Evan
The week flew by, and the weekend came even faster than I expected. It had been a strange, fascinating week, full of surprises and more magical theory than I could keep track of. But as exciting as it was, I found myself missing home—the familiar comfort of my aunt and uncle's house, the smell of popcorn, and the evenings spent watching movies with Ian. That pang of homesickness hit harder than I wanted to admit, and I caught the same feeling on Ophelia's face when she thought no one was looking.
It was a new place with a lot of new feelings. I turned to Ophelia, trying to lighten the mood. "Do you think they would let us watch normal human movies here?" I asked.
From behind me, I heard a scoff. Slightly turning my head, I caught sight of Aiden. He stood with his usual aloofness, but his attention wasn't on his friends—they weren't even talking. Instead, it seemed as though he'd overheard me. His face betrayed nothing, but the subtle shift of his weight from one foot to the other said enough.
Ophelia must have noticed too because she turned her head slightly and gave him a scowl. Aiden faltered, shifting awkwardly again, though he kept his gaze firmly forward.
Then, to my surprise, one of his friends approached us. "Hi, my name is Matthew Miller," he said brightly, his confident grin making it clear he wasn't as cold as Aiden. "I heard you guys talking about Nulls movies. In the wizarding world, we also have awesome films, with witches and wizards starring in them. If you want, I can give you some recommendations."
His tone was casual, almost too casual, and he threw a smirk at Aiden, who stiffened ever so slightly. The look was pointed, like some inside joke between them, though its meaning escaped me.
"Uhh, I don't know," I replied carefully, eyeing him. "Your friend seems to hate us, and you don't exactly seem thrilled with one of our friends." Nulls, I thought. What a weird word. But I brushed it aside. "Human movies are good movies," I added firmly.
"Yeah, well, stuff happened," Matthew said, his smirk faltering slightly before recovering. "Look, I just want to be nice. My dad might not like you, chosen boy, but I'm not my father, and neither is my brother. I really would like to give you guys some recommendations, and your si—" He stopped mid-word, his expression twisting as if he'd been shocked. "Friend. I don't despise or hate Jaime. You give me movies; I give you movies," he said, grinning madly. "I'll give you my number, and you just text me, chosen boy."
Before I could respond, Matthew scribbled his number on a piece of parchment and handed it to me with a flourish. His handwriting was messy, like he'd rushed to finish before he changed his mind. Then, without waiting for any acknowledgment, he turned and started to walk away.
"And during this whole conversation, I didn't get to say anything," Ophelia mumbled under her breath, making me chuckle.
She turned to me with a wide grin. "I think you should text him," she said brightly. "We could see what he has to offer, then talk to George about what the wizarding equivalents to human movies might be."
I laughed, throwing an arm around her shoulders and gently pulling her forward to start walking. She laughed along, the sound light and easy, but the moment was cut short by a sarcastic laugh from behind us.
Twisting my neck, I turned to see Jason smacking Matthew on the back of the head. The grin on Jason's face was sharp, his frustration at Matthew barely disguised.
"Evan, why did he come talk to you guys?" George's voice cut through the noise as he caught up to us. His tone was calm, but I could feel the tension beneath it.
Ophelia and I exchanged amused looks before I answered. "He wanted to give us wizarding movies or whatever you call them and asked us to give him…" I hesitated, trying to remember Matthew's phrasing. "Ah, Nulls movies," I said, grinning at George.
George's jaw tightened slightly, his expression unreadable. "And you just… went along with it?" he asked, his tone sharper now.
"We were talking about normal human movies," Ophelia said, her tone steady. "And he came to offer his help with introducing us to wizarding ones."
"That's not what I'm asking," George replied, glancing over his shoulder as if to make sure Matthew was out of earshot. "Why did you even talk to him?"
Ophelia raised an eyebrow. "He approached us. What were we supposed to do, ignore him?"
"Yes," George said flatly. "He's not exactly trustworthy. None of them are."
I frowned, stepping in before the conversation escalated. "Look, he was being weirdly nice. I don't trust him either, but what harm is there in exchanging some movie recommendations? It's not like we're sharing secrets or anything."
George sighed, his expression softening slightly but his tension still visible. "Just… be careful, okay? Matthew doesn't do things without a reason. If he's talking to you, there's something in it for him—or for Aiden."
