He pushed his own chair out, just enough to expose his thigh. “Take a seat.” He gestured toward his lap.
My lips parted, but I still couldn’t move. I felt everyone’s gazes locked on me, watching and waiting for what I’d do.
Breathe. One. Two. Three. Four. Exhale.
The moment I sat on his lap, my Token flicked on, and I immediately became gray. I knew I didn’t have control over it. My heart was beating erratically. My breathing was ragged and my lungs were so far constricted they hurt.
The king’s laugh rumbled behind me, even though I couldn’t feel it. “Well, I did say I wanted to see it.”
Everyone else started laughing too. I was happy I was gray, happy that no one could see how red and inflamed my cheeks were. The only person who wasn’t laughing at the table was Hael. A muscle moved along his jaw and his fists were clenched as he slowly placed them on top of the table.
King Elion stood, moving right through me as he did. “Marvelous,” he crooned, gazing down at me. His hand reached out to cup my cheek before it moved through my face. The moment he pulled his hand back, my Token vanished, and I dropped onto the cushions. I wasn’t sure how it worked. I never fell through furniture whenever I became transparent.
Most of the time, I wouldn’t even be paying attention to where my body was—mainly because every time it manifested in the past, it was because I was around Dahes, and my adrenaline was too haywire to pay attention to my surroundings. But here I could. The moment Elion moved, I was justhovering. I didn’t know how else to explain it. My legs wouldn’t shake. I didn’t have to balance or try to stay upright. I just existed.Floated.I knew I could pass through objects, but it was only if I purposely tried. And thank the Suns, whenever I became transparent, my clothes came with me.
The second time my Token manifested was seared into my memory just as much as the first. I was standing in the middle of Dahes’ throne room, and I was terrified my clothes would fall right off my body, that he’d see exactly what he wanted, and he’d become more ruthless. But they didn’t. They stayed on me. I wondered if it was part of the necessity, the reason it even sparked to begin with.
Elion started clapping. I was still in his seat, frozen, with my heart pounding just as loudly against my chest.
The king turned to Cash. “Your turn.”
Cash didn’t even move from his seat, he didn’t need to. The second he leaned forward to touch me, my Token manifested.
Everyone laughed, like my embarrassment was only there for their amusement.
King Elion forced everyone around the table to take turns trying to touch me, my transparency coming in and out with each one.
I tried to steady my breathing, tried to still my mind, to get myself to not think.
Breathe. One. Two. Three. Four. Exhale.
Soon, I wouldn’t have to see any of them ever again.
“Arrik,” King Elion’s voice brought me back to reality and halted my cycle of breathing. “You’re the only one who hasn’t tried.”
I was tangible at the moment. Everyone else was sitting around the table except for Elion. He was still standing off to the side, making remarks every now and then about my Token.
Hael didn’t react for one heartbeat. Then two, and I wondered if he was going to refuse.
But then he stood, and my breath hitched. My heart was in my throat as he walked around Cash to reach me. I couldn’t muster the strength to look at him now, even though yesterday he was all I wanted to see. My gaze stayed fixed on his hand—his fist clenched—before he flexed each finger and reached his hand out toward my shoulder.
His fingers lightly grazed my exposed skin before he pulled them away.
I didn’t go transparent.
He went to move, to walk back to his seat, but Elion raised his hand. “Stop.”
Hael stilled.
“You said she has full control over her Token now?” he turned to Cash.
Cash swallowed, before shaking his head. “I said she made progress.”
The king’s eyes narrowed, his gaze shooting to mine as he reached his hand out toward me, and I immediately became transparent. Regardless that he couldn’t touch me, his fingers lingered over my cheek, and my chest was rapidly rising and falling.
He pulled his hand away from me and my color came back. “Touch her again.”
Hael hesitated. His jaw ticked before he grazed my shoulder again. Myactualshoulder. I tried to bring my Token forward, but nothing happened. I was still tangible.
