Adam Conant raised his head and met her surprised gaze. Faye Chamberlain looked absolutely stunned; as if someone had slapped the air straight out of her lungs or pulled her still beating heart from her perfectly plump chest.
Her eyes quickly found the notebook that was spread out neatly in front of her and he too looked back down at his work.
For a second, he willingly let his mind wander. Had he said something to upset her? She seemed a lot more cold and distant than usual, maybe he had been too harsh when trying to persuade her against getting her individual magic back.
As his mind wandered further, he found himself rolling his eyes. Sure it was unlike Faye to be so shy and quiet around him, but she was probably still dealing with the death of Nick in her own stubborn and Faye-like way.
Although she would be the last to ever admit it, her heart was as big as her chest led it to be.
Adam reluctantly pushed himself back from his desk and turned to face her directly.
She looked so fragile, as if one wrong word could turn her world to dust. His brows raised in concern and she met his gaze again; her eyes remained emotionless and her face blank but he could swear that he saw a light shade of pink creep to her cheeks.
The shrill sound of the bell brought him back to reality and he quickly collected his books into his arms and clumsily stumbled after Faye.
"Faye!" he called out to her, his voice difficult to hear over the crowd of students that had fumbled into the corridor to reach for their lockers with sweaty palms.
But Faye Chamberlain heard him crystal clear, she just refused to play easy to catch. If he wanted to talk to her, then he'd have to make it worth her while. She quickened her pace a little and let her breathing increase as she headed towards the back of the school.
So, maybe she couldn't do individual magic and was bound to a circle filled with people that she could not stand. That didn't mean she couldn't have a little harmless fun and who was more fun to tease than Adam Conant?
Her fingers lazily trailed along the handrail as she waited for Adam to catch up with her.
A couple of seconds later, he appeared beside her, his entire body shaking from the cold. It was the beginning of January and yet she had no problem sitting outside in little to nothing. Typical Faye. Dressed to the nines as the clouds above threatened to spill.
He took another look at her exposed arms and found himself shaking out of his jacket, offering it to her.
"Adam," she let his name role off her tongue as she sat on the bottom step and shrugged away from the jacket he tried to put over her shoulders.
"Is there any particular reason you're following me or do you just like watching me walk away?" Her grin continued to grow and her eyes twinkled playfully.
Her tone caught him off guard. He paused for a moment, staring at her with a dumbfounded expression upon his face. "Faye…" his tone was a warning, the smirk that had lit up her face quickly disappeared.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot you're only into boyfriend stealing, blonde, snarky witches that can practically kill you if you so much as touch her the wrong way."
Faye was certain that Adam's eyes became a shade cooler. They reflected the blue sky above that was so desperately trying to come out from behind the heavy clouds. "Forget it." He shook his head once and turned his back to her. If she only wanted to run his name through the dirt, he could think of better things to do.
A loud sigh escaped from her lips and she jumped to her feet, catching his wrist to stop him from leaving. "I promise to behave," she said simply and surrendered his arm.
Adam felt the warmth in his cheeks increase excessively and he quickly tried to collect his thoughts. "Faye… Are you OK?" He knew that it was a silly question, she would obviously answer 'yes' to it, but he was worried about her. And to see her every day - Looking so broken and empty, it was starting to physically hurt him.
The opposite happened to Faye, she felt the color drain from her face and she lost the ability to think of a witty come-back. She stared wide eyed at him for a moment, considering how she should answer the question. No, she was not OK. Nothing was "OK."
She was confused and alone and lost. Melissa had turned her back on her, something to do with wanting to be more independent - Yadda, yadda. The truth was, Faye hadn't even noticed until she had needed someone to do magic with.
Nick was dead. And a part of her still refused to believe it. He had been the light in her life, her saving grace. He had always given her a sense of reality and ever since his death, she felt herself slipping away into the darkness.
It called for her. It breathed her name against her skin. It tempted her to give in. She wanted nothing more than to surrender. To give herself completely to the evils of the world. She imagined that it would be much easier to be bad, than to struggle to be good.
And then there were the feelings that she only felt whenever Adam Conant was near. Disgust? No. Loathing? Not even close. It was strange - It was something that she had never experienced before. Trust. She trusted him with every part of her being.
Although she had always been able to place her trust in Melissa, with Adam it was different. He made her feel like a real person; Like she wasn't just a lost soul struggling to stay afloat.
Adam made her feel better. He made the world seem less cruel and she couldn't even begin to understand it, let alone explain it.
His soft skin against hers brought her back to reality. He had taken her hand and he was squeezing it comfortingly, as if he could sense her train of thought.
She met his eyes with disdain and before she could open her lips to reply to his question, the downfall of rain started. It came down quick and fast and in a matter of seconds, Faye was soaked to the core, her hand still clutching tightly to his.
For a brief moment, they mirrored each others smile as if acknowledging their tangled web of feelings had sparked the storm.
Faye looked away before she could let his eyes burn into her soul and just as suddenly as the sky had begun to cry, it stopped.
They both stood side by side, waiting on pins and needles for the other to break the silence.