Haven Read Online Free PDF Page B

short, my breath catching in my throat. Aidan stood there, leaning against the wall. “You scared me.”
    “Sorry,” he said with a shrug. “Studio A. Above the gym. Come on, I’ll walk you there.”
    “Don’t you have a class or something?” I asked, trying to slow my breathing as he pushed off the wall and fell into step beside me.
    “Nope. I’m free sixth period. Independent study.”
    I could only nod.
    “It’s not far,” he said, his tone conversational. “Back through the courtyard, the one with the fountain, and then two buildings behind the dormitory, just up some stairs.”
    “I’m sure I can find my way,” I mumbled, feeling ridiculous. It wasn’t that I didn’t like being around him—in fact, the opposite was true. It was just that I knew that the more time I spent with him, the more likely I was to embarrass myself. As it was, I could barely form coherent sentences.
    “I don’t mind walking you,” he said with a smile.
    The afternoon sun was hidden by thick, gray clouds. The breeze blew some leaves across our path, and I shivered.
    “You look cold,” Aidan said, his brows drawn together.
    “I
am
cold.” I rubbed my arms. Maybe I was coming down with something—maybe that was why I felt so funny.
    “Here.”
    Before I knew it, Aidan had taken off his striped scarf and was wrapping it around my neck. “I can’t have you dying of hypothermia before I’ve had the chance to catch you up on your coursework.” His mouth curved into a smile, and my heart did a little flip-flop.
    Without thinking, I pulled the scarf up over my nose and inhaled. Immediately the sidewalk began to swim before my eyes.
    Aidan reached out to steady me, his hand grasping my wrist. I took a deep breath as his face swam back into focus. “You really don’t look well,” he said.
    I shook my head, trying to clear it. I didn’t know what was wrong, but I was totally and completely losing it. “I’m fine,” I lied. “I haven’t eaten much today, that’s all. God, your hand is cold.”
    He snatched it away and headed toward a steep staircase. “C’mon, this is a shortcut.”
    With a nod, I followed him up, trying my best to stayfocused, to put one foot in front of the other. Finally we reached the top, and I paused to catch my breath. Aidan waited patiently, watching me. I took two deep, calming breaths—and then it happened, like it had so many times in the past.
    My vision darkened, tunneled, and I sank to my knees with a groan. Squeezing my eyes shut, I fought to block the vision, but it came anyway, flashing across my mind’s eye like a sped-up movie.
    It was dark, nighttime, and I was walking down a mostly deserted street. I knew it was New York City, though the street was unfamiliar, more seedy than Patsy’s Upper East Side neighborhood. Dark, swirling fog obscured the sidewalk as I hurried on, in pursuit of someone. Something. A flash of movement to my right caught my eye and I sped off in that direction, seemingly unaware of any danger. A flyer on a post, HOW TO WRITE A NOVEL IN A WEEK spelled out in black type. Up ahead, I saw a figure materialize in the fog, a shadow in black. “Aidan!” I cried out, my hands cupped around my mouth.
    Aidan?
And then the vision ended, just like that. No more than a couple of seconds had passed, and I hoped it just looked like I had stumbled.
    Aidan was beside me in a flash, reaching for my hands and helping me to my feet. “What happened?”
    “Nothing, I . . . I tripped is all.” My entire body felt flushedas I swayed against him. Damn it, I hated this.
Hated it.
Why couldn’t I be normal? Here it was, my first day at a new school, in a new
state,
for God’s sake, and everyone would see right off the bat what it had taken years for my friends at home to notice.
    He shook his head. “You didn’t trip. I don’t know what it was, but you called out my name.”
    “No, I didn’t.” Did I?
No.
No, I hadn’t said a word. I heard myself call out his name in