Fallen Elemental (Elemental Series Book 1), page 8
"Alright, I promise I’ll keep it to friendship. For now at least. I can't promise anything later, though, because you are a beautiful girl, Evie, and I want to know every part of you. Even if it takes me years to break down that barrier you keep around yourself."
With that parting line, he walks ahead of me as if he owns the place. As I watch him, I can't help but wonder how long it would actually take for them to break down my hard built walls. Something about all four of the new guys has me wishing it were already my birthday so I could just leave home and get to know them without fear of my parents’ reactions. As it is, though, there’s only a week to go until my eighteenth birthday. One week until I can finally be free. Maybe, since it's that close, I can let go, just a little bit? Start opening myself up to friendships now? After all, who cares if my parents find out what I'm doing when they won't be able to control me this time next week?
And with that knowledge firm in my mind, I follow after Dane, feeling confident and eager to try and build a friendship with someone like him who intrigues me.
Thirteen
Dane
I hate studying so damn much, but Evie and the librarian have both threatened to kick my ass out on the street if I keep on talking, because apparently it’s disruptive. And even though I have a desire to know more about Evie, it's not worth being kicked out over.
Part of me doubts whether she'd really go through with it, but I don't want to push my luck.
So instead, I knuckle down and get to work. I can't even remember when the last time I actually studied was. Technically, our schooling was complete almost two years ago. But since then, we've been to several human schools, always with the goal of blending in and trying to find other Elementals.
When Evelyn is finally finished, she closes all four of the books in front of her and pushes them away. Then she rests her head on the desk with a groan. I let out a relieved sigh and do the same. Then I prop my head on my hands and watch as she slowly sits back up, rubbing her eyes in exhaustion.
It's not something you would expect to see someone her age do and it has me curious what her life must be like for her to be this tired after just a small study session. Sure, we've been in here for the last two hours, doing nothing but going over books, but this exhaustion can’t be just from our studying. No, it goes deeper than that and it makes my heart ache with sorrow.
Despite what the others think about me, I too used to imagine what our bonded would be like. Whether she would be smart, kind, or if she'd be just as much of an ass as I am. What I didn't expect, though, was a damaged girl who, despite all she’d been through, possessed so much strength it made me want to rain down destruction on her tormentors. In fact, it was lucky Ky knocked some sense into that dick Derrick, because otherwise I would have been right there to do the job for him. Except my brand of pain is the kind that boy would never be able to recover from.
"What are you thinking about?" Evelyn asks in a soft voice that causes me to startle from my thoughts.
I got so lost in my plans of revenge that I forgot where I was for a second. "Oh, nothing really," I tell her, trying to push aside her curiosity, but she just continues to stare at me, her blue-gray eyes full of knowledge.
She leans back in her chair and crosses her arms over her chest, which only serves to enhance her cleavage. It takes all my willpower to not linger on that very tempting sight, instead shifting my gaze back to her face.
"Dane, I'm not stupid. I can tell when someone is lying to me. Their pulse quickens, their breathing becomes erratic and they usually avoid eye contact." Evelyn stares at me with a fire burning in her eyes. But after a moment, her expression softens and she offers me a wry smile. "Besides, you were smiling like an evil villain who’s finally about to kill the good guy."
A startled laugh bursts from my lips. That was pretty close to the mark, actually. "Okay, I admit I may have fudged that a bit. But I didn't want to tell you the truth because not many can handle my brand of honesty. And anyway, I don't think scaring you off on day one would be very good for my ego.” I offer her a flirty smile and lean forward over the table. I’m now closer to her, but there’s still a lot of space between us. However, if she moved forward a bit...
As if picking up on my thoughts, she does exactly that. She uncrosses her arms, splaying her hands out on the table in front of us. Then she leans forward, putting her face mere centimeters away from my own. I can see a small smattering of freckles across her nose and the desire to reach out and cup her cheek is so strong that I feel my hand rising to do just that. But then my ringtone breaks the heavy, desire-laden silence, ruining the moment.
Son of a bitch! I curse as I pull away, trying not to let my thoughts linger on the disappointment I see in Evelyn's eyes. When I see the name on the screen, I'm reminded of a whole other problem I have to deal with before Evelyn finds out.
A bonded doesn't necessarily stay celibate before he meets his destined, nor do the females, unless of course the person wishes to. But our bond is unique. The four of us always knew that one woman would come into our lives to complete our bond, and would be shared by all of us. As far as I'm aware, not one of us has chosen to remain celibate, nor have we abstained from having any relationships, since we didn’t know how long it would be before we met our bonded. By all rights, we should have found her before we received our powers, but that didn’t happen.
And while Evelyn doesn’t know much about our kind yet, she will one day, and if she finds out I was in a pseudo relationship, especially after I found her, she will feel betrayed. No, I have to end it with Nadia before anything happens with Evie, otherwise she’ll hate me for it.
I glance up and see that the playful Evie I had only recently gotten a glimpse of has withdrawn behind that tightly guarded wall of hers.
