WICKED { #Wattys2016 }

Chapter Twenty-Six: Kol Sterling is a human being

She hadn't thought much about who was responsible for the hex that had made Kyle attack her. But Nina had practically threatened her which left her wondering: Could Nina be a witch?

That would answer another question: how did the circle know she was a witch? Maybe because she had pushed Nina into a pool with her mind. What once seemed like an innocent act of jealousy now seemed like a foolish mistake that might be her ticket to the stake.

Cordelia wrapped a sweater around her shivering body, but that didn't get rid of the goosebumps on her arms.

When she walked off the stage she saw not one, but two people lurking around the auditorium. The closest was Kyle, who looked even more nervous than Cordelia felt.

"Hey Cordelia." He greeted with an uneasy smile, as he adjusted the strap of his backpack.

"Hi." She replied, suddenly finding the pale lock of hair sticking out of her ponytail fascinating.

"I didn't see you today, or since the accident."

"Yeah sorry I had to memorize lines at lunch so I hid out in the library." She explained.

"I would've visited but I thought it might be best if I didn't bother you." He added quickly.

"It's fine! I wasn't up to company really, not that Kendra cared." She joked, laughing awkwardly.

He laughed with her before finally bringing up the elephant in the auditorium. "I said some...really shitty things to you last week and i'm really sorry. I didn't mean any of-okay well I sort of did in the moment but i'm an idiot."

Cordelia nodded in agreement, "You are." She agreed with a wry smile. "But I think jealous might be a better adjective." She suggested softly.

He sighed and nodded. "Yeah I-I don't like him. I don't trust him. And maybe i'm a little jealous of him. But I really was concerned Cord. For you. I couldn't give a shit about him, I was just-"

She smiled and interrupted the rest of his apology with a hug. "It's okay. But if you ever do that again i'll skin you alive with a cheese gratter." She threatened with a smile which made him laugh and hug her even harder.

When he finally let go of her he added, "I'm glad you're okay, I don't know what I would've done if the last time i'd seen you I'd been yelling at you. Anyways i'll see you tomorrow." He smiled, and waved before walking out of the auditorium leaving her alone with Kol Sterling.

But Cordelia wasn't thinking about Kol or why he was at school again.

She was thinking about what Kyle had just said. He didn't remember their last encounter. When he had almost killed her. And thank-God for that! He felt bad enough about yelling at her, imagine if he knew he had strangled her!

She was so distracted she almost walked right by Kol, who was seated in the back row of the auditorium, hidden by the shadows.

"Cordelia." He spoke up finally, standing up and following her out the door.

She groaned, "What now?" She asked over her shoulder, without bothering to look at him.

She felt him snatch her wrist before pulling her against the lockers. "I need to talk to you, and I need you to look me in the eye." He said through gritted teeth, his gaze smoldering.

"What. Now." Cordelia repeated.

He clenched his jaw, "I need you to tell me again -this time honestly- what is going on between you and Cal."

"And I'm going to tell you again the truth: we are friends."

His jaw twitched, "Maybe you're telling the truth. But i've seen how you act around each other...how you look at each other..." At that, he looked like he wanted to hurl.

All of her irritation washed away and was replaced by embarassement. Was it that obvious? Regardless, the blush on her cheeks was pretty conspicuous. "So what?"

"So what?" He repeated incredulously before erupting into laughter. Dark, humourless laughter before eventually calming down enough to give her a coherent answer.

"Because it's a bad idea. You should date someone normal. You both should."

She frowned, "And why's that?" She asked, crossing her arms across her chest and taking a step closer.

"It's just-I can't tell you alright? Just trust me. The two of you together would mean bad things...dangerous fatal things."

Cordelia had a realization. Kol Sterling cared. All along she had made him out to be cold, indifferent, and judgemental. (Which he was) But she had forgotten he was a human being who cared about his brother and maybe even Cordelia. He wasn't just trying to be an ass. He genuinely believed there would be consequences if something were to -hypothetically- happen between Cal and Cordelia.

She felt a swell of sympathy for him. But that didn't change the fact that, "It's none of your business Kol." She said firmly before walking away. This time he didn't follow her.

A/N: Hi there friends! I know the Shakespeare at the begining can be confusing but basically what Nina had to say was she wasn't beautiful, that Cordelia was, that Cordelia's character had the heart of the man she loved, and that she'd kill to be Cordelia. If you have no idea what the context is, A Midsummer Night's Dream, is the tale of Hermia (Cordelia's character) whose father has promised her hand in marriage to Demetrius. Hermia loves Lysander and Helena loves Demetrius unrequitedly. Hermia and Lysander end up running away together, Demetrius goes after them, and Helena goes after him. It's an amazing play that I highly recommend! If you guys have any questions about the play, characters or language let me know!

I'm very excited about the next chapter, and you guys should be too!

If you liked this chapter please vote and comment, telling me your thoughts and reactions!

Have a lovely day,

~Liz