I didn't hear from Michael all weekend. As I'm rushing down the hallway at school Monday morning, I'm anxious to see him, to make things right between us, to regain some balance in my life.
I come to a staggering stop at the sight of Michael with his forearm pressed to his locker door. He's smiling down at Lila, who is backed up against his locker. Her hand is flattened against his chest as if she needs to count his heartbeats. She's got this insipid grin on her face like he just hung the moon for her. Or handed her a pair of vamp fangs.
"What the hell?" Vivi says as she comes up beside me and nudges my shoulder, like I'm not already seeing what she's seeing.
"Were you at Daylight this weekend? Did you see them together there?" My throat is suddenly so dry that I can barely get the words out.
"I was. And I didn't. You need to get over there and shove her butt down three lockers to her own, where it belongs."
"Yeah." I should. But instead I'm rooted to the spot.
Lila releases an irritating giggle, pats Michael's chest, and walks away. Still wearing a broad grin, he watches her retreating back. Passing me, she gives me a satisfied smirk that sets my blood to boiling. Then Michael notices me. His smile disappears. He turns to his locker and opens the door.
"Uh-oh," Vivi says.
"I'll see you in class," I say, before wending my way around the students in the hallway until I arrive at Michael's side. "What was that about?"
"What?" His voice echoes from inside his locker. Apparently he's suddenly fascinated by the arrangement of his books.
"You know what. You and Lila."
He slams his locker closed with such force that I jump. He meets and holds my gaze, his unforgiving. "We were just talking. She and I have a lot in common."
"Like what?"
"Wall-walking, for starters. She's never done it at night, but she thinks it would be cool to go with me."
My heart drops to the floor. "Michael, don't do this. You don't have to prove anything."
"I know that."
I'm not sure he does. But I want to change the subject. I want everything to go back to the way it was.
"Michael." I press my hand to his chest, realizing too late that I've placed it in the same spot where Lila was resting hers earlier. "I have absolutely no Agency business to take care of tonight. And Rachel is working late. I thought maybe you and I could have an intimate picnic on the balcony, maybe even sneak a bottle of wine out of Rachel's cabinet, the one she doesn't think I know about."
"I can't. I have something else to do."
His words are like a slap in my face.
"I gotta get to class," he adds.
He's walking away from me before I can protest, and I refuse to chase after him. Suddenly Vivi is at my side.
"If body language is any indication," she muses, "I'd say that didn't go well."
"You have a gift for understatement."
When school is finally over, I go outside to discover the clouds have grown dark and heavy with rain. They reflect my mood. Michael totally ignored me in kick-ass class. He sat with Lila at lunch. She was so smug about it that it set my teeth on edge.
I stare at the gathering storm clouds and feel like they're inhabiting me. I've had this feeling before. I know what I have to do.
At home, I quickly gather my things and put them in my backpack.
I look out the window one more time. The clouds have thickened, blocking out the sun. Vampires could come out now if they wanted. The cloud cover offers enough protection from the harmful rays of the sun. But I'll take the chance. Lightning flashes across the sky, stuck in the clouds, turning them from deep grays to light blues for just a moment. Ten seconds later, thunder echoes. My dad told me once that if I counted the time between the lightning and thunder, I'd be able to figure out if the storm was close. This one is. It's just what I need. What I want...