Cursed Hearts (A Crossroads Novel) (4 page)

Rome
tossed the directory, watching it slide over the desk and crash into one of the
shelves. It had been a while since he’d had his own room. The couch he slept on
hardly instilled that sense of home sweet home. It smelt like whiskey, and
sweat – among other things. He slipped his backpack off his shoulder and sat
down on the edge of the mattress, feeling it dip under his weight. His eyes caught
on his reflection in the mirrored closet doors, and he took a moment to just
stare at himself in disbelief.

“Yeah,
you’re not buying this either, are you?” he muttered.

He
turned to look at the uniforms draped neatly across the bed. He’d never worn anything
this nice, stayed anywhere this nice. He was having a hard enough time
believing he actually belonged here, but throwing in the existence of magic and
vampires…

It
was all making this feel like a really bad trip.

***

Ariahna
walked through the doors to the auditorium, her eyes scanning over the rows of
seats. They stretched down towards a wide stage on the far side of the room.
The velvet blue curtain swayed gently behind the podium as she drifted down the
steps, looking for a place to sit in a sea of unknown faces. She found a spot
along the aisle, startling when someone jumped into the chair beside her –
Christian.

“Is
this seat taken?” he grinned, draping an arm over her shoulders.

“No,”
she said slowly, “I guess not.”

She
hadn’t had a chance to really look at him before, but it was hard not to now
with him sitting so close. He was handsome, that much was obvious; but it was a
very peculiar set of characteristics working together to make him attractive.
He had a strong, masculine jawline, with sharp, high cheekbones, and full, soft
looking lips. Confidence exuded from his every pore. She tore her eyes away
from his mouth, admiring the smoothness of his skin. Fine, feathery brunette
hair was carefully styled atop his head; and a few swept away strands framed
his eyes, which were a deep, soulful brown.

“Are
you sure you meant to sit here?” she asked.

“I
know; it’s a lot to take in all at once.”

Aria
looked away in embarrassment.

“…You
should see my abs,” he whispered.

Scarlet
turned around in her seat, raising her eyebrows at Christian. “You never quit,
do you?” she complained. Her eyes snapped over to Aria. “You,” she said,
shooting her a sultry smile. “You were the one making out with our new resident
bad boy, weren’t you?”

“What?
No. Where did you hear that?”

“Oh,
we haven’t made out yet,” Christian smirked, “but we will.” He stroked his
fingers over her hair, playing with a few soft curls dangling near her chest.

Ariahna
tensed, feeling the movement of his hand. She’d almost forgotten he had his arm
draped around her. She rolled her shoulders uncomfortably and Christian
readjusted, wrapping his arm around her a little tighter. He didn’t seem to be
getting the hint. She grabbed his palm to pull his arm away, and he squeezed
her hand with a smile.

“Get
your arm off of her,” Scarlet said, rolling her eyes in exasperation. “You’re
one wrong move away from a
harassment
charge.”

“What’s wrong,” he replied, “jealous? If you want this,
you know all you have to do is ask.”

“Sweetie,
I don’t get jealous,” Scarlet said. “And if I did, it certainly wouldn’t be
over someone like you. You look like the jealous type, though… He’s watching
her right now, you know.”

Aria
turned to follow Scarlet’s line of sight, spotting Rome sitting alone in the
back corner. He was staring at her, intently.

She
didn’t know what to make of that.

“I’d
be careful with that one,” Scarlet advised.

“Why?”
she asked, twisting back in her seat.

“Let me give you a little friendly advice. That boy is
bad news. He’s what we call
trouble with a capital T. Do you even know who he is? His father’s the town
drunk. They live on the edge of town in this disgusting trailer. And if my
sources are good, which heaven knows they are, he’s spent his fair share of
time in the back of a police car.”

“I
thought he looked familiar,” Christian mumbled.

“I
wasn’t making out with him,” Aria clarified. “But even if I was, it would be
none of your business. Besides, what does who his father is have anything to do
with who he is? Do you even know him, or is all you have to contribute gossip
and rumors?”

“Don’t
get me wrong,” Scarlet smiled, “I get the appeal. Wicked
things are sometimes the most
attractive. But just because something’s pretty, doesn’t mean it’s not
dangerous.”

“Thank
you for your concern.”

“Well,
don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Scarlet
turned her attention back to Christian with a smile on her ruby-red lips. She
wasn’t nearly as oblivious to his motivations as Aria seemed to be.
“And while we’re on the subject of trouble and boys
who are bad news, why don’t we talk about the one sitting next to you.”

