The Last Dragon Shifter

Chapter Nineteen

Despite his giving her free reign of the castle, the king had another guard escort her to the garden. He stayed at the entrance, though, and let her go further on her own.

The garden flourished with a variety of flowers and exotic bushes, from Silvan gardenias to Aequor's tropical coral bushes, which were certainly difficult to maintain in this climate. Butterflies fluttered to and fro, alighting on flower buds. As Naomi rounded a corner, she spotted the large fountain that graced the center of the green paradise. The fountain might have been of grandiose marble, but what really caught her eye was the boy sitting on the edge of it.

Malcolm leaned up against the structure, and in his hand, he fiddled with creating his addition to the garden. Between the intricate movements of his skilled fingers, a vine began to grow, hovering above his palm. Several other vines grew around it, intertwining into a bigger stalk. As he went on with his artwork, leaves began to take shape, and a single daisy grew from out of one of the vines. It was enchanting to watch him work, and Naomi didn't want to interrupt. Still, she was curious to see how he was after his father's admonishment.

"Hi." She walked toward him carefully. He briefly looked up, then turned away, still tweaking his creation.

"What is it, Naomi? If you want to go back to school, get Figgis. He'll—"

"This isn't about Figgis or the school. I wanted to see you—check on you, I mean."

Malcolm gave a disdainful sniff as Naomi sat down on the fountain next to him. She couldn't see his face, but it didn't matter. In the water's reflection, she saw the redness in his eyes.

"I'm sure he didn't mean it."

"Oh, trust me. He always means it."

The reason unbeknownst to her, Naomi placed her hand on his knee. An attempt at a comforting gesture, perhaps.

"It doesn't matter what he says or thinks. You have to believe in yourself. That you'll become a great king on your own."

"Are you serious?" Malcolm finally faced her.

"Y-yes?"

"Naomi, you can't stand me. You fight me at every turn, but you tell me this. If there was one thing I admired about you, it was your integrity. Don't start lying now."

"Okay, you're right. But just because we don't get along—"

"And whose fault is that?" Malcolm raised his hands helplessly, causing his vines to fall on the ground.

"Are you insinuating it's mine?" Naomi gawked in horror.

"Naomi, you were out for blood the second you got in that car." Malcolm hissed.

"What car?" she snapped back.

"When we first rode to Legacy together. I wanted to talk, to apologize, to try and...but it didn't matter. Because you already hated me. Do you think I wanted that?" Malcolm got up as if to storm off, but Naomi halted his progress. Sure, she'd been a bit harsh then but still!

"Everything I said then was true. Because of you, my whole life changed. My whole life now revolves around yours!"

"And do you think that's fun for me? Do you seriously believe I get joy out of seeing you every day, knowing I screwed you over?" Malcolm shouted, his face starting to turn red with heightened emotion. Naomi felt her cheeks flushing in anger.

"I honestly don't know! Because you've never acknowledged that you did."

"Why should I? So I can get more looks of disgust from you?"