"I DON'T GET IT. What did Aubrey mean when she said I'd have to relocate?" Sophie asked as she begrudgingly jammed her baby-carrot into a pile of ranch dressing.
Tabatha eyed her cautiously. The dark haired girl nibbled on a spoonful of mashed potatoes. Her gaze flickered toward Alex, who sat beside Sophie, looking more god-like than should be allowed. An untouched tray of food sat on the table in front of him. His gaze danced around the table, amusement evident on his features.
Emma swallowed a miniscule bite of pasta and opened her mouth to answer.
Ellie beat her to it. "The games take place in a more remote part of the castle, where it won't directly interfere with our school work." She pushed her glasses further up her nose and sighed. "I mean, not that it doesn't interfere regardless. The contestants are usually exempt from schoolwork while they are participating and then the entire student body is distracted."
"It's entertaining," Emma snapped at her twin and scowled. Her cheeks were flushed. She shot a quick glance toward Alex. "That's the whole point. The games are a more entertaining way to get the students to work together and encourage them to want to advance into the harder classes. That's all it is."
Sophie stared at Emma. The girl seemed to be missing a vital point. "And what about the mating part?" she asked.
"Oh that's just an added bonus," Emma laughed lightly. She fluffed her hair. "Not only do you succeed in school, but you get to date a total babe."
Alex arched an eyebrow at Emma. She responded with a flirtatious grin, and fiddled with her fork. Ellie shook her head and Tabatha sighed. "Only it's more permanent," Sophie heard the latter mutter.
Sophie's eyebrows puckered.
Emma glared at Tabatha. "Please. Do not fill her head with that crazy bullshit." Then she turned to Sophie and shook her head. "There's this stupid rumor that's been going around since before Ellie and I even got here, that the Night Class are actually these vicious blood-thirsty vampires. And once you get accepted, then you get turned into a vampire too."
Then Emma pressed her index fingers against her lips, mimicking the appearance of fangs. "It's absolutely ridiculous."
Sophie's gaze shifted toward Alex, who happened to be in the Night Class. His smirk widened.
Tabatha shook her head, a frown gracing her features. "It's not ridiculous. It's the truth, right Alex?"
Alex glanced at her, seemingly oblivious to the venomous look that Emma shot toward Tabatha. The amusement that shimmered in his eyes darkened considerably. Sophie frowned.
Kitty slumped into an open chair then, and grunted loudly. Attention shifted toward her. She beamed at Sophie and said, "Well hey there, stranger! Did you decide to actually spend your last free lunch down here, with us?"
"What do you mean?" Sophie frowned.
"She just means that you've spent a lot of time with Eli since the nominations were announced," Ellie explained kindly. Emma snorted. "And she's jealous that you've been skimping out on us."
Sophie flushed at the mention of Eli. Her wrist burned. "It's not my fault. Eli can be pretty demanding."
"That's very true," Alex laughed.
Kitty snorted, and shook her head. The rest of lunch passed rather smoothly, and Sophie continued on to the rest of her classes. Most of the students who'd once hated her seemed to be resigned to the fact that Sophie was an official participant now. She continued to receive a variant of congratulations. Eli and his friends had also been delightfully absent, all excluding Alex, which allowed her more time to concentrate on the turmoil that burned inside of her.
All in all, Sophie felt much better when the final bell chimed.
"Are you ready for the games?" Alex asked as Sophie gathered her backpack and stood. He stood beside her, his own backpack thrown over a shoulder.
Sophie glanced at him. "No. I still don't really know what to expect."
"It's not that hard," Alex assured her, and smiled warmly at her. She followed him out of the classroom. "The tests are actually quite simple. The order changes a bit, but the actual tests are always similar. One will just be a boring, standardized test like the kind that you take in class. Another will be physically based, and is usually some sort of obstacle course. The last game is usually decided on later. And I don't think that you'll have to worry about losing. Eli really likes you. "
"How do you know?" Sophie asked quietly.
Alex glanced at her. "How do you think I joined the Night Class?"
Her lips wrinkled into a harsh line. "So does that mean that you have a mate?" she hesitantly asked.
Amusement flickered within his gaze. "I do," he said, offhanded.
Then Alex stopped in front of the entrance to the girls' dorm. He shoved his hands into his pockets and smiled warmly down at Sophie. "It's scary at first. But then it gets better. I think you'll do just fine."
Sophie shook her head. "I'm not worried about how I'll do. I could care less about the games."
"You seem to say that a lot," Alex commented. His lips twitched into a smile. "But I don't think that you really mean it."
That remark made Sophie's blood run cold. It was just like what Mr. Wolfe had said earlier. Her hand clenched tighter around the strap of her backpack and she looked away. "I do mean it. I didn't even want to participate."
"That's true," he said. "Then again, you didn't exactly put your foot down and stop it, did you? I think that you secretly like the idea of being mated to Eli."
Sophie's head jerked toward him. "I do not!" she snapped. Her eyes blazed. "Not like that."
Alex arched an eyebrow at her. Confusion rippled through Sophie, who firmly kept her gaze on the ground. Her wrist started to burn again. She did like Eli, a little. Enough to want to date him, even.
Then that pulling sensation returned, and her mind drifted toward Mr. Wolfe.
Sophie shook her head. "Whatever. Yeah, I do like Eli. And I wouldn't mind dating him," she said hastily. "But that doesn't mean that I wanted to participate in these stupid games."
A smile stretched across Alex's lips. "Good," he said, and placed a hand on her shoulder. He squeezed lightly. "I just wanted to be sure. Eli is my friend. I have to look out for him, too."
She grimaced. "Now that you've gotten your answer, can you please stop with the mind games?"
Alex laughed, "Sure."
Sophie sighed and hefted her backpack further onto her shoulders. Her gaze danced toward the door behind him. Alex shifted around and scratched at his head. "I guess you've got to go then," he said. Sophie nodded.
Alex wished her luck, and then vanished from sight.
Then she immediately searched for Tabatha, who could be found back in their dorm. The dark haired girl sat on her bed, her gaze focused solemnly on the ugly brown duffle-bag that was perched atop Sophie's bed. She glanced up when Sophie entered the room, and smiled.
Sophie blanched at the sight of the bag. "What's all this?" she asked, poking at it. "Are you kicking me out?"
"No," Tabatha laughed. "It's just for the games, I think. It's probably several outfits and some toiletry items." Then she glanced at her alarm clock. "You only have a bit left before Aubrey will come for you," she said.
"Oh," Sophie said. She walked over to the bed and hesitantly poked at the bag. Her lips twisted with a frown. Then she turned to Tabatha. "Should I be scared?"
"No," Tabatha said. "I don't think that Eli would let you get hurt. I think that he likes you, a lot."
"Great," Sophie sighed. Her cheeks burned and her mind drifted back to Mr. Wolfe, again. She shook her head. Mr. Wolfe needed to just leave her mind all together; Sophie didn't have a chance.
Tabatha shifted around on the bed, uncomfortable. "So," she said lightly, "Is it later yet?"