Chapter 75 Stay With Her

Chapter 75 Stay With Her

Skylar

Tears blurred my vision as I bolted out of Uncle Kai’s room. The last words I’d shouted still rang in my ears.

I hated myself. I really did.

I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, not giving a toss about my dishevelled look or the judging stares from the other students I passed in the corridor.

I just needed to escape reality, even if it was only for a bit.

My frantic footsteps echoed on the cold stone floor, and because my eyes were completely swimming with tears, I wasn't looking where I was going.

I crashed hard into something solid. The impact nearly sent me flying backwards, but a hand quickly caught my arm while another steadied me by the waist.

"Skylar? Hey, what's wrong?"

Gils’s voice made me look up, gasping for breath. He was standing right there with a pile of thick books cradled in his arms, clearly on his way to the library.

The moment he saw my tear-stained face and my ragged, breathless state, his relaxed expression completely vanished, replaced by sheer panic.

I tried to pull away, weakly struggling against his grip.

"Let me go, Gils. I want to be alone. Just let me go," I whispered, doing everything I could to hide the massive tremor in my voice.

I didn't want anyone to see me this broken. I didn't want anyone's pity.

But Gils isn't the type to back down easily, especially when it comes to me. Instead of letting go, he tightened his grip on my shoulders, keeping me rooted to the spot.

The natural warmth from his dragon blood slowly seeped through my freezing school uniform.

"I'm not letting you go off on your own looking this wrecked, Skylar. Look at you, you can barely catch your breath," he said firmly, deep worry written all over his face.

He let out a long sigh, glancing around the corridor as a few students started walking past. "Come with me. We'll go to the back garden. It's quiet there; you can calm down."

I didn't have the energy to argue with him. I felt completely drained, totally exhausted after sobbing my heart out in Uncle Kai’s room.

I just gave a weak nod, letting Gils turn me around and guide me towards the exit leading to the academy grounds.

There were always students giving me dirty looks whenever I got close to any guy. But Gils didn't seem to give a damn about the whispering that followed us.

He even unfurled his wings just to shield me while I cried.

We’d only taken a few steps down the dim corridor when a tall shadow stepped out from around the corner, blocking our path.

Irlan was standing there, his signature black vampire cloak slung over his shoulders. He looked like a bloke who’d grown bored waiting for his girl.

His pale, ridiculously handsome face was completely blank, but his dark eyes locked straight onto mine. The moment he saw me sobbing, his eyes flashed red.

"I was actually looking for you, Skylar," Irlan said bluntly.

His low, smooth voice sent a strange shiver straight down my spine. He glanced briefly at Gils before looking back at me, a subtle softness hidden in his gaze.

"She needs to calm down, Irlan. I'm taking her to the garden," Gils cut in, his voice rising slightly. His protective dragon instincts were kicking in, which at least meant he stopped stuttering.

Irlan gave Gils a cold stare, then looked back at me gently.

"The garden? It's the weekend, Gils. The garden's going to be packed with students just looking for gossip to try and tear Skylar down," he pointed out rhetorically. "Come to my room. It's much more private, and nobody will dare bother you there."

Irlan had a point. The thought of being put on display for the werewolves or witches to gawk at while I was this much of a mess made my stomach turn.

Gils looked ready to argue, but after catching the flash of fear in my eyes, he let out a defeated scoff.

"Fine. But I'm coming too," Gils insisted.

Irlan didn't fight him on it. He simply turned around and motioned for us to follow.

The three of us walked in a tense, heavy silence towards the vampire dorms, finally stopping in front of a massive door.

Irlan opened the door to his private quarters, letting Gils and me step inside first before shutting it tight, locking the rest of the world away behind the heavy wood.

The room perfectly reflected Irlan's personality. In the corner sat a massive stone fireplace, looking rather dusty.

Then again, why on earth would a vampire need the warmth of a fire?

Gils, being naturally warm-blooded due to the dragon blood in his veins, immediately frowned as the biting chill of the room hit him.

He looked over at me. I was curled up on the edge of Irlan's massive bed, hugging my knees, still shivering slightly from the emotional shock.

Without wasting a second, Gils marched over to the dusty fireplace.

"This room is freezing, bloody hell. It's like a graveyard," Gils grumbled under his breath.

He knelt in front of the hearth, completely ignoring the dust that flew up and dirtied his neat uniform. Using a magical lighter he always carried on him, Gils sparked up a few pieces of dry firewood left inside.

Within seconds, the fire roared to life, starting to take the edge off the icy chill filling the room.

Gils stood up, brushing the ash off his hands, and looked around the room, looking a bit lost.

"Skylar needs something warm to settle her nerves. I want to make her a hot drink," Gils muttered. "But bloody hell, where does a vampire keep drink ingredients? I mean... you lot don't just keep blood bags in here, do you?"

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of Irlan's lips at Gils’s confusion. He stepped forward, putting a hand on Gils’s shoulder to calm the dragon boy down.

"Just stay with Skylar, Gils. I'll sort it," Irlan said calmly.

Irlan walked over to a mahogany sideboard sitting in a darker corner of the room.

He opened the cupboard, pulling out a silver electric kettle that looked brand new and spotless, along with a few boxes of premium tea.

It seemed that even though he had no use for them himself, Irlan always kept these sorts of things on hand just in case for moments exactly like this.

While Irlan busied himself brewing the tea in the corner, silence settled over us once more, punctuated only by the crackle of the logs Gils had lit.

The warmth of the fire slowly began to brush against my skin, but the chill inside my heart wasn't going anywhere just yet.