I zip up my black hoodie and mentally kick myself for not wearing more layers. I walk within the tree line, using the cover to shield me from the sight of the main buildings. The last thing I want to do is get caught out after curfew. Curfew, it’s ridiculous; I’m seventeen, not seven. Like any self-respecting teenager is going to stay inside their dorm. I roll my eyes at the thought and then focus back on the task at hand, getting to the dorm without getting caught.

I spot the old dorm building in the distance as I approach. Casting my eyes across every inch of the building, I look for any sign of activity or life, but there is nothing. This can’t be good. Shit, why am I doing this?

I make my way around to the back of the building, wanting to scout out the place before I sneak in, somehow. Gods, how am I even meant to get into a locked building? Cat burglar I am not.

The fire exit door at the back provides the answer for me, as it’s been left ajar, presumably by whomever sent me the note. Shit, if I go in that way they’ll see me coming for sure.

I look more closely at the building. Bingo. I notice a window on the 1st floor isn’t shut all the way. I walk closer and try to work out how to get to the window. I stand there, feeling clueless for a while when it hits me. East jumping from the window. I could use my air ability to get up there. I’d already managed to call on it once during the fire lesson. How hard could it be?

I picture the air mark in my head and try to call on it. I picture the air lifting me. I look down, feet firmly still planted on the ground. Damn it!

“Why are you staring at a wall, Crowe?” Enzo’s voice drifts over to me. I turn to see him walking over from the shadows of the trees. Enzo looks every bit the bad boy he comes across as. With his leather coat, heavy, black boots, and denim jeans. His black hair is styled to the side, and even in the dim light I can see how dark his eyes are as he watches me. Why are bad guys so friggin sexy?

“Did you invite me here?” I ask, and he chuckles.

“Not even in your dreams,” he says slowly, and I have the feeling he is checking me out as he walks past. I don’t reply to his remark as he walks around me, but I do glare at him. I watch as he walks into the building through the fire exit. Fuck it. I follow him in, feeling the cold wash of a ward hitting me, just before the blasting music hits my ears. It’s not too loud, but I’m guessing the ward is a sound blocker. The abandoned building has a massive party going on inside. There are three huge speakers at the front of the room and a table full of alcohol at the side. There are chairs littered around and people dancing to the music. The girls look half dressed in skimpy dresses, and I look down at my jeans and hoodie. I clearly didn’t get the memo. There must be about hundred people in here I think as I look around. I catch a glance of Enzo’s back before he disappears into the crowd of people. I walk around for a bit, not seeing anyone I know and jump when Enzo stops next to me.

“You should leave,” he says, and I look up at him.

“Why?” I ask, and he doesn’t respond to me, but gives me a look that suggests I’m stupid or something. I watch as he walks away.

“Kenzie Crowe, right?” a woman’s seductive voice says next to me. I turn a little to see that Stella girl standing next to me, her arms crossed and a sweet smile on her pretty face. Shit, this girl is pretty, and it makes me want to hide in a corner. She has curly, blonde hair, a stick-thin figure with big boobs, and the heels she has on make her taller than me. Her dark-red dress matches the red lipstick she has on. I want to think it looks slutty, but my mind betrays me by thinking how nice the outfit is with the lipstick.

“Yes, you’re Stella, right?” I say, and she smiles widely.

“I see you’ve heard of me. Welcome to this year’s welcome party,” she says holding out a hand. I don’t take it as I think over her words.

“Why was my friend not invited?” I ask her. If this was a welcome party for first years, Kelly should be here.

“Who?” she asks, a slightly annoyed frown on her face as she pulls her hand back slowly.

“Kelly Curwood.” I say, watching as she laughs.

“The two?” she chuckles out, and I narrow my eyes at her.

“Oh, hunny, we only let seven and ups in here. You should get some better friends, rather than that weakling. She might as well leave the academy now. She would be better with the humans, I mean, she basically is one. Such a waste of space,” she says, and I don’t think as I slap her. Her head swishes to the side, and she glares back at me as she straightens up. That felt good.

“You shouldn’t have done that, you little bitch,” she says, wiping the blood from her lip.

