Page 38 of Facade

“What was that about?” Jace asked when she stepped onto the bus.

“Ray said he forgot to post a signup sheet, and missed the deadline to hold a bus. He doesn’t want the boys stuck in the dorm on game night,” Clarke said quietly. “He thanked me for inviting them, and said he owed us one. Ray said that he’ll meet us there later.”

Jace grunted at that. He didn’t believe it for a hot second. But at least the caster monitor was playing nice. Or trying to save his ass from being reprimanded, probably both.

When he parked behind the elemental dorm, his shifters were already waiting outside next door, looking restless. Jace waved at them as he stepped down from the bus.

“We’re picking up the elementals,” he said. “It shouldn’t take too long. You can wait there or walk over.”

The four of them were striding to the bus as Jace knocked on the door of the elemental dorm. Mitch opened the door, and frowned at him.

“What do you want?” Mitch asked combatively.

“There’s a football game tonight,” Jace said.

“So?”

He didn’t have patience for this. They wouldn’t be able to get good seats if Mitch was determined to bicker, and be an ass.

It was abnormally quiet in the common room, especially for a Friday on a game night. Some students sat on couches, or at tables, but they kept their heads down, only speaking in quiet murmurs. If he wasn’t a shifter, Jace wouldn’t have been able to hear them. Morale had to be low.

Jace marched past Mitch, and shouted loud enough to be heard through every room on the first floor, “Young elementals! If you want to go to the game, be outside in two minutes. The bus is parked by the backdoor.”

That got a reaction from the students as well as Mitch. Jace heard pounding feet and excited exclamations. This was how they should be behaving.

Mitch was sputtering in shock and anger. “You can’t…”

“Yes, I can,” Jace rebutted, with his hands on his hips. He scowled at Mitch, daring him to force the issue.

“We’ll be right there. Don’t leave!” A voice yelled from one floor up.

Jace had originally decided to wait for the boys outside. On second thought, he chose to stay put, and stand his ground. He wouldn’t put it past Mitch to close the door, and tell the boys they couldn’t leave the dorm without him.

The two underage elementals raced down the stairs, and to the door, obviously worried about losing the opportunity to go to the game. Jace stepped aside as they sprinted past him, ignoring Mitch’s attempts to stop them.

Jace tuned out Mitch’s furious rant as he followed the elementals to the vehicle. His shifters were already on the bus when they climbed the shuttle steps. The other students greeted the elementals cheerfully.

“Somebody looks murderous,” Clarke said as Jace took his seat behind the wheel.

“Yeah, this will have repercussions, but I don’t regret it. I didn’t give Mitch the chance to refuse, and he didn’t take it well,” Jace said. “That dorm was so quiet, it was creepy. All the students in sight kept their heads down like they were afraid to talk. I don’t know exactly what’s going on there, but it isn’t good.”

“Those poor kids. At least they can get out for a night. The caster dorm wasn’t like that,” Clarke said. “It’s messy and loud, with no notices posted, but the students seemed cheerful enough.”

Jace just grunted as he shifted to drive. He probably shouldn’t have said anything about Mitch and the abysmal atmosphere in the elemental dorm in front of the students. They didn’t seem to be paying attention, but that was a discussion better had in private.

The boys chattered exuberantly for the entire short drive to the stadium. To Jace’s amusement, they sounded more excited at the thought of seeing girls than watching the game. Typical teenagers. From the way they talked, one would think it had been a decade since any of them had seen a female.

“I’ll drop you guys off in front, and meet you at the concession stand after I park,” Jace said as he pulled up to the curb by the main entrance.

Crowds of people of all ages stood in groups talking excitedly. Some waved banners, and shouted for friends to join them. The energy was infectious.

“Stick together,” Clarke yelled as the boys hurried off the bus. With a brief wave in his direction, she followed behind them.

He drove to the rear of the lot where spots were designated for buses. Jace saw dozens of people he knew as he walked to the stadium, but didn’t engage them in conversation. These were good kids, but there were twelve of them. It was a lot to manage.

Clarke did it every day in a classroom, but that was different. Jace wasn’t about to leave her alone any longer than necessary. A sharp whistle caught his attention, and Jace turned in that direction.

Heath must have just parked, because he was standing next to his car with the driver’s-side door open. “Wait up. I’ll walk with you,” he called out.