Frostbitten Past

X X I I

NOAH NOTICED her absence immediately. It was the monday after the weekend, and the last time he'd seen her was at the dance, where she'd been absolutely stunning. He'd expected that from her, because despite what she thought about herself, Andorra was stunning all the time. But, he hadn't expected her to look so gorgeous walking through the double doors of the gym.

Kyle shouldn't have let her go to the dance. Not with the way she was glowing, like she was filled to the brim with sunlight begging to be released. And everyone noticed, and they stared at her all night in a way that made Noah want to punch something.

She was glowing in that dress, that dress that was so stunning on her. That dress that showed off a sliver of skin above her belly button, and he found himself wanting to pull her close and push his fingers underneath her top, skimming the bare skin of that sliver, feeling how soft her skin was, and at how warm she was.

When he'd stood with her in the library, he hadn't expected her to feel so wonderful in the palm of his hand, but she had. Her skin had been so warm, and it had melted him just a little. He'd become entranced in the way her skin felt on his fingers, and he found himself wanting more.

When he saw her at the dance, it took every ounce of his willpower not to go and talk to her immediately. He wanted to sweep her up in his arms and dance with her for the entire night, and then some, and the night before the dance, he'd dreamed of doing just that.

But even he knew that wasn't realistic. And when the dance came and he pulled her away to talk, she ran from him in fear, because she was afraid of him. And, he knew why she was: he looked dangerous.

When she didn't show up on Monday, he knew something was wrong. She'd been absent before after the hallucinations, and at first, the imagined that it was the same: she was feeling sick. But, then he realized that Kyle wasn't there, either.

The absence of Kyle and Andorra made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, because his mind went to the worst possible scenario: she'd chosen Kyle and they were on their way to Anlithamy. In his mind, he pictured how the weekend turned out: she went home with him, he wooed her in his apartment, they spent the night together, and then he spent the weekend teaching her about faeries and her powers and charmed his way into her heart.

Noah didn't want to believe that to be true, he really didn't. But, there was a hint of his jealousy that made him not think clearly. He couldn't understand how Kyle could have changed their relationship, but then Noah realized that perhaps he hadn't been paying much attention to the situation.

Perhaps, under Noah's nose, her heart had changed paths. Because what he hadn't expected was for Andorra to fall for Kyle's trap so easily, so quickly. He'd always known her to be smart and to think through every interaction before she opened herself up to others. He pictured it would be the same with Kyle.

If he told his father that Kyle had won, Noah knew that things would end badly. Noah could picture going back home, getting yelled at by his father, and then getting his title ripped away from him. Because Noah knew the risks of taking this job when it should have been a seeker all along.

Noah didn't want to think about what would have happened if a seeker was in his place instead.

Noah left school without much fuss from teachers. It was Shaniah that was angry with him leaving, her face twisted up in anger as she listened to Noah tell her that he didn't care how she felt.

It had been the truth.

He sat in the parking lot with his car running, thinking about where he needed to go. A seeker would immediately know where the sun clan was living, but Noah had never paid much attention. He never had to, or so he thought. Being the Clan Leader's son meant that he didn't have to bother himself with the little things. That was the job for others who were paid to remember that sort of stuff.