Her head was drumming, and her magic itched to get out. She needed her bag; she needed Dana.

He screamed at her, and she wondered if his neighbour would come to help. But he lived in the penthouse on his own level.

Her mind was so scattered she eventually tuned him out, barely noticing a book whizz past her head. She clutched her neck because she couldn’t stop herself from crying. But, because her mouth was closed, she couldn’t let out any sobs. It made her hyperventilate; she shut her eyes to try and control her breathing.

His screaming faded into the background, and the only way to fight against him was to use her arms.

Her eyes snapped open, and she stared down at the engagement ring box and launched it across the room; she watched the lid fling open, the ring flying out and sliding underneath a crack in his skirtings.

***

Bethan peeled herself from her bed, heaving. She knew he had used magic on her, but she wasn’t sure what exactly; the Haesit enchantment allowed its subject to be stuck in place and seal one’s mouth shut. He continued to scream at her and throw things around her. Something he had never done before. The anger he displayed, that fury lined all over his face, sent shivers down her spine. She curled into the comfort of her sheets.

And the thought of that engagement—

Tears lined her eyes, and she shook her head in embarrassment of them. She hated that her body reacted to any inconvenience with tears. She inhaled with her nose, bracing herself.

She stood before her bedroom door. The floorboards creaked with each step, pacing back and forth, contemplating if she should go to Kellan. Or stand her ground. She couldn’t bother her parents with it. It had to be him.

She sucked in a breath and pulled her door open, only to find Kellan standing there. His hand curled into a fist, frozen mid-air, as if he was about to knock.

Instead, he touched her cheek; he wiped the fallen tears. An action that Bethan realised he had done too often. The sight of him made her stop breathing, his inky hair more tangled than usual, his eyes wide as coins. He looked stricken by panic as if something was going to swallow him whole.

She stepped back, giving him space to enter. He followed her further into her room; he took in his surroundings before turning his sharp attention back to her.

‘Are you crying because of me?’ he asked with a hitch in his voice.

Her chest tightened.

It didn’t take her long to realise Kellan was not afraid of facing her again but afraid of what his words did to her.

She whispered, tears cascading. ‘No, something else.’

‘Tell me,’ he said in a soft-spoken voice.