I woke up to Zephyr cooking breakfast in the kitchen and Maverick flipping through channels on the TV. The latter looked at me for a brief moment before turning back to the TV, his expression unreadable. Dimitri patiently sat next to Maverick, watching the channels change. When had he escaped from my room?

  No sign of Finn or Aidan. This was going to be a long morning, wasn’t it?

  “Do you need any help?” I asked Zephyr while forcing a smile, my hands folded neatly behind my back.

  “It’s almost ready,” he replied, not tearing his gaze away from the food.

  “Where are Finn and Aidan?” I asked.

  “I saw Aidan running around earlier—he looked to be in a hurry. Finn I haven’t seen.”

  “He’s still here, right? Aidan, I mean.” It wasn’t safe for him to be roaming New York on his own.

  “I imagine so. You’d have to ask Finn if he’s heard anything. You could check their bedroom.”

  I nodded, heading in that direction before I stopped. Finn’s pained expression from last night flashed in my mind, and I suddenly lost all motivation to look for the boys. Was he mad at me? Was that why he wasn’t here?

  Before I could make up my mind, Aidan walked in.

  “O-oh! You’re here! Great timing! I-I was just—”

  “Food’s ready,” Zephyr interrupted, causing Aidan to sulk a little.

  “What about Finn?” I asked.

  “Food’s ready,” Maverick called out loud enough for the entire building to hear. Still no Finn.

  “I’ll just text him…" I muttered.

  Ella: Hey, Zephyr made breakfast. Are you coming?

  We waited a couple minutes, but there was no response, so we started eating. Well, Dimitri had already been eating while we waited on Finn.

  Pancakes, bacon, sausage, and egg. Maverick swallowed his bacon and sausage before I could even take a bite out of my pancake. I was going to make a witty comment before I remembered I still didn’t know how to feel about him. Part of me wished I had never woken up when I had. But also part of me was glad I knew before I did something embarrassing when I thought I was alone. Showering would never be the same.

  A few minutes later, my phone buzzed. Right, he was a slow typer.

  Finn: Not today. I think it would be better if I kept my distance for a while.

  Only halfway through my pancake, I lost my appetite. I felt guilty for the one single line that I said. One line! If I had just thought before I spoke, then at least Maverick could have taken the blame for it! But no! Now I had to feel guilty, too!

  “Is he coming?” Zephyr turned to me.

  “No,” I answered back.

  “More for me.” Maverick used telekinesis to move the bacon and sausage from Finn’s plate to his.

  “Y-you’re not gonna finish your food?” Aidan asked. He looked almost… hopeful?

  “No. I’m not that hungry today.” I glanced away.

  “T-this is great!” Aidan beamed.

  “Huh?” My expression faltered as I tried to think why Aidan would be excited about this.

  “Agreed.” Maverick said with food in his mouth. The bacon and sausage on my plate flew to his plate at high speed.

  “N-nothing! Don’t worry about it!” Aidan waved his hands about defensively. “T-tell you later.”

  “Okay…?” I blinked, confused.

  I eventually excused myself from the table with Dimitri following me. I played a game for a period of time I couldn’t keep track of before Aidan took the controller and began playing a falling block puzzle game involving a green dinosaur. From what Maverick said, he had been playing this game late into the night. Strange, I wouldn’t have expected him to get invested in a game like this. I watched for a while before once again excusing myself.

  I wanted to retreat to my room, but I was still bothered by last night. So, I worked up my courage and knocked on Finn and Aidan’s bedroom door.

  The door opened at an alarming speed, revealing a concerned Finn. His eyebrows slumped, as did his frown.

  “I’m sorry,” we both said at the same time, surprising each other.

  “I’m sorry about last night. I was out of line,” I replied after he motioned for me to speak first.

  “No, you were fine. I understand why you said what you did, it’s just… I didn’t expect your tone.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Can you stop apologizing?” His frown softened into a pitied smile.

  “Well, I feel guilty!” I threw my hands up, frustrated.

  “And I feel guilty for making you feel guilty.” He pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes. “It’s okay, really. I’m the one with the problem. …And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Maverick sooner. You were right, even if I had fixed the situation, you had the right to know what was happening.”

