First Time's a Charm Read online

  "Alright, fine, I'll go to the party with you tomorrow."

  "You make it sound like such a chore," he teases.

  "Spending time with you isn't," I murmur as I watch him play with Rhubarb again.

  I look around for Ginger, hoping the other kitten is alright. I find her sleeping on the cushion Caspian brought with him.

  "I'm thinking about Ginger as a girl," I admit to him, changing the subject completely.

  "Probably because she is one," he points out. "When they're a bit bigger, you might want to keep an eye on them or you may end up with kittens that you didn't conjure magically."

  I grimace. That sounds messy and not at all like something I want to deal with.

  He leans back, his hand brushing against my knee and sending tingles through me. I need to be careful tomorrow night or I'm going to end up falling hard and fast for this guy, even if I do still have a crush on Ryan.

  "Who else will be at the party?" I ask.

  He shrugs. "I'm new here, I don't even know many people's names. I only get invited because I'm new and people want to suss me out." He doesn't seem as bothered as I'd be in his situation.

  "Do you move around often?"

  "How did you know?" There's no confrontation in his voice. He seems like a very even-tempered guy, something I can appreciate under any and all circumstances.

  "Just a guess from the way you're talking. If you don't want to tell me, it's fine, I just thought..."

  "I can't expect to get to know you if I don't let you get to know me too." He smiles at me, driving home that there are no hard feelings about the subject. "But yes. Dad's in the military. We moved every few years. I know I'm lucky to be in an age where I can just text the friends I left behind, but..." he trails off and looks away.

  Feeling brave, I place my hand on one of his knees and squeeze lightly. "Just cause you theoretically know something is true, it doesn't stop you still feel the pain," I point out.

  "Did you move about too?"

  I shake my head. "I never really had any close friends until I came here though. I'm not sure why. Maybe I just didn't feel settled enough."

  "But Grimalkin is different?"

  I look at him, trying to work out what my true answer really is. "Yes. I think Grimalkin is going to be the kind of place I can finally find people to call my own."

  And I hope he's one of them.

  Chapter Eight

  "Do you think this is okay for a party?" I ask the kittens, smoothing down the black skater skirt of my dress. Its nothing fancy, but I think it makes me look good, and that's all that matters really. If Caspian is going to go to all the trouble of actually taking me to a party, then I'm going to make sure I look good on his arm.

  All the kittens do is make little meowing sounds. I should have known they're no good when it comes to fashion advice. At least they know how to look cute.

  The knock I'm expecting cuts me off before I can double guess my clothing choices. It's just as well. If left to my own devices, there's a chance I'll just keep changing outfits all night and never actually get to the party.

  "Come in," I call.

  The door opens slowly, no doubt to give me chance to tell him no before he actually gets here.

  "You look beautiful," Caspian says the moment it's fully open.

  "Thank you." I shift from side to side, not knowing what else to do with the compliment.

  "Can I come in and say hello to the kittens?" he asks.

  "Of course, sorry. Can I get you anything? A drink?" A kiss? I don't say the last one aloud, but I'm wondering if that's what he expects from tonight. So far, he's been a little too good to be true. But then, he might be a genuine guy who I'm suspicious of for no reason.

  "I'm okay, thank you." He strides into the room and towards my bed where the two kittens are currently perched. "No new kitten today?" he asks as he scratches Ginger's head.

  "There's still time," I mutter under my breath. "I haven't tried to use my wand today," I admit louder.

  I still go for it just as often as I used to. It's a hard habit to break when magic is the answer for everything, but I know I can't risk doing too much magic. Having two kittens is going to be challenging enough, I don't need more of them cluttering up the place.

  "Are you ready to go?"

  I nod, not wanting to say anything aloud in case my nerves get the better of me and I blurt out that I'm nervous as hell and don't really want to go at all. That's not the best way to repay his kindness. Especially when Ginger and Rhubarb are loving his gifts.

