Hudson remained quiet for a moment before saying, “Of course, Sophie. That’s what friends are for.”
“Tell Willa and Gracie thank you for everything you guys have done today. Just let them know I’m not feeling well, please.”
“I will.”
“Thank you.” Hudson smiled at me and squeezed my shoulder. He started to say something before he went out the door but then shook his head and waved. Once he was gone, I pulled myself off the couch, flipped my shoes off and crawled into bed still in my uniform. Just before I drifted off to sleep, I realized I hadn’t even eaten a piece of my birthday cake.
Chapter Six
My dragon wanted out. I fought all night to stay in bed and get some sleep. It was no use. When morning rolled around, the desire to shift into my dragon form and fly away from everything was even stronger. I wanted to listen to her. Nothing sounded better right then than jumping into the sky and never coming back down. She liked that. Her purring rattled in my chest. I fought her back and somehow managed to get out of bed and ready for the day.
Willa was sitting at the table reading a letter when I finally emerged. She jumped as I grabbed a piece of my birthday cake to eat for breakfast.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” I told her.
“Oh, it’s ok, I was just reading this letter from my mom,” she responded quietly.
“How is she?” Willa didn’t talk much about her mom or her family. I tried not to pry too much.
“She’s getting by.” I waited for a moment, but Willa didn’t say anything else.
“Want to eat some birthday cake for breakfast?” I offered.
“Sure.” Willa folded the letter and put it in her bag as I cut us both huge pieces of cake.
We met up with Hudson and Gracie on the way to shifting class.
“You feeling better?” Hudson asked.
“Yeah, a little.”
“Were you missing Simon?” Gracie asked. “I bet it’s hard. This was your first birthday without him, wasn’t it? We didn’t even think about that! None of us have twins.”
“Yeah, I just have a couple of half siblings,” Hudson said. “But they don’t really count. I’m actually happy I wasn’t around them on my birthday.” I looked over my shoulder at him and he just shrugged.
“It’s the truth. I don’t even know what it’s like to enjoy being around my siblings.”
“Hey, Sophie,” I jumped as someone walking in the opposite direction called my name. I waved awkwardly at the person who I thought was maybe in my history class? I was pretty sure we had never spoken before. As we continued walking to class, more people called my name or waved or wished me a good morning.
“This is getting weird,” I muttered as a guy I was positive I had never seen before held up a hand for a high five as I passed him.
“Word gets around quick,” Gracie said. “Everyone knows you’re a dragon now. Hudson and I had four people we don’t know sit at the same table as us this morning at breakfast. They were disappointed when you never showed.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Of course you do,” Willa insisted. “You’re a dragon shifter. Heir apparent to your father and guaranteed a seat on the Council when he steps down. Everyone wants to be your friend now.”
I didn’t know what to say. With all the craziness, the idea that I would one day take my father’s place at the center of the supernatural world hadn’t even occurred to me.
“Nah,” I said. “Politics have never interested me. I doubt I’ll be applying for the Council anytime soon.”
“You may not have a choice,” Hudson pointed out. I didn’t have time to respond to his ridiculous statement as Professor Atkins entered the gym to start class.
The rest of the day was uneventful except for the twitch I developed from all the people approaching me to say hi. At dinner I started glaring at anyone who came too close to our table. I decided my dragon was letting some fire show through in my gaze because people finally started avoiding our table.
“Tell me this is not how every day is going to go?” I moaned, putting my forehead down on the table in front of me.
“Are you going to finish that?” Gracie asked, pointing to my tray of chicken nuggets and French fries that I had barely touched.
“No, go ahead,” I told her. She grinned and pulled the tray toward her.
“Well, you’re the dragon now,” Willa said. “That comes with a certain notoriety. Everyone knows who your father is. The dragon shifters have been at the center of the supernatural world throughout history. It’s a big deal.”
I lifted my head just enough to glare at my roommate. “Not you, too. You sound just like my dad.” A thought occurred to me and I sat up.
“You guys don’t think any differently of me because I’m a dragon shifter, right? It really doesn’t matter, does it?”
Gracie and Willa shared a look, but it was Hudson who answered. “Of course not,” he said firmly, starting at Gracie and Willa across the table. “You’re still Sophie. You’re still our friend. That’s all that matters.”
Something was weird, but I couldn’t tell what. Before I had time to ask, a voice behind me caught my attention.
“Hey, Sophie,” I whirled around to glare at the newest random person to bother me and my friends and saw the person standing beside our table was Drew.
“Oh, hi,” I said. I sat back in my seat and ran and hand through my hair.
“Nice work in class today, keep it up and you’ll have to get a better partner.”
“Thanks, but I doubt I’ll be as good as you for a long time.”
He chuckled, a deep rumble in his chest. “I think you’ll surprise yourself before long. I’ll
