Chapter 4

Foxglove Grove University was a grand school tucked on the outskirts of the capital city, directly beneath the massive rise of Munin Mountain. Technically, this wasn't Nix's first time visiting the campus, though he'd opted not to enroll the summer he'd attended the tour with his cousin.

He walked the familiar path that led through the heart of the main area now, his feet clicking lightly on polished black and gray cobblestone, eyes tracking his surroundings as he tried to place it all in his memory. Things hadn't changed, but since he'd already known the school wasn't for him, his mind had wandered early on in the tour.

Branwen hadn't felt the same. The entire flight back home, she'd gone on and on about how fantastic the school was. How it was like a tiny town all on its own. A world separated from the rest.

She hadn't been wrong.

On either side of him, buildings with large glass windows and iron embellishments towered, many allowing a view into classrooms and study areas. Students milled within, the golden lighting from the lamps illuminating them as they went about their business. The sky above was dark and gray, a light rain pattering down, bringing with it a chill cold enough to have Nix caving his shoulders inward.

The man at his side chatted on happily, seemingly unaffected by the weather as he led Nix through the main areas.

"This is the medicines library," Grady, Nix's new roommate and self-proclaimed tour guide, tossed out an arm to the left, practically whacking into Nix in the process. "What did you say your major was again?"

"Computer science." Most of Nix's credits had fortunately transferred over. There were a couple of general education classes that hadn't made the cut, but so long as his core classes counted, he wouldn't lose time, at least.

"Right," Grady snapped his fingers and carried them on their way. "You won't be needing that library then. Best just to avoid it altogether. Some of the med students are dicks. High stress majors will do that to people. Speaking of, computer science is rather competitive at the moment. Why would you choose to transfer universities in your final year? Seems like social suicide."

Nix flinched but his new roomie didn't notice.

"Have you thought about joining any clubs?" Grady asked next.

Nix slipped his hands into the front pockets of his jacket and debated whether or not to show the app on his multi-slate. It may be too soon. At the end of the day, Enigma was a hookup app to the majority of the students, and while sex was a fairly open topic on their planet, the university also boasted a mixed student body. There were many who came from other planets, and even galaxies, to attend Foxglove Grove. Some of them would no doubt arrive from cultures and societies where talk of pleasure and sexual acts were taboo. He couldn't announce to Grady he was into that sort of thing within an hour of their very first meeting.

He'd have to wait, find the right time or look for some sort of in. From the research he'd done, Nix had discovered that at least a third of the student population had an account on Enigma, but that didn't mean they were all active or that Grady was one of them.

If Grady found the whole hookup culture dumb or distasteful, Nix would be shooting himself in the foot right out the gate. Ideally, he'd like to do this without involving anyone else, but logically, he understood there was no guarantee. If he needed Grady's help for some reason in the future, it was best not to burn that bridge beforehand.

Besides, it wasn't like Nix was an expert on sex apps. Before now, he'd never even used a dating app, let alone one meant specifically for purely sexual encounters.

His mind wandered to last week. He hadn't heard from Maestro since. It was a bit of a bummer since he'd been hopeful he could make it to the final tier before his arrival to school. Even after that odd conversation with the other man, Nix had still thought there was a chance it was all part of the game.

He'd been wrong though, hadn't he? His gaze wandered around the area, taking in all of the students milling about even though it was the first day.

Who was Maestro?

Was he one of them? Was he watching even now?

Nix almost laughed at himself. It wasn't like the guy knew what he looked like. It'd been all talk. There was no reason to worry about actually running into him. The only thing he should be afraid of was not being able to get that final Favor.

If he didn't hear from Maestro soon, he was going to have to try entering the forums again. Maybe he'd get lucky a second time and attract another king. It would be awkward all over again, having to be sexual in front of yet another stranger, but he could do it.

He'd have to.

Nix shook his head, not wanting to go there.

"—avoid the Demons if you're smart," Grady said, the tail-end of whatever advice he'd been giving shooting through Nix's distracted state.

"What?" He came to an abrupt stop, and his roommate turned with a furrowed brow.

"The Demons?" Grady must be repeating. "Better known as the Demons of Foxglove Grove." His eyes narrowed slightly. "You weren't listening at all, were you."

"Are they really called that?" Bit on the nose if you asked Nix.