  "Perfect. Do you have a jacket?"

  Relaxing slightly, I let out a laugh. "Clearly you've never dated a Northern girl before. We don't need jackets." I leave the room, hoping he'll catch up. And that I have everything. Other than my phone, some money and my keys, I don't need anything anyway.

  "So this is a date?"

  Oops. "Isn't it?"

  "I wasn't going to call it that, but mostly because I don't want to freak you out."

  "Yes, I like that option. Let's use that one," I say hastily.

  "Even though you already used the d-word?" He chuckles lightly.

  "We're going to pretend I didn't, and both go through with tonight pretending that we don't know the other one thinks it's a date," I inform him as I lock my bedroom door. Thankfully, the kittens seem to be the well behaved sort and haven't ruined anything so far. Leaving them alone doesn't seem too risky all things considered.

  "Your wish is my command." He holds the door open for me to slip through.

  "Thank you."

  We chat away on our way down the halls, mostly about nothing in particular. The weather mostly. I think. It's hard to tell because I'm so lost in the haze of having someone like Caspian next to me. I'm still not too sure why he actually wants to spend his time with me, but I suppose it will become apparent in time. At least, I hope it will.

  Just like with Caspian's party, I can hear the music long before we arrive at the flat hosting it. I've never felt so relieved to have a quiet group of girls sharing my living space. Even now I seem to have progressed to going to parties, I like peace and quiet far too much to want to have to listen to it.

  "Who's the host again?" I ask.

  "No idea. My flatmate told me about it."

  "And they don't mind that we just show up?" I check for people around us, hoping one of them will have the answer I'm looking for, even if I don't know what that answer is.

  "I think that's just how parties work. People show up, have a good time, no one knows all the people who were there, and that's fine with everyone else."

  "Huh." Never really being a party person, I'll admit to having no idea about any of this.

  "Want me to go get you a drink?" he asks.

  "Do you mind if I just have water for now?" I don't want to peak too early in the night and cut my time with him short.

  "Of course," he promises, already disappearing into the crowd.

  I should have asked Daphne to come. Maybe I can text her now and see if she's about. That way if Caspian gets waylaid, I don't have to be on my own.

  Actually, the more I think about it, the more I think it's a good idea. I pull out my phone and start typing a message to her. Thankfully, there's a flat number on the door that helps me know where I am so I don't have to tell her that I'm at a party but she has to find it herself.

  I pause. Should I ask her specifically not to bring Ryan? He has no idea that I know how he feels, but that doesn't mean I won't feel awkward. Why did Daphne put me in this position? It's bad enough I have a crush on her brother, but she knows about it? That's even worse.

  "Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in?" a familiar voice drawled.

  "I think you'll find I walked," I threw back, enjoying the moment of shock on Ivy's face when she realises I haven't just shrunk away in fear because she said something. Mean girls are the worst sometimes.

  No. Not sometimes. All. The. Time. And the worst part is they never know when to st
op. Or when they're beaten.

  "No one invited you." Ivy puts her hands on her hips, thrusting her cleavage forward.

  "You do realise I'm not male. Those don't work on me." I look pointedly at her boobs, then meet her gaze head on.

  I can see from her face that she's struggling to come up with a retort. No doubt I'm not reacting the way she expects. But honestly? I'm done with how she treats me. Up until the other day, I didn't care. But there was no need for her to get me kicked out of class just because I didn't do a spell quite right.

  "You're trouble," she hisses at me.

  I shrug. "Quite possibly, but right now, there's nothing you can do about it," I point out. "I'd run along, if I were you." I feel like a bitch just saying these things. Seriously, how do people go around constantly being mean all the time? I feel icky and it's only been the past five minutes for me. That's just ridiculous.

  An arm slips around my waist, pulling me close and reassuring me in a way I don't expect. "One water," Caspian whispers in my ear, handing me the plastic cup.

  "Thank you," I respond, a little breathy.