“I’m not the one who’s a bitch,” I say. I won’t let her speak about Kelly like that. Stella doesn’t reply, but she grabs my arm quickly. Pain slams into me and filters though every part of my body. Falling to my knees as I scream, the pain just keeps flowing through me. Wave after wave. I can’t think straight. I try to pull my arm away, but her fake nails dig into my arm as she holds on tight.

“Let her go,” Enzo’s voice comes through all the pain, his words are clipped and full of anger. I take a deep breath the minute Stella’s hand falls away from my arm. My knees give, and I begin to fall to the ground, but someone catches me. I feel a large arm slide under my knees as someone lifts me up.

“The stupid twelfth girl needed to be taught a lesson about her place,” Stella says.

“You need to fuck off, Stella, this shit isn’t cool. She has had her powers a week. Just one fucking week. Winning a fight against her is nothing to be proud of,” Enzo replies. I faintly register that it’s him holding me, but everything is still fuzzy. I burrow my head into his chest, smelling his leather jacket and a faint smell that reminds me of a bonfire.

“Whatever,” Stella says flippantly, and I feel Enzo moving with me.

“Why did you help me?” I whisper when the music of the party disappears and chilly air hits my face. Enzo doesn’t reply for what seems like a long time, but I know he heard me.

“I don’t know, Crowe,” he replies softly, and everything goes black.

* * *

“You have gotta wake up, Crowe,” a deep voice flitters through to me as I pull my eyes open. Every part of my body aches, reminding me of last night. That Stella girl is a bitch. I resist the urge to move when I look up and see Enzo hovering over me, his face too close, and I see how dark his eyes are this close. They really do look nearly black, I find myself struggling to look away. They are something else. I blink when he straightens up, standing by the bed. I sit up and look around at the dimly lit room. This is not my bedroom.

“Enzo?” I ask, looking around the big room. There are two single beds in here, and there is a guy with light-blond hair lightly snoring in the other bed. There are two large wardrobes, and I notice straight away how much bigger their room is compared to mine and Kelly’s. That’s so not fair. I feel myself quickly, noticing I’m wearing the same clothes as the party last night. Enzo must have looked after me.

“You have gotta go before Logan wakes up,” Enzo says quietly, nodding a head towards the blond man who stirs in his bed.

“Too late, dickhead. Kenzie, is that you?” Logan’s sleepy voice drifts over to me as he rolls over. I watch as he grins at me as he sits up in bed, shirtless and looking amazing. His blond hair is messy and all over his face but it’s not that I’m looking at. No, it’s his muscular chest, the marks covering his heart and ribs. He has quite a few, just like his twin.

“Hey,” I say, pulling myself out of the bed and stretching. My shoes and coat are missing, I notice as my feet touch the cold floor.

“What are you doing in Enzo’s bed, and why wasn’t I invited?” Logan asks with a wink that makes me blush.

“Crowe decided to pick a fight with Stella, and it didn’t go well,” Enzo answers dryly.

“Shit, your ex? That girl is fucking crazy,” Logan says, suddenly looking much more awake as his eyes widen.

“You dated her?” I ask Enzo, and he narrows his eyes on me.

“For a bit. It wasn’t my best decision. She got a little crazy,” he says.

“How?” I ask with a chuckle that makes him groan.

“She’s stalking him and making sure no girl goes near him in this place. There are some rumours going around,” Logan answers. I chuckle as Enzo uses his air mark to slam a book off the side table. It hits Logan in the chest.

“Ouch, dickhead. I didn’t say they were true,” he says.

“They aren’t true,” Enzo grits out and mutters something under his breath that I can’t hear.

“Why the fuck are we all up on a Sunday, at five am?” Logan asks, and I look over to see him on his phone.

“Crowe has training with Mr. Daniels at six. She doesn’t want to be late,” Enzo replies. Shit, how am I going to do class when I feel like this?

“I feel like crap,” I reply, and he nods.

“That’s what happens when people use the pain mark on you. I healed you, but you won’t feel good for a day or so. Stella’s most powerful mark is pain, she could have killed you and might have after you hit her. Stella will only see you as competition. You need to learn how to ward yourself,” Enzo says, his tone can’t be mistaken for anything other than a warning. I shiver as I remember the pain I felt, it was like being stabbed in every part of my body. I couldn’t focus enough to call any of my powers. I have a feeling I’m lucky Enzo was there and saved me. Again.

