Damian flopped onto his beanbag chair. “Of course. That’s what friends are for.”
I stood up and checked my face in Damian’s mirror. There wasn’t anything I could do about my red, puffy eyes, but I could at least wipe off the sticky residue from dessert. “I guess I should go back. I won’t say anything, just climb into bed and ignore her. It’s what she’s always done around me, so hopefully it’s good enough.”
“If she tries to give you shit, call the RA,” Damian recommended.
“I don’t want to drag Hailey into this. What if I get in trouble for looking through someone else’s stuff?” I gathered my bag and stood near the door.
“Better than getting kicked out of your own room.” Damian opened the door and pointed down the hall. “Another boy was fighting with his roommate a few days ago, so he tried sleeping on one of the couches in the common area. They both got sent to the dean’s office.”
“Oh.” I hadn’t thought about the common area as a possible place. If Samantha locked me out, my back-up plan was to sleep in my car, but that would probably would end up with me in trouble, too. “I guess it’s nice to know that we aren’t the first roommates to fight.”
“Are you kidding? Everyone’s struggling to get along. Especially the only children like you who never had to share a room before.” Damian jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Tyler. “This guy has nothing on my older brothers.”
I chuckled. “You’ve had a room to yourself for years, too.” There was a big age gap in his family, so his brothers had all moved out long ago. I always argued that Damian was just as spoiled as me, if not worse, because he was the baby.
“Only after I earned the privilege,” Damian pointed out. He grabbed me in a final hug. “But it’s getting late. Want me to walk you back?”
“I think I can take care of myself in the gated campus with security spells everywhere.”
“Okay. Message me when you get back, though.”
I nodded and left with a smile. He was a good friend, always looking out for me. I liked our comfortable relationship. Even if I was attracted to boys, I don’t think I’d want to complicate things between us with anything romantic.
Too bad the school had such strict gender division when it came to the dorms because I’d do much better with him as my roommate. The old-fashioned rules didn’t make sense. If the school administration was that worried about sex, keeping boys and girls separate wasn’t going to stop all the queer kids. And where were the non-binary kids supposed to stay?
Besides, if I wanted to have sex with Damian or another boy, I could easily do it before ten pm. Everyone was supposed to leave their doors open if they had visitors, but Damian’s RA didn’t enforce that, and no one came by to check on us.
One more thing about this stupid academy that made no sense.
Like I’d hoped, ignoring Samantha did the trick. She didn’t talk to me again for three days. I stayed out of the room except when I had to sleep.
On Saturday, I was planning to go surfing and hopefully see Gabriella again. But when my alarm went off, and I stumbled out of bed, Samantha was waiting for me.
“Good, you’re up.” She pointed to the floor. “I need you to clean up your mess so it’s not in my way.”
I blinked groggily. Things had gotten a little disorganized, mostly because I’d barely been here, but it didn’t look that bad. There were a few books lying on the floor and a pile of dirty clothes I hadn’t been able to wash yet. “I was planning on doing laundry this afternoon,” I explained. “I’m on my way to the beach. Surf’s up for only a few hours today.”
“I need you to clean it now.” Samantha pointed to a stack of boxes up against the wall. “I have friends coming by to help me move out, and we need the space.”
I stared at the stack. When had she packed up all her stuff? The lights were out when I came in last night, so I’d felt my way to bed, but I thought I would have bumped into the boxes. “The school is having us switch roommates?” I wondered who I would be stuck with next. Anyone seemed better than this bitch, but part of me was sad that she was going. I’d ruined all chances of getting along with her.
She shook her head. “No, they said the room assignments were set for the year. But I talked to Kelsey and Diana, and they said they could make space in their room for me.” She examined her nails. “Whatever doesn’t fit, I might have to leave in here for storage until my dad can come pick it up. It should go without saying that you shouldn’t open anything, but I know better than to trust you. Just know that I’ll be able to tell if you touch it.”
