Fairy Bond

Chapter Twenty-Two: Numb

Jade's P.O.V.

I don't know what Autumn says to Ace as her voice is dangerously low, but he takes a step back. Autumn has a sly smile dancing on her lips, like she is enjoying the fear that exuberates from Ace's facial expression. I've never seen Autumn look at someone like that ever, and I don't like it.

"This isn't over Reed," Ace says, not sounding confident in his threat at all.

He turns around and stalks off to the door and Autumn follows. I look at Sally who just shrugs. I watch the cafeteria doors, expecting Autumn to come back in any second. She doesn't. I hear a loud thud, like something connecting to metal. I get up and run, afraid that Ace has already beaten Autumn to a pulp. When I open the doors, I see Ace smashing against the ground. Autumn jumps on him and her fists connect to his face. I flinch every time I hear her hit him, and then decide that enough is enough. I place my hand on her shoulder to pull her off, but it's not necessary because as soon as my hand touches her, she jumps up.

I've never seen Autumn act so violently, and that includes the time I saw her fighting the two normal hunters out by the lake. Her moves were more controlled, calculated, like she was only doing it until she had the advantage of getting away. But the way she hit Ace was more out of emotion. Like she wanted to inflict as much pain as she could, like she wasn't afraid that she might kill him. It doesn't just scare me; it terrifies me.

Autumn looks dazed and out of it. Her head falls as she picks up her hands to look at the blood they are now drenched in. Then she looks at Ace, like she doesn't recognize who he is, but I doubt even his own father would recognize him after the way he just had his face bashed in. Her eyes find me and I can see her own fear swirling behind them. I can't pick up if she is really feeling that though. She reaches a hand to me and I flinch. I love Autumn, but it's like it wasn't her I was looking at.

Autumn looks like she is about to cry, but before the first tear can slide down her cheek; she runs. I call after her, but Autumn doesn't stop. She keeps running until she disappears behind the school's main entrance doors.

Sally bends down and attempts to lift up Ace, but she can't even make him budge. I'm torn, in the midst of a mental argument, wondering if he deserves my help. Sally looks up at me, her eyes pleading, but I can't decide. He threw Autumn to the wolves for Christ sake, maybe she was right to beat him up.

'No,' I feel my insides scream at me. It doesn't matter. There are better ways to deal with conflict that don't involve retorting to violence.

I rush over to Ace's left side and bend down. I throw his arm over my shoulder and grab hold of his wrist. I look at Sally to see her mimicking my actions.

"On three," I say and she nods.

"One," I start us off.

"Two," Sally says, watching me intently with her green eyes.

"Three," we say together, pushing up from our legs as we do.

Ace is a lot heavier than I thought, but we manage to keep him up. His head hangs down and his feet drag behind him as we walk down to the school nurse.

My muscles start to ache and I'm not sure how much farther I will be able to carry him. The fleeting wobble in Sally's legs indicates that she is in the same boat. As we pass by the window of the sickbay, the nurse jumps up, rushing to the door. She holds it open, worry etched in her features.

"What happened to him," she asks.

Neither of as answer as our full focus is occupied on not letting Ace face plant into the cold tiled floor. We barely have enough strength to make it inside. As we near the bed, I feel Ace slip from my hands. The nurse slides in just in time to grab him from me. She and Sally place Ace on the bed, slowly, gently. Then they turn his body around so that he is lying on his back.