  "Are you normally that savage?" he asks. There's a hint of something I don't like in his voice. It might even be distaste.

  "No. She really got to me the other day in class, and when she came over, I kind of lost my patience. I'm sorry, I'm not normally like that." Shame fills me as I consider how much of a bitch I just was.

  "That's okay. I doubt she's hurt by it," he says, but I can still hear the unease in his tone. He's really not happy with how I was right then. To be honest, neither am I.

  "I..."

  "There she is," Ivy says, re-arriving and pointing a finger at me.

  "What'd you say to my girl?" the big burly man behind her demands.

  Uh oh. She has a magic jock with her. They're even worse than normal jocks. At least, in my experience they are.

  "I told her to leave me alone," I say evenly.

  "That's not what she told me." Everything about the guy in front of us says gym bunny. He verges on being intimidating, he's that big.

  "I paraphrased," I admit. Ignoring him, I turn to Ivy. "I'm sorry I was mean, you caught me at a bad time."

  Her face falls. I don't think that's what she wants from me, but with witnesses around, I don't think she can ignore it.

  "No harm done," she sing-songs. "How about a game?"

  Oh no. I don't like where this is going. Last time I played a game at a party, I made a fool out of myself.

  "Mona, want to play?" There's an evil glint in her eye that I don't want to think about too much.

  "Sure." I don't feel like there's any other response for me to make. I don't want to seem hostile in front of everyone else here and get myself a bad reputation.

  "Great. Let's set up for truth or dare," she announces, to be greeted by a lot of cheers.

  "What have I gotten myself in for?" I mutter.

  "I don't know," Caspian responds. "But I have a bad feeling about it."

  "Me too." The twisting in my gut isn't going away until I'm back in my own bed, but it's too late to think about that now. I just have to play the game and try my damned best not to fall for any of her traps.

  Easier said than done.

  Chapter Nine

  I roll my eyes as two girls I don't know end the kiss they've been dared to share. I don't have a problem with two women kissing normally, only when they're being dared to do it by men. It just doesn't sit right.

  This whole game hasn't sat right though, and I haven't even had my turn yet. Neither has Caspian, who is still sitting quietly to my left waiting for it to come around to us.

  "Caspian, your turn," Ivy announces loudly, standing up and walking around the middle of the circle. She's been getting progressively drunker as the game goes on. Probably because there are more people playing than I expect. It's silly of me to have even entertained the notion that we've grown out of childish games like truth or dare.

  "Dare?"

  "Uh uh," she contradicts. "The last one was a dare, so that means you have to go truth."

  He sighs loudly, probably because he's aware it's more about her wanting to give me a dare than hear a truth from him. "Fine. Truth."

  "Why did you arrive late at Grimalkin?" she demands.

  My eyes widen. Why is she asking him something so private? I get that it's part of the game, but some things should still be off limits, and something like that definitely should.

  "I was travelling." He looks her dead in the eyes as he says it, as if daring her to ask more than that.

  If anyone were to ask me, I'd say it's a waste of a truth to ask something like that. Of course, no one is asking me, so I suppose it doesn't matter.

  Ivy and Caspian face off against one another, and I have to wonder if there's something else going on there. Not that I think Caspian is into her, but maybe she wants him for herself. There's got to be something more to her dislike of me than my lack of magical ability. That's really none of her damn business.

  "Who's next?" her jock boy-toy drawls.

  Ivy finally pulls her eyes away from Caspian. "It's dear little miss Mona's turn now. And I think it's a dare."

  I don't point out that she knows it's a dare because she planned it that way. There's no point. I just have to hope she doesn't ask me to do something magical, though I have no doubt she will. The whole point of this game is to be cruel.

  Not wanting to face this sitting down, I climb to my feet, meeting her mocking gaze. She's not going to get the better of me over a game. "What would you like me to do?" I ask her, trying not to let my nerves be known. I've no doubt she's going to try and get me to do magic. The whole point is to humiliate me. We both know it. So do half the people here.

