Between Shadows (Shadows Saga bk2)

Chapter 20- Inevitable

Mara shot straight out of bed, dumping her cat on the floor and getting a hiss in response. She paid not attention to Sasha in that moment though, all she knew was she had to see him.

"What's going on Mara?" Trixle asked, nearly yelling as Mara didn't pause to answer her friend. 

Mara flew out of the hallway and up the stairs running past boys walking from the showers to their rooms. She didn't care that she was running like a maniac down the boy’s hall in her pajamas, she didn't care about anything except for Marx in that moment. 

She could see his door slightly ajar as she neared it and she burst straight through, seeing his tall figure standing there. His school issued dress pants, no shirt, and soaking wet hair. Marx turned around to see what was happening and she took that opportunity to fling herself into his arms. 

Marx, shocked, caught her and her arms wrapped tightly around his neck, her face burying into his shoulder, her tears falling onto his still damp skin and she breathed in the scent of him. 

Marx was safe; he was in her arms and safe. 

"Mara, what's wrong?" Marx asked, alarmed by her current state. 

"A nightmare, a really bad nightmare." Mara whispered into his shoulder. 

They kept ahold of each other tightly, neither one wanting to let go. Mara was glad to have him there with her well and alive. She mentally made the decision that there was no way she was going to let that nightmare become a reality. She wouldn't let him go out there with her; she couldn't let him die protecting her. 

Mara’s breath was shaky, her mind racing and Marx tried his best to calm her down, whispering soothing tones into her ear until her breathing became steady again and her tears dried up. 

"Are you going to tell me what all this is about?" Marx asked as he set Mara back down on the ground. 

"Like I said, it was a really bad nightmare." Mara said, trying to avoid giving him all the details. 

"And I'm guessing this nightmare was about me?" He asked. 

Mara just nodded looking down at the ground, unable to meet those piercing eyes. If she looked into them, she would tell him everything and she didn't want to relive that dream ever again, it had been painful enough the first time.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Marx asked with worry laced in his tone. 

Mara shook her head. 

"Okay, well." He paused for a moment, thought clear in his expression. "Everything is alright now. I'm here and I'm me, and you're here. Everything is alright."

Mara nodded silently, not sure if she could trust her voice enough to speak. Marx stared down at her, pain written all over his face as he leaned down pressing his lips gently to Mara's forehead. The gesture made her feel slightly better, more solid, like she could actually stand on the ground beneath her. 

"You need to get ready for classes, they start in less than a half hour."

Mara went into a panic mode at his words. She was going to be late on her first day back for classes. She squeaked and ran towards the door about to run back to her room when Trixle's words from the night before popped into her head. 

"Hey Marx, what did Trix mean when she asked me if we were going to start the mate bond?"

Marx didn’t' have enough warning to hide his reaction. His eyes widened for a moment before he pulled himself together. "Uh, we can talk about that later. You need to get ready for class."