Potions, Power and Pain

Chapter 9

"Reena, why is Rowan Nightshade the Prince of the Earthly Kingdom, and totally one of the hottest guys ever staring at you right now?"

Reena glanced over her shoulder to where he was sitting with his friends. The second her eyes landed on him he quickly looked away.

"He is not looking me." Reena answered.

"Well not anymore, but just because you caught him staring!" Cindy retorted with a grin. "But you didn't answer my question."

"Uhm ..."

"Oh my god, did something happen between the two of you?"

"Well no not really ..." Reena said.

"Oh my god, something totally happened, tell me everything!" Cindy exclaimed.

Reena dragged her new friend back to their house. "So I didn't tell you initially because it's totally not a big deal. But on the first night we got here, I was outside reading my book when Rowan came up to me." Reena started.

"Rowan Nightshade just randomly came up to you?" Cindy gasped.

"Yup. He came up to me while I was reading and he just sat down next to me."

"Rowan Nightshade, as in Rowan Nightshade the Prince of the Earthly Kingdom, came up to you and just sat down next to you and you didn't think it was big deal?" Cindy gawked, simply repeating everything Reena was saying. "And then what happened did you guys talk or just sit there?"

"At first he just sat down and stared at me without saying anything. It was honestly really weird. So I asked him if he was okay and then I can't remember exactly what he said, but he was just his usual asshole self again."

"What do you mean you 'can't remember' what he said? You have to remember, I need details!" Cindy pleaded. "He is like one of the hottest faeries ever, and like yeah okay he is an asshole, but he's so hot. And he's a prince."

"We just like kind of argued back and forth-"

"You argued?" Cindy interrupted, shocked.

"Argued is maybe the wrong word, but like he was just being an asshole and then out of nowhere, he just like looked at me and said 'Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?'. So it was clearly some kind of sick joke that he is probably laughing about with his friends right now. So I just got up and left."

Cindy simply gawked at her friend, unable to say a word.

"Oh, so now you have nothing to say?" Reena joked, slightly uncomfortable at her friend's silence.

"He totally meant it." Cindy suddenly said.

"What? No way. In all the years we've been at the Academy together he has barely ever spoken to me, and on the rare occasion he did, it was always just to be an asshole to me." Reena assured.

"Oh my god, he is totally into you!" Cindy squealed. "If it was a

joke then he would have said it in front of other people to embarrass you, but he didn't, he said it when you two were alone. And you are like so gorgeous that there is no way anyone wouldn't find you beautiful."

"No. There is no way. I am telling you, he is probably laughing about it with his friends right now." Reena repeated.

"Let me get this straight," Cindy started, "The first night we got here, you were sitting outside reading you book, when Rowan Nightshade came up to you, stared at you, was a bit of an asshole to you, and then out of nowhere he called you beautiful, and now today we caught him staring at you, and now you're still trying to convince me that it was all some sick joke? No way, I am telling you he is totally into you."

"And I am telling you he is totally not." Reena reaffirmed. "Are you hearing the words coming out of your mouth right now? There is no way Rowan Nightshade the Prince of the Earthly Kingdom has any interest in me, other than to be an asshole to me."

"Ok, what ever you say." Cindy said sounding completely unconvinced and with a huge grin on her face.

Despite her friend's incessant teasing and entirely false assumptions, Reena could not help but think about how grateful she was for having met Cindy. She had never really had a friend before so she had never realised just how much she was missing out on. But as she stood there with Cindy, she realised just how much she had needed a friend.