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The food that we ordered comes just after seven. I'm in my room watching Netflix when Honey knocks on the door and announces that dinner is ready.

When I come out to the living room, I find that the girls have set the coffee table like a dining table, with place settings and napkins. They've turned on fairy lights and there is a movie on pause on the big flatscreen.

"You survived your first day!' Honey says with a grin. "We thought we'd have a celebration dinner of sorts."

"This is amazing, girls," I tell them. "Thank you." I sit down in front of the plate that has my dinner already served onto it. "Honestly, thank you for this."

"Thank you for completing our dorm," Esme says. "We're so happy that you're here."

"Definitely," Irene adds and rubs my back. "Now, try those triple-cooked chips and tell me they're not the best thing in existence. Besides blood, of course."

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Honey and I go our separate ways after form time on Tuesday. I have maths first thing. I arrive on time, remembering my way from yesterday. I take my seat and get my things out.

The teacher begins the lesson, instructing us to write the date and title. I can feel eyes on me as I'm writing. I look around, trying to find the source of my discomfort. My red-brown eyes meet gold ones.

Pure gold. Oro.

One of The Four is looking right at me. He's laid back in his chair, looking relaxed and confident, but his eyes are locked onto me. I shift uneasily under his intense stare.

I can't seem to look away. It's like I'm being sucked in. I resist the urge to get up and cross the room just to be near to him.

As if realising that he's making me uncomfortable, he blinks and then smiles. His full lips pull back to reveal perfectly straight, white teeth. His incisors are pointed. God knows how long they extend to when he's feeding.

I give him a polite smile in return, and he finally looks away. I let out a shaky breath. It's as though he has just allowed me to breathe again. With the weird moment having passed, I focus back on the lesson. It's an okay topic and I understand it when the teacher has finished explaining it.

The bell goes and Oro is the first out of the classroom, striding out like he owns the place.

I have alchemy next, with Salvador Whitlock. He is already in the classroom when I enter. He pats the spare seat next to him and I go over.

"Having a good day, Emmie?" He asks me as I get my things out.

I shrug. "Pretty average. What about you?"

He pulls a face. "I skipped first period, so it's alright."

"You skipped a class?"

"Yep. Perks of being a Whitlock."

"What about your future?" I ask him and then immediately regret it.

His eyes darken and I feel like the world's worst friend.

"I'm sorry, Salvador," I apologise quickly.

He brushes me off. "It's cool. Whatever. Anyway, just be grateful I decided to come to this stupid class and keep you company."

A shadow falls over our table.

"I'm sure Emery would have managed to find someone to keep her company," a deep, gruff voice drawls. "Someone better, no doubt."

I look up to see a beautiful guy standing in front of our table. I have to lean back to meet his eyes. I thought Salvador was tall, but like Malvolio, this guy is really tall.

Again, he looks more like a man than a student. His uniform, although messy, is tight on him, showing off his impressive physique. He has ochre-brown skin, hinting at an Iberian heritage.

His face is unbearably handsome. There is a slight stubble on his beautiful jaw. His eyes are a shade of dark jade, like an evergreen forest. His hair is chocolate brown, tousled on top and short on the sides.

I don't need to be told that he's one of The Four. The vibe he is giving off tells me already.

"Emery, meet Esteban," Salvador comments with disinterest.

From the way Esteban looks at Salvador, I get the feeling that he doesn't dislike him.

Perhaps they're friends?

I know that he insulted him, but there seems to be some kind of mutual respect between them. Esteban smiles at me and my heart falters in my chest. I suck in a quick breath to recover from the palpitation.

"Hi," I reply lamely.

His smiles widens. "Hello."

"Esteban, please take a seat so that I can start my class." The teacher shouts from the front of the classroom. Esteban scowls, turns and takes a seat on the other side of the room.

I feel like I can breathe properly again as he moves away. I can see why everyone looks up to The Four. They have this presence that commands authority and dominates a room.

The teacher starts the lesson, and we begin making notes from the board. I can feel Esteban looking over at us throughout. I keep my eyes forward, not letting myself be sucked into those green orbs again.

About halfway through, the teacher brings around a worksheet for us to complete. Sal and I work on it together. We have a laugh, joking about whilst going through the questions. We make quite the team.

Esteban watches us like a hawk. His staring turns to glaring each time Salvador and I burst into laughter. I might have to rethink him liking Salvador, because it really doesn't look like it from the way he's glaring at him.

The class ends when the bell rings. I say bye to Sal and find the girls in the quad.

"I met another one of The Four," I tell the girls as we sit at the picnic table. "Esteban."

"Ooh, he's so hot," Irene says. "He gets into fights a lot. Apparently, he's an Animalius that's bonded to wolves. He gets all territorial like his spirit animal."

Wow. He's bonded to wolves? That's cool.

"He was glaring a lot. Are they friends with Salvador?" I ask.

"Hmm, not that I know of," Honey replies. "I've seen them talking a couple times, I guess."

"Yeah. You'd think they would be friends, especially as their parents are all on the Governors' board."

"Maybe that's why, though, cause they're competing," Esme muses. "Besides, I don't know who The Four are friends with other than themselves. They're so private."

After spending break with the girls, I go to the library for my free period. I don't have it with Salvador this time.

I use the hour to write up my notes from my lessons. I go over the topics we have covered and make sure that I understand them. Luckily, I went over most of these topics in summer, so they're all fairly familiar to me.

Whilst I'm writing out my notes, I feel eyes on me again. When I look up, I meet burning red eyes. They're the colour of freshly spilled blood.

I can't see anything else. The person is standing behind a bookcase. I can only see their eyes through the gap between the books and the shelf. Slightly lower, I can see a thin strip of their shirt.

From what I can make out, they are bulky and extraordinarily tall. I can't seem to look away from their eyes. It's like I'm being drawn in.

Unfortunately, this is an experience I've been having a lot recently. I recognise it immediately. I would bet any money that the guy with the red eyes behind the bookshelves is the final member of The Four.

What is it about those guys?

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PE is the final lesson of the day and spans over two periods. I change in the girls' changing rooms with the girls. We swap our normal uniforms for white t-shirts and burgundy skorts. I tie my short hair up in a bun on top of my head.

We stand in a group in the gymnasium. The teacher gives us the option to either play netball or volleyball. The majority vote for volleyball so we're split up into teams.

We set up the nets and get into position on either side. We play a couple of rounds, practicing volleying the ball back and forth over the net. When it turns to serious competing, I get moved to the front for the sharp hits directly over the net.

For each team that we beat, we get to move up to the next court to compete against the winning team. I get completely involved in the game. I hit the ball when it comes near me, scoring points for our team.

A tingling sensation runs up my spine and I realise that someone is watching me. I look around, trying to spot who it could be. The gymnasium is two storeys high. There is a viewing balcony on the right-hand side, one storey up.

Standing on the observation deck are The Four. All of them have their arms crossed over their chests. Their eyes are locked onto my team. They look as though they're looking right at me.

They're not looking at me, I shouldn't be that vain. They're most likely looking at someone else. 

But who?

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