  I paused, surprised by how reasonable his response was. “Um, thank you.”

  “Am I usually unreasonable?” He scratched the back of his head.

  “Uh, not particularly, no. It’s just that most people are some level of unreasonable. I guess being a mind reader has its perks.”

  “…I suppose it does.” He let out a long-winded sigh. I’d struck another nerve, hadn’t I? “Ella, you don’t have to be paranoid over everything you think. You’re not perfect. You’re going to offend someone sooner or later, and that’s fine. The last thing I want you to do is control your thoughts around me.”

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  “Thank you.” I nodded, trying to keep this in mind. I imagined I’d feel similar if I were in his shoes.

  “Has Aidan told you about—”

  “T-time to go!” A flash of red and yellow blurred past me, dragging me along with it.

  I struggled to keep up with Aidan. He was barely taller than me, yet he ran so fast!. “W-where are we going?!” I asked.

  “To lunch.” He looked over his shoulder, smiling at me. For the first time, besides the incident at the manor, he looked completely sure of himself—content, even.

  I smiled and nodded along. Who was I to ruin whatever he was feeling? Even if I still wasn’t quite hungry and had just finished eating.

  We rode the elevator down and exited the building, beginning our walk to who knows where. I was happy when we passed by the parking garage, thankful that Aidan wasn’t going to attempt to drive.

  I forgot how stuffy New York was. The buildings looked so old, they made LA look modern — a word I never thought to associate the city with. The buildings were also so tall and closely placed together, I felt claustrophobic. I didn’t remember LA being like this. Maybe it was just the area we were in.

  We eventually stopped in front of a restaurant. The architecture implied a college, museum, or other historic monument rather than steak. Nonetheless, I followed the boy in.

  The decor was exquisite, but I had seen fancier. It was one of those places where you couldn’t quite tell if the price was above average or outrageously expensive.

  The waiter sat us at our table and I opened the menu, realizing it was the latter. I gawked at the $90 filet mignon.

  Aidan seemed to struggle to make heads or tails of the menu, his eyebrows knitting together as he silently mouthed the names of the dishes. Even though he never said the words aloud, I could tell he was still pronouncing them wrong.

  “How about the spicy kung pao chicken?” I suggested. It had “spicy” in the name!

  “What does it taste like?” he asked with interest in his tone.

  “I have no idea.” I chuckled nervously.

  “W-well, I’ll go with it anyway.” He closed the menu, seemingly decided.

  “Then I guess I’ll get the pastrami dumplings.” I closed mine as well.

  The waiter came by and we placed our orders. I ordered Aidan a lemonade after he couldn’t decide on a drink, and an iced tea for myself. Extra sweet.

  “D-did you used to live in a city like this?” Aidan asked once the waiter left.

  “Oh, no, nothing like this,” I waved the idea away. “I’ve been to a city similar to this a few times. My parents liked to take me there on vacation, despite it only being a couple hours away. We’d always go to Disneyland— never mind, you don’t know what that is. It’s a theme park that— wait, you don’t know what that is either!” I facepalmed. It was so difficult explaining basic stuff to these people. “Point is, where I lived was a lot more uh, green,” I said hesitantly, remembering how dried out our grass was, “and a lot less building.”

  “Like Lancesten?”

  I thought about it for a moment. Lancesten definitely had more buildings close together than my neighborhood. And a lot fewer swimming pools. “Not quite.”

  “M-maybe you can take me there sometime.” He blushed. He didn’t seem to care that my answer was totally lame and not at all helpful.

  “Maybe. I hope so…” I trailed off. Part of me was excited to show them all the neighborhood I grew up in. Excited to introduce them to my family and friends, though that might be impossible.

  “Y-y-you know,” he began stuttering more than usual. “T-this almost feels like a date.” His blush deepened, and our drinks arrived.

  I didn’t even move from the spot where I was frozen — my hands literally frozen under the table — as the waiter placed my drink down in front of me. Aidan had to answer the waiter when he asked if there was anything else we needed.

  “C-could you repeat that?” It was my turn to stutter.

  “I-I said this almost feels like a date,” he answered quickly, probably not wanting to repeat himself.

  “No.” My fingers curled into the napkin on my lap.

