SURVIVE (THRIVE: Book Two)

Chapter 14- Real

I feel like all of my nerves are on edge. Sitting in class, something that felt so simple before suddenly feels strange and risky. It was as if I wasn't supposed to be here anymore after yesterday, but I still can't bring myself to just drop my old life completely. It feels wrong to do so, almost like it would just erase everything I have done up until this point.

"Tessa?" Pearl suddenly nudges me and I quickly try to focus back on the class.

"What?" I ask as I worriedly shift my things around on the desk "Sorry, I must have zoned out." I sigh.

"Ladies, it would help if you would pay attention, wouldn't it?" Miss Ashley suddenly says, and everyone turns to look at us. My face goes beat red as I look around, I can hardly think straight at this point.

"I'm sorry." I sigh as I see Jewel and Gregory giggling on the other side of the room. I can't help but sneer at them.

"Anyway, that's all for class today. Tomorrow, we will be starting to go in-depth with Eternal soul-lines, starting with Veronika and Valentina." Miss Ashley states as she makes her way back to her desk. "Class dismissed." As everyone starts to get ready to go, I stare down at my things on my desk. It all feels so different to me now and it's starting to get to me more than I thought that it would. This charade may be harder than I thought.

"Tessa, you wanna tell me what the hell is going on with you today?" Aria asks as she hops onto her desk.

"What do you mean?" I ask worriedly.

"When was the last time you didn't pay attention in class? It's not like you." Aria says as she starts to focus on my face, then suddenly looks down at my chest "Wait a minute, where'd you get that?" she asks. As I look down, I realize that she's talking about my mother's necklace.

"Oh, Aurora gave it to me after we helped her out yesterday as sort of a thank you. Pretty, huh?" I explain, lying through my teeth.

"That's gorgeous." Pearl compliments as she admires it.

"Girls and jewelry, I'll never understand it." Alex sighs as he comes over.

"And it's comments like that that are going to bar you from ever getting a girlfriend." Aria laughs, and Pearl and I can't help but join in.

"What's so funny?" Magnus asks as he walks over to join us.

"Alex's eternal virginity." Pearl giggles as Alex seems to get huffy.

"Whatever." Alex scoffs as he leaves.

"Geeze, what's his problem?" Aria asks as she watches him go.

"He can't get laid, duh." Pearl starts to laugh more loudly. I swear, her laughter is always contagious. She typically comes off as innocent, but her sense of humor is dark and perverted as much as she likes to deny it.

"Well... okay then." Magnus says, seeming embarrassed "What are you girls up to tonight?" he asks curiously.

"I've got a date with a good book," Pearl states as she gathers her things.

"I'm probably going to head into town to see what discounts the shopkeepers have on stuff from the festival," Aria states as she hops off of her desk. As I start to collect my books, Magnus suddenly seems to focus on me.

"How about you, Tessa?" he asks kindly.

"Oh, um..." I start to think. I was going to swing by the palace tonight, but I'm obviously not going to say that. Time to come up with another cover story, I'm already tired of it. "I was thinking about heading to the beach, it's cloudy enough that I won't get a sunburn this time," I explain.

"Oh, do you mind if I join you? I was thinking of heading down there myself," he asks politely. I'd feel like an ass if I said no, so I guess it looks like I'm going to the beach today.

"Sure." I smile "I'll just have to take my stuff home first."

"Oh, please, I can do that for you," Pearl suggests as she starts to stack my things on top of hers.

"Really?" I say as I look at her in surprise "Thanks, Pearl." I smile. Suddenly, I'm feeling more excited about getting some fresh air. We all start to walk out together and I wave the other two goodbye as we start heading toward the southern jungle. As much as I want to go home and see Daddy and everyone, it's kind of nice seeing Magnus being more social. He's always been kind of a loner, so this seems like new territory for him.

"So, how come you were out yesterday?" he asks as we make our way to the edge of town.

"Oh, I just went with Miss Nanea to run some errands and help out with a few things," I explain vaguely.

"Oh, okay. I thought you were sick or something," he says awkwardly as we start down the jungle path. The air is becoming humid, making my skin feel a little sticky. The light breeze passing through the trees brings a subtle chill up my spine. Soon, I can smell the salty sea air getting closer and closer. As we step onto the sand, I suddenly see myself as a little girl running around with Nathan and Scarlett on the edge of the water. This was one of our favorite places to be, staring out at the sea and wondering about the vast world out there that we had been told so much about.

"Tessa?" Magnus suddenly asks, and I realize that I had frozen in place. I quickly shake my head and refocus on the present as I nervously smile at him.

"Sorry, zoned out." I state "That's been happening a lot today."

"It's okay, I get that too sometimes," he says reassuringly as we continue to walk out into the sun. The beach wasn't too busy today, so we had quite a bit of space between us and everyone else as we sit down on the warm sand.

"So, what made you want to come down here today?" I ask curiously.

"Oh, I'm actually down here a lot. It's nice to just look out at the sea and think," he explains as he looks up at the seagulls overhead.

"God, I know the feeling." I state as I tilt my head back, gently closing my eyes "I swear, we all have way too much to worry about anymore."

"Ditto." he says as he starts to laugh quietly "School is easy and everything, but honestly, being our age is the worst."

"Ha, amen to that." I laugh as I turn to look at him "It's a social nightmare, that's for sure."

"Tell me about it." He laughs as he looks down the beach at the kids playing "I've never been good at making friends, so it feels like I'm just rolling through the motions." he explains.

"Well, I suppose you don't have to worry about that much anymore." I smile reassuringly "We like hanging out with you."

"Thanks," he smiles shyly. "I really appreciate that coming from you."

"Oh yeah?" I ask as I lean back to lie down, the warm sand feels relieving on my back.

"Yeah, I really do. Pearl is a sweetheart, Aria is intense, and Alex is... Alex." he laughs, suddenly looking down at me "And you, you're something else. I don't know, I just really feel comfortable talking to you. You just feel really... real. Like you aren't pretending to be someone you're not." he smiles.

"Oh, thanks." I smile, trying not to blush "You aren't too bad yourself either."