Chapter 15
Luckily, by the time the next morning came Jack appeared to be unharmed, so I assumed that no fight had taken place. I didn't ask.
The day was Christmas Eve, though that mattered to me very little. Having grown up without parents or a proper home, Christmas had never held any excitement for me. I was not at all religious either, so the day held no meaning to me in that regard. The school was not decorated for the holidays. I asked one of the remaining teachers why that was, and she told me that it was because the students came from all over the world and from many different faiths, if any at all. It would be difficult to decorate for all of them, so they didn't decorate at all. There weren't many people left anyway.
I spent the morning with Jack outside in some freshly fallen snow. It was oddly cold out considering that we were in an area with a normally mild climate. The snow was too powdery to do anything with, so we just went for a walk. We walked to the lake, which looked barely frozen, so Jack didn't want to risk trying to slide on the ice. I wanted to, but he wouldn't let me.
When we got back inside Jack decided to go downstairs to the weight room, which I had no interest in doing, so I was left to wander about on my own. It was strangely quiet in the hallways with everyone gone, and it made the place seem less like a school and more like an old castle or something. I quickly decided to head to the ballroom. I hadn't had the pleasure of playing on the piano there since my first day, and I was much less likely to be interrupted than I was the last time.
Of course, as usual, things didn't go as I expected them to. As soon as I sat down at the instrument, someone came into the ballroom through the glass doors that led to the balcony. I realized with some surprise that it was Adrian, who I hardly ever saw wandering about. I sat as still as I could, hoping that he would continue on his way and not notice I was there. He brushed the snow off of his jacket and walked toward the door at the other end of the room while I held my breath. He got about three quarters of the way there before he stopped. He looked over and saw me sitting at the piano and staring at him. He smiled and came over to the stage, and proceeded to climb up and stand before me.
"You were hoping I wouldn't notice you, weren't you?" he said, still smiling. "I'll admit that I saw you before you saw me, from out on the balcony. I considered walking out as if I hadn't noticed you, but I changed my mind."
"And why did you do that?" I asked.
"Again, I will admit to suffering from terrible curiosity. Do you play the piano?"
"I do, but I had hoped to do so alone. Now that you're here I can't, which was why I was hoping you would continue to walk out of the room."
"I don't see why you can't play with me here. I wouldn't get in your way. I really would like to hear you play."
He sounded like he did, but I didn't know why. "I really don't understand you at all," I admitted.
He rolled his eyes. "I wish you would stop trying."
I decided to be brave. "I'll play for you on one condition."
"And what would that be?" he asked, looking very curious indeed.
"You have to do something for me in return. I won't tell you what until I'm finished, but you have to agree that you will do it."
"That sounds like quite a gamble, but I see no alternative but to accept your deal, since I'm determined to hear you play. You might as well start now."
Since he had given his word, which I didn't actually expect him to hold to, I started to play. As was my usual style, I played what I was feeling, which was a lot at that moment. I felt joy for being able to play again, and fear for making a fool of myself in front of Adrian. I also felt all of the emotions that seemed to attack me when he was around. I felt silly for letting him have so much power over me.
When I finished I looked at Adrian, who was still standing there by the instrument with his hands buried in his pockets. His eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open. When he noticed me observing him, he made an effort to restore his expression.
"That was definitely worth whatever it is you want me to do," he said. "I am yours to command."
I smiled slyly at him, though my heart was pounding, and I could swear I saw a bit of pink enter his cheeks. "I want you to kiss me," I said, standing up.
I can't say that I actually expected him to do it. He'd been avoiding me for so long I'd been sure he'd lost interest. Despite my beliefs, however, he crossed the distance between us in an instant, and his lips were on mine. I wrapped my arms around him and held him closely, and he deepened the kiss.
Finally, he broke away. "I've wanted to do that for a long time," he said.
"Then why didn't you?" I asked, breathless.
He frowned and sat down on the piano bench, facing away from the instrument. I sat beside him, and he turned his penetrating gaze on me. I was surprised by how serious he looked.