  “Would you prefer Finn?” His tone was annoyed, and he glanced away from me, looking at the lemonade that was growing warmer by the second.

  “No!” I exclaimed, catching him off guard. “I’m dating Matt! Matt is who I would prefer!”

  “But you haven’t seen him in months! You might not even get to see him again! Once Rosalie is done with her mission, you’re coming back.” That last part, he didn’t sound so sure of.

  I couldn't believe he was saying that. Did he think I'd magically fall out of love with someone I had loved for years?! Not that he knew that last part, or at least I don't remember telling him that last part. “I don’t care! I’m going to see him again one way or another! Even if I have to wait years to see him again!” I stood from my seat just to immediately sit back down, my hands a mixture of fire and ice that I didn't want the other eaters or staff to see.

  “You honestly think he’ll wait for you that long? That he won’t be dating someone else?”

  Now my anger was boiling. He would never! After all, we had been dating for... one week...

  I paused. He was right. Even if I were to come back in a year, there’s a very real chance he’d have moved on from me…

  “You should move on, Ella,” Aidan continued. “For your own sake.” He paused. I blinked and looked away. It was all I could do to stop myself from crying. “Y-you know… I-I really like you.” He looked away.

  My eyes shot up, having remembered what this was really about. Right, he wouldn’t have mentioned it being like a date if he didn’t want to date me. But how was I supposed to reply to this? Even if Matt wasn’t in the picture, I doubted I’d ever see him as anything other than a kid brother.

  “I like you a lot too... but not like that…” I glanced down at my now-wet hands. Why was this the position I was stuck in? Teleported to another world with magical powers, only to be returned to my world thousands of miles away from home, with two boys pining for my love.

  “Right…” Aidan’s voice was barely audible. “Stupid Maverick.”

  “Huh?” I glanced up from my hands. He still wouldn’t meet my gaze. He wouldn’t answer either. What would Maverick have— Last night I caught him whispering something to Aidan. Had he put Aidan up to this, knowing full well I wouldn’t go along with it?! That was yet another reason to hate Maverick!

  I took a deep breath, realizing this was entirely Aidan's fault. It wasn't his fault that he received faulty advice. I wouldn't be surprised if Maverick was also the one who put the idea that I had moved on into his head. “I don’t blame you for trying. Was it a little misguided? Yeah. But you knew what you wanted and shot your shot. I’m sorry that I don’t reciprocate your feelings, and I hope this doesn’t change anything between us. You’re my best friend, and I’d like to keep things that way. In other words... I don’t want to lose you.”

  My mind went to the half dozen girls who lost their friends after being asked out and rejecting the proposals. I didn't know what I would do if I lost Aidan... He was one of the few people at the manor who actually seemed to get me, save for Finn and Marge.

  He finally looked up at me, and I could’ve sworn I saw tears in his eyes. “T-thanks. I-I guess…” Right, he was still hurt from me rejecting him... Nothing I could say would ease that.

  “Want me to explain theme parks to you?” I asked with a small smile. I desperately wanted to change the conversation and get my friend back.

  He nodded, and I began my explanation. Slowly, he began smiling again and asking questions. We continued talking during our meal, and he seemingly forgot all about our previous conversation. Or at least I hoped he had.

  Finally, it was time to pay.

  He instantly blushed again. “I-I’m the one who was treating you, yet I’m going to have to ask you to pay.”

  “Maverick didn’t give you his credit card, did he?” I sighed, shaking my head with a smile. If he put him up to it, the least he could have done was make sure this boy had a way to pay. “Figures. He comes off as stingy.” I pulled out my phone and brought up Apple Pay once again to pay for our meal. “Sylvis’ treat.” I winked, and Aidan chuckled.

  We decided to sightsee near the apartment. Crossing the street was a challenge since Aidan kept panicking over the cars. I didn’t want us to go too far either because I wanted to save some of the sightseeing for the others. I got the feeling that Zephyr would be most interested in that sort of thing.

  I also wanted to return to the apartment sooner rather than later to give Maverick a piece of my mind.

  But I supposed that could wait. For now, I should simply enjoy my time with Aidan. As friends. This time, I made sure he knew.