(Akilah's pov)
If someone had told me joining Vanguard meant spending hours wandering through a dark forest with Kael…
I would've stayed in bed.
Unfortunately, it had only been twenty-three minutes.
Twenty-three painfully silent minutes.
In which was the problem, the silence. It was deathning
No one was talking. No one was arguing. Which is odd, 'cause I at least thought Kael would have found a way to argue with me, but nope, even he was quiet.
There was only the sound of footsteps crunching over leaves and the distant whisper of wind moving through the trees.
Which meant I was left alone with my thoughts.
And my thoughts were currently trying to kill me.
The forest stretched endlessly around us.
Dark shadows crowded between towering trees, swallowing whatever little moonlight managed to filter through the branches above.
I could barely see where I was going. Most of the time, I was following the sound of the others ahead of me.
The mission had only just started, yet I already hated it.
We still hadn't figured out how to break the curse of the pendant.
Without opening it, we couldn't reveal the way back home.
I sighed mentally, slapping myself for allowing this to happen.
Ahead of us, Kael and Darien walked side by side.
Taylor walked beside me.
At some point, Kael glanced over his shoulder.
His blue eyes swept over me briefly.
Looking at me suspiciously.
Judging.
Whatever.
He then turned his head forward again, which caused me to roll my eyes at him.
My attention shifted toward Taylor. Unlike Kael, his expression always seemed approachable.
Warm.
Friendly.
The kind of face that immediately made people trust him.
I found myself studying his features.
Strong jaw.
Dark long hair.
Kind green eyes.
I mean, how could two men be so attractive yet have opposite personalities? One was sweet, and the other was insufferable.
It honestly wasn't fair. Why couldn't Taylor have been my mate instead of this monster?
Taylor suddenly snickered beside me. I then realized I had been staring at him for too long, and he probably noticed
I immediately looked away, but he had caught me.
"See something you like, princess?" he asked.
Heat rushed onto my cheeks.
"What?"
"I said, ' Do you see something you like? You keep staring at me," he said.
Heat rushed into my cheeks. "I wasn't staring."
His grin widened.
"Of course you weren't."
I groaned."You're impossible."
"And yet you're blushing."
I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.
Thankfully, before he could continue embarrassing me, Kael's voice cut through the darkness.
"You two need to stop yapping and walk faster. " You're falling behind," He said, not even bothering to look back.
"Walk faster. We're falling behind." I mimicked his tone under my breath.
Taylor nearly choked on a laugh.
I smirked."There it is."
"What?"
"A laugh."
He shook his head.
"You shouldn't do that."
"Do what?"
"Mock him."
"Why not?"
Taylor laughed again.
"Because if he hears you, he'll probably spend the next hour glaring at you."
I scoffed. "He already does that."
"Fair point."
A smile tugged on my lips.
"Seriously though," I said. "I know he's your prince and all, but can he be any more annoying?"
Taylor actually paused to think about it.
"Honestly? No."
I burst out laughing.
"So he's always like this?"
"You get used to it."
"I don't think I will."
"You won't."
That only made us laugh harder.
For the first time since going through this mission, I felt some of the tension leave my shoulders.
Taylor noticed.
His smile softened slightly.
"You know," he said, nudging a low branch out of our path, "you smile a lot more than I expected."
I raised an eyebrow.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
He shrugged.
"When I heard the Felinarian princess was coming, most people expected someone snobby."
"Snobby?" I snorted.
"Self-obsessed, actually."
"I am offended," I said, placing my hand on my chest, acting hurt.
"Well, you shouldn't be cause at the end that's not who you turned out to be," he said.
"Well, I also heard stories about you, mister."
"Really. What stories have you heard? Let me guess that I am the most amazing person in the world," he said.
"No. Not even close. I heard that you're the school's biggest heartthrob, sleeping with every girl who looks in your way," I said.
He grinned, clearly embarrassed. "Are you judging me for it?"
"Me, no. I could never judge you or what you do. That is none of my business about what you do during your free time." I answered honestly.
"Okay, but just to inform you, I am not the biggest heartthrob. The real heartthrob is Mister over there," he said, pointing at Kael.
I looked at him, remembering the night when I went to reject him, and he was kissing some girl.
"Which is funny if you asked me. He has been going back and forth with Seraphina for years," he continued.
"Seraphina, what do you mean by back and forth?" I asked curiously.
"Well, they have been together since our high school years, and even when they claim to be broken up, we know that's not really true. The last time they were on a break, Kael apparently hooked up with some girl, and when Seraphina found out, she made the girl's life a living hell. Molly was her name. The next year, Molly had changed schools," he finished.