"The closer I get to you, the more danger you're in," he said. "I realized that the day I almost killed you. Still, I don't know how to stay away from you."
"Then don't. I'm not afraid of you," I said, smiling. He didn't return the smile.
"I hope you know what you're getting yourself into," he said.
"Hey, you started it," I joked. He finally smiled.
"You still didn't answer the question I asked yesterday."
"Yes, I found what I was looking for. Are you satisfied now?"
"No. You haven't told me what it was yet."
"A girl can have her secrets," I said. "The book didn't tell me everything I wanted to know anyway. In fact, it only confirmed what I had already been told. It was kind of disappointing, really."
"So you aren't going to tell me anything?"
"No. It's not that I don't trust you. I just haven't found out everything yet. What I was looking for in the library was really only part of the information I was looking for. The rest I don't think I will ever find, at least not in a book."
"You can be amazingly frustrating when you want to be," Adrian commented, standing up. "I won't bother asking about it anymore, but you can come to me if you feel like sharing."
"Where are you going?"
"Back outside. I want to go to the lake. Want to come?"
"Sure," I said, "but I'll have to go get my jacket and boots."
We agreed to meet in the foyer in ten minutes. I ran to the south wing to gather my outerwear, and then ran back to the foyer, where Adrian was standing, looking up at the painting of Amun.
"He does kind of look like a god, doesn't he?" I commented, also looking at the painting. The man still seemed familiar to me. I thought maybe I had met him in a past life or something, if I had ever had one. Adrian looked over at me.
"He looks no more like a god than you do," he said.
"Sure he does," I said. "Look at his eyes. Even in this painting you can see how deep and penetrating they are, like he can see everything. He also looks charismatic and yet mysterious. Just look at how he's almost smiling. It's in his eyes, even though his lips appear untouched by the expression."
"Interesting," Adrian said, still watching me. "Still, I don't think you look that much different in a lot of ways. You have a more open and transparent look, yet sometimes I get the feeling that you see a lot more than you say. Plus, you're definitely mysterious."
"So I'm open and mysterious? I'm a little confused."
"Your manner is open, but you keep secrets, and you're not very good at hiding that."
I looked away from the painting. "None that are of any importance," I said.
We walked out to the lake in silence, with each of us lost in our own thoughts. I was, at least. We were both content to enjoy the fresh air and scenery, which was impressive. We reached our destination in only a few minutes, and walked out onto the dock that was over the water. I'd heard it was mostly used by those who went swimming during the warmer parts of the year. I brushed off some snow so I could sit on the end and dangle my feet over the ice.
Adrian sat beside me.
"Don't you ever wish you could explore these woods as a wolf?" I asked.
"Yeah. I'm sure it would be more interesting," he answered. He was lying again.
"Why do you keep doing that?"
"Doing what?" Adrian asked, looking confused.
"Whenever I ask about you being a wolf, you always lie about how you feel. Do you really hate it that much?"
Now Adrian looked startled. "Fine. Yes, I hate it. Happy now?" He sounded angry and defensive.
"Why?"
"Because I always feel like I'm out of control. I've hurt people, Juliet. I've lost my temper and turned and attacked people. I'm a monster."
I could tell that it was torturing him. "You can learn," I assured him. "The older wolves don't seem to have any problems. Maybe all it takes is a little practice."
"I don't want to practice! I just want to be normal." He got up and paced back and forth. I stood as well.
"Do it now," I said.
"Do what now?"
"Change into a wolf. There are only the two of us out here right now. You can try to get used to it, and practice controlling yourself."
Adrian shook his head. "No way. You're the last person I want to hurt."
"Exactly. You don't want to hurt me, so I don't think you will. You only tried to last time because I surprised you and you didn't know it was me. After you realized who I was you didn't try anything else. You gained control."
"Mr. Ramirez isn't here to protect you Juliet. It's just too risky, and it's against the rules."
"I trust you."
Adrian sighed and studied me for a moment. Then he stopped pacing and walked off the dock. I started after him, but he told me to stay.
