Page 72 of Lost and Bound

Orion freezes, then spins around and bends down lower so we’re eye to eye. His lips are mashed together, and one of his eyebrows is sky-high, making me snort like a pig. He tuts and doesn’t get out of my face, letting me see the twinkle in his eye. “What in the bloody moons did you do, May-May?”

I feign innocence before giving him a playful shove out of my way and racing up the stairs. It’s like a starter’s gun, and Orion’s earlier trepidation toward Bugby attacking him is replaced by competitiveness.

Orion and I bounce off each other and the walls as we tear up the stairs, trying to slow each other down. The world flashes past us until we both pull on the brakes and finally take notice of what has been done.

“What the literal fuck?” Orion growls, sounding the most inhuman I’ve heard him.

Shock steals nearly everything from me. I move on autopilot back to the landing, so I can take in the entire scene. Not one surface has been spared. Every wall and door is marked with a message or threat. “Go back to where you came from” and “No one wants you here” are repeated the most, but there are other threats that are too horrible to repeat.

I mean, I already knew a lot of the students and the faculty didn’t like me, but to see it scrawled so many times, and on every surface, is like a punch to the throat.

If their intention was to induce as much fear as possible, they certainly delivered. I rub a hand over my chest, trying to ease some of the anxiety bruising my insides, but the damage is done.

Orion appears in front of me, blocking the vile messages. His hands wrap around my face, forcing me to focus on him. He drops his forehead to mine and holds me so tight, he stops me from falling apart. “I’m so sorry, Maya. These assholes are not worthy of you. Let’s figure out who did this shit so we can get their asses expelled.”

I lean into his friendship and stop fighting back the tears. I’m destroyed by the damn cruelty of these beings. At the same time, my tears are a symptom of the buildup of emotional pressure more than the pain they’ve inflicted. As fast as my meltdown came, it fades replaced by something more significant—determination.

“They really suck, don’t they?” I ask, pushing out of his hug.

I use the bottom of my T-shirt to wipe my face before taking a big, noisy inhale, and blowing out the rest of the shock.

Orion’s eyes search my face, his hands still stretched out, ready to catch me again.

“I’m not sure I can stay here,” I admit.

He grins like I’m only just catching on to something he’s already decided. “No question about it, we’re roomies now. You want to top and tail with me?”

“No chance,” I say, shaking my head. His face drops. “I need lots of hugs tonight. I’ll be the little spoon.”

He’s back to smiling again now that he’s heard me out. “Big spoon, it is.”

I’m so left of center, though, my moods flipping every which way. A sudden thought hits, and before I can catch myself, he sees it. Orion stares at me, waiting for an explanation.

“I just thought, what if you had already planned for someone else to come over, you know? I’m basically forcing myself on you after you’ve been locked in your room for so long.”

He loses his usual vivaciousness, replacing it with steely resolve. “First up, you’re adorable. Second, even if I had arranged a hook up, you’d still be my priority. Okay?”

My eyes get watery again, only because I get overwhelmed by Orion’s friendship. In such a short amount of time, he’s firmly entrenched himself as one of my favorite beings, ever.

He rolls his eyes. “I’m seriously offended you’re only now realizing how phenomenal I am.”

I go in for another cuddle but twist at the last minute and wipe my wet cheeks and nose all over his T-shirt.

“Maya! That is not how we show love!” he grumbles, but he laughs as I pull him back in for a proper hug.

“You seriously are amazing, Orion. Thank you for being my friend.”

“Best friend is more accurate, but let’s not get bogged down with the details.”

There’s no point arguing the fact, because he’s right. And knowing he has my back like no one else does, I feel ready for what we still need to do; see the rest of what they did.

We stick close to each other, while looking again at the messages and the damage. At least three others were involved. Each has a unique style of handwriting, but so was what they used to leave messages.

Orion presses a finger against a letter painted in red, holding it up to show me the paint is still wet. I don’t bother checking the message I’m looking at because the second accomplice used a thick black Sharpie. The third being filled in the gaps, alternating between using the paint and the Sharpie. If I had to call it, I’d say the third being was a female, and the messages they left were by far the most offensive.

“I seriously can’t win here, can I? Maybe it’s better I leave…”

Behind us, the sound of someone walking down the stairs makes me stop talking. Bugby warns them to mind their business with one of his intimidating throat gargles.