Within the Crystal Page 9

  “Are you going inside?” a voice startles me from behind. Whipping around, I see it's Andrew standing behind me with a grin on his face. “Their chocolate cake is to die for. If you like chocolate that is.” Did this guy just read my mind?

  “I love chocolate, I think it should have its own food group,” I responded back, using my nose to lead me to the golden ticket. I'm lucky that the line is short today. Grabbing a food tray, I head straight past all the main food and into the dessert line. Glancing up when I arrive at the dessert table, I see it's the same female server from yesterday. “We meet again,” I say in a cheerful voice. She’s beaming back at me from ear to ear.

  “What can I get for you, Alex?” she asks me, glancing behind at the shadow I currently have.

  “Some of that amazing smelling chocolate cake, please. I'm hoping it tastes as good as it smells, otherwise I'm going to be extremely disappointed,” I say in a teasing manner with a cheeky grin. “I never got your name yesterday by the way?” She does seem like someone I could really get on with.

  Glancing behind me again, she looks over at Andrew with unease. “Uh-,” she suddenly got a rabbit caught in the headlights look, frozen with huge round eyes. “My name is Mia,” she finally whispers out, handing me a huge slice of cake. With the way she keeps looking over my shoulder at my new shadow, I would hazard a guess and say she is terrified of him. I can feel the guy's creepy vibes, but not enough to make me scared of him.

  Trying to put her at ease and to say thanks, since I can tell she has cut me off a bigger slice of cake than normal, I beam back at her. “Nice to meet you, Mia, and thank you for the orgasm I'm about to have in my mouth.” Her hand reaches up and covers her mouth trying to stifle the laugh I see trying to come out. With a wink, I take my cake and look around for an empty table. I may also be secretly scanning the room for the guys. I would like to keep my distance. I really wouldn't even know where to start explaining what happened last night.

  I find an empty table and slide myself onto the bench seat. I can feel my mouth watering just at the sight of this cake. Andrew slides onto the bench opposite me. I guess I don’t have my resting bitch face in place today. Jeez, the guy could at least have asked!

  “So, how was your first day?” Andrew asks as I take a huge bite out of my cake. It's like he waited while I cut a piece off and decided to ask as the cake was descending into my mouth, knowing full well I can't answer. Well, the joke is on him now, isn't it?

  “Globaanefanie,” I say with bits of cake flying everywhere. Whoever said I was a lady, they lied. This will hopefully put him off sitting next to me for life. Watching Andrew's eyes leave mine and travel behind me, I know someone is there. Please don't be one of the guys.

  “Mr Devenoff, do you have a second?” the sickly sweet voice asks. Hmm that voice sounds familiar… oh yeah, it's the voice from this morning that was talking about my flaps.

  “Sure, what would you like to ask me?” he asks in a welcoming tone.

  “It's the assignment, I’m not sure what you would like us to do.” The way she says it is more flirty than I would have thought a question like that could have been. But I want to stay out of this one.

  “You need to explain Propp’s System of Analysis,” the sigh he releases is as if he has had this discussion a thousand times before. “If you go over your lecture three notes you will understand what it is.'' He smiles at me, but his tone is very dismissive. Glancing down, I see that my plate is now empty of chocolate cake, which means there is no point in me sitting here with this awkwardness.

  “Oh look, no more cake, guess that means it's time for me to leave,” I try and aim for my chipper voice, but it comes out a little strained.

  “Here, take mine. I was hoping to spend some time getting to know you,” he says while looking between me and the girl still standing behind me. “Why don’t you come to my office later, Victoria, and we can go over your notes?”

  Everything next seemed to happen at once. “But-” she responds with a splutter. As I'm standing up to leave the table, he reaches out to grab my arm. The moment his fingers touch my skin, my vision goes black and a pain like I have never felt before travels over my body. It's as if I'm a voodoo doll with needles being pushed into every inch of my skin. But they are not being pushed in fast, they are being forced in agonisingly slowly.

