Atticus Rhodes x Reader (NaNoWriMo 2017)

Chapter 5

"RUN Y/N! DON'T COME NEAR ME! IF YOU DO, I'LL END UP HURTING YOU! I...I CAN'T HURT THE GIRL I LOVE. I can't lose you, Y/N." Nightshroud cackles, "Say goodbye to your precious lover!"

You bolt upright and place your hand on your chest. You whisper, "It was only a nightmare." You look at your alarm clock and silently whimper. It was Fae who noticed your discomfort. Fae asked, "Y/N, what is it? Why are you crying?" You wipe your eyes and reply, "It's nothing, Fae. I just had a bad dream." Fae shook her head, "When you have a bad dream, you'd usually brush it off. Y/N, be honest with me. Why were you crying?" You mutter, "I can never hide anything from you." Fae objected, "You're really bad at hiding your emotions. You're good at a lot of things. However, hiding your feelings isn't one of them." You respond with a small blush, "W-Well..." Your conversation with Fae caused Rayla to awaken from her slumber. Rayla asked, "What's going on? Why does Y/N look upset?" Rayla looks at Fae and inquires, "What did you say to her?" You interject immediately, "Fae didn't do anything, Ray. I apparently woke her up." You add, "I just had a nightmare, that's all." Fae objects once more, "I think that Y/N was thinking about that Nightshroud person again." You gaze at the dark surrounding and nod in agreement. Rayla said, "This is going to be difficult to deal with."

You rub your eyes tiredly. You didn't sleep after having that horrible nightmare and you were feeling the aftermath of it all. Your ears perk up when you hear something strange. When you walk toward the academy, you see that there is a crowd gathered in front of the Obelisk boys' dorms. You then notice an unfamiliar person there. The student had dark auburn hair that cascaded down his shoulders, his eyes were a deep amethyst and his uniform differed by the almost royal emblem placed on the chest. Mindy swoons, "Oh my god, Alexis! Isn't that guy super hot?" You facepalm, "That guy looks creepy." The male student spoke in a deep voice, "Hello beautiful ladies, isn't it beautiful outside?" You roll your eyes and Rayla laughs. You hear Jasmine speak, "He's so dreamy! His name is Amun according to what I heard from Zane." Rayla sounded surprised, "Zane knew? He usually tells you if there is something going on." You mutter, "Remind me to ask him about that after class today." You suddenly notice that the new student was coming towards you. You see him hold a single rose, "Hello there, beautiful flower." You cross your arms and reply, "Flattery isn't going to get you anywhere. Besides, I don't like guys who are obviously going to play mind games. Don't think that you can flatter me with those words." Alexis mutters, "Why am I not surprised by that answer? Sheesh....this guy is cute too." The student chuckles, "I see...you are a closed-off person." You respond, "I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that." You add, "If you'll excuse me, I actually would like to go inside." You walk through the crowd and into the school.

Atticus pouts as he talked with Zane. Zane said, "Will you stop pouting? You look like a child when you do that. You're supposed to be the role model, Atticus." Atticus replies, "It's that new guy. All the girls are going crazy over him and everyone's forgotten about me." "Zane!" Zane turns around, "Hey Y/N." Atticus didn't speak when he abruptly made eye contact with you. You ask, "What's with him? Did something happen?" Atticus responds in annoyance, "It's that new guy...he's making all the girls go crazy!" You roll your eyes, "I find him annoying. He was trying to ask me out earlier and I turned him down. He was honestly sugarcoating his words. I don't even think that he meant what he said. He only wants the girls to like him because they think that he's mysterious." You add, "I'm not getting any good vibes from him. He looks and sounds like someone from an old myth." Rayla shudders, "That student is quite irritating if you ask me. He doesn't even acknowledge any of the other male students." Atticus became puzzled, "Hold on a second, Y/N. Why aren't you attracted to him?" You burst out laughing, "You thought that I was attracted to him? I'm sorry but that's really funny." Atticus asked, "Is there anyone you like here?" He adds quickly, "I mean like....a crush?" You wanted to say that he was the you liked. However, you bit your tongue and shook your head. Zane noticed your reaction but he decided to stay quiet.

