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He shifts his entire body toward me, and his face turns serious. “Well, those angels are idiots. We can’t get diseases, everyone knows that.” A smile spreads across his lips once more as he says, “Besides, they can fuck off for all I care. It only means I get you to myself.”
“Wow, you must have eaten well before class. That’s some top-tier charm you’ve got today.”
The teacher shuts the door before returning to the front of the class, her straight, auburn hair swaying behind her when she turns to address us. “I’m Professor Isidora, and I’ll be teaching you all about the many angelic powers we possess. As you know, we are gifted with several abilities, but that doesn’t mean each of you will master all of them. In my experience, those angels are few and far between. Regardless, we will learn the basic fundamentals of each. As you progress through this class, we’ll determine where your strengths and weaknesses lie and develop a specific syllabus for each of you. The student beside you will be your partner for the entire term. I implore you to get to know them, as the bond you form will help you succeed in this class.”
“Professor Isidora, I’d like to pick my own partner.”
“Yes, I’m sure many of you would like to, but that is not how I do things. For now, I want you to practice telepathy with your partners and then write a five-hundred-word report on the process. You may begin.”
A notification pops up on my slate with a link to the list of telepathy instructions. I read through them briefly while Raphael does the same, but I can’t focus on the words.Someone’s watching me.
Seraphina glares at me from her seat in the middle of class.Great. Just great.
It doesn’t take a genius to guess that I’ve stepped on her toes where Raphael is concerned, even though I’ve done nothing but be friendly toward him and it washimgoing out of his way to speak with me. I wonder if it was him she was referring to earlier when she gave me the ‘no Pure would ever want you’ speech.Does Raphael know?
“Have you done this before?” Raphael asks, jerking me from my thoughts.
My cheeks flame, but I try to shake off the embarrassment. I can’t be the only angel at this school coming from an underprivileged family. “Both of my parents are Fallen, so I have very little experience with abilities. Have you?”
He nods. “My older brother and I don’t really get along. In the eyes of my parents he could do no wrong, even though he was constantly setting me up to get in trouble. My friend and I practiced for months until we perfected telepathy as a way to escape.”
For the first time since I met Raphael, I see through the cheerful optimism. This is a man who’s fought to be seen. Whatever he’d gone through with his family, I’m glad to know he had someone to rely on. And if I’m honest, I’m glad he hasn’t shut me out.
“Alright, how do we do this? The notes just say toopen your mind and speak your truth,but honestly, that sounds like a crock of shit.”
He laughs, the sound so cheerful I can’t help but smile too. “We both have to let down our mental shields. It’s easier when there’s trust involved. Do you trust me, sunshine?”
My answer should be no, yet when I actually think about it, I realize I do. I give a tentative nod, which only causes his lips to tilt upward.
“Good.” He grabs hold of my chair and turns it to face him. For a moment, I’m trapped, held captive by his nearness. A bomb could go off and I doubt I’d even notice.
Our knees touch, only the fabric of our school uniforms between us, and my insides thrum with anticipation. But I can’t really be considering this, can I? I woke up beside another angel this morning before I high-tailed it out of there, for fuck’s sake. Now is so not the time to fantasize about anything with anyone.
“All you need to do is stare into my eyes and focus on our connection. Ready?” he asks, his smile wicked.
It’s as if a pair of angels take flight within my belly, making me feel almost giddy, but I nod and do as he asks. At first there’s nothing, only the arctic blue of his eyes as they bore into mine. Then I hear it.You light up any room you enter, do you know that?
I grin, my heart pounding, and a second later—
Good. Now you try. Tell me how dashing I look.
A huff of laughter escapes me as I try to press the words into his mind, but it doesn’t work. Do I just think about them while we’re connected? What if I shoot them to the wrong person and accidentally tell someone else how attractive they are? Fuck. I have no clue what I’m doing.
Breathe. His voice is back in my mind, and I follow his orders.Think the words in my direction, and if you’re worried, just call me an asshole and then it won’t matter who gets it.
I try multiple times, failing at every turn until I’m beyond frustrated. When I attempt it again, I practically shout the wordassholeand, to my surprise, his eyes flash triumphantly.
You did it!Somehow his voice sounds the same inside my head — a cheerful, almost familiar tone with his excitement coming across loud and clear — and I realize in this moment just how much I like Raphael. He’s a refreshing mix of funny and happy, and when he mentioned his brother I saw a flash of pain floating beneath the surface that even now I want to sooth. Like a kindred spirit, he sucks me in.
He holds up his hand, offering me a high five. When our hands meet, he doesn’t let go. For a second, all he does is trail his thumb across the back of my hand, causing shivers to race up my spine.
“Good. Physical contact will help,” he says, before he pulls our joined hands between my legs. My heart thrashes as I wonder what he’s about to do in this busy classroom.
He doesn’t stick them up my skirt like I expect — or hope. Instead, he grabs the seat of my chair and slowly drags me toward him. The chair scratches on the floor and all eyes turn to us. I feel the heated stare of someone who I can only guess is Seraphina, but I don’t bother looking. Raphael doesn’t appear to notice the commotion he’s just caused. His eyes are only for me.
He stops once I’m close enough, my knees pressing against the seat of his chair and his legs straddling mine.
With my hand firmly in his, he says, “Try again.”
