Footsteps pound beyond the room’s door. I continue kissing Aiden, not wanting to break the spell.
Something nags at the back of my mind. My limbs start to tremble and my shoulder blades stiffen with black, deep fear.
“He’s coming,” I whisper against Aiden’s mouth.
The school’s backyard comes back into focus, and Xander’s blonde hair peeks from behind the corner. “Coach is after your arse, King.”
Aiden’s dark attention stays on me.
It’s like he knows that I didn’t mean Xander or anyone here when I said ‘He’s coming.’
Chapter Thirty-Five
During practice, Aiden throws me grins every chance he gets. My cheeks flame at the attention he draws towards me.
Even the girls on the track team — who rarely talk to me — nudge me a few times. They were never mean to me, but they never bothered with me before either.
Once practice is over, I linger back and glance one last look at the football pitch.
I don’t need to search for Aiden since he’s running in my direction.
He has such breathtaking athletic ease when he runs. His form is taught, graceful, and full of so much confidence. He reaches me in a few seconds, his jet black hair sticking to his forehead with sweat and his breathing controlled.
Almost everyone in my immediate surrounding grows silent as if they’re watching the show.
I fidget, feeling uncomfortable with all the attention. It’s different from bullying, but it’s attention all the same.
Being under the spotlight causes my skin to prickle, but since I’ve gotten involved with Aiden, I should’ve known that he comes with attention plastered all over him.
I clear my throat. “Nice game.”
He tilts his head to the side. “If you replied two days ago, I would’ve had an actual nice official game and wouldn’t have Coach breathing down my neck.”
Okay. He’s still salty about that.
His fingers brush a strand of my hair back. My skin tingles and I want to lean into his hand so bad, but the audience stops me.
“Meet me in the car park,” he says.
“Why?”
He pinches my cheek. “Stop with the questions and meet me there.”
I nod.
“King,” Coach Larson calls from behind Aiden. “Locker room meeting. Now.”
“Yes, Coach,” Aiden calls back but he never takes his eyes off me. The pull between us is crazy and addictive. Despite the audience surrounding us, I’m lost in his smoky eyes. It’s like he’s able to erase the world just like I can.
He’s a compelling type of madness.
Ronan clasps Aiden’s shoulder from behind, shattering the moment. “Yo, King! Let’s go to the meeting or Coach will make us do push-ups.”
Aiden throws him a glare. “Push-ups are better than the grave I’ve been digging for you.”
“I’m hurt. You better pay for the psychological damage.” Ronan’s eyes flick in my direction. “Tame the beast, Ellie.”
I smile. “I don’t think I can.”
“Sure you can.” Ronan waggles his eyebrows. Aiden elbows him and he howls in pain.
“Our friendship just gained an expiration date, King. The only way to save it is by letting me drive your car.”
“Friendship over.”
I burst into laughter as Ronan’s eyes widen comically. “How about just an hour?”
“Over, Astor.”
“Okay, a loop?” He nods at me and clasps his arm around Aiden’s shoulder, guiding him away.
“Outside.” Aiden mouths to me as Ronan drags him, spouting a monologue about friendship before whore cars.
I’m still smiling when I feel someone watching me — or glaring at me. I turn sideways, but the track team girls seem to have dreamy eyes more than anything.
After searching my surroundings, I spot Adam. He leans against the railing leading to the football team’s locker room, staring at me.
Silver stands beside him. While Adam’s gaze is unreadable, hers is full of contempt.
“Nevermind Silver.” Tara, a member of the track team, interlaces her arm with mine. “She’s just bitter that King will never look at her the way he looks at you.”
Tara and I walk into the locker room. Like Kim, Tara has been an elite since she was a child. I think her father is a Knight, too. I often forget about her aristocratic title because Tara is the modest type.
“Silver wishes she was you,” Tara continues.
“What do you mean?”
“She’s been gunning after King since Royal Elite Junior, but he never really showed interest in her. Then you come along and he openly shows you off. She feels threatened.”
“She’s been gunning after him how?” So much for swearing to never get into this drama.
“In a territorial kind of way?” Tara taps her lower lip, seeming deep in thought. “It’s weird, you know. I don’t think she’s even attracted to him, but she’s been working to score him, anyway. The rumour is that she has a secret boyfriend, but is using King as a cover-up. Maybe she’s dating a thug.”
Or maybe she’s dating Aiden or sleeping with him and the whole secret boyfriend deal is a deflation method.
Nope. Not going there. I promised to try trusting Aiden not two hours ago.
Tara keeps talking about the multiple rumours that circled around the school since Royal Elite Junior until now. I never had so much contact with Tara because we both keep to ourselves. I never thought she’s so much into gossip.
Apparently, I’ve been missing out on half of what’s happening at RES. Like the fact that Mr James, the previous rugby coach was fired for a complaint of harassment against one of his players. I thought he was transferred willingly. Tara doesn’t know the player because the school’s board made sure to keep everything under wraps.
There’s also the fact that King, the father not the son, will be personally overlooking the football team’s schedule. Tara says that he has friends in big teams of the Premier League and will be sending scouts over. I wonder if Aiden will pursue Football professionally like his cousin.
We’re in the shower with only a thin, blurry glass wall separating us when Tara blurts, “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” I apply the shampoo over my head and massage my skull.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, Elsa. I hear a lot of rumours and I just want to know which is true and which is false.”
I laugh. “No. I’m not really ‘Frozen’ if that’s what you’re asking.”
“You kind of are, though.”
“What do you mean?”
“You don’t even know ninety per cent of the stuff that happens at RES. You don’t care about anyone other than Kim. Everyone thinks you’re…”
“Stuck up?”
“I was going to say a recluse?” There’s an awkward smile in her voice.
“It’s okay. I don’t mind what everyone thinks. I’m only here because it’s the perfect way to get to Cambridge.” I want to tell her that being selected as a target on the first day at school didn’t really warm me up to the students here, but I keep that to myself.