“She used what?” Logan asks, getting out of his bed and coming over to stand in front of me. I freeze as he brushes a stray hair away from my face. His finger skims over my cheek as I take a deep breath. Man, this guy is hot. Why are there so many hot marked here?

“I slapped her for speaking about Kelly like shit. What the hell was that party anyway?” I ask, my voice a little too high-pitched, and I inwardly groan. If Logan notices, he doesn’t say anything, and he moves away a little. I notice that Enzo has left the room, leaving the door slightly open. I didn’t even get to say thank you to the jerk.

“Stella throws a party every year, only for higher ups. It’s a shit party, anyway. Kelly didn’t miss out on much,” he says.

“Still. I hate how she looked down on Kelly for having two powers.”

“It’s our world. Now come on, let’s go get some breakfast, and I’ll walk you to class as I’m already up,” Logan says as he goes to his side of the room and gets some clothes out. I turn around when he just pulls his shorts off in front of me. Boy, this guy is confident and from what I caught a glance at, he should be. I spot my shoes by the door and slip them on. I find my coat on the back of the door and feel the pockets, finding my phone, but it’s flat. Damn, Kelly must be worried.

“Let’s go,” Logan says, and his hand slides into mine as we walk down the quiet corridor. I don’t question his hand in mine, not when I just saw what he looks like naked. Gods, I can’t stop thinking about his body.

“What classes do we have together?” I ask, remembering he was one of the students Mr. Daniels asked to watch me.

“Earth class. I was going to be in your pain class, but it clashes with one of my electives. So, unfortunately, Stella volunteered for that one. Ask Mr. Daniels to teach you how to ward, it’s easy, and I would show you if we had time,” he says. Great, more pain from the wannabe Barbie bitch.

We don’t say much more as we walk through the quiet corridors, it’s strange to see it this empty, but I know it’s because everyone is still in bed. Where I should be. Fucking detention every Sunday.

“Are the kitchens even open?” I ask, and he nods.

“Yeah, they have food out twenty four hours a day now. The transmutation students get really hungry after a shift and some of those classes are at night, depending on what you shift into,” he explains as we go down the stairs. I wonder what I will shift into?

We both grab our food when we get to the dining hall. I choose cereal as there is no cooked food at this time of day, and he gets the same as me. We’re munching on our cereal in companionable silence, when his phone goes off. He clicks it open and smiles at the phone, accepting a videocall.

“East man, what are you doing awake?” he asks.

“Kelly just came to find me, she can’t find Kenzie, and I’m—” he stops when Logan cuts him off.

“Wait, no worries. She was in our bedroom last night, that’s all,” Logan explains.

“What?” East shouts down the phone. I hear Kelly’s voice in the background, and I get up, walking around the table so I can see her.

“You could have texted me, Kenz. I’ve been worried,” Kelly says once I can see her in the phone.

“Sorry. It’s a long story, but I passed out. Enzo healed me and let me sleep in his bed,” I say, instantly regretting giving my explanation now over the phone. Shit, she looks even more worried.

“You okay?” she asks.

“Yeah, I’ll explain later. I’ve gotta go to detention. You know the one with Mr. Daniels,” I say, and she wiggles her eyebrows.

“I’m sure he can make you feel better,” she says, making me laugh.

“I doubt it, Mr. Daniels is a beast of a teacher. Everyone is scared of their classes with him, and no one has ever beaten him in a fight,” Logan tells me.

“Shit, that’s impressive. What is he doing being a teacher if he has skills like that? He could work for the council,” I reply.

“I heard his sister is a rebel, and that’s why he won’t work for them. He won’t hunt her.” East says coming back into view of the camera with a worried look.

“Makes sense, I guess.”

“Shit, we need to go. You’re gonna be late,” Logan says and turns the phone off before I can say goodbye. I look up at the clock, seeing it’s already ten minutes past six.

Great way to make an impression Kenz, turning up late to your first detention.