Chapter 84 84. King
Tabitha’s POV
For a second, I freeze. Her reflection is pale under the harsh fluorescent lights. I can’t help but notice the dark circles under her eyes, they almost look like bruises from where I’m standing. Also, is it just me or is she thinner than the last time I saw her?
Pulling myself together, I evert my gaze and keep my focus on the faucet, quickly rinse my hands, and reach for a paper towel. Melanie, Elsie, and Evelyn are still in the cubicles. It’s just us.
Yeah, I need to get out of here. It’s never a good idea to be in the same space as this girl.
I slip toward the door, trying to school my expression despite the nervous thudding of my chest, but as soon as I step out into the hallway, the door swings again. Yennifer heads towards me and I pray that she’s just going to walk past me—but nope. The girl stops right beside me and leans against the wall, tilting her head to face me.
“Are you enjoying your life right now?” she asks in an almost dead voice.
I frown, taken aback. “Excuse me?”
She pulls a cigarette from a small box, lights it, and exhales a thin ribbon of smoke.
“I said, are you having a good time?”
“I—what are you talking about?”
Has she finally lost it?
Her eyes are glassy, both angry and hollow. It’s a bizarre sight, really. This girl is a bitch, but a lively one too. Her eyes always full of life, her spite almost like a pulsating ball of energy while she does her favorite hobby of bullying.
But now, she just looks… depleted. Almost as if the hate that she is showing is something she has to pull from the depths of her mind in order to fund it with enough energy.
“You got what you wanted. You made Jace hate me. Made my father think I’m a disappointment. Got me thrown into the dungeons,” she says in a flat voice, taking another puff from her stick again.
“I didn’t do anything. And I certainly didn’t make Jace hate you. You managed that on your own. You’re the one who set me up for a crime I didn’t commit.” I try to restrain my voice as much as possible. I don’t want to cause a scene here.
She takes another drag and blows the smoke straight toward my face. The smell stings my throat and I have to cough twice.
“You should’ve just gone along with it,” she says and something about the way her lifeless eyes stare at me makes my skin crawl.
“What?”
“You should’ve taken the fall and left the island. That would’ve been a better fate than what you’re about to face.”
What…
Before I can respond, the restroom door opens behind me. Evelyn, Elsie, and Melanie step out laughing about something. Yennifer flicks her cigarette and steps on it. Her eyes are still locked on me, then turns and walks away.
I stand there for a moment, trying to steady my breathing. Her words echo in my head like an ominous warning. What did she mean by that?
“Tabi? You okay?” Evelyn asks.
“Huh? Oh, yeah,” I lie. “Yeah, I’m good. Let’s head back?”
We return to the viewing deck and luckily, Jace is not totally a rascal. He did leave my food alone aside from the blueberry cupcake he ate earlier in front of me earlier.
“Here’s your lemonade back, madam,” Jace teases as he hands me back my drink. “But can you give me some chili fries? They look tasty.”
I look at the way his dimples peak every time he smiles. For a moment, I contemplate whether I should tell him that I meet Yennifer in the restroom earlier. But what should I even say?
Hey, Jace. Your crazy ex said some vaguely crazy things to me back in the restroom earlier. Seriously, what’s wrong with her?
Oh, forget it. Yennifer is a bitch, that’s a given. Maybe she’s just trying to mess with my head again. In the end, I choose to just keep the little interaction I had with her.
“Fine, they’re yours.” I shove the chilli fries to Jace and the heathen devours the whole thing without a second thought.
Half an hour passes by before and what do you know, the second round of the qualifying rounds begins.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the second round of qualifying is about to begin! Racers, start your engines!”
The crowd goes wild. It’s already round two but everyone is still so pumped up.
“GO!”
The light dings green and the engines roar to life again, louder than the first round. I hold my phone up instinctively. I was so engrossed in the match earlier that I didn’t get to record anything. I should correct that now. I see Melanie also doing the same thing, her phone steadily recording the whole thing as she cheers for Arthur,
“Come on, Rhett, you got this…” Evelyn mutters to herself, barely audible over the crowd.
As if hearing his sister’s prayers, Rhett starts off strong. He sets the fastest time during the first lap. But he is easily dethroned by King during the second lap, pushing Rhett down the leaderboard along with Reed, Arthur, and Luca. I chew on my lower lip and glances at the monitor:
King (orange)
Sharpe (purple)
Aldair (red)
Beckett (blue)
Harrington (gold)
Blake (silver)
Aldair (green)
Carver (lime)
Dalton (black)
Winslow (navy)
Fletcher (brown)
Sinclair (violet-gray)
Ellery (maroon)
Vance (cyan)
Wright (indigo-red)
Danvers (yellow-black)
Carstairs (teal)
Grayson (olive)
Hawthorne (peach)
Owsinski (pink)
The motorcycles surge forward. Sparks flaring as tires hug the corners, their exhausts rattling like caged animals. The field is tighter this round, every racer pushing harder, sliding dangerously close to the barriers. Later, Arthur closes in on King as they near the corner. King slows, leans into the turn, but Arthur stays right behind him. Arthur shifts his weight, the bike slides just enough to take the inside line. In a flash, Arthur slips past King. The crowd erupts.
“Beckett takes the lead immediately! Reed Aldair and King are fighting for second!” the announcer shouts. “Sharpe is holding steady in fourth! Luca Aldair pushes aggressively on the inside line!”