I couldn’t figure out what she was trying to say. Had she set some kind of booby-trap in the boxes that would explode if I opened one? But I wasn’t going to risk finding out. There had to be another way to learn Water magic.
“Are you going to just stand there?” Samantha snapped, finally losing her calm. “I said, I need you to start cleaning now. My friends will be here in half an hour. As soon as I’m gone, you’ll have the whole place to your nosy self.”
Now that was the best news I’d heard all week. If I had my own room, then Damian could hang out here whenever he wanted. He’d been avoiding this place because he was nervous around Samantha, too. And I’d have privacy to practice any kind of magic without anyone finding out.
“Sorry, I’ll take care of it.” I looked around for a hair tie and found one on my wrist. Sweeping my hair up into a sloppy ponytail, I got to work, clearing everything off the floor so there was a straight path to the door.
Then Samantha’s friends showed up. I noticed there were several boys she’d recruited to carry the heavy furniture and boxes while Samantha mostly chatted with the girls. They also brought coffee and donuts, but Samantha told me pointedly that I wasn’t allowed to have anything.
The donuts probably weren’t vegan, anyway. I changed my clothes in the group bathroom down the hall, then took my bag from the room and left so I was out of their way. Samantha had put my surfboard in the closet which was blocked by boxes, so I had no hope of grabbing it until they were done.
Oh well, I could go surfing another day. I messaged Damian and asked him to meet me for breakfast. I wanted something full of carbs to eat while I told him all about Samantha’s move.
11
So much for the RAs letting things slide. Hailey caught wind of Samantha’s move the next day and told us that we would be called into the dean’s office on Monday morning. I groaned, dreading the confrontation.
It was worse—we were called to the assistant dean, Professor Yamasato. He sat behind an enormous wood desk with his hands folded in front of him like a cliché movie villain. “Have a seat, girls,” he said, nodding to the other two chairs.
Samantha sat primly on the edge of the chair with her ankles crossed. She smoothed her pleated skirt, then looked up at the professor with a polite smile. “So sorry to cause you trouble at the beginning of the week,” she said.
It was cold enough that day that I’d opted for the uniform pants instead of my skirt, so I could slouch back in the chair. I spread my legs deliberately. “Yeah, sorry,” I mumbled.
Yamasato leaned forward with a look of concern. “I hear that you girls are having some disagreements about your room. Now, we like to foster connections between our students in the dorms, so I find this very troubling. It’s an important learning experience to figure out how to get along with someone who is a little different from you.” He raised his eyebrows. “Why don’t you start by explaining the problem to me? Let’s take turns so everyone can have their concerns heard.”
Samantha raised her hand. I rolled my eyes, but I nodded, indicating that she could speak first.
“I raised my concerns at the beginning of the school year,” Samantha began in a haughty tone of voice. “I requested to have either Kelsey or Diana as my roommate, but the school ignored me and assigned a stranger. I attempted to get along with her for several weeks. However, her disrespect was too great for me to ignore. I was forced to move out.”
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br /> Yamasato’s frown deepened. “It’s often stressful in the first few weeks as you get to know each other. What specifically did she do?”
“I caught her going through my things,” Samantha’s voice rose with indignation. “More than once. I value my privacy, Assistant Dean Yamasato, so it was very hurtful.”
“That’s a serious allegation,” the professor said with a frown. “Did she take anything?”
“No, but I caught her taking pictures of my study notes.” Samantha sat back and folded her arms. “I don’t know why, because she has given me nothing except weak excuses. Maybe she’s selling them to help other students cheat? I’ve heard her complaining about money problems.”
“That’s a low blow,” I snapped. “Just because my family isn’t as rich as yours doesn’t mean that I’m stealing or cheating.”
Professor Yamasato held up his hand. “Please don’t interrupt while Samantha is speaking. You’ll have your chance to share your side of the story when she’s finished.”