I sigh sadly and pull my books off the table, angrily stuffing them in my bag. Nadia's timing is so frustrating. I just want to stay here with my bonded. But no, life just has to get in the way.
"Sorry, Evie. I really don’t want to, but unfortunately, I’ve got to go."
She nods, but remains quiet as she slowly begins packing up her own books. That’s when I realize that she might expect to drop me off home since I tagged along with her on the way here.
But there is no way in hell will I let her drop me at Nadia's place. That will just lead to a bunch of questions and assumptions that I would really like to avoid.
Once she's finished packing up her bag, Evie gets to her feet slowly. "We better get going then. I'm not sure where you live, but you can just direct me once we’re in the car," she says. Her voice is completely devoid of emotion, but I feel in our bond that she is hurting. Knowing that, especially since I’m probably the cause of said hurt, kills me more then she will ever know.
"Actually, one of the guys is planning to pick me up since he’s already out and about. But I'll walk you out and you can wait with me if you like." I try to offer her an alternative, anything to wipe the feelings of hurt from our bond.
She smiles tightly, and even if I couldn't feel her emotions, I would know it’s a forced one. "Nah, it's okay. I should be getting home anyway. I have a few chores to get done before dinner. But thank you for tagging along today. It was nice to have company."
Her words are said with an air of finality, like this will be the first and only time we spend together. And as I watch her walk away with a hurried stride, I know I can't let her go like this. I need to do something to reassure her, and show her that she’s stuck with me, with us, for as long as we all live.
I begin jogging quickly, ignoring the librarian’s glare as I follow after Evie. She is just opening her car door when I run up. I push it closed and cage her in against the vehicle with my arms on either side of her. She turns slowly to face me, a wide-eyed expression on her face. "What are you doing, Dane?"
Her breathless tone of voice almost makes me give into temptation, but I hold onto that last shred of restraint I have and lean in to whisper, "I'm sorry I'm leaving early, but I couldn't let you go without first telling you how amazing you are. I know this is hard right now but I promise, one day this will all make sense." Then I press a quick kiss to her cheek, forcing myself to back away before I let myself do something I know I shouldn’t while I’m still technically with Nadia.
I wink at her as she leans against the door, breathing heavily. All of a sudden, I can feel a wave of arousal slam through our bond. Oh hell, the others have probably felt that and are going to ask questions, I’m sure. I smirk to myself. I don't plan on telling them what happened. I'll just leave them guessing.
At least now, I can walk away from Evie, taking comfort in the fact that soon she will know exactly what I am to her, as well as what she is. And then I will show her exactly what it means to be bonded to an Elemental male.
Fourteen
Evelyn
One week later
I can't believe it's been a full week since those four have burst into my life. They came in like a wrecking ball, upending everything I thought I wanted.
I always figured life was better without friends, that it would keep my parents happy and so I wouldn’t be hurt for caring about others. I considered hiding friends from them many times, but to be honest, I was hesitant. I’ve only ever hidden my friendship with Clint from my parents, and look how that turned out. It ruined me, and afterward, I decided being alone was best. At least, that was before I met these four.
After my trip to the library with Dane, I assumed the next day they would all act like nothing had happened, but it was quite the opposite actually. When I arrived at school on Tuesday, the four of them were at the doors to greet me, but it was Michael who got to spend the day with me, guiding me to classes and such. We all still ate together as a group, though, and I got to see all the guys in my various classes.
It was like the guys had discussed it among themselves, because on Wednesday, the same thing happened. Except when I showed up that day, Ky was the one to be by my side, instead of Mike. Then on Thursday, it was Teddy’s turn to walk with me.
But then on Friday, they were all there to greet me with bright happy smiles as they all walked me to class, and I had never felt more giddy in all my life.
I wasn't quite sure exactly what they were doing, or why they were so focused on me, but either way, I was happy for the chance to get to know them all. Over that week, I learned more about them individually, and as a group as well.
For instance, I learned that none of them have siblings, and that they were all raised together. They would often refer to themselves as bond brothers. I don’t think they even realized they did it, because when I pointed it out to them, they all exchanged worried glances. But then Teddy went on to explain they had just used that term because they had formed an unbreakable bond. I’m not sure why they were so nervous about telling me that, but I didn’t bother asking, not wanting to make them more uncomfortable.
Now it's finally Monday again, after what might very well have been the longest weekend of my life. I never imagined that having friends could be addictive, but that's what those four men have become to me. An addiction that needs feeding.
But things have become increasingly tense with my parents since the guys have come into my life. I don't think they know exactly what’s going on, but they must have noticed a change in me, something to alert them to the fact there is something good in my life for once.
No beatings have occurred since the guys’ arrival, in part because I have been even more meticulous than usual to ensure I continue to meet their high standards. I don’t want them finding out about the new friends in my life, especially not when I’m so close to freedom.
