The Third Eye (#1)

22. Constance

Limping through the corridors back to my dorm I feel ecstatic for the promise of sleep awaiting me back in my dorm room. After talking to Dante and Alex for a while longer we parted ways deciding it was in our best interest to rest up in order to be prepared for whatever lesson Anthony has planned for tomorrow. As I go to grab the doorknob with my right hand I glare at the puffy white cast wrapped around my wrist and release an elongated sigh of frustration. Reluctantly I retract that hand and twist open the door with my left and as quietly as possible open the door enough for me to slide through. I cringe as the door creaks as I try to shut it softly behind me in my best effort not to disturb Amber who I presume to be sleeping at this hour.

As I tiptoe across the floorboards to my side of the room, I hear a sleepy, soft voice call out to me from the other side of the room,

"Constance? You're back late."

Shit.

In the dark, I can see Amber pushing herself into a sitting position on her bed whilst rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She ruffles her long blonde hair before squinting in the dark to find me standing by the edge of my bed.

"Oi yeah, sorry for waking you. I had a pretty long, rough day." I whisper as I continue to revert to staring at the cast on my wrist disapprovingly with Aidyn's words of caution haunting me still.

Amber lets out a small yawn before replying, "I bet." She giggles, "You kind of got your ass kicked today."

I scoff, "Shut up."

"You take things too personally," She continues, "I'm really proud of you, actually."

I jump backwards onto my bed and refocus my attention back to her, "For what?"

"You're making friends."

I shyly gaze off into the corner and think about the dramatic difference a few days has made for my social life.

Amber speaks up once more, "You're actually trying to get along with others and you're making a profound impact on them. You're really coming out of your isolationist ideals and it's nice to see you having a good time with others."

A pang of guilt strikes me as I come to terms with the realization that I really have just dragged Amber along with me all my life and now I've got her tangled up in something that was never her business to begin with.

"I'm sorry," I confess, "I've been a poor friend to you. All I've done is bitch and complain and push you away and now I've dragged you into a war you were never apart of and I never even asked if you were okay with it."

Her light-hearted giggle fills the room, "I've been here for years now, haven't I? If I wanted to leave I would have done it a long time ago. I'm not mad that you're making friends and becoming more social, I am genuinely happy for you." She pauses for a moment, "I'd follow you anywhere Constance. Believe it or not but you're somebody I look up to."

Through the dark I can see her deep blue eyes staring into my grey ones and I try to find a trace of insincerity in her words but come up empty-handed. Feeling shocked from her kind words I stutter out,

"Oi, w-why me? I'm just a sarcastic bitch. I just keep putting others in danger, I mean look what I've done to you. I've dragged you here and you don't even have a power to defend yourself."

She shakes her head disapprovingly, "You really still don't see it yet. You're so much more than you think, Constance. You're strong. You're independent. And you care more than you let others believe. How could I not follow and continue to fight besides somebody so inspiring?"