Under the Stars (a lunar chronicles Modern AU)

Chapter Eight: Ice Cream

He was waiting in the shadow of the alcove.

Scarlet didn't know why, or how she knew, but the monster man was there – Wolf – and he was waiting, watching her as she trekked across the quad to her next lesson.

Checking she was alone as she went, Scarlet slipped away from the hurried group of students, not particularly caring when the bell rang; missing physics would be a blessing.

She leaned up against the wall opposite him, meeting his eyes and looking away quickly. The quad had cleared now, but she needed to know why he was here.

"How do you know where I go to school?" Scarlet asked when he didn't speak.

"I have good senses," he said with a quirk of his lip.

"You followed me didn't you?" Scarlet asked, causing him to give her a restrained smirk.

"I just wanted to make sure you didn't get in anymore trouble," he said, pushing of the wall and leaning next to her. She tried not to let it scare her, but with the beast so close she found herself trembling, and noticing he pushed away and returned to his own wall.

"I can look after myself," Scarlet told him, and it was true; none of the boys had come near her since the Wolf intervened. Wolf didn't argue with her.

"Haven't you got somewhere to go?" Wolf asked, gesturing towards the school.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" Scarlet smirked.

"No, I just didn't think you'd want to miss school," he said.

"I'm skipping," said Scarlet.

"Then why don't you come with me," Wolf said in question.

"Where are you going?"

Wolf smirked, taking her shoulder and steering her out of the alcove, beginning to jog. Scarlet tried to keep pace beside him, but he was much too fast for her and she found herself having to almost sprint beside his jog.

"On an adventure," Wolf said, picking up the pace

---

It was Wednesday and Cinder still hadn't got the courage to speak to Kai, she wasn't even sure she'd be able to face him without breaking down after what happened with Thorne. Yet her feet still took her towards the library that day after school, and she found him looking up and smiling as she entered. Sitting down across from him, she smiled back.

"I thought you were never going to show up," Kai said, rising an eyebrow.

"Iko insisted I help her with a project, but I got away today," Cinder said, straining not to blush; I didn't work.

Cinder found herself staring at Kai again, and she noticed he was staring back; she tore her gaze away first, looking down at the books she'd brought.

"Not much homework then," Kai said, running his fingers along the spine of her maths book.

"Still think you can out sarcasm me," Cinder smirked, pulling herself back together.

"Darling I know I can out sarcasm you."

"And here I was thinking you were an honest person," Cinder said, but her face was flushing again from the word darling and Kai knew it. Actually, she was pretty sure he'd said it for that reason alone.

"You're the honest one," Kai said, smirking.

Cinder opened her book, grimacing. "Don't you just love studying," she said, reaching for her pen, but before she could reach it Kai put his hand over hers, stopping her, and putting the pen back in her pencil case.