Chapter 28 Unsteady Ground
The word battlefield followed me all day like a bad echo.
I tried to drown it out with normal things, like class notes, hallway chatter, and pretending my ribs didn’t ache every time I laughed too hard…but nothing stuck. Everything felt slightly off, like I was moving through the world half a second too slow.
Prom posters were everywhere.
Glittering letters. Fairy lights. A Night Under the Stars.
I snorted quietly to myself. Stars had never been gentle to me.
Kai walked me to my locker after last period, close enough that our arms brushed every few steps. He didn’t pretend it was accidental. He never did anymore. His presence had become constant…steady, and grounding, like he was anchoring himself to me on purpose.
“You’re thinking too loud,” he said.
“I didn’t know you could hear thoughts now.”
“I can’t,” he replied. “But I know you.”
That did something to my chest I wasn’t ready for.
I shoved my books into my bag. “Everyone keeps talking about prom like it’s a countdown to something magical.”
Kai leaned against the locker beside mine. “It is.”
I glanced at him. “You don’t sound excited.”
“I’m not,” he said simply. “I’m… aware.”
Of course he was.
Silence stretched between us, not awkward, but just heavy. The kind that carried things neither of us had said out loud yet.
“Kai,” I started, then stopped.
He waited. He always did.
“Why are you really staying so close?” I asked. “Is it just protection? Or…”
“Luna,” he interrupted gently, turning fully toward me now. His eyes searched my face like he was memorizing it. “I crossed that line a while ago.”
My breath caught. “What line?”
“The one where this stopped being just duty.”
My pulse stumbled.
“I think about you all the time,” he continued, his voice low. “When I wake up.
When I try to sleep. When I’m supposed to be watching everything else.” A faint, almost humorless smile tugged at his mouth. “You make the world loud for me.”
I swallowed. “Kai…”
“I know,” he said quickly. “You don’t have to say anything. I’m not asking for promises. I just need you to know I’m not here because I have to be.”
I didn’t trust my voice, so I nodded.
And because I couldn’t stop myself, I reached for his hand.
Just for a second.
It was enough.
Later that evening, my room was a mess of fabric and opinions.
My cousin sprawled across my bed, dramatically tossing dresses aside as they’d personally offended her. “No…No….Absolutely not. You look like you’re attending a funeral.”
“Given my luck,” I muttered, “that tracks.”
She paused. “You okay? You’ve been… quieter.”
“I almost fell into the ground yesterday,” I said flatly.
She stared at me. “You’re joking.”
“I wish.”
She blinked, then slowly sat up. “Okay. New rule. What do you wear to prom? It has to make you feel powerful.”
That word again.
Power.
I stared at the dresses hanging from my closet door, then reached for one I hadn’t even considered earlier, it was simple, dark blue, and nothing flashy. It shimmered just enough when it caught the light.
“This one,” I said.
She smiled. “There she is.”
My phone buzzed.
Ethan: We need to talk before prom. Alone.
My stomach tightened.
Before I could reply, another message came through.
Kai: I don’t like the idea of you meeting him alone.
I exhaled slowly.
Me: You’re both terrible for my stress levels.
Three dots appeared almost immediately.
Kai: Still worth it.
I smiled despite myself.
But the feeling didn’t last.
Because across town, somewhere I couldn’t see, something old shifted again ..subtle this time, it was patient and waiting.
And for the first time, I realized the real danger wasn’t just what was coming.
It was what prom might awaken in me.