Brianna Acero and the Second One's Return

6. I tell the hot (stop it!) jerk my secret

"You, need to come with me."

Oh, he did not just use his commanding tone on me! Heavenly looks be damned, I am going nowhere with this jerk!

"I'm sorry, but how exactly did you find out where I live?"

He tries to grab my arm, but I take a step back, putting as much distance between us as I can without actually slamming the door in his face.

"That's not important."

He looks at me then, with those striking gray eyes, and I barely manage to suppress the blush that is threatening to make its home on my cheeks. Not now hormones! Remember, this guy is a jerk, don't fall for his looks!

He doesn't seem to notice my inner struggle, and he takes one final deep breath before stepping forward, towering over me as he stares me down.

"How did you do it?" He says then, straightening up to his full height, eyebrows furrowed.

Well, if he's trying to intimidate me, it isn't going to work mister. I square my shoulders and look him straight in the eye.

"Do what?" I ask, genuinely confused, not knowing what he could be talking about.

He doesn't seem to believe me however, and he clutches the doorframe so hard his knuckles turn white.

"As if you didn't know," he spits out. "How did you predict what Simon Says was going to say?"

That catches me off guard, and my lips part on their own accord.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

He rolls his eyes, clearly annoyed, and I try not to shrink away at the barely concealed anger burning behind those bright orbs.

"The sentence," he groans, raking his fingers through his hair to pull at the strands. I try not to let my eyes stray to how those midnight locks fall back into place in delicate waves. I bet his hair is super soft.

Snap out of it Bri!

"The one you said back at your smoothie place," he says, as if he were talking to a mere child.

"The smoothie shack," I cut in.

"Whatever," he says, waving a hand dismissively. "After you passed out, you said something, and Simon Says just repeated it word for word on our way to HQ."

The sentence... Oh! he must mean what I accidentally mumbled when I thought no one was listening. What was it again? The second one is back, and this time, he will not be so forgiving? Something like that. It just popped into my head for some reason, I didn't even pay attention to who the voice may belong to. Or at least, I don't think I did. Although I guess it had sounded a bit like Simon. But what does that mean?

"You predicted his words," he says, staring at me with new light in his eyes. "What is your Gift?"

And there it is, the fated question.

"Umm. I-I don't have a Gift," I mumble, losing confidence towards the end, so he might have not caught the part where I said...

"You don't have a Gift?"

Never mind, he heard me.

"That's impossible, everyone is Gifted," he says, a tone of incredulity tinting his words.

I feel anger stab me in the chest, like a thousand little needles plunging into my heart. I clench my fingers at my sides, hands balling into fists.

"Hmm, that's funny, because the last time I checked, I wasn't, and I would really appreciate it if you..."