My hands tremble as Luca’s motorcycle jolts hard from the clip, the bike swinging sideways violently. Tires scrape the edge of the barrier as he fights to keep it upright. My phone shakes in my grip, and I gasp, barely able to hold on.
“Whoa! Watch Luca Aldair is brushing against the barrier, he could go over!” the announcer yells
“Oh my god,” I almost choke on my breath.
Jace curses out loud. Melanie, Elsie, and Evelyn also exclaim at the same moment, but they are too focused on the race to notice Evren moving closer behind me.
A warm breath brushes against my nape as he leans closer. His hand settles over mine, steadying the phone. His fingers firmly curl around mine, guiding it smoothly across the screen.
“Evren…”
“Shh…” His lips hover close to my ear, brushing softly against the shell. “If you’re going to record them, at least do it properly.”
My heart hammers against my ribs. “L-Luca is…” my voice trembles.
“Luca will be alright,” he says softly. “And I’m sure he’d appreciate a clearer shot of him after this race.”
I can’t tell if the erratic pounding inside my chest is the fear I feel for Luca or the closeness of Evren’s body pressing to mine. Either way, I focus, trying to hold the phone properly just as he instructs.
Relief washes over me when I see Luca regain some control, straightening the bike while still scraping the edge. He doesn’t recover fully, but he manages to hold it enough to stay on course.
“Miraculous control! Inches from disaster! Luca Aldair recovers brilliantly, unbelievable skill under pressure!” the announcer commends.
The round ends with Arthur leading the leaderboard, followed by Rhett. Elsie and Evelyn clutch their hands together as they both jump in pure delight.
“YES! Rhett, you rock!” Evelyn exclaims.
The monitor flickers as the final leaderboard solidifies:
Beckett (blue)
Sharpe (purple)
King (orange)
Aldair (red)
Winslow (navy)
Harrington (gold)
Aldair (green)
Fletcher (brown)
Sinclair (violet-gray)
Dalton (black)
Luca finishes seventh. They deducted his total score but his placement is still impressive considering the earlier chaos. He managed to pull through along with Reed! A warm feeling of pride swells in my chest.
They did it! They qualified for the main race tomorrow.
Melanie claps, eyes glistening with unshed tears. “Arthur will have pole position tomorrow. That’s a clear first!”
We head down to the track field to congratulate our brothers. Jace slaps Luca on the back and grins.
“Careful out there, you almost went airborne with that last corner. You trying to defy gravity or what?”
Luca snorts as he removes his helmet.
“I call that expert control. You wouldn’t understand because you’d be kissing the asphalt if it were you,” he jabs.
“Fucker!” Jace snickers and drags Luca into a loose headlock.
Reed, who has also removed his helmet, shoots me a lazy grin.
“Well? Are you just gonna stand there, princess? Where’s our congratulations?” he teases.
I blush, stumbling over my words. “I-I… congratulations!”
Luca elbows Jace off him and turns to me, smirk widening. “That’s it? I was expecting a proper cheer, maybe a little excitement. You’re really going to make me settle for a stutter?”
I roll my eyes, but my cheeks burn. “You’re so demanding. What else do you want?”
Luca takes a step towards me and raises his hand to play with my hair.
“I was hoping you’d give us a kis—”
Before he can finish, I shove the last piece of strawberry tanghulu into his mouth. Jace and Reed snicker behind him. Luckily, Melanie, Elsie, and Evelyn are too busy congratulating their brothers to notice.
Has he lost his mind? He’s gonna say kiss in broad daylight? With a bunch of werewolves present around us? It’s fortunate enough that we’re in a noisy place right now, so all the sounds and voices are just blending together.
“Tell us that you at least enjoy the match, princess,” Reed says while wiping his sweat with a towel.
Is it just me or do I smell his sweats clearly? And why does it smell good?
“Y-Yeah. It was a thrilling watch. And it’s only the qualifying round. I wonder how intense it’ll get tomorrow,” I say.
Luca hums in agreement, finally swallowing the tanghulu piece I shoved in his mouth. Evren hands him a bottle of water and he takes a generous swig.
“Lots of unfamiliar faces this year too. It’s gonna be wild,” Luca says after emptying the bottle and throwing it in the nearest bin.
My eyes drift to the rider in the orange suit who is heading in our direction. I remember his name on the monitor… King.
Why is he walking towards us?
My forehead creases as the man in orange gets closer and closer. And although he is still wearing a helmet, I can tell that he’s looking straight at me. Why?
Luca frowns and follows my gaze. He stiffens when realizes where—or who I am looking at. Reed, Evren, and Jace snap their eyes at the orange rider as well.
Uhm… he is not stopping. He’s definitely walking towards us or to be precise… towards me. But again, why?
Reed steps in front of me, creating a barrier between me and the man in orange suit.
“Woah woah, restroom’s the other way, Clementine,” Reed says and although his tone is rather humorous, the look in his eyes looks dead serious. “Where do you think you’re going?”
The man stops just in front of Reed and tilts his head, flicking his gaze toward me over Reed’s shoulder. Then, he slowly lifts his helmet.
“Oh my god…” I inhale sharply when I get a proper look at the man’s face.
He smiles when our eyes meet.
“Hi, Tabi. It’s been a while,” he says.
The man in orange suit is none other than Andrew Kingsley. The only friend I had back in the mainland.