CHAPTER 91: MISSING HIM

SERAPHINA’S POV

Right into my first day back at school—following the series of events that included being the target of a psychopath, hallucinations, and befriending Artemis just before he's stabbed with a dagger—something feels distinctly absent.

It's as if a sense of warmth, which used to fill the otherwise lifeless hallways of Raven Wood Academy, has evaporated, leaving the opening hours of my day depressingly bleak.

I can't pinpoint the cause, but this void haunts me even as I exit my third class, mere minutes after the bell.

Dragging my feet to my locker, I switch out textbooks, my shoulders drooping more than usual. I'm so absorbed in my thoughts that I don't even notice someone approaching.

When I close my locker and step forward, I mistakenly collide with them, sending their stack of books tumbling to the floor.

"I'm so sorry," I apologize, still not raising my eyes to see their face.

As I bend down to help pick up the fallen books, our hands touch, both reaching for the s