AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I sat up with a jolt, then stretched to play off my sudden interest. Was this my chance to ask about my dad’s side without raising suspicions?
Chapter 22
My friends, and Niall, were amazing. I didn’t get any information that would specifically help me figure out more about who I was and my hybrid powers, but I did learn more than I had in my three years of high school.
None of them complained about the long hours that turned into the entire weekend spent in the library. Niall loosened up a fraction by Sunday afternoon, but he stopped us anytime we laughed or got off track. He was taking my tutoring so seriously, and I wasn’t sure why. What did it matter to him if I got put into first-year classes or if I got kicked out at the end of the term? He didn’t seem to like me, so I couldn't figure out why he was doing it.
Maybe he just cared about what our teachers and the headmaster thought. He probably didn’t want them blaming him for my failure.
I sent my parents and Masie a message telling them about this test but tried to downplay how serious it was. I didn’t tell them what was at stake. I didn’t want to let them down, even though I knew they would have been more than understanding if I needed to start from the very beginning.
“You’ve got this.” Hannah gave me a reassuring smile outside of the lab building.
Theo draped his arm over my shoulder and pulled me into his side. “Yeah, you know everything you need to. Just stay calm, and you’ll do great.”
I soaked in his confidence, hoping it would get me through the assessment.
“He’s right. We covered everything you need to know. If you can’t immediately recall something, skip it and let yourself relax. Your subconscious will bring it back to you.” Niall’s advice was surprisingly helpful.
“Thanks.” I smiled at him and received a slightly less severe scowl in response. After over two solid days together, I’d hoped we could have gotten past this, but nope. His walls were thicker and taller than anyone else I’d ever met. He wasn’t willing to let anyone slip in without his consent.
“Yeah, go in there and prove them wrong.” Daniel grinned, and Malik flashed me a thumbs up.
“Good luck, Saige.” Sai’s reassuring smile made my cheeks warm, especially with Theo still pressed to my side. Once he heard about what we were doing, he joined up on Saturday night and stuck with us through the rest of the weekend. Even Carter stayed, helping me with some of the science I wasn’t grasping.
My brain was overloaded, and I could barely pay attention during classes today. I couldn’t fit any new information in, but luckily, I had someone in almost all of them that offered to let me copy their notes later. The only class I had to try to focus in was Earth Magic, and we spent it talking mostly about vegetation and soil interaction so nothing groundbreaking.
Ha. I made a joke.
“It’s time.” Niall gestured toward the entrance to the building.
“We’ll be here when you’re done.” Hannah waved me on.
“No, don’t just stay here. You’ve all helped way more than I could have asked for. Go sleep or eat or relax.”
The group shared looks, and I knew nothing I said would change their minds.
“Thanks again.” I waved and started toward the building alone. I’d hoped Mrs. Hedgings would be the one administering the assessment. Unfortunately, Mrs. Sheridan volunteered, and Headmaster Goldstein agreed. I stopped at her classroom door and knocked.
“Come in,” her shrill voice replied.
I entered, and she pointed to a desk in the front, which I quickly slid into while keeping my eyes on her.
“You will have two hours to complete this test. No questions, no getting up.” She glared down at me. “Time starts now.”
She sat the packet on the desk at the same time an hourglass appeared behind her on the lab table. The sand was already running through the center, so I stared down and got started. The first section was history, and I confidently answered the first ten questions before pausing at the eleventh.
At what age does a shifter manifest their abilities?
Crap. We didn’t cover that. How is that even a history question? That’s a species question and should be in science or something.
I rubbed my temples and tried to remember any conversation I had with the guys. None of them mentioned this, and it was something I was wondering, about myself, that I never brought up. Something I meant to ask Masie.
Damn it!
The full moon following their tenth birthday. From birth. Following the first signs of puberty. On their fourteenth birthday.
The moon one was wrong. Hannah taught me that in the field when the guys shifted for me. Did they show their abilities from birth? That was possible. Their fourteenth birthday seemed like another human––non-supe––story. Puberty made sense too. That was around the age when they started attending the academy. I debated back and forth before remembering Mr. Haddon said about the vampires and shifters starting school at fourteen. I let out a sigh of relief and chose that one before moving on.