I nodded, understanding his caution even if it felt over the top. "We'll keep an eye on it," I said, glancing at Ophelia, who gave me a small nod of agreement.
Behind us, Jason and Matthew were still bickering, their voices a low murmur punctuated by the occasional louder remark.
"Anyway," I said, trying to shift the mood. "It's not like we're signing a friendship contract with him. It's just movies."
Ophelia laughed softly, and Jaime, who had been quiet until now, added, "I think it's a good idea to exchange movies. We could learn a lot about each other's worlds that way."
George didn't reply immediately, but his shoulders relaxed a little. "Just… don't let him pull you into anything stupid," he muttered finally.
"Noted," I said with a grin, tucking the parchment with Matthew's number into my pocket.
Matthew
"You shocked me?" I hissed out, my voice low and sharp as I stood next to Jason. The air around us felt thick with tension, like everything in this place was a game to someone, and we were just pieces on the board.
"No, I didn't," Jason replied with a sharp edge to his tone, avoiding eye contact as he shifted slightly.
I looked at Aiden then, my gaze hardening. "Then it was you, Aiden." The words felt wrong coming out of my mouth. Accusing both of them felt almost unnatural, but Jaime wasn't close enough to hear, and Professor Lee was even further away. This wasn't the kind of thing you say in front of anyone—especially not in a place like this.
Jason raised an eyebrow, as if the idea of me accusing him was ludicrous. "You were going to slip up on purpose and spill something that isn't your secret to tell, even to the enemy?" he asked, his voice thick with disbelief. He was right—what was I thinking? But this obsession, this need to keep Jaime safe from harm, drove me to the brink. I had to keep her away from anyone who could hurt her—even if it meant playing dirty.
I shifted my stance, turning fully towards Jason. "Obsession runs through our veins, Jase. I wanted to be nice, but if I become obsessed with Jaime, I wanted to make sure I could keep her away with information nobody wants him to know. I wanted to make sure, if it came to it, I could hurt her and make her hate me. It's the only way I could protect her," I said, my voice rough, as if I was forcing the words out of my throat. What did Jason think I would do? Let Lee kill her? Let him control everything? No, I couldn't let that happen.
"Matt, you need to be careful," Jason warned, his voice quieter now, a tinge of vulnerability creeping through. "Lee will kill you as well. If Lee's plan doesn't go the way he wants it..." He faltered, his voice momentarily breaking. But then he caught himself, steadying his breath. "He'll kill you before you can even call out for Father."
I could see the tension in his face, the anxious way his hands fidgeted. I didn't press further. We both knew what he meant. Lee wasn't someone to be trifled with. Neither was Father. And if either one of them found out what we were planning—if we didn't play our cards right—we were all dead.
Jason looked at me with a sharp, calculating gaze, then nodded as though he'd come to some sort of agreement with himself. "I get it. But if we do this, it's your risk. Don't come crying to me if things go sideways."
I didn't answer him. The silence was heavy, suffocating, like we were all caught in the middle of something that had already started to spiral out of control. What were we doing? What was the point of all this? But one thing was clear: We had to do it, for their sake. For Nova. For Annabelle. For Jaime.
I turned away from Jason, my thoughts still racing, trying to piece everything together. But as I walked away from him, I couldn't help but think—this obsession, this sickness that ran through my veins, it was going to destroy us all. And yet, in some twisted way, I couldn't stop it. None of us could.
We had no choice.
"They were talking about Nulls movies," I muttered as I turned back to face Jason and Aiden. "And thought they might like wizarding movie recommendations. I know what I did was risky, but if we need a new plan, Jase, Lan... we might need to ask for help. We might need him and Ophelia and Jaime and George." The words spilled out faster than I could control, but they felt right. If we were going to succeed, we'd have to work together—whether we liked it or not.
The obsession was like an illness, an addiction, a constant ache in the pit of my stomach. I loved them both, Annabelle and Nova. I would protect them with everything I had. But Jason... Jason had it worse. He was obsessed with Nova. I knew that. It wasn't just a feeling. It was a sickness, and there was no cure for it. Not that I could see.
The thought of what he'd do for her, what we were willing to sacrifice, made my skin crawl. But it was what it was. And right now, we had to be focused. We had to make this plan work. For them. For everyone.