  I know this is a vision, but one filled entirely with pain. I can only see blackness; no lights, no nothing. I can hear some sounds, but it's all muffled like someone has shoved cotton wool in my ears. So it's the pain that grabs my attention. It feels like my body is burning from the inside out. Every hair is being scorched from the hair follicle outward. Before I know what is happening, the blackness falls from my eyes and I'm back in the lunch hall. The now blinding light is a welcome relief. The sound of people panicking around me reaches my ears, but it's the pain… the pain still lingers on my skin.

  “We have to take her to her Mom.” I hear. The voice is seriously close to my ear. Now that I'm concentrating on the person and not the pain, I hear a heartbeat right next to my ear and arms flexing under my legs. It's the smell that helps the rest of the fog leave my mind. It smells like the ocean and sand. It smells like Tek. Oh God, I hope it's him.

  When my eyes are finally able to focus, I sigh in relief when I see it is Tek and not freaky Andrew holding me. “Tek, you can put me down now, I’m good,” hearing my voice causes him to turn his head down towards me and I'm captured by his black as night eyes. They look a little crinkled around the edges. If I didn't know better, I would say he was worried about me. Lifting my hand, I run it over his beard. The hair feels slightly prickly but also soft. I wonder if he uses some kind of product on it? Feeling all his muscles bunching as he lowers my feet back toward the ground, has my mouth watering. He keeps a hand resting on my shoulder while I regain my balance.

  “Wow, that was some chocolate cake,” I say, trying to dispel the tension of everyone looking at me. Glancing around, I see Andrew and the girl are still present, but now Tek and Jasper are also here.

  “Alex, are you ok? You just kind of fainted,” Andrew says in a shocked voice, as if no one has ever fainted on this guy before. Cuntmuffin, it's not like I can tell him I just had the worst vision of my life. When he touched me, no less.

  “Tek, Jasp, just leave the freak alone,” Blondie Bitch spits out. Looking around, I can see everyone is still looking at me from all around the room.

  “Ok, show’s over everyone. I just had too much sugar is all. Please resume your normal viewing service,” I say out loud, making sure everyone can hear me. Noise comes back to the room, with everyone shuffling back to their seats and finishing their food.

  “Are you sure you’re ok? Do you need me to take you to the university doctor?'' Andrew responds while shooting daggers at Tek’s hand, which is still resting on my shoulder.

  “No, I'm fine, honestly. It was just too much sugar for my body to process, I should know better than that,” I say with as much honesty as possible. “I just need to get some water and sit down for a bit. Tek and Jasper can take me to my office, as I think they are here to ask about their next assignment.” I don't know why I feel like I have to justify why the two guys are helping me, but there is something about the look in Andrew's eyes that makes me feel uneasy.

  Walking out into the hall with Jasper and Tek standing like sentinels on either side of me, has me feeling empowered. “Are you going to tell us what happened back there?” Jasper asks in a whispered tone, afraid of being overheard. I was going to feed them the same line I gave Mr Creeptastic and say I must have fainted, but as I go to open my mouth, something stops me. A nagging sensation at the back of my mind, telling me I need to be truthful with these guys or they are never going to trust me. For this to work, trust has to be mutual.

  “I was just about to leave when Andrew grabbed my arm to stop me and I was forced into a vision,” I shudder out, remembering the pain flashing back over my skin.

  “Has t
hat ever happened before, having a vision without anything like a crystal or cards to support you?” Tek asks, while his eyes travel all over my face.

  “No, I have always needed a portal,” I whisper, responding to his question while shaking my head, so my words match up with what my body is thinking.

  “What was the vision about?” I turn to look at Jasper. His eyes are the most captivating out of the four boys; they are a bright purple colour with swirls of white. They are unlike any eye colour I’ve seen before.

  “Uhm, it was mostly dark, but I could hear a muffled scream. It was the pain that got my attention.” I swallow before I get the worst of this out. “The pain was excruciating, my body felt like it was burning from the inside out.” I shudder at the memory and rub my hands up and down my arms to calm the goosebumps that have raised all over my skin once again, but for very different reasons this time.