  Her mouth twists into a calculating grin, and I know what's going to say.

  "Make a feather," she says slowly to a chorus of laughter from her friends.

  My stomach twists into a knot, even if it's exactly what I thought it was going to be, it doesn't mean I'm not nervous.

  "Got it." I take out my wand despite knowing this is a bad idea. But I've already seen one girl do a forfeit, and I have no desire to let Ivy pick something even worse for me to do.

  With a flick of my wand, I think about the way Daphne coated my room in feathers the other day. I don't know if it'll work, but if she wants a feather, I'll give her lots. The familiar zing up my arm gives me reason to hope and I look around, surprised to find that there are feathers everywhere, just like I planned.

  Ivy's face is sour as she wipes away the feather sitting on her nose. "Fine," she mutters.

  The urge to do a sarcastic bow fills me, but I resist. I don't want to look too petty. Instead, I turn back to my seat.

  "Oh, Mona?" The note of gleeful torture is back in the other girl's voice.

  "Yes?" I ask, turning back to face her. Mum always told me to be strong in the face of bullies. Not that I think Ivy is one. She's just a spoiled little mean girl who doesn't like me, I won't give her any more power than that.

  "Don't forget your kitten." She points to the floor where, sure enough, a tiny black kitten with white socks and patch under his neck is picking his way through the feathers.

  I sigh inwardly. At least my magic is doing what I want it to. Kind of. It just happens to come along with some side effects, which is problematic, but a little less so than it had been a week ago. Progress is always good.

  Just like the other two, this kitten has no problem being scooped up and carried around. I may even go as far as thinking the magically created kittens like it.

  I sit back down next to Caspian, trying to ignore the stares and whispers I'm subject to. While the kittens themselves aren't a problem, these are.

  "What are you going to call him?" Caspian asks.

  I shrug. "I was out of cat names with the first one. Do you want to name him?" I hold out the black and white kitten.

  To my surprise, Caspian takes him from me. I didn't think he would, given we're in co
mpany. It's one thing to be okay with this in private, quite another in public.

  "I think he looks like a Felix," he says decidedly.

  I cock my head to the side, looking at the cat. "I think you're right." But that also makes no sense at all. How can a cat look like a name? But Felix fits this little guy.

  A group of girls off to the side is still whispering and giggling, getting louder with every moment.

  "How can she call herself a witch when she's malfunctioning like that?" one of them asks.

  I grit my teeth, knowing it's better if I don't respond at all. It's none of her business what I call myself, or what problems I'm having.

  Caspian rubs a hand on the small of my back, calming me down faster than I expect it to.

  "Thank you," I whisper.

  "You're welcome. Do you want to stick around or would you rather go back to yours?" he asks, keeping his voice low and intimate, but probably mostly so other people can't hear what he's saying.

  "That sounds rather suggestive," I respond, a small giggle escaping at the end of my sentence. Apparently, I'm channelling Daphne right now and am going with innuendo.

  "That's not what I meant," Caspian says quickly. "I promise, I didn't mean anything other than going back and playing with the kittens, maybe have a drink. Chat a little..."

  I place a hand over his, which is quite impressive given he's still holding a kitten. "I know what you meant. And yes, I think I'd like that." It certainly beats staying here. I'm sure Ivy has more plans to humiliate me, and as much as I find the kittens cute, I don't need to do more magic and create another kitten. Three is enough to look after.

  The easy answer is not to bow to peer pressure, I know that. And yet, that's easier said than done. I can pretend I won't give in and do more magic all I want, but deep down, I know I'll cave. More than anything, I like doing magic. And this is a good reason to show off. Except that it's not because my magic isn't working right, but that won't stop me.

  We get up and ready ourselves to leave. People are coming and going despite the big game of truth or dare going on, so I don't think it'll matter too much, especially now the attention is on Ivy's next victim.