back at him. "Just shut the hell up."
I made my way to the ice rink, needing to burn off this overwhelming energy before I did something stupid like shift and tear apart the nearest solid object.
But when I arrived, the meeting had already finished and players were preparing for regular practice instead.
Bonn spotted me immediately and frowned. "Where have you been, Pike? You missed the entire meeting."
"Emergency situation," I replied shortly, not offering any additional explanation.
He studied my face for a moment, clearly debating whether to push for more details, but ultimately decided against it. "Go change and get on the quickly."
I nodded and headed towards the locker room, my mind still churning with thoughts of Ravenna laughing with Dorian, accepting his invitation so happily and looking at him with warmth in her eyes.
As I walked past the rows of lockers towards my own, I spotted one with a name written boldly across the front.
Ravenna.
I stopped walking and just stared at it for a long moment whilst something dark and petty rose up inside me.
A grin spread slowly across my face as an idea formed. I grabbed a hammer from the maintenance kit that was always kept on the wall for emergency repairs, walked over to her locker with deliberate steps, and carefully sabotaged the lock mechanism.
I bent it just enough that it would jam, made sure she would not be able to open it easily without help.
The satisfaction I felt was childish and mean, but I could not bring myself to care.
I dropped the hammer back into the maintenance kit and turned towards my own locker to change for practice, that grin still firmly in place.