Moments later, Zane approaches you after class. He comments, "You like Atticus." You respond, "What are you talking about?" Zane replies, "Don't give me that reaction, Y/N. I saw the way you looked at Atticus when we were all talking earlier. You're going to have to tell him eventually or else someone will beat you to it." You sigh, "Why would he even want to date me? I'm not exactly the perfect person." Zane shook his head, "Don't say that, Y/N. We both know that's not true. I understand that the past was painful, but you can't keep dwelling on it." You feel Zane's hand touch your shoulder, "Atticus isn't going to hate you for having a painful past. He would want to help you escape that pain. He likes you. He just won't admit that he does. You should be honest with yourself and not hide your true feelings from him." Rayla spoke in exasperation, "Finally! Finally, someone agrees with me on something!" Zane adds, "Y/N, talk to him or else you'll regret it if you don't." Although you didn't want to hear him saying that, Zane did have a point. If you didn't say anything, then someone else would ask Atticus out. What were you going to do?

A few hours later, you see that the library is crowded once again. You sigh and mumble, "That Amun guy is really annoying. I can't even study in peace and quiet...sheesh." You hear a voice call out to you, "Hey Y/N, wait up!" You turn around and see Atticus running towards you. Atticus asked, "Are you avoiding the library too?" You rub your temples, "That guy is starting to get on my nerves. I don't know what I'm supposed to do..."  Atticus smiles, "I have an idea. Why don't we go study in the courtyard?" You question him briefly, "Are you sure about that?" Atticus nodded, "That's completely fine with me. Besides, I've been wanting to talk with you for a while now." You blush at the reply. Atticus noticed and remarks, "You're blushing!" You stutter, "I-I am not! You're just imagining it, Atticus!" Atticus chuckles, "Calm down, Y/N, I'm only teasing you. Besides, you look really cute right now." Your cheeks darken in response to the sudden compliment.

A few minutes later, you find an empty courtyard to study in. Atticus notices your deck and wonders what he should say. You remark, "If you want to look at my deck then say so." Atticus waves his hands in denial, "No way! I can't just do that without asking." You roll your eyes, "That's not what I mean, you dunce. I'm giving you permission to look at some of my cards." You add, "I'll give you a few to look at, that's it." You give Atticus around three cards and he gawks at them. Atticus spoke in amazement, "Wow! Where did you get these cards?!" You reply, "That is a secret I will never tell." Atticus whines, "Come on Y/N! Why won't you tell me?" You look away and whisper, "You'd never believe me if I told you how I got them." Atticus notices the melancholy tone in your voice. You realize this and add quickly, "It's fine really!" Atticus sighs, "I'm sorry." Your eyes widen, "Why are you apologizing? You haven't done anything wrong." Atticus shook his head, "I made you upset. I'm apologizing because of something I said." You shake your head, "It's okay, really. You don't have to be careful around me. I'm not that fragile." Rayla mutters, "Liar." You suddenly realize that Atticus's face was right in front of yours. You try to back away and as you feel Atticus's arms wrap around you. Atticus whispers in your ear, "You may not realize it but you make me happy." You stutter, "W-What? W-When?" Atticus's grip on you loosens. He pushes a piece of your hair behind your ear. He gives you a toothy smile and you giggle in response. He grabs your hand and asked, "Do you need any help with your homework?" You spend the rest of the day studying with Atticus.

It had been two hours since you were with Atticus. You touch the lower part of your cheek. It still felt warm from when Atticus briefly touched it. You smile to yourself and think of his gentle expression. You feel your heart race when you think of the brunet Obelisk. You look at the small charm on your book bag. It was a gift given to you by your adoptive parents when you had become a teenager. You gaze at it and whisper, "Mom, Dad...please bring happiness to my life. Thank you for making my life better." You look to the skies and add, "Spirits of luck and hope, please bless our academy with a happier life."

What you didn't know was that there was a dark force coming after Atticus. It would cause peril for you both. However, you were both oblivious to that fact.

A/N: HA! Totally left you on a cliffhanger 😋.

Word count: 1670 of 50,000

Total word count: 10,146 of 50,000