"Where are you going?" I called out to him.
"Just a little ways. I'm going to turn, but I don't want to be near you when I do," he called back.
He walked halfway down the length of the lake before he stopped. He then proceeded to take off his clothes right there in the open, which made me blush, but I continued to watch anyway. I was worried that he would be cold, but a moment later he turned into a large gray wolf. I figured his thick fur would keep him warm enough.
He sniffed around for a minute before trotting back in my direction. When he got to me I bent down so that I would be level with him. He sniffed me for a second, and then he nudged me with his nose. I was balancing on the balls of my feet, so when he pushed me I promptly fell over into the snow. He made a sound that was a mixture between a bark and a laugh.
"Hey, no fair," I grumbled, getting up and trying to brush the snow off my pants. He continued to laugh at me until I threw a snowball at him. In response he turned around and kicked snow up at me with his back legs, which I managed to dodge by running and hiding behind a tree. When I peered back around, he was nowhere to be seen. I gathered a snowball just in case.
I crept along a rock wall, trying not to make any sound. I still couldn't see Adrian, but I found some paw prints in the snow. I was about to investigate when a bunch of snow fell on me from above, and it felt like half of it went down the back of my neck, which made me dance around, trying to shake it out. I could hear Adrian's barking laugh. I had dropped my snowball in my surprise, but I quickly made another and hurled it up over the rock wall. It hit him squarely in the face.
"Ha!" I cried triumphantly. He shook off the snow and tried to dump more snow on me, but I moved out of the way. Seeing that he wasn't successful, he went over the hill so that he could come around to where I was. I gathered a few more snowballs so that I would be ready when he got to me.
Unfortunately for me, I didn't see him coming. I heard his steps too late, so by the time I turned around he was already there. He knocked me off my feet so I ended up lying flat on my back in the snow, with him on top of me. Thankfully, he was smiling. He licked my face.
"Ew," I said, trying to push him off, but he just laughed. I tried to grab some snow, but suddenly his hand was holding mine down. I looked up in surprise, and he was looking down at me through human eyes, and still smiling.
"Got ya," he said. His hand moved from mine to my face, and he lightly brushed my cheek with his fingertips. I was aware that he was naked and lying on top of me, and I shivered.
"Aren't you cold?" I asked, concerned.
Adrian just laughed. "Not at all," he said, before kissing me.
It ended all too soon. Adrian got up and pulled me up with him. I thought he was cold, but he showed no signs of being so. Instead he brushed the snow off of me, and then dragged me along to go find his clothes.
"You're not too cold, are you?" he asked me when we reached them.
"No," I answered. "I'm not the one who's naked."
"True, but you were lying in the snow. Your pants are wet."
I looked down and saw that they were, indeed, wet. I also had some snow in my boots and some that had fallen into my jacket that was melting, but I still didn't feel very cold. Adrian was dressed by then, so we started walking back in the direction of the school.
"That wasn't so bad, was it?" I asked.
"No," he said, sounding surprised. "It was actually kind of fun." He took my hand and held it for the rest of the walk back. When we went inside I started heading to the south wing to change, but Adrian pulled me up the stairs.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"Back outside," Adrian informed me, pulling me across the floor of the ballroom toward the glass doors that he had come in from earlier.
The courtyard didn't look quite the same as it had back when it was filled with blooms. Now all the plants were lying dormant in the cold, covered in snow. The sun was getting low in the sky, so it was just peeking over the surrounding building. It cast a yellow glow on the snow-covered bushes, making them seem just as magical as when they were teeming with life. I couldn't help but smile.
"You know, this is where we first met," Adrian commented as we walked along the path.
"I'm not sure that really counts as a meeting," I said. "We didn't speak until we were dancing. You didn't give me a chance to."
Adrian grinned. "How rude of me," he said, before he turned me around to face him, bringing his lips to mine.
We parted ways when we got back into the school so we could change out of our wet clothes. I waited until I was alone before I did a happy dance, and I couldn't stop grinning as I changed before heading down to dinner.