Tales & Time (Lost Time Academy #1)(44)

"Come on, smile, you might be against me!" Tavvy says with a creepy happy grin.

"Considering you are a badass, and I know you well enough to know you won't take it easy on me, I'm not wishing for that," I reply to her.

"True. Plus, I like kicking Ella's ass," Tavvy says, winking at me. I laugh, a breathless laugh as we get to the end of the lap and stop. We get to wait a few moments before Miss A calls us all over to gather around her. I go to stand next to Knox just as the main door slams open and Tobias falls into the room, just about managing to stop himself from falling flat on his face. Tobias grins, pushing his hair out of his eyes as he walks over, swaying as he struggles to stay standing. He is high again, just like Noah suspected.

"Who is fighting me today then?" Tobias shouts, just as he gets to my side and wraps an arm around my shoulder. He stinks of women’s perfume, and there is lipstick on his neck. Tobias also has black dust around his lips and nose. Overall, he looks a fucking mess, and I put my hand up before his brothers can say anything. I don’t know if it’s jealousy or anger that makes me want to fight him, but it sure isn’t that I feel sorry for Tobias.

"I will."

"Fuck no, Madi," Knox interrupts, storming over to me, but Miss A places a wall of water around Tobias and me, blocking him. Knox glares at her then at me, and I shake my head. Noah and Sin look between each other before giving me a nod, letting me do this.

"Madi and Tobias, fight fair, and whoever wins may have the rest of the day off," Miss A states, and I nod at her, walking back a few paces as Miss A keeps all the students on the other side of the wall, making sure they can't interrupt. I can't look at them, so I keep my focus on Tobias instead. I need to win this, to show them I'm not weak and to knock Tobias out so he can sleep this off. If his brothers do this, then he will get hurt, and that isn't going to help anyone. I stare into Tobias’s dark brown eyes, seeing the silver specks in them that I've always loved.

"Do you know what powers I have, Sleepy?" Tobias asks as we start circling each other, though he is moving slowly. He is making this too easy.

"No. Something to do with the moon," I reply as his hands start to glow white. "I assume it's more than just making your drugs so you can forget everything."

"It is," he tightly replies and smiles widely. I cry out as pain slams into my head for only a moment before it fades. I look up to see Tobias holding his hand out, which is glowing a silver colour. The silver glow is spreading from his hand like string, and it is tightly wrapping itself around my wrist.

"You will stand up, and then slowly dance your way to me," Tobias whispers into my mind, and my legs lift me up without me even realising it. My arms lift above my head, swaying as my hips move to an unknown beat that plays in my head. I scream in my head as I get closer to Tobias, who is curling a finger towards me, the silver string spreading all over my body like rope. I hear his brothers shouting at me, Tavvy is shouting something too, but I can't hear their words. I can't hear anything but Tobias and the lure he whispers into my mind. I get closer and closer until I'm right in front of him. He smirks happily, like this is all over. It isn't.

“Now kiss me,” he whispers.

"NO!" I scream in my head, pushing my own powers to my hands, with all the strength I can possibly gather. I lift my one hand the moment the silver string falls to the floor, his control fading, and Tobias is gaping at me in shock. I won’t be forced to do anything. Before he can make a countermove, I punch Tobias hard in the face, dust blasting out of my hand. He falls backwards, collapsing to the floor with a loud thud as my knuckles sting. Thank you, Noah, for teaching me how to punch.

"Well done, Miss Dormiens." Miss A claps and the whole class cheers my name. I stare down at Tobias as Tavvy gets to my side first, followed by Knox, Sin and Noah.

“I don’t have a clue how you did that, but man, it was sexy,” Sin tells me and winks at me when I look up at him. A smile tilts my lips up, even when I’m worried about Tobias.

"What are we going to do about him?" I ask no one in particular.

"I don't know...but he deserved that punch. Maybe it will knock some god damn sense into him. Sin, help me carry him back to our room where he can sleep it off," Knox says. I link my hand with Noah as we watch Knox and Sin carry Tobias out the room. I can't help but wonder if anything is going to be enough to stop Tobias from getting high on moon rocks when it's linked to his powers. Maybe nothing anyone can do will make him forget. Maybe I’m too late to save him.





Chapter 28





"No way, he can really do that?" I whisper to Noah who is sat at my side as we both stare across the dinner hall at a boy Noah promises can stretch any part of his body and change his body into any animal as well. It’s crazy to think all these teenagers can do a million different things, and I’m learning how to use my own power. I only wish the damn dreams of ravens and Quin would stop. I’m pretty tired all the time, thanks to them. It makes me miss Quin and feel guilty for my…well, whatever it is with the Tale brothers.

"I've heard Ella likes to visit him because he can stretch something down below," Tavvy adds in, waggling her eyebrows at me. I laugh with the guys who shake their heads at me, all of them except for Tobias who is still in his room after fight class yesterday. I feel guilty for hurting him, but I’m more concerned with why he took the drugs this time, since he was trying to stop. Guilt is a funny thing, something I’ve only had to feel once or twice over simple things I did wrong. Tobias thinks that he killed his fiancé and that it is all his fault. I understand why he would want to forget the world, but not this way.