Malefic [BOOK 2]

♫ ♪Salt- shaker, shaker~♫ ♪

Leo found herself in quite a difficult situation. The memories of last night were still fresh in her mind. Tom had never looked so vulnerable. Leo wanted to just turn him tiny and keep him inside her pocket, protect him from the entire world.

After years, Tom had finally opened up. He trusted her enough to open his hard shell and let her in.

Leo didn't mind staying in that shell for the rest of her life.

The only thing that still bothered her was him trying to make Horcruxes. Even after all her requests and warnings, Tom was still trying to find stupid pieces of jewellery to put his soul into. She swore that Tom gave her 'Material Girl' vibes sometimes.

"Leona, you are daydreaming again."

Leo jumped at the mention of her full name. Her eyes focused on Tayden who was staring at her with eyes full of concern. She was currently helping him to give out flyers for their upcoming event arranged by their little club.

The plan was to find more students who were being suppressed by society and offer them as much help as possible.

She glanced down at her hand where the flyers were supposed to be. Now, she was cradling only air. Hearing Tayden chuckle beside her, she fixed her gaze on him once again.

"We finished a while ago," he informed.

"Ah. Right," Leo chuckled awkwardly.

Tayden placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "What has been on your mind since morning? You look troubled."

Leo shook her head, denying that she was overthinking everything. Tayden was a good friend. But she felt like she would just waste his time by rambling about her problems. She bet he had other things to do.

The boy was thinking quite the opposite though. He wanted Leo to share whatever was on her mind. He wanted to be of help, just like she had helped him.

"Walk with me, Leo," he asked softly but left no place for an argument.

Leo hesitated but started walking beside him in silence. They didn't have any classes to attend. That gave Tayden some time to listen to Leo's problems.

The two students quietly walked toward the courtyard. Leo appreciated the silence. Tayden was never the one to force information out of her. He was understanding, caring and very respectful.

In fact, Leo really liked spending her time with Tayden. Considering how her friendship with Zayden had turned out, she was quite hesitant to open up to Tayden. But as time went by, she could see how understanding the boy actually was.

He was not the best student out there but his character made up for it. You could ask him to hold a poisonous cobra for you and he would do it without a question.

He would listen to Leo's blabbering all day long with a bright smile on his face. He was never the one to judge anything. He was a friend that everyone wanted.

Leo was very lucky to find someone like him.

Tayden finally stopped in between two pillars and leaned against the railing. His hands were crossed over his chest as he regarded Leo with a questioning look.

Leo immediately knew that she had to spill the beans.

It was truly a struggle for her. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times but failed to arrange her thoughts. At one point, she groaned under her breath and yanked her hair in frustration.

Tayden shot her a sympathetic look, "Is it about Tom Riddle?"

Leo rubbed her face as her ears slowly turned red. She nodded sheepishly and avoided Tayden's knowing look.