We are all lying back trying to catch our breath from the bounty Andrei had appeared with, or at least Blue, Damon, Aarya and I are, the rest are hashing out the details of a dance they'd been working on.
"I can't believe I'm in THE house! All thanks to you dear princess," Damon states nudging me.
"I don't get it, I really don't, they are all stupid, other than their bloodlines, they have nothing going," I huff.
"Ouch Drac, only you would say that, for the rest of the school we are BFD," my brother grumbles from where he's standing.
"I don't want to ask but I've got to, what's BFD?" I ask.
"Big Freaking Deal," Aziz pipes up.
"Freaking?" Aarya asks with a smirk.
With a pointed glare at Blue, Roan answers, "Yeah, freaking, because that kid has me well on my way to getting washboard abs, I can't remember the last time I had to be on my best behaviour."
"You are welcome Ro," Blue pipes up where he's snuggled on my lap.
"Hey, why does he get, a cool masculine nickname, and the rest of us get..."
"Because you're still a child ZeeZee, Nona Ellie said so too."
Aziz gets so red in the face that I'm afraid he's about to blow, but before anything happens, the door bangs open heralding Niamh and her friends.
I'm up clutching Blue protectively especially when I see Konte in the group. He looked terrible, like I'm missing a couple of teeth and my eye is swollen shut kind of terrible, he was even limping slightly.
"Well hello cunt-e, are you sure you're well enough to be roaming around?" Andrei asks advancing towards the new group.
"Chill out, Andrei, we come in peace. Since today was a free day courtesy of our fragile princess, I figured we'd get some practice in," Niamh says hand stretched towards Andrei but he steps back at the last minute.
I go to fire a retort at the very pointed barb but stop when everyone turns to me.
"What?"
Andrei is smiling like Christmas came early and Aziz looks like he's trying hard not to say something inappropriate.
"You growled Mahi," Rain supplies.
"No, I didn't."
"Yes you did," comes from Blue who had ceased trying to hide in the crook of my neck and was now glaring at the newcomers, I was feeling the solidarity.
"I don't mind. It means she's as possessive of me as I am of her," Andrei says sounding as smug as the words suggest.
The blinding smile disappears from Niamh's face and she turns her sneer on me, "She doesn't deserve any of you, and she knows that, that's why she's busy spreading it for you so she can trap you with spawns, it worked the first time," she finishes off with a pointed glare at Blue, who was staring at her with some creepy level of determination.
"It won't work on me, you son of a..." she stares up as her entire head goes up in flames, which then move on engulfing her entire body.
"I got warded against him, she said he won't be burning me again!" she screams swatting at herself frantically.
Blue on the other hand is clapping his hands elated then he reaches to high-five...air.
What was happening?
As if in answer, Rhian materialises right where Blue had aimed his high-five, hand up to receive it, "You did get warded against my son, you hag, but not against me, I gave him a little boost," he says this not even turning towards Niamh, "Our son is learning so fast little mate, I'm proud," after his spiel, he disappears leaving all of us, gaping at the space he had occupied.
"Well," Ax starts clapping his hands, "This was fun, but I'm going to ask you and your merry band of green minions to beat it, you are banned from this place, for good."
"He called a hag," Aarya blurts out practically reading my mind.
"I think I love him," I answer still dazed.
I feel the ghost of a kiss on my cheeks and it sends my heart fluttering.
"He called him his son..." she pauses in realisation, "No, you can't have them all you weak bitch."
Then the icing on Niamh's humiliating cake and the highlight of the entire encounter comes from Blue, "Language," he says it so sternly Niamh is shocked silent.
"You heard him hag, mind your language and strut your ugly ass out of here."
I look at Rain who's standing next to Aziz and he doesn't disappoint scuffing him, "Practice what you preach idiot."
Huffing, Niamh turns to me, "You'll get what's coming to you, you and that ...child...and I will have the last laugh, I promise you."
"Is that a threat Miss Finn, because if it is, I'm afraid I cannot let you go."
We all turn at once to the new voice and with one glance at Keon and his glowing eyes, I almost pity Niamh, but the bitch had it coming.
Her group finally gather their last functioning brain cells and hustle it out of the room dragging their fallen leader with them. She turns at the last minute locking her eyes on me, more particularly on Blue, and the cold smile she flashes chills me to the bone.
After they're gone, Keon turns back to us smiling, "So, anyone wants to tell me, what you're doing in my house?"
This place was his?
"We, uh figured since it had been unoccupied for a while, we would, uh—occupy it."