"Don't let anyone else see you make that face," Grady warned, stepping closer as though to shield Nix from any prying gazes from other students.

They weren't alone on the path, but due to the sprinkle of rain, there weren't many others standing around them.

"The Demons are treated more like gods here," he continued, voice lowering into practically a whisper. "And this year's group is the worst. They're childhood friends who came from prestigious families. They practically own the school and the town."

Nix cocked his head. "You sound scared of them."

"Yeah, because I'm smart. You've got top marks," he poked him in the center of the chest, "you should be, too. They're super popular, but nothing good ever comes from drawing their attention."

"So, they've got a lot of friends." Were those the people Nix was looking for? Should he speak to them about Branwen? He needed to interact with the people she'd been close with, and if these Demons knew everyone, maybe they'd have an idea what social circles she'd hung out in.

"Uh, no," Grandy corrected, heaving a breath of frustration when this time Nix was the one to frown. "They don't have friends. Look, I don't know how things went at your last school, but here, there's a hierarchy. The Demons? They're top of the food chain. And the rest of us? We're just here to make them look good to the planet and the universe."

Foxglove Grove was the second most prominent school in the galaxy, coming in only behind Vail University, which was located on the planet Vitality. Many students traveled galactically to enroll in either, though the history at Foxglove was older and richer. In comparison to its thousand years of existence, Vail was a baby.

Maybe that's why it was doing better. Those in charge of Vail were able to present fresh perspectives on how to run things, whereas Foxglove was still too rooted in tradition and heritage.

Case in point, these Demons having run of the place simply because of their bloodlines.

Grady seemed to finally notice they were standing in the rain and reached into the pocket of his yellow raincoat and pulled out an umbrella in the same color. "You should invest in one. It rains a lot here."

"Right." He'd had that in his pocket this entire time?! Nix would have said something, but then his roommate opened it and stepped closer so they could share and he decided to bite his tongue. "Thanks."

"No problem." Grady was already distracted again, glancing every which way as though trying to decide where to lead him next. There was a crossroads in the path up ahead, and if they went straight, they'd be heading closer to the impressive mountain. "Are you hungry?"

He started to veer them right, and Nix followed with a shrug.

"We've got a convenience store and two cafeterias on campus," Grady said. "The smaller one is free for all, but Café Soul is only for upperclassmen."

"Which one are we going to now?"

"The smaller one," he told him. "We just call it the cafeteria. If you say that's where you're going, everyone will know what you mean."

"Why? Is the other one the only one with a name?"

"Pretty much."

"Aren't we upperclassmen?" They were both seniors.

"Yeah, but take it from me. Avoid Café Soul if you can. That's where the Demons and all their groupies hang out."

Nix blew out a breath. "This is all sounding very cliché rich kid." He hesitated before asking, "Did they do something to you?"

"Me?" He shook his head vehemently. "No."

Nix wasn't satisfied with that response. With the way he was talking about them, it was clear Grady's animosity toward the Demons was personal. "A friend of yours then?"

His new roommate turned toward him too quickly, knocking his foot against the edge of the path. He tripped, careening backward, the umbrella going with him.

Nix tried to grab onto him, but it all happened too quickly, as if it were a scene from a bad movie.

Grady stumbled a few steps, the umbrella whacking backward as his arms floundered.

Smacking right into a tall blond's face.

"Light," Grady righted himself and started to turn, "I'm so sorr—" the apology died on his tongue with a strangled gurgle that had Nix frowning.

The blond still had his head turned away, a red line on his left cheek from where one of the tips of the umbrella had clearly scraped across his skin. He wasn't carrying anything to protect himself from the light drizzle, the shoulders of his black blazer sprinkled in water droplets.

Behind him, two other guys watched with curiosity, the easy ways in which they held themselves doing nothing to mask the fact they were actually poised and ready to strike at any given moment.

One had a buzz cut, the fuzz of his hair dyed a snow-white shade that didn't match his dark brown eyebrows. He had on a black bomber jacket with white sleeves, which was worn over his standard-issue uniform. The school's crest, depicted in a circular pin, was stuck off-center on his leather belt, which hung low on his hips.

