Iridescent

26| Was It True?

Jaxton held the cup of green tea in his hands, his thoughts a million miles away from where we were. I grabbed a thin throw and draped it gently on his shoulders. Jaxton seemed to wake up when I did this, he grabbed the edge of the throw and looked at me with rounded eyes. 

"It's called a Comfort Blanket," I explained with a grin. "Apparently, it'll make you feel better."

He gave a gentle tug and adjusted the throw on his shoulders, "It actually... does feel nice."

"Of course," I said proudly, sipping on my drink. "I better go tell Vel that we've got everything sorted."

When I got up, Jaxton did too, grabbing my arm and stopping me. "I only know a little bit about what's going on with Vel, but... I want to thank you for everything you've done for her."

I gave a nod, patted him playfully on the shoulder before I turned. 

"I'll come with you."

"No," I stopped him, grabbed him by the shoulder and pushed him down on the couch. "Nuh-uh. You sit right here and rest up. I'll open every single light I have in this room for you. Sound cool?"

Jaxton opened his mouth to retort but I simply gave a wave and walked out of my dorm to see Vel. 

Vel and I had a brief discussion on how we were going to explain this to Jaxton, but there was no other way, really. It had to be the whole truth. It wasn't fair anymore to keep Jaxton in the dark anymore and... it was also time for my judgement. Will Jaxton forgive me for lying to him?

When we returned to the dorm, my chest was tight and I had to force my breathing to stay even. 

"Um..."

I glanced at Vel then back at Jaxton, who was now asleep on the couch. I let out a sigh of relief. 

"Well..." Vel rubbed her head. "Guess no explaining tonight then."

Jaxton's head began to slip from the couch and with an abrupt jolt, he woke, eyes in a daze. They focused on the two figures standing by the door.

"Oh," he rubbed his cheeks, "you two are back."

"Should we do this tomorrow?" Vel said, rather too excitingly, but from Jaxton's look, we knew we couldn't keep avoiding it. 

"Should I be glad I'm sitting?" Jaxton joked, a tired smile on his face.

"If you happen to faint, I'll catch you, don't worry," I teased and sat on the bed while Vel grabbed a chair and sat between the two of us. 

"Alright..." Vel gave me a look and I nodded encouragingly. Vel put on a brave face and shifted her focus to Jaxton. As for me, I took the chance to grab a cushion, so I could hide the fact that I was even more nervous than Vel. 

What would he think of me after all this? 

"So, these three people we murdered," Vel cleared her throat, "they were threatening me with your life."

Jaxton's widened eyes landed on me, and I wanted to shrink. I only told Jaxton that Vel was in some tiny, personal trouble, but nothing else. 

"What?!" He exclaimed, shocked. 

"A-and with Robin's life."

When Jaxton heard this, I saw every single feature on his face come alert. "Do they know where Robin is?"

"I can't be sure. But they forced me to come to this school so they can watch me. They're watching you too, but shadowsmen have the night's cover, so it's easy to slip away."