Free Feros and the Underworld Prince by A.L. Bridges Page A

me out of my peripheral. She is pretty cute, slim with African and Asian features, but I can’t figure out why she is staring at me. Maybe she recognizes me from the frat party that I pretty much crashed… I really hope not; that isn’t the impression I want to make on my first day. Or maybe she is just staring at the ton of bandages that are wrapped around my left arm…
    Class ends and I decide to head to the library to try and kill the two hours I have before my next class starts.
    ‘ Hayden Library has really interesting architecture to it; it looks like it’s made of sandstone with an almost Aztecan feel to it,’ I decide as I walk through the grass covered courtyard towards the library.
    “ COLE!” I hear someone shout so I turn around. The girl from my organic chemistry class, who I now see is about 5’8”, is walking toward me.
    “ I knew that was you when you walked in to class! How are you even here? Are you a ghost!? Or were you on some sort of secret assignment that required you to fake your death and deceive Rei?” the girl asks. Her voice sounds familiar as she talks, but I can’t quite place it until she says Rei. This is Katie, Cheza’s friend and kind of her supernatural confidant after I saved Katie’s life at Cheza’s graduation party.
    “ I guess Cheza didn’t tell you that I came back huh? Let’s grab some coffee and I’ll tell you all about it, Katie.” I tell her.
    “ Alright, but I’m surprised that you know who I am haha!” Katie says cheerfully.
    “ Yeah, Cheza has told me about you and it just clicked when I heard you call her Rei.” I explain.
    In actuality, Cheza hadn’t said anything about Katie, but I wasn’t about to say that I’ve overheard the two of them talking over the phone on multiple occasions because of my extrasensory hearing. We grab iced coffee at a nearby café and sit outside.
    “ So how are you here? I know you died protecting Rei, I spent a lot of time with her trying to help her through it, but I also know that a body was never recovered. So why did you fake your death?” Katie inquires.
    “ I didn’t. I died in a massive explosion and spent the last six months in the Underworld with amnesia; I’m not sure about the other nine months. I came back just yesterday.” I explain truthfully because Katie already knows about the supernatural so it would be too difficult to come up with a convincing lie.
    “ Wow… what was the Underworld like?” Katie asks in amazement.
    “ A very grey city, but the sky had colors, which made it slightly less depressing than Seattle.” I joke and she laughs.
    “ Haha… I can’t believe that Rei didn’t say anything; I mean, we live in the same house and I saw her this morning!” Katie exclaims looking slightly peeved.
    “ Yeah, that is a little strange.” I reply and then my hearing picks up a conversation.
    “ Cheza, do you want to get something to eat?” A man asks.
    “ No thanks Jarrett, I’m not hungry.” Cheza replies as I see her walking across the courtyard next to a tall white guy with black hair.
    “ Cole? What’s wrong?” I hear Katie ask from far away as a memory is replayed in my head.
    “ No… you’re just the only one that gets to call me Cheza.”
    “ I-I-I have to go.” I stammer as I scramble out of my seat, spilling my iced coffee all over myself as I rush to be anywhere that isn’t here.
    “ Come on Cheza; you need to eat and I doubt you’ve had breakfast either.” Jarrett says.
    “ Airi, drown it out! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DROWN IT OUT!”
    Suddenly, soothing jazz music starts playing in my head and I feel myself start to calm down as I pass a bench and take a seat. A minute later, Katie comes around the corner while holding my backpack, which I had neglected to grab in my panic.
    “ Come on, the house isn’t far and that coffee will stain if you do nothing about it.” Katie says bluntly.
    I look down and see that there is coffee all over my grey t-shirt, bandaged arm