Theodora didn’t know if Aurelius was really willing to keep her secret, and that scared her. He was right behind her as she walked back to her dorm, a dangerous look in his eyes as he glared at everyone around them.
Like so bodyguard.
She stopped in front of the building and turned to him, "Stop following ,"
Aurelius frowned, "Wait, you share the sa room as Zeke, right? That doesn’t feel right. Co over to mine instead,"
She sighed, "I’m not complaining about my room,"
"I am. What if Zeke finds out about you that way?"
"I’ve survived for almost a month. I can keep going," She said and walked forward toward the stairs, "Goodbye Aurelius,"
As she made to take another step forward, she paused, then turned back to Aurelius. He was still standing there, arms crossed and looking unsettled. So, she walked up to him and pulled him into one of those quick, firm hugs - one of those chest-to-shoulder embraces and a single hard pat on the back.
"Thank you, Aurelius," She uttered sincerely against his shoulder, "For whatever you did to make the Second-years shut up, and for being willing to keep my secret. Really.. thanks,"
What she didn’t see coming were his strong arms returning the hug. He wrapped both hands around her back and pulled her little fra flat against his chest.
She stilled for a mont, then sighed.
He was annoyingly warm.
"Why are you thanking ?" He suddenly teased, his voice mischievous, "I never openly said I would keep your secret, Redhead,"
She rolled her eyes and tried to pull back, but he held her there.
"Besides, there are other ways to thank ," He added.
"That’s why I hugged you," She defended, "Now let go of . This hug has gone on for too long,"
Surprisingly, he actually pulled away without a fight. But his hands remained on her arm, "I know you can look after yourself, but if anything happens - anything. I’m dragging you to the southern dorms and I don’t care what the school has to say about that,"
"I didn’t know you worried so much about . That’s so sweet of you," She grinned, her cheeks a bit flushed
"You’re acting like a girl, and now I can’t unsee it," Aurelius taunted again.
She rolled her eyes again, "Goodnight, Voss,"
She waved once and then disappeared into the building.
She first stopped at Liam’s room to check if he was back, but he wasn’t. Then, she stepped into her room.
She had barely shut the door behind her when suddenly a hand ca out of nowhere and held it before it latched.
Startled, Theo quickly jumped back.
Then, Zeke pushed the door open and walked in. Damn it, she hadn’t sensed him coming behind her.
And the look on his face was a glare again. It was deeper than when she had left him earlier, aning soone had either pissed him off, or she had irritated him again.
"What the hell was that?" He demanded, his tone slithering with anger.
Yup. She was the one who irritated him, "What do you an?" She asked.
"Just now. Out there. Why did you hug Voss?" He took a step forward, his jaw clenched tightly.
Oh! Had he seen that? Her heart rate spiked again, and she wondered if he had also listened to their conversation, "Oh, that was nothing. It was a friendly hug," She replied.
His eyes darkened, "Friendly?!"
She swallowed. She probably shouldn’t have said that, "I an like, he helped with sothing and I gave him a hug to show my appreciation,"
"So whenever soone does sothing to assist you, you hug them?"
"Uhmmm, yeah?"
"Or do you only hug your friends?"
"You have to be a friend and help . You have to et both criteria to earn a hug,"
The anger remained, "And why are you friends with Voss?"
"He’s a chill guy,"
"You didn’t think that the night you were dancing in his arms," He gritted out, tension in his voice.
"Well, that was days ago. It’s all behind ," She replied, and threw her own question, "Why are you curious about my hug with Aurelius? You jealous of sothing?"
It was a light tease. She laughed at her joke, hoping that would brighten his mood a little, then turned around to catch her breath for a mont. Staring into his eyes that much was making her breath too fast.
Then, she saw the towel she had spread on her pillow and reached out to grab it.
Instead, a shadow fell on her and Zeke snatched it off the pillow before she could. She gasped softly, turned around and watched as he grumpily folded it carefully, then he walked over to where she usually kept it and dropped it there.
She blinked at him, bewildered.
"There," He said and turned around, his eyes soft, "I’m your friend and I’ve just helped you do sothing,"
He began walking toward her.
She was confused about his actions, "I don’t understand...,"
He didn’t stop.
He stopped right in front of her, barely a breath away. His strong arms snaked around her waist, and he pulled her flush against his sturdy chest. His other hand wrapped against her back, and he leaned down a bit, his lips brushing her ear.
Theo was starstruck.
She just stood there, wondering if this was sothing kind of big-ti hallucination or a very wild dream.
The mont she inhaled, his thick scent of wet soil, ozone and smoke rushed into her lungs and her knees weakened instantly.
Her weight fell against him for a second, but she quickly caught herself.
Thoe blinked, and reality settled.
Hezekiah Pendragon was actually hugging her. She was really wrapped in the burning cocoon of his arms.
Her tense muscles relaxed against him, and her arms itched to hug him back. With fingers twitching and her heart racing, she raised her hands and gently wrapped them as much as she could around his back.
She heard him inhale sharply for a mont, then, with a deep exhale, he also relaxed. His weight ca down on her, like he’s been holding himself too tightly for too long.
Naturally, her eyes fell closed as she gave in to the hug completely.
And for the first ti since she stepped foot in here, she actually felt...safe. The anger she had been carrying since morning dissipated into nothing, and a pleased sigh escaped her lips.
Zeke’s weight fell on her even more, tension slowly leaving his shoulders. His grip tightened firmly, and he further went in till his chin was almost touching her shoulders.
Then, he murmured to himself, but she heard him loud and clear
"The Pendant erases the Nightmares, but you’re the reason I sleep so well these days, Hellcat,"
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