Edge of the Sky

Chapter 6

Substitute(n)-a person or thing acting or serving in place of another .

I woke up the next day and repeated my daily routine. Everything was pretty much the same- scowling at how Ezra was still asleep, nearly snapping combs in my hair, hastily shoveling food into my mouth for breakfast. The usual.

Except, this time I wasn't going to be walking to school alone. Dean had caught up with me just as I was about to shut the gate. I was surprised to say the least but I wasn't against the idea. Another difference was that I was ridiculously close to being late. I'd be lucky to get to school just as the registration bell sounded.

The majority of the walk was spent in silence. For every one step he took, I was taking two. Let me get this clear, I am in no way short. Dean is just a friggin lamppost. Besides the lonely cars rushing past and the whirl of the morning wind we were alone. Just me, me and Dean walking up the slopes of Ashbury Falls.

Out of impulse, I kept trying to sneak looks at him. Without making it too obvious of course. Whatever went down yesterday definitely didn't look like something that could be taken lightly and then he had some plan to infiltrate Enigma. I didn't want to ask because then I'd seem interested in what he had to say. And if I did appear interested there was nothing stopping him from persuading me into it.

"Stop looking at me like that," he said suddenly, still staring straight ahead.

"Stop looking at you like what? I see nothing wrong with the way I'm looking at you," I said, a cheeky smile spreading across my face.

He looked at me accusingly but continued walking.

"You just admitted to looking at me, you do realise that, right?" he pointed out.

"I did nothing of the sort," I denied, looking up at the sky nonchalantly.

He laughed and shoved me lightly causing us both to laugh.

"Seriously, stop it. It's kinda creepy."

I rolled my eyes, "Fine."

The conversation began to drift into silence once more as we began to near the school gates. I couldn't let it.

"So, Dean," I watched him turn to look at me. He raised his brows allowing me to speak.

"Last night you texted me-"

"About Enigma," he interrupted.

I nodded my head and held on to the straps of my backpack. The wind blew some of my curls into my face. I re-adjusted my headband.

"And now you want to know why?" he asked, his eyes searching my face like he was trying to get into my head. Again.

I nodded once more. This time a little too eagerly.

Dean shrugged and put his hands in his pockets.

"I want...I feel like I need to find out more about this Enigma Tribe thing, ya know? My parents won't tell me anything so I figured, why not find out myself?"

I frowned at him, "Don't you think there's a specific reason as to why they don't want you to know? I mean, it is the largest group of freaks in the world now turned evil."

"Maybe you're right," he sighed, "But don't you just want to know? Like, isn't it odd knowing that there's an entire empire of people just like you and you're not part of it?"

"Not if it gets me killed that is," I stated, pointing a finger at him.

He shrugged and didn't say anything more. We arrived at the school and parted ways almost immediately. I had to go submit a research paper to the history department and I assumed Dean was headed straight to class. I found Aiden and Jensen selling toffee candy from a commercial sized bag just outside the entrance to the school, both of them making loud advertisement for their "luxuriously exotic glucose packed solid cubes draped in polyvinylidene chloride ." I hid my face and jogged right past them. It didn't stop them from yelling at me to buy from them in bulk.