"Eloquent Ax," Roan pipes up, "But what he said, we figured the owner wouldn't mind and the studio in here was too good to pass up."
Keon just nods, moving to where I'm standing hands out and Blue flows from my arms to his, like they had done this a hundred times before.
He moves back to the couches dragging me with him, after we settle in he turns back to everyone, "So what is happening?"
His words are like the 'play' button and everyone flows into action; Damon and Aarya moving to join us on the other couch and the guys explaining to Keon that they were preparing for the Back To School Competition held at the start of every semester. The competition is held to test skills in every aspect, from art; all forms of it, to combat and Academic skills.
The guys were preparing a dance routine and Keon offers to help, which has all of them perking up but still cautious.
"You dance?" I ask what everyone else was thinking.
"Yeah, I do, want to see?" he answers with a smug look.
Before I could answer he turns to the music system and a minute later, I hear a familiar song start and I turn a questioning look at him, there was no way he had picked my all -time favourite song by coincidence.
"You were torn between this and the other one, a good time to get second opinions."
"You went through my computer?"
"Yes I did," he answers without an ounce of apology.
"Come on," he insists when I hesitate, I stand up amid cheers from the rest of the guys, and with a satisfied smile he turns to hand Blue to Ax.
"Do you know the whole routine?" I ask still sceptic.
"Yes, I do, it was easy to grasp and master."
I narrow my eyes, what was that supposed to mean?
"It just means I'm that good, so are we doing this?" Keon answers looking excited.
I twist the front of my t-shirt twisting it into a knot at the back, I then shimmy my sweats to rest below my waist, just at the top of my hips and I watch satisfied as his eyes zero in on the exposed skin.
"Let's do this." I say mirroring his excitement.
The song starts up again and I take a deep breath going into that space in my head where nothing else mattered but my performance, snapping my eyes open, I find his and he nods...and then...we dance.
He follows me step by step, hands guiding my hips, controlling my rhythm, every twirl, every grind, every split, he's right there like we came up with the routine together. And when it's time for his solo, he dips and sways to the beat and I'm almost lost mesmerised but then he's back and he guides my every step.
We dance, bodies plastered; back to back, front to back, front to front, breaths mingled, and something opens up in me. Leaving a peaceful free feeling in me.
I couldn't remember the last time I lost myself in music and dance like this, and I get lost in the feeling. We get lost in the feeling. I don't know how long we dance, but it feels like hours, days, years... until the silence resonates and we break apart chests heaving.
A sharp whistle followed by cheers sounds in the room and it jolts me back to the present tearing my focus from Keon.
"That was hot!" Aarya states excitedly.
"Understatement," Andrei grumbles adjusting himself.
"So," I swallow hard before continuing, "What do you guys think?"
"I'm thinking you should sign up for the dance part of the competition. You can do a solo then, later on, join us for the group rounds, because that was beautiful, your partner however is a member of the faculty and cannot join," Roan explains with Rain next to him nodding in agreement.
"I'm the only one dancing with her, even if I have to resign for the day," Keon states daring anyone to refute his statement, but we are all wise.
"Your dancing," starts, Ax, "It's strangely familiar, so familiar that it's creeping me out but because you can't be him."
Keon just smirks glancing around.
"Now that you mention it, Dear fates! You are..." Aziz breaks off mouth gaping.
Damon then proceeds to let out the girliest scream of all girly screams, jumping up and down clapping his hands like a seal, "Oh fates! Oh fates! Oh fates! You are the Drakos!
"No shit babe, his last name is Drakos," Aarya says rolling her eyes, but the rest seem to be connecting Damon's words and are looking a little star-struck.
"The posters we found in here," Aziz starts.
"Yap," Rain answers.
"We thought the owner was a huge fan, but."
"Yap," Goes Roan.
"Oh, fates!" Aarya exclaims finally connecting the dots.
"Someone please tell me what's happening, who is he?" I demand pointing at the man who was watching this unfold with a satisfied smirk.
"Our idol Sis, this man, is the reason we all fell in love with music and dancing."
"Glad to be of service, now if we could keep that between us that would be epic." Keon says with mock bow.
"You seem a little different without the mask and the piercings and the red hair," states Damon having calmed down.
"I value my privacy beyond anything else, and since I knew I'd be a big deal, having a mask seemed like the way to go."
"Vain," I mutter on auto-pilot.
"Can't be vanity if it's true baby."
"Oh girl, you hit the mate jackpot, I so want to be you now," Damon goes off again.
"I'm not even hurt," Aarya mutters, "Cause same."