The other one had longer hair that looked like spilled ink, especially right now with it slightly damp from the rain, strands sticking to the rise of sharp cheek bones. It wasn't that long, just long enough for him to pull it back into a small bun at the back of his head, and was probably the least distracting thing about him. Tattoos marked the exposed skin of his hands and his neck, the rest covered by his uniform and leather jacket. He had more facial jewelry in than Nix had the time to count.

They were both eyeing Grady down as if they pitied him, the slight upward curve of their cruel lips the only indicator that was also a lie.

Nix could recognize predators when he saw them. Bullies were nothing new to him, though he himself had never had to deal with that sort of thing at any extreme type of level. It was so obvious looking at these three now that they'd be good at that sort of thing.

Good at tearing others down.

Sure enough, Grady caved in on himself as though trying to make himself smaller and took a deliberate step back toward Nix. His head bowed, gaze set on the wet cobblestones as if making eye contact would cause him to spontaneously combust or something.

"Lake," Grady stuttered when he spoke to the blond, wringing his hands in front of himself. "I'm so-sorry. It's my fault. I wasn't watching where I was going. Please accept my apology."

The ensuing silence was deafening.

"I…" Grady swallowed and tried again. "Really. I'm sorry. Are you okay? Should we go to the nurses?"

The one with the buzz cut snorted and covered his mouth to hide the smirk. When he noticed Nix had caught him, he tipped his chin. "What are you looking at?"

It was so tempting to call them assholes to their faces, but Nix refrained. He was here for Branwen. If he got off on the wrong foot on day one, it would make things so much more difficult for him than it needed to be. In order to find answers, he needed to be able to talk to people, and something told him if he rubbed these guys the wrong way, most of the student body would react the same way Grady was now.

In fear.

"Let's go." He grabbed Grady's elbow and tried to move them around the three guys.

He should have known it wouldn't be that simple.

The one with the tattoos stepped in their way and let out a low whistle. "Come on now. Don't be like that. We're not the ones in the wrong here, are we?"

"He already said he was sorry," Nix stated, losing some of his patience. He swallowed the rest of his irritation down and straightened his spine. "It was an accident."

"Nix," Grady said his name quietly, pulling his arm free and giving him a small shake of his head.

"You should listen to your friend, Nixie ," the guy with the buzz cut suggested a second before his eyes narrowed. "Wait. I don't think I've seen you before."

The one with piercings gave him a slow once over. "Nope. He's new."

Suddenly, Lake was standing in front of him, hand capturing Nix's jaw to force his gaze up. There was only a couple of inches difference between them, but when their gazes locked, it felt like he was being peered down upon by a giant.

The sheer intensity of it cut off anything he would have said, and the most he even managed to struggle was to wrap his fingers around Lake's wrist. And that was it.

For a charged moment, no one spoke and Nix felt himself locked in, caught up in the green of the other man's eyes. Almost like freshly sprouted grass. Or the leaves of a tree kissed by the sun. Or—

He stopped himself.

What the actual fuck?

Nix yanked Lake's hand away and took a step back, forcing himself to glare even though all of his instincts were screaming at him to follow Grady's lead and tuck his tail. He'd never been the type to cower, though, and he didn't intend to start now.

"What's your problem?" he asked, voice clipped. He was grateful he'd managed to keep it steady and not give his frayed nerves away. If he focused on it, he could still feel the lingering sensation of those warm fingers at his chin…

He'd never felt chemistry like this before, instantaneous and raw. Why the hell did it have to be with this guy, of all people?

Lake continued to stare at him wordlessly for a while, and then he tipped his head, signaling his friends. It appeared as though he was going to leave it there, but after only a couple of steps he paused. "Did you remember to bring it?"

Nix felt the entire world tip on its axis at his voice.

The same voice he'd listened to during his most intimate moments.

At his shocked expression, Lake chuckled darkly, the sound lacking any thread of kindness.

"See you soon, Songbird." He didn't turn back or add anything else, merely started down the path with his friends on his heels.

There was no way…

Nix must look foolish, standing there with his mouth open, staring at the retreating backs of the Demons of Foxglove. But he couldn't help it. Couldn't even bring himself to care what the other students—some of whom had somehow noticed the commotion outside and were standing by various windows in surrounding buildings watching—thought of him.

Only one person had ever called him that before, but there was no way…

What were the odds that Lake, of all people, was Maestro?