  “What does that mean, is that in his future?” Tek asks with curiosity lining his features. We have made it all the way back to the office, the door is closed so I knock in case Mom is busy with a student. When there is no response, I know she isn’t in there. Opening the door, I stride in and throw myself into the high back swivel chair behind the desk. I slump over to rest my head on my arms, which are now crossed on the desk.

  “How is Nuumite today?” I ask, even though my arms are muffling my voice. The silence in the room has me lifting my head to see that the guys are locked in a staring contest. I bet they are doing that guy thing where they talk telepathically to each other via different facial movements. Like the rise of an eyebrow stands for something. The twitch of a lip signalling something else. After their silent standoff, they both turn to study me with a questioning look in their eyes.

  “What makes you ask about him?” Jasper asks in an accusatory tone, his eyes locked on mine.

  “Nothing. He came over last night and we stargazed,” I say, glancing away while the lie slips past my lips. I don't want to say anything if he hasn’t spoken to them about it. But I also want to know why he hasn’t spoken to them about it. I know I should be thinking about the magic exchange that happened, but all my brain can focus on is the kiss. Did it not mean anything to him?

  “I think you need to come and speak to the guys about what happened today. Five minds are better than one. You can check on Nu yourself and have dinner with us,” Tek says. Wow, out of everything that could have come out of his mouth right now, I wasn't expecting that.

  “Okay, what time?” I ask looking between the two of them. I’m never one to turn down food.

  “Say, seven?” Tek asks looking between Jasper and I. We all nod to confirm the arrangements. I expect them to leave, but they don’t.

  “So, the question is, whose future did you see if it wasn’t Andrew’s?” Jasper asks in a dark foreboding tone before they both exit the room, leaving me to think.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Taking the slip of paper out of my pocket, I check one last time that I'm at the right address. This place is friggin’ huge. It must be a block of flats, but there’s no flat number on this piece of paper. Jasper must have forgotten to add it. If I just walk up and push the buzzer I'm sure someone can point me in the right direction. I’m betting every girl around here has noticed my guys. Examining the building, I can’t help but think this place is way too posh for four university students to be living. The street is lined with white town houses and trees. Lots of trees.

  Walking up the few steps to the front door, I push the buzzer and wait. Only a few seconds pass before Nunu opens the door. I'm shocked it’s him, but I’m also happy to see him. He’s dressed in dark wash jeans and a white pressed button-up shirt. His hair's still wet so it keeps falling in front of his glasses. God, now I’m thinking about him in the shower, all wet and soapy. Bad girl, Alex, I reprimand myself internally.

  “Hi, I wanted to catch you before you came in,” he says looking me over. I'm in a long flowing gyspy dress in a teal colour. The material is covered in white feathers and the top has thin spaghetti straps. Overall, it is very flattering as it shows off my curves and my boobs, but it’s also very comfy to wear.

  “Is everything ok?” I ask in a whispered tone. I don’t want the other guys to hear us.

  “Yes everything is fine, but I haven't told the guys anything. Taz said not to say anything to them till they have bonded with you. But I will explain all this when people are not waiting on you.”

  The front door behind Nunu suddenly opens further and standing there is Cal with his usual snarky look. “Are you not going to invite our guest in?” He says with a note of extra sarcasm. Guess he isn't as on board with this as Jasper and Tek were. Torn between leaving, as I’m not one for being where I’m not wanted, or staying just to wind Cal up, I end up just standing there. Nunu places his hand on the curve of my back causing the spark again from last night and makes the decision for me. I guess we're going in then.

  The place is just as stunning inside as it was outside. “You live in the entire building?” I ask with curiosity lining my tone. Me and Mom have never had anything really big, we like little cozy spaces. Whereas, this place is huge, even the ceilings are high up with open beams. Not only that but the space is spotless, not an ounce of dust or even a stray sock anywhere. I thought guys were supposed to be untidy.

  “Close your mouth or you will catch flies,” Cal smirks over at me.

