The Academy (Part 2 of the Syndicate Series)

Chapter 10- The Childhood Code

Belle:

Blaise slept restlessly. It was different when we were kids, the three of us having our sleepovers in the tents in the backyard or movie nights. As we got older those had stopped, Blaise would go out of town for a couple of months at a time and my father decided that he had to grow up faster than normal kids his age because he would eventually take over for him. Over the last week or so of us sleeping on the couches in the media room, I realized that he no longer slept like he used to. Instead he would wake at the smallest noise, anything louder than a door would send him instinctively reaching for his gun.

In a way, that helped me sleep better, knowing that he was alert and there to help. My father seemed to have a plan for me that wouldn't move into place for another couple of weeks, and in theory, he wouldn't risk doing anything to me until then. With our paranoia, Blaise and I were still not going to let each other out of our sights.

That morning, instead of waking up a couple of feet apart on the couches, I realized that we must have fallen asleep watching our movie. I was curled up into his side with my head on his chest, my legs thrown over his. It was warm and comfortable, but after almost a full night of laying in that position, I was starting to get a couple knots in my muscles.

I sat up, cracking my back and stretching. "Blaise? Blaise, we should get up."

"Go back to sleep, Belle. I was comfortable," He mumbled without opening his eyes.

"And you make a great pillow. But we need to pack a bag for Rosine and figure out a way to smuggle a message to her."

The mention of my sister and his best friend had Blaise sitting up quickly. "You're right. The sooner, the better."

I offered him my hand and pulled him to his feet, and as he stumbled forward, he gripped my waist and pulled me closer so that our chests were pressed together. "Good morning, by the way."

My blush was inevitable, but he just grinned and pressed a kiss to the tip of my nose. After the night before, I wasn't sure where things stood. His confession had changed things, and I wasn't sure if he would regret saying some of what he did. I didn't want him to get cold feet or decide that he didn't want to shake up our dynamic. It was a relief to know that admitting our feelings wasn't only done in the heat of the moment.

"Good morning," I finally muttered back, burying me face in his chest and wrapping my arms around his stomach.

He chuckled at the movement, holding me in a hug for a couple of minutes before he ran his hands through my hair, "We're going to make this happen, Belle. We'll find Rosine and bring her home, and you're not going to get engaged to anyone."

I nodded against his chest, still not releasing my vice-like grip. Blaise was a rock and anchor through all of this, and I desperately needed to know that I had someone in my corner. I trusted my uncle as well, but Blaise was different. He knew that he had to play politics, but unlike my uncle, Blaise was younger, and that came with a certain fervor and willingness to disregard the rules for morality.

"C'mon," He finally muttered, breaking my grip. "Like you said, we should start getting her bag together as soon as possible."

He twisted his fingers through mine, pulling me out of the dark room with no windows and into the halls filled with early morning light. It wasn't quite time for breakfast yet, so we would have a moment to work out our system. We both knew where everything was in Rosine's room, so it was no trouble for Blaise to pull her duffle bag from her closet while I grabbed some clothes out of the drawers.

I folded them as neatly as I could, glancing up at Blaise, "I'm thinking a code? We had plenty of them growing up between the three of us that we could use."