“S-o-f-t-i-e,” he spelled with a smirk.

Noelle sent an exasperated look my way, as if expecting me to take her side. I shrugged, just barely holding back a laugh. “That was pretty soft, not gonna lie.”

She let out a loud groan and buried her head in her hands. “I hate both of you.”

Jasper only grinned. “That’s what you said about Evelyn as well. Stop lying, Daniels, we all know you’re a puppy acting like a pit bull.”

“Shut up,” she grumbled, slapping away his hand when he tried to pat her head.

I leaned back against the wall and listened while the two continued bickering. With Noelle between us, the tornado inside me had dwindled into a light breeze that was much easier to ignore. Now that the tension was gone, my eyelids started to get heavier and when Noelle announced that she had to get back to her room to sleep, I went with her.

“Good night, Jasper,” I said as I stepped out into the hallway.

Leaning in the threshold, Jasper scratched at his neck. “Good night. Maybe we can do this again sometime?”

“Yeah,” I whispered, careful not to wake up any of the neighboring rooms. “I’d like that.”

“Okay.” Jasper smiled. “Good night. Again.”

I turned around with a dumb grin, too happy to even be annoyed when I returned to my room and found Gabe playing something on his laptop, surrounded by empty crisp packets and energy drinks.

Maybe Seven Hills could actually be kind of okay, sometimes.

14

Evelyn

If Noelle was anything, it was persistent.

At least once every day she asked when we could have our next self-defense lesson, only getting more stubborn every time I told her no, that it had only been two weeks since she had sprained her ankle, that I didn’t want to risk her getting hurt again.

Of course, it was only a matter of time until I caved in and we both knew it.

It was on Wednesday afternoon, almost a week after the night she had woken me up and done my makeup, that she strode into our room, the door slamming shut behind her, and announced,

“Get up, Greene, we’re going to the gym.”

I blinked at her, slowly shutting my book. “Says who?”

“Me,” Noelle said with a grin. “I just went to see the nurse.

She says my ankle is all better now and I’m allowed to start training again today. So, no more excuses. Teach me how to deck someone.”

Rationally, I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea. Before, I had been nervous around her; now, my heart was doing backflips in my chest every time she so much as looked at me. When I closed my eyes I could still feel her fingertips against my skin, her breath warm against my cheek, sweet like a promise. I had been so close then, just seconds away from reaching out and pulling her into a kiss, just to see if her lips were as soft as they looked in the hazy glow of the fairy lights. Even now, sitting on the other end of the room, I felt something tugging at my very core like there was a magnet inside my rib cage and another one in her hand, insistently drawing me closer.