Jim Armstrong and the Goblet's Curse

Chapter 12: Textbooks Hurt When They Hit You

   I stood there in shock, staring at nothing, trying to process what I'd just seen. I heard a door slam in the distance which jerked me back to reality. I didn't want to be caught out of dorms after hours. I picked up my fallen textbook and ran back to my dorm room. When I entered, it was to see Noah already in bed, snoring softly into his pillow. Oh god. Did Noah know about Enzo? Did anyone know? My mind raced with thoughts of what I'd just witnessed. What should I do? Well, the answer to that was pretty obvious. I wouldn't do or say anything to anyone. It was Enzo's secret to tell, not mine.

I took a step forward and tripped over something, banging my knee into the bedside table. I silently yelled some profanities, waking up Noah.

"Whaddhappened?" he asked groggily.

"Nothing," I said. It was the only thing I could say because seeing Noah reminded me of Enzo. I rubbed my knee, knowing there would be a bruise there the next day. I put away my textbook and climbed up into my bunk, and stared at the ceiling. Enzo and Caden. Enzo and Caden. Their names just circled around and around in my head, not allowing me to fall asleep. But I must've at one point because suddenly I was back at the park.

The park.

The park where everything went to hell.

The chess board between us.

The darkness that overcame us.

The wind that blew the board away.

The knight chess piece pressing into my palm.

The giant shadow that was getting closer and closer.

The ground that shook and knocked me off my feet.

The door of the house shutting.

The wind dying down.

The sun coming back out.

The knight shaped cut on my hand.

I knew it all.

I'd seen it all.

And yet, I kept seeing it.

I hated seeing it.

I woke up to the sound of the wake-up bell ringing through the dorms, the images of the nightmare still in my head.

And then I remembered last night.

When we went downstairs to the Dinery before classes and I saw Enzo, I didn't say anything. He apparently had no idea that anyone had seen him and Caden, and I was determined to keep it that way. I wouldn't say anything to anyone until he wanted to say something.

We ate quickly and then Noah, Cecily and I went to our first class, Swordfighting. When we got there, people were pairing up already. At first I was confused at why they were pairing up already, but then I remembered what Electra said about the next couple weeks and fighting in close quarters.

Crap.

Erebus would no doubt be kicking my ass again today. Noah and Cecily gave me apologetic looks before moving away to their own spot in their room to practice. I threw my duffle bag on the ground and moved to where Erebus was talking to Axel, Ray, Christine and Sage. He left them soon after and came over to where I was waiting on the mats. I though I saw him limp a little, which I was a little confused about. I didn't remember him ever getting an injury to his leg. But her, he had other classes that I wasn't in. maybe he got hurt there.

I hoped that leg was really hurting him.

"Did you learn to watch your mouth?" he asked me, stretching.