Samantha let out a dramatic sigh. “It’s just another example of her bad attitude toward me. Most of it is little stuff, but it adds up when I have to put up with her every day. I’ve reached the limits of my patience. Please, just let me stay in Kelsey and Diana’s room, like I asked. Don’t worry, none of us will ask for a reduced rate in our boarding fees.”
She was totally flaunting the money thing. If she didn’t get her way, I bet her dad offered another donation to the school.
“We’ll have to consider the implications,” Yamasato said. “It’s not designed for three students, and there may be fire code violations if you fill the room with extra furniture.”
“I promise we will strip down to the bare essentials,” Samantha said sweetly. “But speaking of fire code violations, isn’t it unsafe to block your door with a surfboard?”
I stifled a sigh. My surfboard had never blocked the door, just rested behind it. I could say she’d moved it into the closet without asking, which was messing with my personal stuff, but I wasn’t going to be that petty.
Yamasato nodded and turned to me. “The floor is yours, Bridget.”
“Brie,” I corrected him. “Look, I tried to apologize, but she ignores me. She pretends like I don’t exist except when she’s screaming in my face. If she wants to move into her friends’ room, I don’t have a problem with it.”
Yamasato gave me a sympathetic look, but it didn’t help.
“I would prefer to have you work out your differences and share the space.” The assistant dean shuffled some papers on his desk. “But perhaps some time apart will give you a chance to cool off. I will allow the room switch on a trial period, perhaps for one week to see how it goes. But,” he said, writing something on a pair of slips and handing one to each of us, “you will have mandatory sessions with a school counselor.”
I glanced at the slip and shot my hand up. “Sir, the session is scheduled during zero period. That’s the same time I have swim team practice.”
Yamasato shrugged. “It’s only two days a week. You can skip splashing around in the pool for something this important.” He glanced at Samantha. “Unless you also have an objection to the time. The alternative would be during your lunch period.”
“It’s unhealthy to skip lunch,” Samantha said, flipping her hair back.
I rolled my eyes. A skinny bitch like her probably ate half an apple or something. I didn’t want to give up my lunch period, either, but my times would suffer if I missed almost half my workout sessions. I was already struggling to keep up my performance when the swim coach was so casual.
“Zero period it is,” Yamasato said with a nod.
Ugh, he was so biased. No doubt he knew how much money her dad gave the school.
I rose, hoisting my bag onto my shoulder. “Are we finished here? I’m missing an important lecture in my first period class. It’s Honors English, you know, so there’s a lot of work I have to keep up with.”
Yamasato got to his feet and gestured to the door. “I’ve already informed your teachers about your absences, but yes, you may go.”
I rushed to get out ahead of Samantha so I didn’t have to look her in the eye.
“I hope you take this counseling seriously,” Yamasato called after me as I opened the door. “Remember, it’s not just your grades that affect your ability to stay in this school.”
I gritted my teeth together to keep from saying anything bad, bobbed my head once like I was agreeing, and made my escape.
“It’s been a crazy few weeks,” I told Gabriella as she rested on the rock next to me. October was almost over, and it was the first chance I’d gotten to see her all month, so I felt I owed her an explanation. I didn’t want to say how badly I’d missed her, but I could at least tell her why I was gone for so long.
She looked up at me with her big, dark eyes like she could feel my pain. “You seem pretty shaken,” she said, resting her hand on my thigh. “What happened that was so bad?”
“Where to start?” I said with a nervous laugh. I ticked off events on my fingers. “First, I got into a fight with my roommate, which made her want to switch rooms. Then, we got called into the assistant dean’s office, who said we could spend some time apart but we had to go to counseling. The counselor made us talk about our personal boundaries and write up a list of rules for our room that we both had to agree to follow.”
“So she’s still your roommate?”
I nodded. “I was hoping she would stay with her friends, but the school insisted on us living together. She moved back in after a week and nothing’s really changed. She ignores me, but she’s acting super paranoid about her stuff. She locks everything up when she’s not in the room and checks for signs that I’ve messed with things.” I sighed. “It kinda makes me want to be even more petty, but I don’t want to get in trouble again.”
