The final chapter of Thorne's arc!

A Crown of Thornes: Part Ten

Andromeda Academy, Luna

"What in the stars is that?"

Iko looks at the cactus delivery she got at the front desk of their dormitory. She was excited to get a message that she had a package to pick up. Since Jacin and Kinney were with her when she got the notification, they accompanied her. Iko expected it was some clothes she bought or a new makeup palette, maybe both, but she was confused when she saw a small cactus in a clay pot waiting for her. She looks at Jacin and Kinney who shrug.

Iko opens the card and closes it, glaring at Kinney.

"What?" Kinney asks.

"It says it's from you," Iko says, passing him the card.

"I didn't get you a spading cactus!" Kinney yells, reading the card. "Why would I?"

"I don't know why you would!" Iko calms down and smiles a little. "But thank you."

"You're welcome?" Kinney says, reading the card repeatedly.

Jacin laughs.

-o-

Lunar Academy, The Earthen Union

After their successful civvies day, Kai and Winter had a debriefing meeting with the rest of their student council to discuss future civvies days for the rest of the school year. As vice principal, Winter managed all the tasks Kai didn't want to do which was arranging the meeting. Kai didn't understand why Winter decided to have the meeting in the same classroom as after-school detention, but it made sense when he learned throughout the day that the rest of their friends got detention.

On one side of the room is their student council meeting while their friends were sitting on the other side. Thorne was there for smart-mouthing a teacher in history class. Wolf was taking a smoke break by his car during lunch despite arguing that the parking lot wasn't school property when it is. Cinder and Scarlet were walking dress code violations who are, ironically, still being dress code violations in detention.

Cress sits at the teacher's desk proudly supervising detention.

"I asked for this shift," Cress tells them when they wondered why she was here. Her being in charge makes way more sense than if she ever got detention for whatever reason.

"Forget whatever I said about hooking up in detention," Scarlet says, looking at all the people in the classroom.

"Aces, babe," Wolf nudges her with his foot under the desk. Scarlet grins.

Cinder throws an eraser at the back of Wolf's head. "You know if you were on the sidewalk, that's city property. The school can't give you detention for that."

"She's right," Kai chimes in from his meeting.

"I was going to the sidewalk," Wolf says. "I know the rules."

"You were already smoking on the way there."

Wolf groans as he turns around to face Cinder, who's lying on her arm on the desk as she smiles at Kai. "You should like the teacher who gave me detention."

Thorne leans forwards on his desk. He gestures for Cress to walk over and she does, sitting in the desk next to him. Once she's seated, Thorne pulls her desk over to him. The shrieking metal sound against the floor fills the room and everyone jumps in their seat, even Cress. She puts her hands on Thorne's arms and he's almost tempted to pull her into his lap.

"You and I could get out of here," Thorne whispers. He smiles against her ear and her face reddens. "You're in a position of authority. That's hot."

"I don't like this spice," Cinder says.

-o-

Once the meeting ends, Winter heads to her car. She throws her backpack in the passenger's seat since Cinder is catching a ride to work after detention from Kai. Before she turns on her car, Winter pulls out her phone and smiles when she sees a message from Jacin, but it falters on her face when she reads it.

Jacin Bae: Call me when you can.

Winter hesitates. She doesn't like the ominous message and it's making her heart race. Before she calls, she calculates the time difference. She just got out of school so it's around 10 PM there. He's likely doing homework or passed out. Still, if he's waiting for her to call, and it's been twenty minutes according to when he sent the text, then he's awake.

Winter calls, putting her phone on speaker and resting it on the dash. She sits back as he picks up.

Jacin Bae: You're not driving, are you?

"No…" Winter mutters. "I'm sitting in my car in the parking lot at school. Jacin, you're scaring me."

Jacin Bae: Why? What happened?

"You sent me that cryptic text!"

Jacin Bae: … what was wrong with it? I just wanted you to call me so I could tell you something. It's not bad or anything.

"Stars, Jacin…" Winter mutters relieved. She can't help but laugh a little but it's more out of internalized fear. Jacin isn't laughing. "Use an emoji or something next time."

Jacin Bae: No.

"Even a happy face."

Jacin Bae: Are you okay? Happy face?

Winter smiles. "I'm fine now."

Jacin Bae: Are you sure? Happy face?

"I swear on the stars." She leans forwards and holds her phone, keeping it on speaker. "What did you want to tell me?"

Jacin Bae: If you get a cactus from Kinney, it's from me but don't tell him it's from me. Believe it's from him so thank him.

Winter furrows her brows. "Why would it say it's from Kinney if it's from you?"

Jacin Bae: Because he's hooking up with Iko and allegedly got her one. He also allegedly got Scarlet a Le cactus.

Winter drops her phone. She scrambles to pick it up and nearly pulls muscle since it was by the brake. "Okay I know I'm crazy but that sounded insane. What?"

Jacin Bae: Iko and Kinney are hooking up.

"What?"

Jacin Bae: Eggplant emoji and-

"Jacin!"

He laughs for a moment before he tells her. Winter's lips part and brows furrow as she listens to the story of the #AsteroidBelt and then Kinney's hoodie. Admittedly, Winter lost him at the cactus.

"You're making this up," Winter says. "This is ridiculous."

Jacin Bae: Why would I make this up?

"So that I would tell Cinder and she'll freak out."

Jacin Bae: … okay that's smart, mischievous devil face. I should've done that instead.

-o-

Scarlet expected to come home to an empty house, which she got and which was why Wolf walked in beside her. She puts her backpack down by the living room couch and that's when she notices a small cactus sitting on the coffee table in the living room. Scarlet picks it up and pokes at the potting soil. It's real. She has a live cactus in her hands.

"That's nice," Wolf says as he sits next to her.

Scarlet opens the card and laughs as she shows Wolf.

'Le cactus,

Kinney'

Scarlet remembers leaving her shift and ended up sitting in her car for an hour while chatting with Jacin about cacti. He didn't think he, or "Kinney," would've actually bought her one.

"Why the stars did Kinney send you a cactus?" Wolf asks.

"It's a funny story, actually," Scarlet says.

Jacin, you tried. At least your Le cacti arrived at all their places.

Okay, now that this arc is over. The next arc is a personal favourite so far and I'm excited about it. Feel free to guess who it's named after since I'm still writing it. When I finish it, I will start publishing it. If not, I will be back on the story's fifth anniversary, July 29th!

(But we get Kaider's wedding book soon!)