“There’s the Panhellenic Festival this year,” he explained. “It’s held here every four years. There are a lot of athletic competitions, so it’s usually very crowded at Court. Haven’t you noticed how packed the Hyped lobby is? There’s a welcoming party there in two hours.”

With everything going on, I clearly hadn’t been paying attention. “That’s awesome.” I tried my best to sound enthusiastic. “Thanks for letting me know. Now I have something to look forward to.”

“Have fun!” Hudson waved as I pushed through the door and stepped outside.

Standing on the pavement in front of the Court Guard Headquarters, I texted Kris to find out where she was, then pulled up the photo I took of the schedule on the first day. Hudson had been right about the Panhellenic Festival. The welcoming party and opening ceremony would be held later today, but the competitions would take place throughout the rest of December, finishing with a closing ceremony before Christmas. Attending the athletic competitions wasn’t mandatory, so I skipped over the details to go through the list of other Gathering activities. Tonight there would be a beach party outside of the Court. “That sounds like fun,” I scoffed, not being able to conceal my sarcasm. Tomorrow was the Symposium—a huge dinner party. But since today was a free day, there wasn’t really anything I had to do until the beach party; I wasn’t sure if I felt relief or disappointment.

The lobby of the Hyped was packed—filled with swarms of Hellenicus. It would take twice as long as normal to get from the entrance to the elevator.

“Excuse me.” I lost count how many times I had said it.

A hand caught my wrist and saved me from being mashed between two tall guys. To my surprise—and horror—it was Damian. “Blond surfer boy,” I blurted automatically.

“Hey, you remember that I love surfing.” He mistook my jeer.

After listening to him mention it over and over again during the after-party on the first night, I wouldn’t be able to forget even if I wanted to. Not wanting to acknowledge him, I simply moved past him.

“Wait.” His hand grabbed my arm and I gave it a murdering glance. He let go, raising both hands. “Sorry. Look, I just want to get to know you better. You left the after-party before I had a chance to.”

“Oh, so I exist now? Because I remember you treating me like I didn’t at the after-party. We’re not friends, not even acquaintances, so save me the trouble and keep it that way.”