She nodded. “That sounds tough.”
“There’s more. The counseling sessions were at the same time as my swim team, so I had to miss a bunch of practices. Our first swim meet was yesterday,” I added.
Gabriella frowned. “Did you lose your races because you couldn’t practice?”
I shrugged. “Since we’re not competing against other teams, it’s less about winning and more about beating our personal times. I was slower than I was over the summer.” I shuddered and wrapped my arms around myself. I was wearing my wetsuit, but Gabriella had come up to meet me before I’d even gotten onto my surfboard. “Everything about this school just keeps throwing me off. It’s like I can’t do anything right, at least not as good as I usually can.”
“I wish I could see you swim,” she said, dropping her voice into that sensual purr which sent a thrill up my spine.
I glanced down at her sleek body. She wore a blue bikini top today that was hand-embroidered with silver thread. It was hard not to be creepy when she was so gorgeous. “I’m sure I’m nowhere near as good as you. You’re built for swimming.”
She laughed. “I could show you a few tricks.” She grabbed my hand, tugging me toward the water. “Why don’t you join me?”
It was probably a terrible idea to get into the water with a mermaid, but there was no way I could say no to her smile.
I glanced back to make sure my surfboard was still safe above the tide line, then nodded. “If you don’t mind slowing down for my awkward human legs.”
She led me out into the waves. Once we were past the breakers, she dove deep and disappeared. I treaded water until she came back up to the surface.
“I almost forgot,” she said with a mischievous smile. “I have a little magic that could help you… if you don’t mind.”
“Sure,” I said without thinking.
Gabriella’s smile faded and her dark skin flushed with heat. “Um, it requires something a little intimate.”
I swallowed and felt my own cheeks turning red. “What?”
She suddenly swam closer and embraced me, her arms wrapping around my neck. For someone who lived in t
he ocean, she felt surprisingly warm. “If I kiss you,” she murmured, “then you can breathe underwater for a few hours.”
Like I needed an excuse to kiss her! She had to be able to feel my heart pounding, threatening to burst through my chest. The ocean held me at the surface, so I grabbed her waist, pulling her even closer to I could feel the whole length of her body against mine. “I’ve never kissed a girl before,” I murmured back.
“What about a boy?” she asked, her eyes flashing with jealousy.
I shook my head. “Nobody, I mean, although I’ve never been interested in boys.”
She smiled again. “I thought so.”
Yeah, I was easy to read, so she must have known how much I was attracted to her from the moment I saw her. I opened my mouth to tell her that but then she leaned forward and kissed me.
I closed my eyes and lost myself in the moment. There was a hint of salt from the sea, but her mouth tasted far sweeter. Her lips parted and her tongue slipped inside, teasing mine with little flicks. My very being joined with hers and an overwhelming wave of excitement washed over me. I wanted to do nothing but kiss Gabriella for the rest of my life.
Eventually, though, she pulled back and looked at me. “Are you okay?”
“I’m better than okay, I’m amazing,” I said, tightening my grip around her hips. Her skin was soft until it reached the spot where her tail began, then her scales were smooth. I wanted to explore how every inch of her felt. “Yup, I’m definitely a lesbian.”
Gabriella laughed and nuzzled my neck, which sent a new set of thrills through me. “No, I meant, are you breathing okay? In the water?”
I blinked and realized we had sunken underneath the surface. I hadn’t even felt the magic change me because I was so caught up in her touch. The water moved smoothly in and out of my lungs like it was air, and my eyes didn’t sting because of the salt. I reached up to touch them and realized there was a second membrane covering them, just like Gabriella’s.
“It’s part of the spell,” she explained. “Don’t worry, everything will go back to normal when you get out of the water.”
The Reluctant Witch: Year One (Santa Cruz Witch Academy Book 1) Page 10