6

Kairos

"Shit." My hand slammed into the thin metal near Enko's head as he pushed his locker closed. "How perfect she is for me. Handpicked by the goddess for me . And I fucked up our first interaction."

"Watch it," came Enko's harsh warning, glaring at my hand. A flame of anger that he instantly subdued. It always lingered within him.

I hit it again, a dent forming underneath the blow, causing one of Enko's opponents to poke his head around the corner. He scurried back to his hole when he saw it was me doing it. "What were the chances she was my Fated?"

Enko shook his all-knowing head, like he'd seen this coming a mile away. "If you didn't pull that shit all the time, maybe then I'd call it bad luck."

"Ass."

"Yeah, you are." Enko strapped his sword handle to his belt. "And you shouldn't have left her alone."

"She wanted to be alone."

He shook his head. "Did she say that? She just found out that at least two of her Fated are dicks. What if she decides she doesn't want us? We need her, Kairos."

"You're afraid she's going to reject us?"

Enko dodged my accusation. "I have to practice. See you later."

If she knew everything about us, all our secrets…She would be gone in a heartbeat.

I grabbed his arm desperately. "What am I supposed to do?"

Enko took a long moment. "When you saw her down in the arena the first time, what did you think?"

"She did pretty well for a first-year. And that she's gorgeous. Would look good underneath me. That's why I teased her, some chicks go for it. You?"

"That I want to protect her."

"Bold of you to pretend you have the fucking moral high-ground here."

Enko continued, "Find Seven, see if you can talk some sense into him before he screws this up for all of us. Then go back to her and try to redeem yourself."

And with that, Enko went to the field for Skirmish practice. It was one of the few sports offered at the academy. And Enko was the fucking star. A few of his friends clapped hands on his back as he walked by, flinching if Enko made any sudden movements. But Enko grinned and patted a few on the back.

He had it easy today, an easy excuse to force me to settle things with Dove.

Seven's hunting grounds were on the edge of the campus, where he usually went to blow off some steam. Neither Enko nor I knew exactly where he went when he disappeared for long hours, sometimes days. The asshole had always said he didn't want a Fated, but this was different. Our Fated was real.

"Seven!" I yelled into the forest. If he didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be. Shadow kitsune had the ability to remain invisible in darkness, and the thick canopy offered plenty of it.

A pair of red eyes glinted in the forest and the black fox appeared, inching out of the shadows, keeping his seven tails hidden.

"I'm here to talk."

Seven shifted into his human form, not bothering to hide his nudity. His dagger and short sword hung at his waist. The magic within our weapons allowed us to carry them while shifted. Clothes, however, didn't fall under the same umbrella.

"Then talk," Seven growled, still feral-minded.

"Are you going to put some clothes on?" I crossed my arms, staring up at the branches above for a moment.

"Stop looking at my junk and say what you want to say, Kairos."

"Let's go back to the dorm and talk to Dove. She's our Fated." It was all I could say without begging him.

Seven retreated back into the forest. "You two can have her."

Twigs snapped as he dashed away. After a minute of silence, I knew that he had no plans of finishing our discussion.

I sauntered back to the dorm, but my steps hastened, anxious to see my Fated again. I never wanted to let her out of my sight. She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever set eyes upon.

When I arrived, I scanned the room. Relief flooded as I saw her, thankful she hadn't run away from us as Enko had implied she might.

Dove stood in the kitchen, a mug of coffee in her hands, and a freshly brewed pot filling the air mixing with her intoxicating strawberry scent.

"I hope you don't mind," she said airily, gesturing to the coffee pot. "Would you like a cup?"

Her white hair flowed down her shoulders, over a black jacket zipped up tightly over her curves. Black jeans, black combat boots, a stark contrast to her white hair. She was short but curvy in all the right places. She would fit perfectly with me.

Dove's rosy lips pursed into a slight frown.

"I'd love a cup," I said quickly, wondering how long I'd been checking her out. "And this is your dorm too. Make yourself at home."

She poured me a mug and I cursed myself for not getting it myself.

"Cream, sugar?" she purred, fluttering those long lashes at me.

"Both, please."

Enko and Seven's beds had been made, the dishes were done, and our pizza boxes were in the trash. She'd spent the past half hour tidying up our bachelor pad pigsty. "You cleaned? You don't need to do that."

Her mouth made a little O, her head shaking as she bowed. "I didn't mean to offend you. I was only trying to help."

"I'm not offended, but you shouldn't have to clean up after us," I fumbled over the words as she bowed her head a second time.

We sat on the couch, each sipping our mugs and slipping glances at each other. I caught her several times, and after the unbearable silence, she finally spoke.

"When will the others be back?" she asked.

