Grounded (Grounded #1) by Heather Young-Nichols Page B

harder to fill my days in Putnam Valley as the inevitability of telling Jensen and us leaving for Michigan drew closer. That day, waiting for the guys to get to Jensen’s parents’ house was hardest of all. My boyfriend and new best friend were working, which left me with nothing to do in the hours before meeting them. That had never been me—bored, without a guy to entertain me.
    If I were home, I’d walk the shores of Lake Superior or journey into the depths of the copper mine until I just couldn’t stand the power coursing my body and had to tear ass out of there before I exploded. I could practice my power, although I didn’t need the extra practice, or train with some of the guys, which was always fun. I could usually find something to do at home. I could just be me. It hit me that I was actually homesick. Yikes. That was a cold slap of reality. I’d wanted to leave home for almost as long as I could remember. Now I was gone and I wanted to head back.
    I glanced at the clock and saw it was after seven. I could finally get out of my motel and meet them.
    His mother was a bit nicer this time. She even invited me in, like I was a guest, but Jensen’s eyes popped in surprise when he saw me come around the corner into the living room. I asked if we could talk, privately. After thinking about it for a few seconds, he pushed himself out of the chair and led me up a flight of stairs, to the second room on the right, with Aric following.
    “Your room?” I asked while Aric shut the door gently. Jensen didn’t have any siblings, so this was most likely his room, but it was little more than a shrine to the teenage boy he had been. It didn’t reflect the man I’d grown to care for.
    “It was. I don’t live here anymore, remember?”
    “Right, sorry.” I waited. He didn’t say anything else. “Okay, I shouldn’t have sprung anything on you at lunch and I’m sorry for that. Maybe a little lead in or something would’ve helped.” I was starting to ramble. “Whatever. Look, what I said is true.” He pushed off the desk to leave the room. “Let me start over.”
    “Are you trying to prank me or something?” He asked as he got closer to Aric. “Are you two in on some sort of gag? I’m not falling for whatever this is.”
    “Just listen to her, Jensen.” Aric spoke for the first time. He was leaning against the wall and out of the way. “We aren’t pulling a fast one. What she’s trying to tell you is true and she can prove it. It’s important.”
    “We? What the fuck, Alyssum? You know you sound crazy, right?”
    “I do. But just give me a minute, please.”
    He sighed heavily before coming back to me. I was grateful Aric stayed by the door. If Jensen tried to leave again, Aric could stop him.
    I laid it all out for him and told him that he was part of a race of people called Gremalian, which humans bastardized into tiny, green troublemakers that had a lot of rules, most of which were false. Although it is true that if a Gremalian eats after midnight, but before five in the morning, they’ll be left with a hellish case of debilitating heartburn. I never knew what that was about.
    In reality, we’re not all that different from humans. We just want to live our lives and be happy with our families. I skimmed over the war part. Even without bringing up the war, it was a lot to take in when you’d lived your entire life thinking you’re a regular human.
    Jensen pointed to where Aric was standing. “Why does he know about this?”
    “He’s a Gobel.” Like that would mean anything to him.
    “A goblin?” He clawed his hands down the front of his face.
    I giggled, more from being nervous, but it did strike me as funny. Aric laughed too. “No, Gobel. It’s basically the same as Gremalians, but different. I know that doesn’t make sense.”
    “None of this makes any sense. Do you expect me to listen to this? Or, better yet, do you expect me to believe this?”
    Jensen yanked the door open and left