Chapter 4
My face went ghost white and my legs gave out under me. I collapsed on the ground, rolling frantically to the side to dodge the skateboard.
My arms and knees scraped hard against the rough pavement, skin tearing open at once as blood streamed down. The searing pain made me cry out, tears spilling uncontrollably.
Larissa only arched a brow, her smile half-mocking. "Sorry, Raeyon, I'm still not that good at it. Guess I hurt you."
Wesley didn't even spare me a glance. He rushed straight to steady Larissa, his voice soft and soothing. "She's tough, don't let this scare you."
Just as despair weighed me down, a pair of hands reached for me, pulling me back up. In his palm lay a fortune stick.
It was the very same fortune I'd drawn on Mount Cloudie, the best one.
"If you can't even handle a skateboard, maybe don't embarrass yourself out here," the man said, his voice carrying both teasing and contempt.
When I saw his face, I froze. He was Alaric Flame.
His eyes held that familiar, enchanting warmth, and for a moment I felt bewitched as I placed my hand in him without thinking.
Wesley and Byron stiffened in shock.
Then Wesley barked, "Who the hell are you? Watch your mouth. Do you even know where you're standing? How dare you cause trouble here?"
Larissa sneered. "Doesn't Raeyon already have a fiancé? What's she doing being so close with some random guy? That's not a good look."
Byron finally noticed our joined hands. His words were bitter, edged with jealousy. "You're the Aviir family's daughter. Stop hanging around trash like him."
Wesley let out a cold laugh. "Looks like I've been too lenient with you since our parents died. You think you can sneak around with some lowlife behind our backs?"
Their accusations came one after another, as if blaming me was the only thing that gave them satisfaction.
Larissa joined in too, feeding off the chance to put me down.
Before, I would have swallowed the pain and found a corner to cry in alone.
But today, before I could say a word, Alaric stepped in.
"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is you hurt her. Apologize," Alaric said.
His tone was calm, yet it carried the weight of someone who knew he had the upper hand.
Wesley and Byron had never been dismissed like that before. Fury twisted their faces.
At once, a group of Aviir bodyguards closed in on Alaric, everyone waiting to see him beg for mercy or break down in fear.
Larissa tilted her chin and said smugly, "We never bully people, but someone like you should understand what class difference means. You'd better be careful how you act in the future."
I bit down hard, stepping in front of Alaric. He was still recovering from illness, and I couldn't let him get hurt.
Seeing that, Larissa spat, "Raeyon, you've got no taste at all. You'd rather run with him than take the Flame family's heir?
"Sure, Mr. Flame might be a half-dead man, but at least he's filthy rich. You'd spend your life as a widow, but hey, no worries about food or clothes. I'd kill for that."
"Half-dead? Did you really just use those words for Alaric?" Alaric's smile didn't reach his eyes.
Larissa replied, "Oh please, I was talking about Raeyon's fiancé. Why are you the one getting worked up? If Alaric wasn't a cripple, would Raeyon even look at you? The two of you are disgusting."
It was only the second time I'd ever met Alaric, clean and proper, and yet in her mouth we'd already been twisted into something dirty.
Wesley and Byron didn't speak up for me. Instead, they nodded in agreement.
Wesley said, "Larissa knows her place. Compared to her, some people don't even act like the real daughter of the Aviir family."
Hearing that, I lowered my gaze and let out a long breath.