Chapter Ten

When I shifted for the first time, it had totally rocked me out of my socks, but this wind thing? It wasn't me, couldn't be me. Could it? I thought the other time was a fluke and had just about convinced myself of that.

"I didn't mean it." That was the only thing I could think to say. "I didn't do it." Yeah…that was something else.

"It's really okay, Kiki." Minx reached out to me, but I shrank back. "We need to talk about this."

I shook my head. "I don't understand how I could make something like that happen. I'm a shifter, not a wizard. And I wasn't even thinking about it."

Ava caught Minx's arm. "Let her be. It's not easy to have to face something so shocking about yourself."

Shocking. Wasn't that the truth? If the school thought I was a danger, they'd send me away, and I'd be all alone again. I couldn't expect anyone I just met to want to risk their lives for me. Could I? It wouldn't even be fair. "I-I have to go. Thank you everyone for a good time, and I regret any part I may have had."

I turned on a heel and darted for the elevator, not wanting to see anyone anymore. No, that wasn't it. I didn't want them to see me. Perhaps if I disappeared for a while, they would forget what happened. Most of the school was here at the event, so if I could have chosen a worse time to make a spectacle of myself, I wasn't sure when it would be.

As I rode down to the dorms, I leaned against the elevator wall and breathed slowly. All I had to do was get to my room and crawl into bed and try to forget any of this happened. No harm had been done, thanks to Minx, and nobody else there would have had any reason to point fingers at me. Would they?

Not that I could think of. After eighteen years of trying to fly under the radar of those in authority as well as the judgmental kids who looked down on me because I had no family, it wasn't easy to fit in, so I had settled for not standing out. Foster kids could be the target of bullying.

My hand shook as I unlocked the door, but once it closed behind me, I relaxed very slightly. Dahlia would be along soon, unless something came of whoever she had her eye on, and I needed to get myself together before that happened. Especially if she didn't know.

I went into the bathroom and splashed some water on my face. My hair had lost its bounce somewhere along the way, and bags darkened the skin under my eyes. Really stunning. Not. But nobody was going to see me again tonight except maybe Dahlia, so I changed into an old favorite nightgown. Soft white cotton I probably should have thrown away years ago, but I'd held onto it for a couple of reasons. Because it was still useful and because it was comforting.

Then I went in and started to climb into bed.

But a rap on the door interrupted, and I considered ignoring it.

"Kiki, it's me. Neo. Open up."

Still, I hesitated.

"Please let me in."

Nobody else? What did he mean? We had barely met, much less become the kind of people who confided in one another.

"Coming." I had the door open before I remembered what I wore. But his dark eyes widened when they fixed on me, and my cheeks heated. "I should get dressed."

"Please don't do it on my account." He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. "You look fine." Yeah…in my nightgown, giving the impression I was ready for bed. Because I was. "I promise you're safe with me."

Neo was the most radical in appearance of the three friends. He looked more like a biker than one of the students at this vaguely preppy shifter school. Even Dahlia's version of all-black everything fit in better. But did he scare me? He probably should, but in fact he did not.

"I believe you." I waved him to my desk chair and sat on the edge of my bed. Maybe I should have sat in Dahlia's desk chair, but to move now would only draw attention to myself, show I was uncomfortable with the whole situation. I tugged my nightdress over my knees, but he just smiled and reached out a hand.

I took it, unsure of what to do next, but with a tug, he brought me to his lap and settled me on a knee. "Still believe me?"

"Yes, I do." Everything I'd learned growing up told me not to, but everything that came from inside me told me I should.

"May I kiss you?"