“Excuse
me?” he said.

Aria
tried her best to ignore the two of them. She even went so far as to look for
Rome again; only he was already gone.
There goes that idea
, she thought.
The dark corner of the auditorium he’d been occupying was empty. What she
didn’t notice was him walking down the steps towards her.

“I
thought you might like some better company,” he offered.

“You
can’t mean you,” Christian laughed.

“I
did, actually.”

“Well,
I see you’ve ditched the grunge look at least.” Rome was wearing his uniform,
but incorrectly. His shirt was untucked, his sleeves were rolled up, and he was
sporting a pair of dirty old boots instead of the dress shoes they’d been
provided. Not to mention his tie was hanging loosely from his open collar. His
blue
and silver
tie. “What, did you steal that from someone?” Christian said. He
snapped his fingers, watching with a smile as it turned from blue to red.
“There, that’s better.”

Aria’s
eyes widened at Christian’s use of magic.
“You’re
not
supposed to do that,” she
whispered, glancing around before snapping her fingers and changing it back.
“Just leave him alone, okay?”
Christian scoffed, watching her gather her
things and follow Rome back up the steps.

“Thanks,”
she mumbled. “For offering to sit with me, I mean.”

“It
just looked like they were bothering you.”

In
truth, Rome knew they’d been bothering her. He’d been listening in on their
conversation. He slunk back into the seat he’d previously been occupying,
turning a small silver band around his middle finger.

“That
looks old,” Aria commented.

“What?”

She
pointed to his ring and Rome shook his head.

“It
was my mother’s. I think it’s more beaten up than old. She used to wear it on a
chain around her neck. It was easier to read the inscription that way, I guess.
It was always too big for her anyways.”

“There’s
an inscription on the inside?”

He
nodded.

“Can
I ask what it says?”

“
To
thine own self be true
. Why?”

“…Can
I see it?”

Rome
hesitated. It was one of the very few things he had left of his mother, besides
her memory. “Okay,” he said. “Just be careful.”

“I
will, I promise.”

He
handed her the ring and she smoothed her thumb over the scratched silver. The
metal turned blue under her touch.

“What
was that? What did you do?”

“Nothing,”
she smiled, placing it back in his palm. “I think that’s a family heirloom.
It’s enchanted.”

Rome
slipped the ring back onto the safety of his finger.

“Enchanted,
as in magic?”

“Yes. Objects can hold certain magical properties. If I
had to guess, I’d say that ring aids in speaking your mind.”

“Well
I don’t think it works then,” he laughed. “I hardly ever open my mouth. I guess
today’s been somewhat of an exception.”

“That’s
alright,” she replied. “I’m quiet too.”

Rome
smiled at that.

“So,”
he drawled. “The gifted program… not what I expected.”

Ariahna
donned a laughing smile.

“Sorry
about that. It’s pretty unusual that someone transferring to Vardel for the
program doesn’t know why they’re here. I guess I made the assumption that since
you didn’t know, you weren’t, you know,
magical
.”

“Can
I tell you a secret?” he breathed. “…I don’t think I am.”

The
auditorium was quiet, filled only by the soft sound of shuffling papers and
hushed speech. The Dean’s voice filtered through the grainy speakers and echoed
off the walls. It could have almost been described as peaceful, if it hadn’t
been so boring. Rome yawned, glancing down at his schedule. The only class he
even recognized was History, yet somehow he knew they weren’t going to be
talking about the Civil War. The list was otherwise filled with courses like
Alchemy, and Elements, not to mention something called—

“What
the hell is Transmutation?” he whispered.

Aria
smiled, restraining a giggle.

“All
of the courses are outlined in the student manual,” she said, cracking hers
open. Rome leaned in, scanning the page.

“
Transmutation
focuses on transforming the state of an object or being into another form
,”
he mumbled.

“Think
turning water to wine.”

Maybe
he had magic after all, he thought. “What about turning a person into an
animal? Would that qualify as transmutation?”

“Technically,
yes. But human transmutation is considerably difficult, unless you’re a
shapeshifter of some sort… Why?”

“Someone
threatened to turn me into a rat once,” he lied.

