UM - 033

ALICE.

The night turned out better than I expected. This was the first time I went out without having to vie for anyone’s attention to be mine. I could relax, and I knew I would still be important to someone.

Joshua made sure I felt that.

I spent most of the time with the females, who were extraordinarily wonderful as they welcomed me into their circle, but every time I looked at my mate, his eyes had already been looking at me.

And it was good that I danced with Joshua for a while.

I got worried when I saw River approaching Cyrus, not that Cyrus was dangerous. But he never entertained females around him and was always blunt about it. Some of my friends in the Shadow Academy experienced that when they tried flirting with him. So they resorted to the conclusion that he was gay, just to save their egos.

I didn’t want him to crush River’s courage, as I was sure it had taken too much of her to approach him. So, I kept an eye on them.

I was relieved when, after a few minutes, River