Was she done with me already? Between the panic and disappointment, I took a long sip of the coffee. It was the most delicious thing I'd ever tasted. Because she made it perfectly, or because she made it for me ?

"Enko has practice until five. Seven's on his own schedule, might be out all night."

She nodded, taking a long drink, and I found myself watching her, silently begging her to speak to me. Dove set down her mug on the coffee table, her hand flattening her white waves as her eyes darted around the dorm. "How long have you three known each other?"

"A little while after we first shifted. I was eleven. Our blood tests confirmed we share a Fated."

"The Elder wants me to get tested again," she said, shifting her gaze to the door. "There may have been an error in the test."

"That's standard procedure. The three of us will get tested again as well." I calmed her fears as I memorized every bit of her. "And there's no error. You're perfect."

She reached forward, hiding behind the coffee cup. I was being too forward. We knew nothing about each other yet. I flipped on the TV to end the agonizing silence, and she went over to her bag near Enko's bed. Cue my panic until she returned with a book, curling her legs under her and flipping open to a page near the end.

"Demonology?" I asked, desperate to know her better.

"For class tomorrow," she responded simply, her eyes returning to the book.

Doing my best to not annoy her, I watched the TV, catching her sneaking peeks at me as we sat.

Enko returned a little before six, carrying several takeout boxes. He had showered at the academy gym and changed into clean clothes. Considering it wasn't his normal routine, he must have been trying to impress Dove. Normally he had no problem coming home reeking of old sweat from practice.

Dove jumped up, rushing to the door and helping Enko with the tall pile of four boxes, even though his monster-size could probably do it one-handed.

"Thanks. I'm glad you're still here," Enko said, wearing a cheery simper that was unlike him.

She let out a small musical giggle. "Where else would I be?"

My fists clenched. We would be competing for her attention. And Enko was in the lead right now. I had known that I would share my Fated since I was a teenager, but only after seeing it in action did I understand.

"What have you two been doing?" Enko asked.

"Studying," Dove answered. "And TV."

"No luck with Seven?" Enko directed the question at me. I shook my head, but his attention was already back on Dove. He gestured to the boxes. "I wasn't sure what you liked for food."

They set the boxes on the table, and Dove returned to her seat in front of her empty coffee cup. Enko sat next to her so fucking casually, locking me into my position in the armchair because of how much space he took up. I wanted to sit next to her, have her between the two of us, but there wasn't enough room.

Enko opened the boxes. He'd gotten chicken wings with dipping sauce, salad, pizza, and steak with mashed potatoes. He was going all out for her.

"You can pick whatever you want, Dove," Enko told her, passing her a plate.

Dove's eyes lit up at the food, then her chin dropped to her chest, a pinkish hue arising on her cheeks. "You don't have to do that."

I cut in, "You're going to have to get used to getting spoiled with so many mates." She looked over as though she'd forgotten I was there, biting the edge of her bottom lip.

"It's just food. I can get you something else if you don't like anything," Enko said, stealing her attention back.

"No, no, it all looks delicious!" Her head shook frantically.

"We can share it then," Enko offered.

Dove agreed hesitantly, scooting closer to him.

It was like I wasn't fucking there. I might as well have run off like Seven.

"Kairos?" Dove cooed my name softly, a wisp of sound on the wind, alluring and angelic. She pursed her lips, her gaze darting around the room uncertainly, and Enko was giving me dude-what-the-fuck eyes.

"Sorry, what?"

"Dove asked if you wanted to sit there?" He gestured to the spot that had opened next to her, that rage flickering in his eyes for half a second before he reined it back.

I jumped up excitedly before I remembered I was supposed to be impressing this woman, putting on a cool charm five seconds too late. "I'll get us drinks."

I grabbed a few glasses and a pitcher of water from the fridge, snagging a soda at the last moment because I wasn't sure what Dove wanted—taking a page from Enko's book—before sitting next to her.

"You grew up in a temple?" Enko was asking when I returned, grabbing the water and a glass from me. He was always a health-nut during the season.

"I don't like to talk about it," Dove purred, selecting a glass and holding it out to Enko as I sat next to her.

"Pretty terrible there, then?" I said, leaning back and trying to sling my arm around behind her, only to find that Enko's was already there, leading to an awkward arm-battle that I ended up losing.

Dove leaned forward and glanced back. My arm retreated like a wounded soldier. It's like I totally lost my cool around her. Instead of the charming guy who could get any woman I wanted, I was the bumbling idiot who'd never even spoken to one before.

"It was peaceful in the shrine." She paused, lost in a memory. "Until it wasn't."

She retreated behind her beautiful brown eyes, locked in a place she couldn't escape. She excused herself, thanking Enko for his bed and disappearing under the covers for the rest of the night.