So the girl I saw him with must have been Seraphina then. Maybe that's why he hates the fact that I'm his mate. Because he had already chosen her to take my place.
I shook my head, not wanting to think about it. "Well, that's a serious obsession, but if you ask me, I think they are perfect for each other, they can be Mrs Delusional and Mr crazy. Together they make the perfect couple," I said sarcastically.
His laughter echoed through the forest.
The sound was warm and easy. It showed he was comfortable around me. Something about Taylor made conversation effortless.
"I like it here," I admitted quietly.
Taylor glanced at me.
"What is the forest?" He said with his brow raised.
"No, I meant the Academy. I honestly thought I would hate it here, but honestly, it's not that bad," I said, not mentioning the Kael part.
"Well, I'm happy that you feel that way." He said.
A moment later, Taylor reached over and pulled my bag from my shoulder.
Before I could react, he slung it over his own.
"Hey."
He shrugged.
"What?"
"You didn't have to do that."
"It weighs nothing."
I frowned.
"It does not."
"It does."
"It doesn't."
"It does."
I rolled my eyes.
"Fine."
He flashed me a grin.
A small smile found its way onto my face.
Taylor really was, genuinely, a nice person.
Which only made Kael look worse by comparison.
Two hours had passed, and the forest never seemed to end. I was beginning to think we were walking in circles.
Then suddenly—Kael stopped. Which causes all of us to haunt.
"What?" Darien asked.
Kael turned around to face us.
His head tilted slightly as he looked at the pendant dangling around his neck.
The silence stretched.
"Just to let you know. This thing causes you to see things."
I exchanged a look with Taylor.
"And what exactly do you mean by that?" Darien asked.
Kael frowned.
"I keep seeing memories, memories that haunt me."
The three of us stared at him.
His expression tightened.
For a moment, he looked genuinely confused.
"I believe this is what the coach meant when he said the pendant will try to keep us from ending this challenge. Clearly trying to confuse you," he said.
He started walking again, and we followed behind him.
An hour later, he stopped once again. Only this time, he didn't seem okay. He was working hard, and his face looked stiff.
Darien frowned. " Dude, are you okay?"
A strange feeling settled in my stomach, and it wasn't the good kind.
Without warning, Darien removed the pendant from around Kael's neck, putting it on himself.
"My turn."
Kael immediately looked annoyed.
Darien ignored him.
"You've been carrying it for hours."
For a second, I thought Kael might argue, but instead, he simply let it go.
As we continued walking, I couldn't stop thinking about what Mael must have seen for him to look the way he did, and I honestly didn't want to find out. It reminded me of when I was younger. How I used to hear things, but then I would be told that I was dreaming.
The idea of seeing something scary made my skin crawl.
"Hey."
Taylor bumped my shoulder lightly.
I blinked.
"What?"
"You went quiet all of a sudden."
"Oh, I was just thinking about something."
His gaze softened.
"What are you thinking about?"
I hesitated; I wasn't comfortable with telling anyone about my past, nor did I like it when anyone questioned me.
"Something from my past," I simply answered.
He nodded. Not trying to pry.
A moment later, he ruffled my hair.
I swatted his hand away.
"Don't do that."
His grin returned. "It got you smiling again, didn't it?"
We continued walking a while longer. Eventually, I glanced behind me at Kael, who was now walking several steps behind us.
Watching me.
His face was completely unreadable.
Cold.
Expressionless.
Yet his eyes never left me.
What now?
Before I could figure out what his problem was, Darien suddenly stopped.
His bag slipped off his shoulder, falling to the ground.
"Darien?" Taylor called, moving immediately towards him.
He took off the pendant, holding it in his hand.
"You okay?"
"I couldn't take seeing it anymore," He said, taking off the pendant, holding it in his hand.
We all fell silent.
Darien's eyes narrowed as he brushed his hands over his face.
"We should take a break; we've been walking for hours now, and we still haven't found a way to open that thing," Taylor said, rubbing the back of his neck.
Nobody argued. I was exhausted from all the walking and wouldn't mind taking a break.
"Good idea. I needed to use the bathroom anyway," Darien said.
Taylor groaned."Now that you've mentioned it, me too."
Both boys disappeared into the woods. It was than I realized I was left alone with Kael.
Fantastic.
I could practically feel his gaze on me.
Looking anywhere but at him, I crouched beside my bag and pulled out my water bottle. The cool water is helping to calm my nerves.
After putting it away, I decided that standing beside Kael in awkward silence sounded unbearable.
So I walked away.
Not far.
Just enough to put distance between us.
The trees opened slightly, revealing a patch of sky.