“They couldn’t do that,” she laughed. “They could, however
,
turn you
into an inanimate
object.” The look on Rome’s face prompted her to
continue.
“There’s a bedtime story witches tell to their children;
it’s about an old crone named Darva. She turned all the kids in her village
into apples, and then baked them into apple pies. When she was done, she went
around town distributing the pies to their parents. She told them that now
their children were as sweet as they’d always claimed. It’s supposed to
dissuade kids from misbehaving.”

“That
sounds ridiculous.”

“I’m
just not telling it right,” she murmured, shaking her head.

“I’m
not sure there is a right way to tell kids they’re going to be baked into
pies,” he laughed. Aria smiled at him shyly. The Dean concluded his speech, and
a long moment of silence passed between them.

“Rome?”

“Yeah,”
he said, crossing his arms.

She
was giving him a beyond hopeful expression.

“I was thinking that maybe we could pick out our
electives
together?
I could even point out a few beginner courses you might like.”

Rome
wasn’t sure he had the heart to tell her he had no intention of staying.
Unfortunately, the look on his face said it all.

“I’m
sorry. Please just forget I mentioned it.”

“It’s
not that I don’t want to.”

“…What
is it then?” she asked.

“Look
at me. I stick out like a sore thumb. I’m not fooling anybody with this
uniform. The simple fact is, I don’t belong here, and I don’t have magic.
Sooner or later they’re going to figure that out. So why get attached to
something I know I can’t have?”

“You
fooled me,” she said quietly.

Way
to make me feel guilty
,
he thought.

“I
could stay, just to help you pick out your classes?”

“No.
That’s alright.”

Rome
sighed. “For what it’s worth, it was nice meeting you.”

“…You
too.”

He
stood to leave, and Aria panicked.

“Wait,”
she said, rising to her feet as he tried to move past. They ended up toe to
toe, staring awkwardly into each other’s eyes. “Um,” she stammered. “You should
give Vardel a chance, before you make up your mind. You might be surprised.”

“If
there’s one thing I’ve had enough of in my life, its surprises.” Rome slipped
past her and out of the building. He couldn’t help but wonder what he’d been
thinking. Responding to that scholarship letter had to have been one of the
worst ideas he’d ever had. Ariahna was the only reason he’d even considered
staying after that fiasco in the Dean’s office. But who was he kidding? A girl
like that—he’d have a better chance at winning the lottery.

“Rome,”
Aria called, jogging after him. “If you’re leaving anyways, could you maybe
give me a ride into town?”

“…Sure.
Just meet me by the parking lot.”

She
nodded happily as he headed for the school.

It
felt eerily familiar, watching him walk away.

Aria perched on the edge of the curb beside the east
entrance, staring out across the parking lot. It was quiet. All of the students
were still in the auditorium, probably picking out classes and talking with
friends. And she was outside, alone, waiting for a boy who was about to run
away from who he was. She was trying to think up excuses, convincing reasons
for him to stay.
It
was selfish, but after what happened, after that one encounter with him today,
she’d just thought that maybe she wouldn’t have to
start the school year out completely alone. She sighed, closing her eyes and
bowing her head. Her hair swept down around her face, hiding her away from the
rest of the world. It was fine,
she tried to reassure herself. After
all, she was used to being alone.

Aria
startled, sitting up as Rome pushed back a strand of her hair. He’d knelt down
in front of her. How had she not heard him walk up?

“Hey,”
she said softly, pulling away from his touch. She’d had more physical contact
with boys today than in her entire life, and most of that contact had come from
Rome. He was sweet, but he definitely didn’t seem to understand the conventions
of boundaries. “You’re too quiet.”

“And
you’re kind of cute when you pout.”

Aria
held back a smile.

“Did
you still want a lift?”

“Yes,”
she mumbled, “if it’s not too much trouble?”

He
stood without answering, slinging his bag over his shoulder and
offering her a hand up. They walked off down a
lane, and when he finally stopped near one of the vehicles, she couldn’t help
but stare. It
looked more
like a
jigsaw puzzle than a car. It was long and wide, with a frame that sat rather
low to the ground. Several dents, dings, and
other curious quirks spanned its exterior. The body of the car seemed to be a
peculiar shade of gray, the headlights and side mirrors a fiery red, and the
front bumper a deep, plum purple. It was obviously fairly old, and covered in a
fine layer of dirt. She was beginning to have serious doubts about the safety
of this ‘vehicle’.

“What
kind of car is that?”

“87
Trans Am GTA. Why, do you like it?”

“…Are
you sure it can make it into town?” she said delicately.