  “Flies in this place, who the fuck are you kidding,” I rebuttle back. His attitude has my hair standing on end. He really is an ignoramus. Out of all the guys, he’s going to be the hardest. I don't know how I will even form a friendship with this guy let alone what the vision showed me. Can I give up now and just run away? Maybe Mother Nature was being over dramatic, maybe she can pick someone else. Looking behind me, I can see the front door, maybe I can just run for it. Would Mom understand me running away from my fate or would she hunt me down?

  “Cal, leave her alone. You’re making her want to bolt, she has that rabbit in headlights look,” Tek shouts from the top of the stairs.

  “Am I, Alex?” Cal asks, taking a step closer into my personal space. “Am I making you want to run?” The way he says it is far more flirty than what I expected. I can feel tingles just from his closeness. “I find your lack of faith in me very disturbing,” he whispers in my ear.

  “You’re making me feel very uncomfortable,” I say with a forced smile. Not sure what to do now as we are congregated in the hallway. So instead I watch Tek walk down the stairs in his fitted grey sweatpants and black t-shirt. His t-shirt is so tight, I feel myself starting to drool just watching the lines of muscles expand and contract as he descends. A smirk forces the side of his mouth to raise when I'm caught checking him out.

  “Do you like what you see?'' Tek asks when he reaches the bottom. I can feel myself going bright red from the top of my ears to the bottom of my feet from being caught out. Glancing around I see Cal and Nunu are also staring at me. But they are staring at me with hunger in their eyes. Wow, didn’t expect that from Cal the man whore. It’s like they can see the lust I’m feeling towards Tek and that got them all hot and bothered. Now they’re all staring at me with a fire that feels all consuming.

  “Are we going to stand here all night or is someone going to get me a drink?” I ask, trying to break the sudden sexual tension that has built around us. My comment causes the boys to snap out of the trance they seemed to be in and they all try to move at once, causing a bottleneck in the doorway towards what I can only guess is the kitchen. With shoulders bumping and males grunting I can't help but chuckle at their antics. Following them into the next room, I stand in the doorway, once again mouth agape.

  I was right, it did lead to a kitchen, but this is more than a kitchen, this is a work of art. All stainless steel and marble. This is better than any kitchen I have seen in a magazine. Not that I buy a lot of kitchen design magazines, but you know what I mean. When I have finally taken everything in, from the recessed lights to the central is
land, I watch as Jasper walks over to me with a cup in his hand. Taking a small sniff I realise it’s honey and cinnamon. Not something I would normally pick for myself, but my manners tell me I have to at least try it.

  “Thank you,” I say with a kind smile.

  “You’re most welcome,” he responds back with his megawatt smile. “Are you allergic to anything I need to know about?” he asks while walking back over to the simmering pots on the stove.

  “Wait, are you making actual dinner? I thought when I was invited for dinner, you guys meant take out or something?” I say genuinely shocked.

  “Yes, I'm making actual dinner, from actual food,” Jasper responds with a smirk. “Now, any allergies as I don't want to have to go to the hospital tonight?”

  “Uh yeah, I'm allergic to shellfish,” I repond, still in shock that I will get a proper home cooked meal tonight, from a guy no less. “Sooo, you like to cook or are you forced to do it?” I ask, placing my ass on one of the stools at the island. If no one is going to offer me a seat, I will just take one. Keeping my eyes locked on Jasper’s back as he stirs different pots, it's rather calming.

  “I enjoy it. I was taught from a young age to cook, as my family are big feeders. I found myself more comfortable in the kitchen as everything is simple, just following the rules and voila, perfectly cooked food,” he says over his shoulder. I watch as he bends down and opens the oven, but I don't see what he takes out. I'm too busy gawking at his ass in the dark wash jeans he is wearing, but when the smell hits I would know that smell anywhere. That is a freshly cooked French baguette. Saliva starts collecting in my mouth, forcing me to swallow more. If there was one perfect food on this planet, it’s freshly cooked bread with melting butter on.