The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy
Chapter 0458

I sit for a moment, my hand in Luca's, considering my options.

Part of me wants to push back - to just tell my parents to spend the money for me as they've always done. But still another part accepts that what they're saying is right - that I've been insisting for months now that I'm not a little girl and that I should be able to make my own choices. Plus, part of me wonders...well, whether anything can be done for the people of Jackson's world, those in the Community who are suffering, or perhaps who have escaped like he has? If something can be done, and I can help it with these resources...I'll want to do that. "Okay," I say softly, and I raise my eyes to meet my parents. Dad works hard to keep his expression stern but mom gives in, beaming at me. "And...I can take a few days? To talk to Luca, and to...make some decisions together about how it should be spent?" "Yes, love," mom says, leaning forward to give my arm a fond squeeze. "We'll set up a video call for a few days from now and you can tell us what you've decided. We'll go from there."

Things move quickly after that, with my parents assuring me that they'll make some preparations on their end while Luca and I talk. And then my parents give me hugs and kisses goodbye, my mom squeezing me tight for a long moment and whispering to me to take care of myself because I'm very precious to her. I press my face to her shoulder in that moment, taking a long sniff of her scent, memorizing it. By the time she passes me on to my dad and moves to hug Luca I'm very nearly in tears, because I love them both so much - and they're so good to me - and I'm a little overwhelmed about all of this money - and I'm going to miss them -

"Ariel," my dad laughs, wrapping me up into a hug of his own. "Come on, little girl, pull yourself together - you're a Cadet, after all."

"Cadets can cry too," I mutter, burying my face in his suit jacket and getting a few tears on it.

"Apparently so," dad murmurs, dropping a kiss to my hair. "Sweet girl. I love you so much, Ariel. Keep your chin up, darling, and don't let these boys boss you around more than they ought. Don't forget that even though you look just like your mother you've got a great deal of me in your heart. Which means they should all be terrified."

I laugh and smile at my dad, loving him terribly, and then I take a deep breath and move back to Luca's side as he shakes my dad's hand, looking quite serious and I think feeling better about his position with my parents. As we leave, I can tell that things are indeed better, starting to be repaired - even if the three of them have a long way to go.

Luca drops my hand out of necessity as we step out of the door and it swings shut behind us, but I stay close by his side as we start down the hall.

"Thank you," Luca says softly, smiling down at me as we hurry off to breakfast. "For believing in the gym - for wanting to support it. It...I think it helps a lot of kids, Ariel. Does a lot of good in a small part of our world."

"I genuinely believe in it, Luc," I say, smiling at him and bumping my shoulder into him as we go. "I'm not just sending the money because I have a crush on you."

He laughs, his head tilting back a little as he slips an arm around my shoulders. "Yeah, but it doesn't hurt that I'm so pretty, does it?" he asks, grinning.

"Nooo it does not," I say on a happy sigh. We walk quickly towards the hall where breakfast is served, but Luca goes suspiciously silent. "What?" I ask, glancing up at him. "What's wrong?"

He frowns at me, clearly deciding whether or not to ask. But I roll my eyes at him and give him a sharp nudge down the bond that makes him grin and then speak. "How do you...know that Tony guy, Ariel?" he asks. "And what's all of this talk about...magic?" I grimace a bit, realizing that we're on shaky ground as I've promised people - Jackson, specifically - to keep their secrets.

"Let me talk to the others," I say quietly, my expression pleading. "I'm...not sure how much I can say."

"So...there's some great secret amongst the rest of you that I don't know?"

"I mean, you know I'm magic, right?" I say, raising my eyebrows at him. "That I can like...melt glass?"

His eyes go a bit wide as his steps stumble. "Wait, you did that?" he says, staring at me. "That day in your bed, with the marble? H-how?"