Today is the day I turn eighteen; the day I finally escape. I just have to figure out whether or not I am strong enough to do this on my own. I contemplated staying in this town, just moving out of my parent’s house but I know that isn’t an option so long as my parents are around. They want to control my life, restrict what I can and can’t do; I have to leave. Even if I only have a minimal amount of money to do so.
Sure, I can always get a job, but I don’t imagine people will be willing to hire me for something respectable, not when I have no experience.
Still I need to do something if I'm to survive. I've already spoken to the principal about my grades and whether or not it would be possible for me to graduate early if I completed all my work and passed my final exams. I’ve been working harder all year trying to get ahead and prepare for the final exams, just in case I was willing to go through with my plan. There are still three more months left in the semester, but all of my teachers are confident I will pass with flying colors if I decide to test out early.
When I pull into the school parking lot, all thoughts of my birthday, my parents and everything else fly out the window at the sight of the four guys waiting for me.
Tension drains out of my shoulders, and my heart rate picks up in anticipation. As I park the car, feelings of joy rise up within me. It's as if my body needs to be near them to thrive. As long as I’m here with them, it’s easy to forget about life’s problems and the struggles tomorrow will bring.
I don’t get out of the car right way, instead I just sit there. As I watch them through my window, I feel a little worried about the intensity of my feelings. How did my life change so drastically in just a week? I haven't even spent time with them outside of school. Well, apart from Dane, but even that time was spent mostly in silence. Sure, during the last week we spent as much time together at school as possible between classes, but that still doesn’t seem enough time for me to have grown so dependent on them.
Since the guys and I started hanging out, Nadia has been even more of a bitch towards me, but I won’t let it phase me. She can make all the assumptions she wants, but at the end of the day, I’m only friends with them so I don’t get what the big deal is.
Not that I’m not a little curious about what more would look like; I just don’t know if I’m willing to take a chance on one of them. And even if I did, which one would I choose?
A tap on my window startles me from my thoughts. I look up and smile when I see Teddy looking in at me through the glass. He must have gotten tired of waiting. Something I learned this past week is that Teddy can be a very impatient man. And while he insisted I call him Ted like his brothers do, I love the look he gets in his eyes whenever I call him Teddy. It’s like affection and annoyance all wrapped up into one.
Before he can knock again, I open my door and reach back for my bag. Then I climb out of the car, slinging my backpack over my shoulder as I do so.
Teddy smiles at me and reaches out to take my hand, something else they’ve all started to do. He leads me over to the rest of the guys, who are still waiting for me. And while I know none of them have any idea that today is my birthday, I can't help but feel like they sense something different in me, at least judging by the way they are all studying me intently.
Still, I don't offer up any explanation for whatever change they see in me. They’ll probably just chalk it up to me being happy, and they would be right because that's exactly what I’m feeling right now. Today is my eighteenth birthday, I haven't had a beating from my parents in a few days and I am now finally old enough to get out from under their thumb. What could possibly bring me down on a day like today?
Today went by in a rush and classes are over for the day. Dane asked to tag along with me again and I happily agreed, although this time I can't help but feel a small tension in him as we drive.
Rather than go to the library, I decided instead to offer up a piece of myself and show him my own special little haven. He was all too happy to come with me, judging by the way his eyes heated up at the implication of spending alone time with me. While that look kicked my heart into overdrive, I tried to rein those feelings in, because I knew this could only ever be about friendship.
I had grown to care for all four of the new guys in my life and couldn’t bear the idea of picking one over the others, especially when they all seemed to show interest in me. It was just hard to figure out whether I was just reading into their flirty touches or the heated gazes I would occasionally find thrown my way. So I decided to keep it strictly friendly, especially since I was still planning my escape from my home and this town.
Today, however, I intend to ask Dane a little about how he and the others manage to get by without their parents’ support. Whether it’s worth living apart from them or not, things like that. I know it’s going to be hard if I go through with my plan, and while I like to think I can do it, it would probably help reassure me to see just how they manage it, while still having to put up with their parents at times.
From what I know of these four men, it doesn’t seem like their parents are interested in their lives, unless they're controlling them, that is. Well, the guys didn’t say it in those words exactly, but maybe because of my own experiences with my parents, I can see the truth of their situation for what it really is.
They’ve explained that they’re allowed to freely move whenever they please, as long as they keep in touch. They are allowed to work, as long as a portion of their income is shared with their parents. They are allowed to pick out their own home to live in, but only if it's been approved by their parents. And after each of the guys told me about their so-called freedom, I couldn't help but think they had it worse than me in some respects. At least I knew my parents were controlling my life long before I turned eighteen and made a plan to escape as soon as I could. But the guys are already all eighteen and are still at the beck and call of their families.
Still, it's not my place to say anything, so I remain quiet. As long as they are happy, that's all that matters.
After a thirty minute drive, we’ve left our small town and the road is now lined with trees on either side. A minute or so later, I turn onto a hidden trail, my car bumping all over the road as I drive. I imagine I have a goofy smile on my face as we veer off road into the woods. Not many people know about this place, and the few that do find it never venture as far as I do.
