ANATOMY OF A GIRL

part eight, i

From a young age, his anger was something he couldn't avoid. Violence ran through his veins as surely as magic did. He knew he and Sapphire were the same in that way. It didn't take much to anger either of them, and that anger didn't easily burn out. Ironically, they didn't butt heads often, and their anger was one of the reasons they got on so well. They understood each other, and often Sapphire was the only one that could calm him down. She always said the right thing, because she knew what she would want to hear.

Most of the time, Ayden was defined by what he could do. Send a great bolt of electricity or throw a good punch.

The fire inside his chest sparked this morning, when Ayden saw better Bryden flirting with Sapphire in Novazykan. Sapphire hadn't reacted at all – she was smarter than that – but it still made him angry. Bryden acted like she hadn't been the one to break up with him months ago. Like he hadn't spread rumours about her that almost got him suspended.

He took his time running the laps, finishing at the soccer field behind the training centre. Leo was finishing up with soccer practise.

Leo grabbed his bags from the side of the field and jogged toward Ayden. They walked back to the locker rooms together.

"How was practise?" he asked.

"Bryden is a dick."

Leo nodded. "We already knew that."

"I want to rip his head off," Ayden said, grinding his back teeth. It was a bad habit.

"That isn't exactly new, either," he said, grinning. He added with mock solemnity, "But remember, we shouldn't do things just because we feel the need to. Even if they deserve it." And Bryden did.

The door to the locker room was open, and through it, Ayden could hear Bryden's voice. "Golden Boy was everyone's goddamn favourite. The teachers. The assholes we call our classmates. He didn't actually earn that spot on the team last year. My spot."

Arlo was "Golden Boy," Ayden knew. Bryden called him that. His best friend, Arlo. The spark quickly became a flame.

Bryden continued, because he didn't know when to shut his goddamn mouth, "I mean, he wasn't any better than I am, but the difference is that he was friends with the captain." He scoffed. "Look where that got him."

Ayden heard Bryden turning the corner before he saw him. He moved faster than even he thought possible. Before Bryden, or anyone else, realised, Ayden had pushed him hard against the lockers, one hand against the lockers and the other against Bryden's throat. Bryden's breath caught in his throat and stuck there. His hazel eyes bulged. With the anger running its course, Ayden could almost laugh at how weak he looked.

Leo stood beside him, his jaw set. Bryden's friends appeared around them. Like vultures, they waited for any sign of weakness, for Ayden to slip up. Though Ayden and Leo were outnumbered, Bryden's friends didn't make a move. Most likely, they feared what Ayden held inside him. All that energy that begged to come out and play.

"Wright, careful," Leo's voice was calm, but Ayden knew that Leo was just as mad as he was. He was just better at controlling his anger. Not that Ayden tried all that hard.

Ben Zenon finally got the nerve to help Bryden, bounding forward. He tried to push Ayden away from Bryden, but Leo stopped his arm before he could grab Ayden by the sleeve. Leo pulled his arm toward him and locked it behind Ben's back in a tight hold. Ayden wouldn't expect any less from Leo. Leo Carter had, and always would have, Ayden Wright's back.

He was glad practice ended so late, and that many of the teachers had left for the estate. Any earlier, and it would be a different story. He didn't plan on getting caught like last time. He thought of Sapphire and the way Bryden smiled at her — like he still had her heart. With one last wicked smile, Ayden threw all the anger bubbling up inside him into his punch. The momentum almost pulled him forward.