The Truce

Chapter 2

**Nine Years Later**

"That boy is so hot."

Kennedy's voice registered in my mind, but I didn't look away from the print on the page in front of me. It was just getting good. Cyran Cole was about to decapitate the evil vampire king in an epic battle he almost didn't survive.

"Michaela, you're missing the show," Ashley whined.

Pulling my gaze from my book, I stared at her blankly as I tried to catch up. Something about a hot boy. My mind automatically went to Cyran Cole since he was unbelievably hot, but Ashley didn't have a clue who that was. She never picked up any book unless forced.

"Real boys, Kay," Natalie said with a smirk, knowing exactly what I was thinking. "You live in the real world, remember?"

I rolled my eyes and smiled, not minding her teasing. That's exactly what it always was with her - good-natured teasing. When any of the others said something about my obsession with books, it was usually sarcastic criticism.

"You and books," Kennedy complained, shaking her head. "You're so antisocial."

"Why is it antisocial to stare at a book, but it's fine to stare at a phone?" I argued. "You're always on yours. Especially at lunch." I looked pointedly at the iPhone she clutched in it's sparkly pink monstrosity of a case. I wouldn't be surprised if her hand was permanently fused in that position.

"Because I'm actually talking to people on my phone," she said.

"You're still ignoring everyone around you in order to do it." I wanted to laugh. Logic wasn't Kennedy's strong suit. She tried to figure out how to argue that and, judging by the confused frown, was drawing a blank.

"Never mind," Ashley said, impatience heavy in her tone. "You guys are missing it."

Oh right. Hot boy. I quickly scanned the cafeteria and frowned when I realized who that comment was about. There were quite a few guys in the school that they'd refer to that way, but there were only two boys who were currently making a spectacle of themselves. And one of them wasn't really up to Kennedy's standard of hot.

"Sebastian?" I asked, irritated. They pulled me away from Cyran Cole for him?

"Oh, like you don't think he's hot," Kennedy scoffed.

"Not really." I shrugged, turning back to where he and Adam McCall were standing, heads thrown back as they chugged their bottles of Gatorade. Adam looked more or less normal if you discounted the blue liquid dripping down his face and onto his shirt. Sebastian looked like he was trying to shoot an ad for the company. One foot was propped on the nearest chair and he raised his arm higher than necessary, putting his bicep on display. He probably would have liked to be shirtless to display the rest of his upper half the same way, I thought with another eye roll. Still, I attempted to set aside my loathing to view him objectively. He was undeniably good looking. Unfortunately, he'd grown up well. He was tall, probably close to six feet, if not a little past it. His dark hair had a slight wave, giving him a semi messy, but not sloppy look. Long eyelashes that most girls would kill for framed hazel eyes, and he was majorly into sports, so he had the body to go along with that affinity. Practically every girl in school but me and Natalie had a thing for him, and to be honest, I wasn't completely sure about Natalie. She didn't really like him, but she didn't have the same antipathy toward him as I did. She could totally be holding out to be loyal. Bless her.

So yeah, he was nice to look at if he wasn't your mortal enemy, but hotness went beyond the physical, in my opinion.

"You're so full of it," Kennedy said. "Like you'd turn him down if he came over here and asked you out."