Page 102 of Hero of Havoc

“Teddy?” I breathe, slipping my hand free from Archer’s as I drop to my knees, gently reaching for his face. “Teddy?” I repeat, watching as his long eyelashes flutter to life.

“Why is he so… damp?” Archer mutters, and I frown, staring at his almost naked frame, seeped in droplets of water.

“Ivy?” he rasps, prying his eyes open.

His pupils expand when his gaze finds mine, and he slowly pushes to sit, but the uncertainty in my gut thrums louder.

“What’s going on, Teddy?” I dare to ask, hating the distant look in his eyes as he leans back against my door, his damp hair flopping over his eyebrows.

“Don’t worry about it. Did you guys manage to get⁠—”

“Teddy,” Archer interjects, crouching down beside me, mirroring the same level of concern as I feel. “Why are you here?”

Teddy clears his throat. “I was waiting for Ivy.”

“We can see that, but why not wait inside, or in your dorm, or hell, my dorm,” he insists, and Teddy shakes his head.

“I didn’t want to intrude on either of you, and I didn’t want to be alone in my own dorm,” he breathes, the ache in my chest unbearable.

“What happened after we left?” I blurt, reaching for his hand, and his fingers curl around mine, a slight tremble to his touch. “Teddy?” I push when he doesn’t immediately answer, and he sighs.

“Was it my father?” Archer prods, and Teddy shakes his head.

“It was honestly nothing,” he insists at the exact same time the deep sound of a vibration cuts through the air, and Archer quickly stuffs his hand into his pocket to reveal his device.

His eyebrows furrow as he glances down at the screen, tilting it in my direction to show Baron’s name on display.

“Don’t answer that,” Teddy mutters, trying to reach for it, but Archer snatches it out of his reach, answering the incoming call as he rises to his feet.

“Baron?”

“Archer.”

“Everything okay?”

“I just bumped into Meadow and Toby; they were saying something about a walk of shame and a pretty girl in a pink dress. Are you back?”

I blush at Baron’s words, but it’s a fleeting moment as my attention redirects to Teddy.

“We’re back,” Archer confirms as Teddy exhales.

“Good. I didn’t want to trouble you with it last night, but it’s about Teddy; he⁠—”

“I’m right here,” Teddy grumbles, the air stiffening for a moment before Archer exhales.

“We found him in just his boxer shorts sleeping outside of Ivy’s room,” Archer explains.

“How did he even get in there?” Baron mutters, confusion lacing his voice.

“Siren’s call,” the Water Protector confirms, earning an eye roll from Archer before Baron’s voice cuts through the air.

“How talkative is he being, or do I need to explain?”

“He’s insisting everything is fine,” Archer confirms, and Teddy huffs.

“Everything is fine,” he insists, but it’s weak.

“When you guys left last night, his mother was… a cunt,” Baron explains, making my pulse quicken in my ears.