“Hey, I know she looks a little rough around the edges,
but it’s
what’s on
the inside that counts.” Aria walked up, looking curiously inside the passenger
window. “That’s not exactly what I meant,” he laughed. “Come on, it’s kind of
cool, right? I know it’s not a Porsche or a brand new Corvette, but it’s got
its own appeal.” He smoothed a hand over the lines of the car, slowly circling
the vehicle as he did.
“It’s about
potential,” he said. “I rebuilt this car with my own hands. And yeah, the
driver’s side headlight still won’t go up, the key sticks in the passenger
door, and my sun-visors refuse to stay in
place. But pretend it was
completely painted black,” he whispered
.
“Pretend I’ve smoothed out all these dents, and there’s a set of wide tires on
the back verging on being illegal. Pretend that when I start it up, it sets off
half the
alarms in this parking lot.
What would you think then?”

Aria
stared at him as he came to a stop in front of her. Her mouth was hanging open,
and she closed it, swallowing quietly. Her eyes flicked back over to the car
out of an unspoken obligation; but the only thing she really wanted to be
staring at, was Rome. She’d never have guessed someone could make something as
ordinary as a car sound so… sexy.

“I’d
tell you that maybe you have to look a little closer to appreciate something
you don’t understand. And I love it, by the way. It has character.”

Like
you
, she
thought.

Rome opened the door for her, waiting patiently
as she slipped inside. He
couldn’t help but think she looked good in his passenger seat.

“Where
to?” he asked.

“Main
Street and 10
^th
. Thanks for taking me.”

“Thank
me when we make it into town.”

“Are
you trying to make me feel bad?”

“Maybe
just a little,” he smiled.

“I
take it back.  I’m sure she’s sturdy as a rock.”

“Well,
I wouldn’t go that far.”

Rome
jumped into the driver’s seat and turned the engine over. It wasn’t loud enough
to set off half the alarms in the lot, but the sound was one of familiarity. He
pulled out onto the winding road that stretched towards town with his window
open, elbow resting atop the door.

Half
of the drive was taken in silence.

“…You
know,” Ariahna said, “even if you’re not interested in the program, you should
still consider staying at the academy. You’d be able to take all of your
standard classes there, and they have a lot of clubs and sports options; more
than Lincoln, I’d imagine.”

“I’m
not really into sports.”

She rubbed a finger over the stitching on his leather
seat
, strategizing.
This was going to be even more difficult than she’d thought.

“It
would look really good to have a school like Vardel on your
transcripts. You could probably get into any
college you
wanted. And they also offer some college level courses at
the school, if you wanted to continue your education there.”

“Are you trying to convince me to stay?” Rome looked
over at her out of the corner of
his eye. She was playing nervously with the hem of her skirt now, drawing his
attention down towards the movement. The car drifted over the rumble strips on
the shoulder of the road and he whipped his wheel back over. “Sorry,” he said,
staring pointedly out the windshield. He’d accidently been feeling her up with
his eyes, and now he was trying to think about anything other than how smooth
her legs had looked.

“So,
how old are you?”

“Fifteen,”
she replied. “Why, how old are you?”

Too
old
, he thought.

“Almost seventeen. And no reason, just curious.” Rome
glanced back at her, thinking she had to be at least a little naive. “It
probably wasn’t a smart idea hitching a ride with a guy you don’t know.”

Of
course he was right. She just hadn’t thought about it. She’d been so eager to
convince him to stay that that had really been the only thing on her mind.
Ariahna shot him a nervous smile, leaning towards the door.

“Should
I be worried?” she asked.

She
was only half joking as her heart thudded in her chest.

Rome
smirked. He reached over, pressing a button on his door and watching in
amusement as she jumped when the locks shot back.

“Rome…”

“I’m
just messing with you,” he laughed. “Calm down.” She did not look happy. “I’m
sorry, okay? I was actually just concerned. Guys that look like me aren’t
generally interested in just giving girls rides.”

“Noted,”
she said. “But that wasn’t funny.”

“Maybe
not from where you’re sitting,” he grinned. “So, do you not go into town a lot?
I haven’t seen you around.”

“I’ve
been into town; not often though, so probably not enough for you to remember
me.”

“Oh,
I would have remembered you.” Rome glanced out the window. “Um, what I meant
was—you’re kind of unforgettable. Your hair, I mean.”

Ariahna
was blushing.

“Did
you know Scotland has the most redheads?” he blurted out.

“I
did not know that,” she said slowly.