Chapter 101: The Unexpected Driver
Evaline:
Once again... it was Saturday.
Two weeks had passed since the Alpha Gathering incident, and while the memory of it was still sitting somewhere in the corners of my mind, I had decided not to let it take up space in my heart.
I wasn’t going to spend another moment recalling the horrors of that evening. I had other much important matters to focus on. I had a future to build, a child to look after, secrets to hide, and I refused to be the kind of girl who clung to shadows.
So I was actually feeling good - cheerful, even - as I left the dorms and headed toward the Academy gates. The late autumn wind tossed my scarf around my neck as I crossed the stone courtyard, and for once, I didn’t mind the way the cold was making my cheeks pink.
Saturday meant another day at the Council headquarters. It meant focused work, neat files, and quiet corners where no one disturbed me.
Mr. Wood always waited at the gates by this time to pick me up for work. Ever since I started my internship, he hadn’t been late even once.
So imagine my surprise when the car I saw waiting wasn’t Mr. Wood’s usual model, and the man leaning against it most certainly wasn’t Mr. Wood.
But... River Thorne.
I stopped dead in my tracks.
He stood tall as always, dressed in dark layers that were hugging his lean frame. A simple coat was slung over his arm, and his dark hair looked slightly tousled by the breeze. He wasn’t smiling. In fact, he looked... impassive. Cold, even.