"And you didn't want to be the queen," I said. "I kinda figured that part out. I mean, in hindsight and all."
"I don't." She quickly licked her lips. "I only did it because he had you. I'd hoped..." She swallowed quickly. "Rain, I'd hoped that by claiming the crown, I'd have the authority to make him stop, but it didn't work!"
"Instead, you kicked his ass," I reminded her. "You, Aspen, called down magic like I've never seen before."
"I tried to do the kind you use."
"But see?" I said. "Winter, Wild, Summer? The six of us are evenly split. Sure, we're a mess of who goes where, but none ofuscare. We're doing this differently, Aspen, so let's be proud of that? Let's stop hiding it all - "
"I can't," she broke in.
"Why not?"
"They will kill me." She pulled away so she could sit up. "Rain, that's the thing. Some people here want to remove all Winter magic. Half the Summer students think they can suck up to the Mad Queen somehow. That means they hate me too. There aren't that many Winter users, and - "
"And the Prince of Summer is on our side," I reminded her. "Me, Jack, Shadow, Keir, Hawke..." I sat up to match her. "My dads, Aspen. Hell, even Ms. Rhodes will help us."
"But we're not supposed to be doing any of this yet. We're just kids!"
"You and Torian are eighteen now," I reminded her. "I only have a bit over a month. We're not kids."
"We are to the fae."
"So then we make the adults help us," I insisted. "We all know this isn't going to go away. I also think being on the defensive is the worst thing possible. It givesthemthe power. It makes us react instead of being proactive. More than all of that, if we're hiding this stuff, then doesn't it look like we're ashamed of it?"
"Or," she offered, "like it's none of their business?"
"I like that," I agreed. "Be royal, Aspen. Be very, very royal, and I will love you no matter what, ok?"
"I'm trying," she mumbled.
So I reached over and caught her chin, making her look at me. "I love you, Aspen Fox. Not Her Highness, the Queen of Winter. I also couldn't remember your real name if my life depended on it, so I can't let it slip. That means none of this matters."
"Then what does?" she asked.
I cupped the side of her face. "That the manic pixie dream girl offered me sugar and a place to belong. That she's the mostbeautiful girl I've ever seen in my life. That she said she loves me, and that makes me willing to fight for her."
"For?" she asked.
I nodded. "Yeah. For. No matter what, Aspen, I will always help you. The way I see it, I owe you for this."
"Which this?" she asked.
"My happiness."
She leaned in, pausing with our mouths only a breath apart. "But you paid that back by makingmehappy."
"Too bad," I whispered. "I still owe you. You might owe me too, but this time one thing does not cancel out the other."
"No," she agreed. "It makes both stronger." And then her lips finally found mine.
Chapter Two
RAIN
Yep, I was late the next morning. My alarm went off and I hit snooze - a lot. In her suite, Aspen's alarm began to chirp, but while lying beside me she flicked a hand, silencing it. It was only when Jack began to rattle and caw that we had to finally wake up - and then we only had fifteen minutes to get dressed!
Thankfully, I'd planned ahead, so I made it. Aspen was a split-second faster than me, yet when we stepped into the hall, the line for the elevator was already much too long. Without sharing a word, we aimed for the stairs. On my shoulder, Jack was chattering like he was also annoyed at the early hour.
