Nobela ni Josephine Smith

She looked uncomfortable in the attention, but she didn’t shy from it either. Her expression was more distant yet a small cool grin rested on her lips. It seemed like she’d already decided how this day would go and was just going through the motions of playing nice.Higan followed her. His hand touched the small of her back, guiding her like she was something breakable. My stomach twisted at the scenery, and my right leg bounced on the ball of my feet but I kept my expression still. He smiled at people, greeted his friends, and nodded at the teacher. But his eyes didn’t settle too long on anyone in the room.Except me. I felt it and the subtle way Ethan’s aura shifted beside me in menacing waves. But that didn’t seem to deter the stubborn fool.However, I didn’t look away. Not from Becca. Not even when Higan’s gaze lingered. I watched her movements, the delicate way she removed her coat, and how she smiled too precisely at the people around her.Becca didn’t sit at the back as she lo

The morning light spilled into the halls of Springville High like it didn’t know any better. As though nothing had happened. As though the world hadn’t shifted beneath my feet under the glare of firelight and applause.Except it did. But I was still standing.The halls buzzed with that first-day-back tension—new boots squeaking against the waxed floors, lockers slamming too hard, too loud, laughter sharp and half-nervous. Everyone was trying to act like they weren’t wondering who had changed over break.I had. And not in ways I was necessarily happy about.Khalid and Abigail flanked me like shadow and flame as we moved past the entrance. Abigail carried her silence like a protective knife in her pocket. Khalid carried his like a banner of passive-aggression, barely speaking to me still.I’d long told myself to not be bothered by it.“First bell rings in five,” Abigail said, glancing at her phone. “Ethan will be with you first and third period, we’ll meet at the second and Khalid is at

“The barrier,” Ethan answered before either of them could. “Between here and… some other side where Melbringers reach for immense power.““Usually used when they're trying to commit massacres,” Khalid scoffed out, his shoulders squared defensively.My stomach turned. “I didn’t mean to.”“But you did do something,” Khalid said, voice lower. “Because what? Someone pissed you off again?“ He bit harshly, glaring at me.I flinched, his words sharper than they needed to be. My chest ached, my ears rang, and I felt Ethan step closer like a shield I hadn’t asked for but suddenly needed.Why was he being like that? I didn't mean to. All I knew was that I was angry, more than angry and I had every right to be angry given what I saw.“She didn’t do anything—” Tyler began, but Khalid cut across him with the heat of a snapping blade.“She did enough. She nearly destabilized a veil. You all know what that means. She opened something ancient and violent just because.”“Khalid,” Ethan growled a dange

The fire towers glowed brighter, crackling behind us. Laughter and footsteps surrounded us with the kind of joy people tried to bottle into New Year’s Eve like it was a perfume they could wear into January.I was delighted to an extent, enjoying swaying to the music with Ethan but my gaze kept darting sideways, past his shoulder.Why? Higan. He was still watching, still standing under the same flickering lamplight, but in a twisted way that made my stomach turn, he seemed a little closer.He hadn’t moved since we last made eye contact, but somehow the space between us felt thinner. Like the crowd could part at any moment and he’d be there, right in front of me staring me down with that same contemptuous look in his eyes.Ethan noticed my tension. “He's really riling you up.”I bit my bottom lip. Ethan could feel my emotions stirring. So I really hoped he wouldn't misunderstand what they meant. I just couldn't shake the sensation of Higan’s gaze crawling along my skin.“I'm sorry,” I w

“Have you ever done this before?” he asked, a hint of hesitation playing in his tone.I tilted my head. “Gone to a town party?“He shook his head slightly. “Dressed up. Gone out with someone.”My throat tightened. Not because I didn’t have an answer, but because I did. “No,” I said honestly. “Not really.”“From moving around a lot with my parents and settling here only to be rejected and forced to stay, I couldn't really find time to dress up and go out with anyone,” I went on doing my best to keep my tone light. I didn't want to sound pitiful.Ethan didn’t say anything right away. His thumb moved over my knuckles slowly, steady.“It’s not just a party,” he said eventually. “It’s the way people watch each other. The way they pretend their new year means something new when half of them are still dragging their old regrets behind them like a second shadow.”My brows knitted softly as I tried to understand what he meant. “Poetic,” I quipped.He turned slightly toward me, his expression s

“Here, this should do,” Abigail strutted into my bedroom with clacking heels, holding up a charcoal sleeveless drop-waist dress on a hanger.She was already dressed, of course, donned in a simple tailored maroon dress that sharpened her silhouette. Her raven black hair was swept into an elegant braid and adorned with white-jade clips.I was still barefoot in front of the mirror, hair curled and pinned halfway up, mascara wand in hand, and blinking at my own reflection like I didn’t quite recognize it.The room smelled faintly of my rose toner, flat iron smoke, and the lingering pomegranate scent from the lotion I borrowed from my mom. My nerves were a separate scent, sharp and cloying, like metal and something gone sour.I stared at the dress she brought like it had teeth. “You do realize it’s winter, right?”Abigail hummed resonantly and dropped it on the bed with a careful flourish. “I'm aware but you'll live,” she asserted, turning away.I reached for the fabric on my bed, caressin