Page 25 of Zodiac Hybrids

“So you grew up here?” I asked, enjoying the distraction of an afternoon on the town instead of thinking about my internal dread over class tomorrow. I wasn’t ready to drop my major, but I also wasn’t ready to face reality.

“Yep. Just over in those hills.” He pointed towards the mountains that surrounded the city like a protective fortress. “I couldn’t wait to get out of here when I was a child. I spent a few years travelling as soon as I got out of high school, and swore I would never come back. Yet here I am again, going to the one school I never wanted to attend.” He stopped himself abruptly and shook his head, as if he hadn’t intended to share that. “It’s a fantastic school and exactly where I should be, though. It just feels different when this place is all you know, I suppose.”

“Why didn’t you want to come back?”

“Family.” He shrugged, and I frowned. As much as I complained, I loved my parents. I couldn’t imagine moving away from them out of spite and not to make them proud. “Things are complicated when you’re a—” His eyes widened and he cut himself off again. Maybe I made him uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and finished with, “when you’re a free spirit. Anyway, enough about me. Tell me more about you. What brought you to Graves?”

I shot my gaze to the ground at that question. The last thing I wanted to admit to was that I couldn’t get in anywhere else. That even after taking some time to try to establish an education and seek out jobs despite all of the initial rejections I’d gotten right out of high school, I still couldn’t get into my first, second, or tenth choice school.

But then, if I wanted Marcus as a friend, maybe I needed to be honest with him. “Graves was kind of an accident.” I chose my words carefully, not wanting to diminish myself in front of him any more than I already had. “I’d never even heard of it, but my mom put in the application without telling me, and sure enough, I got accepted.”

A notable silence fell between us, and I had no idea what I might have said that was wrong.

After a few more steps, Marcus addressed me again. “Did she go here when she was younger?”

“I guess so. She hadn’t mentioned it before, but when I got in, she was super excited.”

“And your dad? Did your parents meet in college?” Every question felt like an interrogation.

I shook my head. “No, they met at work. They both worked at the same accounting firm, but my dad went to school in California. He said he’d never been out here before either.”

“Interesting.” Marcus spoke softly under his breath. “And both of your parents are—”

“Human. Yes.” I spat before I could catch myself. I’d become so traumatized by the professor’s constant inquiries into what my parents were, that I’d just started assuming everyone would ask me the same insane question, that literally no one else had ever asked before. “Sorry, that was weird. I meant ‘yes, they’re both accountants.’”

“No, human is what I was actually wondering about.” He chuckled before he ruffled my hair. The playful smirk on his lips made it unclear as to whether or not that was a joke. Though there was no sign of the fangs I’d once thought I’d seen, and there was nothing that indicated Marcus was anything like the professor. I’d not seen anyone else in Graves who seemed more than human, actually. When I kept my head down and didn’t respond for long enough, he gave me a pat on the shoulder and added, “That was a joke, by the way.” My worries started to ease, and I was thankful he let me play off my awkwardness without making me feel worse about it.

Eventually we dipped into a little Italian restaurant at the end of the block. The garlic and herb butter covered breadsticks were the kind of comfort food that made it easier for me to open up.

Marcus spoke idly as he looked through the menu. “Do you want a drink? I can’t drink since I’m riding, but you’re welcome if you’d like.”

“I’ve never had alcohol before, but I probably shouldn’t since it’s my first time on a bike.” I flushed as I chewed on my bread. Just one more way I wasn’t cool at all. Mumbling, I added, “Sorry, I’m probably the most boring person you’ve ever met.”

“On the contrary, you’re a breath of fresh air in a place like Graves.” Immediately he shut down my self-loathing. “You’re sweet, beautiful, innocent—in a good way—plus, you make an adorable backpack.” He winked, and my face remained in its permanent state of blushing. I had no chance of getting it together before the waitress approached.

“Just a house salad for me. Dressing on the side.” I said, feeling self-conscious about what food I ate in front of him. The last thing I wanted was a mess of sauce all over my face. It was no wonder I’d never been on a date. Getting to know someone I had a crush on was stressful. And being treated like he might like me too was even more so. Every sentence felt like the trigger that might set off the bomb of realization that he wasn’t actually interested in me.

“Is that what you really want?” His voice penetrated my psyche, and I jumped in my seat like a crazy person. I shook my head at my overactive imagination.

If I was honest, I would much rather have ordered the Carbonara, but I would save that for date four or five. If we made it that far.

“I’ll have the Carbonara,” he said, like he was reading my mind. “We can share, if you’d like,” he added with a nod in my direction.

“I’ll bring an extra plate.” The waitress flitted off to put in our order. That was a weird coincidence.

“We must be on the same wavelength, because I really wanted the Carbonara.” I laughed nervously, rubbing my neck over the bandage. The weird scar still hadn’t started to fade.

“Don’t underestimate me just because I’m a fire sign and you’re an earth sign. Compatibility is much more complicated than the elements.” His smile was reassuring, and I resisted the urge to say I really didn’t believe in that stuff. Setting aside the professor, actual astrology was still little more than superstition.

“Why do you like astrology so much?” I asked while resisting the urge to spoil dinner with more annoyingly delicious breadsticks.

“It’s always been a big part of who I am. I can’t think of a time that being a Leo hasn’t had a significant impact on my life and relationships.” He broke eye contact in a way that felt unusually nervous. “It’s not significant to you?”

“My mom was obsessed, but it always felt silly to me. The idea that your birthday decides everything about you, when two people born in the same month can be so different, is hard to place much logical stock in.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, knowing it meant something to him. Part of my college experiment phase could include listening to other viewpoints. Even if I didn’t believe in it, it could still be something fun to learn and talk about. Mom would appreciate my interest at the very least.

“It’s so much more than that though. I’d agree that a lot of what’s been written is conjecture and assumption based on not very scientific data, but some of it holds an almost obnoxious amount of truth. For us, it’s—” He stopped himself again, and he shook his head again. It was kind of cute to see someone normally so cool be off his game, especially knowing I was the one doing that to him. What if he legitimately liked me too, and we weren’t as different as I thought?

He started again. “I think once you learn more about it, you’ll understand why it matters so much. There’s a lot of truth in the stars.”