I isolated myself in my room and tried focusing my attention on the hockey game that was playing on my TV. It was a big one, a game I’d been looking forward to all week— Malovia versus Russia.
But I couldn’t think straight. My mind kept wandering back to what I’d found in Emma’s dorm, how she’d fainted— how she didn’t want to tell me what was wrong with her.
What was Emma trying to hide from me?
* * *
I hardly sawEmma at all the following week. She was avoiding me. She kept her distance in Monster Hunting 101 and didn’t sit with me at breakfast like usual. I didn’t even spot her at the rink after hockey practice, which was unusual. She was always there. Had she been so tired from last Friday she’d taken the rest of the week off from skating?
Whenever she saw me coming, she’d blush and turn the other way. It was like she was embarrassed or something. I didn’t get why. Yeah, fainting in class was kind of humiliating, but I didn’t care that she did. It wasn’t a big deal to me. Did she think I actually thought less of her? I must’ve come off as a major jerk or something.
On Halloween, I was able to corner Emma before she emerged from her dorm that afternoon. She jumped as I silently came around the corner.
“Holy shit, Ethan.” She glared at me. “You scared the crap out of me.”
“Well, I thought I’d have to sneak up on you at some point, since you’ve ran away every time you’ve seen me coming.”
Her mouth gaped. “I’ve… I’ve been busy.”
“Uh-huh. Busy running away from me.” I put two arms on either side of her, locking her in. Her back braced up against the wall as she stared up at me. “Can’t run now,” I whispered.
Emma swallowed. “You need to get out of my way. I have to study.”
“Studying would be a sin today” I told her. “It’sHeimskanun.”
“What?”
“It’s an Arcanean festival, celebrating the transition from harvest to winter. It’s one of our biggest holidays,” I told her. “And don’t tell me you have to go to class, because there aren’t any today. They’ve all been canceled in favor of the holiday.”
She bit her lip. “I think Odette and Delmare said something about it, but I hardly listened. They invited me to come with them, but I turned them down.”
“Now why would you do that?” I asked.
She shrugged. “I’m not big into social gatherings.”
“Well, that’s no good. There’s a pagan celebration taking place in town. I dropped by to see if you’d like to come with me. And unlike your friends, I won’t take no for an answer.”
“Me?” Emma gave a skeptical look. “I’m surprised you want to be seen with me, after what happened in class.”
“Come on, Emma. It wasn’t a big deal.” I rolled my eyes.
“You’re not the one that fainted.” She went to move past me, but my arms locked her in. I grinned.
“I won’t let you by until you say yes,” I teased.
She huffed a lock of red hair out of her eyes. “Fine. Just so you’ll stop tormenting me.”
I gave a low chuckle and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I don’t plan on ending your torment for averylong time.”
I was teasing myself. But I hadn’t promised myself I’dstay awayfrom Emma— just that I wouldn’t make any romantic advancements toward her. Didn’t mean we couldn’t be friends, right?Justfriends.
She shivered and pushed me away. “So, where are we going?”
“The festival is taking place in the middle of Dolinska right now, but the most important part of it is visiting theKatedra da du Boyina— the Cathedral of the Goddess,” I said. “You’ll see what I mean when you step inside.”
“Okay…” Emma said, reluctant to follow. She deposited her things back into her dorm. I grabbed her shoulder.
“Hold on,” I said. “You need to be properly dressed. You can’t go in your uniform.”