Thousands of stars glittered overhead.
I released a slow breath, letting myself relax. Until it was ruined by footsteps crunching down on a dry branch.
I didn't need to turn around.
I already knew who it was.
"Why are you following me?" I asked.
Silence.
I sighed.
"The boys went the other direction," I said, turning around to face him.
He was standing only a few feet away.
The moonlight painted silver highlights across his dark hair.
"I don't trust you to wander off by yourself."
I crossed my arms. I moved ten feet away."
"Well than your just reckless," He said.
I rolled my eyes.
"There it is."
"What?"
"The prince's attitude. You couldn't go this whole night ignoring me. You just had to follow me and start something. Your honesty unbearable for someone who didn't want to accept my proposal.
His expression didn't change, and that somehow annoyed me.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
The tension between us felt almost tangible.
My lungs were clearly screaming danger.
I hated how aware I was of him.
How aware I always seemed to be.
His eyes dropped briefly.
Then returned to mine.
His hand suddenly reached towards my face. His fingers brushed lightly against my cheek. The contact lasted less than a second. Yet my entire body tingled like a thousand fireflies crawling onto my body.
He stops his action, pulling his hand back, staring at me. He looked like he was thinking before his hand reached again, brushing gently against the side of my lip. He pulled his hand back. A tiny drop of water glistened on his fingertip.
Neither of us moved as our eyes locked onto each other's.
The forest suddenly felt very quiet. Every single sound surrounding us seemed to disappear.
All I could hear was the sound of my own heartbeat thumping against my chest. It's like I have no control over myself.
I hated how my heart reacted.
I hated how my breath caught.
Most of all…
I hated how much I wanted to break my gaze away from his.
His gaze lingered. This created a more intense reaction from me.
His expression didn't change. Instead, his hands trailed down until they reached my waist, pulling me close until I could feel his rock-hard chest against mine.
I could feel the mate bond flaring up at our closeness, and I knew he could feel it too.
"Mine," he says.
My breath hitched as he leaned in, nuzzling his head onto my neck, inhaling my scent deeply.
"Your scent is driving me insane."
I stood frozen at his words. He had barely spoken above a whisper, but because of our proximity, I heard him clearly.
I was struggling to control myself. Every inch of me wanted to pull him closer. The urge to lift his face and crash my lips onto his became intense.
Almost as if he heard my thoughts, he raises his head from my neck. His eyes locked onto mine. His gorgeous blue eyes pierced into my soul.
They then drift down to my lips before locking back with mine. Leaning in, I waited for the impact of his lips crashing onto mine. Closing my eyes at the desperate need to feel him.
It never came; instead, all I heard was a soft chuckle. Slowly opening my eyes, I find him staring at me.
"You're so pathetic and desperate."
He then proceeds to pull away from me.
"W-what?" I asked, clearly confused.
"You really thought I would kiss you. How pathetic could you be?" he stated.
Walking away from me, he then turns back to look at me.
"And one thing, stop talking to Taylor, he's out of your league."
My mouth instantly dropped at his words.
Frustrated and angry, I open my mouth to defend myself. "You can't control who I choose to be around. I'm not yours, and you have made that very clear."
First, he doesn't want me as his mate, then doesn't accept my rejection, and now he wants to control me.
"Taylor is a nice person, and I enjoy talking to him, unlike you, you're nothing compared to him," I snapped.
He scoffed.
I didn't understand what his issue was with me talking to Taylor, unless…
A smirk plastered on my face. "Why does my talking to Taylor bother you anyway? I mean, since we're not mates, you shouldn't care about the company I keep around, or maybe you're jealous."
Within the blink of an eye, he was standing right in front of me. He grabbed my throat, pulling my face closer to his. I could feel his hot breath against me. His other hand slid along my waist possessively.
"And what would I be jealous of, kitty?"
"Just a simple touch from me can make you whimper. You don't know what I'm capable of, and judging what you told Taylor, you've heard stories about me," he stated.
"You're playing games you don't understand."
He leaned closer until our noses almost touched.
"Every time you provoke me…"His voice dropped."…you make it harder for me to keep pretending this bond doesn't exist."
His jaw clenched.
"So stop looking at Taylor like that."
He pushed me away, walking away like what just happened didn't happen. Like he didn't just confess that I'm not the only one struggling with this pull between us, that he can feel it as well. My heart was beating so fast, I could practically feel it against my ribs.
I took in a deep breath, suddenly remembering to breathe. My face felt flustered because not only did he confess his feelings, but I also tried to kiss him. If it wasn't for him pulling away, stopping it from happening, I fear I wouldn't have stopped him either if he did kiss me.