Jealousy - Theodora (Patreon)

She’s not jealous. Most certainly not.

It’s just that she had gotten your text to meet for lunch and it had maybe gotten her hopes up. Theo had ditched her Alchemy homework without a second thought and walked over to the dining hall to look for you.

So, here now, she starts to scan the room for you. You prefer sitting in the back, so she checks there first. Lo and behold, there you sit. With another girl standing next to you, leaning down into your space, her elbows planted on the table.

So maybe she’s lying. Maybe she’s horribly jealous to the point she feels sick with it. All that excitement and hope came crashing down around her poor, pathetic heart and she’s just going to have to deal with it.

What’s the alternative? Running this random girl off? You barley have enough friends as is, there’s no way she could do that to you. Even if the alternative means she has to sit at lunch with you and your new pal, gagging internally each time you flirt.

Theo steps forward, grin in place while she prepares herself to give an Oscar-winning performance. Of course she wants all the details of how you met, and of course she’s totally excited for you. It’s her role, and if you want her to play the part then she will.

Then you flinch. It’s a small jerk backward, a slight flutter to your eyes that speaks of fear. The sight of it makes Theo feel hellfire burn through her veins.

Her steps quicken, and she doesn’t give a shit about the wide-eyed stares sent her way as she storms to the back corner of the cafeteria.

She catches the tail end of whatever shit this asshole is spewing.

“I mean, really, can you afford to be this picky?” The girl says, leaning into your space even as you shrink back with a stricken look, “I can make things very difficult for you, you know. I think it’d be easier to just give in…”

The girl gets closer to you, and closer, her hand grasping your shoulder. Theo sees her palms burn with magic and feels like doing something stupid.

So she does.

She grabs the jerk by her shoulder, roughly spinning her around. She stares at Theo, seemingly in shock from the interruption, but the cambion doesn’t give her any opportunities to recover.

Theo’s fist collides with her face in seconds. A satisfying smack comes from skin hitting skin, a crack from her knuckles smashing this asswipe’s nose.

The girl stumbles back, stunned, her nose sluggishly dripping blood. Theo reels her back in with a fistful of hair, leaning close and sneering.

“You have ten seconds to get the fuck out,” Theo hisses quietly, her fangs becoming bulky in her mouth as her rage grows, “And if I ever catch you around either of us again, I swear it’ll be more than a punch.”

She bares her teeth, her wicked sharp canines on display. She’s sure her eyes are pitch black at this point, too. Cambions quickly loose most traces of their humanity when mad, and Theo is beyond pissed.

The coward doesn’t even stutter out an excuse, merely tucking tail and running as soon as Theo releases her. The cambion then casts a dark look around at all the students staring.

Their gazes are quickly averted.

Swallowing, she tries to get a hold on that bitter ire that lingers in her throat. It feels impossible until a hand wraps around her bicep carefully. When she turns, you’re there with your soft eyes and a slight smirk.

“Fangs away, guard dog.” You say quietly.

The fire and fury flee her in an instant.

Theo raises an eyebrow and a grin tugs at her lips once more, “Woof.”

You laugh slightly despite yourself but sober quickly when you glance around and wince.

“Can we just go?” You whisper, “I don’t want to be here anymore.”

“We can order pizza in,” Theo suggests immediately, “I’ll even let you choose the toppings.”

“Sold.” You say, grabbing your bag and books from the table, “In return, I’ll let you choose the place.”

“Ohh, decisions, decisions.” She says as you make for the exit.

All eyes are on the two of you. She notices the way you tense, your lips pursing. Her wings flutter slightly, blocking their gazes. You shift closer, your eyes stuck on the floor, but your hand grazes hers.

She links your pinkies together, shooting you a wink.

“As far as guard dogs go, I’m a pretty good one, right?” She asks, only half kidding.

You slip your hand fully in hers, looking reluctantly amused, “Yeah. Pretty good.”

The rest of the night, at the very least, seems to be looking up.