Class was excruciating. In ten minutes, every muscle and joint in my body was inflamed. Right before I thought I was going to pass out, Professor Mia mercifully stopped. She had made a mistake when she said that I would get better. I knew it, she knew it, and the unrelenting laughter emanating from the other students knew it. The second half of class, I rested on the bleachers. I hardly had the strength to take off my vest.
I watched the other students as they trained around the room. Becky was good. I felt sorry for her opponent. She even threw in a kick or two between the blows of her sword. I understood now why they called wielding a weapon the art of dueling.
Thankfully, a bell rang in the distance and everyone stopped on Professor Mia's command. The students walked with high spirits toward the wall to return their equipment. I tried to get up, but my body ached, and I fell back onto the bleachers in a huff.
I'm going to regret this in the morning.
Becky put her shield, helmet against the wall, and walked over to the cupboard to put away the sword. She ran over to me. “Are you okay?”
“I'll live,” I said, sulking.
“You'll see. It’s going to be your favorite class too. I don't think there's a student here who hates Art of War.” She lent me a hand up.
“Well, then I'm going to be the first. I'm definitely a lover, not a fighter.” I said, honesty coating every syllable.
She giggled, pulled me toward the exit, and back to the main building.
“Can I ask you something?”
She nodded, carrying her sweaty vest over her shoulder.
“What happens if someone gets hurt?”
“Swallow-Annex's are good at healing cuts and bruises,” Becky said simply as if that offered any real explanation.
Swallow-Annex? The term sounded Greek and dangerous. I decided against asking for a translation. My legs burned as I climbed the stairs, each step sending a biting pain into my knees. To make matters worse, they didn't want to bend properly, turning my balance to a big fat zero.
“What's that?” I pointed to a huge structure straight out of Ancient Rome.
“The coliseum.”
“Do they fight there too?”
She huffed. “You can say that.”
“What do they call the one we were just in?”
“The Parthenon Dome.”
“Does everything in this country start with a P?”
She snorted and hit me playfully with her sweaty vest.
We went up to the room, so I could take a quick shower before lunch.
When we got back to the cafeteria, most of the tables outside were already occupied.
I slouched behind Becky as we made our way to the buffet line stationed outside, being guarded by a man dressed in a chef's uniform. He had a huge stomach. I remembered how Dad had always said nobody trusts a skinny chef. His hair had the same copper glint as Dad's had and his food made my mouth water.
“Hi, Chef, the new girl Elena,” Becky introduced.
“Elena, I was wondering when you were going to join the living,” he teased.
“So, what are we having today?” she asked.
“Rice and fresh vegetables with a lovely roast beef.” He sighed in satisfaction.
“Urgh! Nobody got the riddle yesterday?” she mumbled.
“No, have you seen today's?” he asked playfully.
She waved it away. “It's too difficult anyway.”
He laughed at her apparent frustration and turned his gaze on me. “Are you good at riddles, Elena?”
I shook my head. “Sorry.”
“Not to worry, Riley will have to choose your menu then.”
“Miss-know-it-all gets most of the riddles right, and then we get pasta, pasta, and oh, what's that other thing she likes so much?” Becky asked the chef.
“Pasta!” they both replied in unison. I smiled at their bickering, and started to miss Dad horrible.
After we dished up we said goodbye.
"Let me get this straight. Whoever solves the riddle can choose what we have to eat?" I asked, as we tried to find an empty table outside.
"Yeah, every day a new one gets posted on the board. Occasionally, one of the other kids guesses right, and then we get burgers and fries, or hot dogs and pizza."
Awesome. I tried to imagine what kind of a pizza this chef could create. My mouth started watering just by thinking about it, and I couldn't wait to dig in.
To our left, two guys stood up from a table, and Becky made a run for it.
As we slipped into the chairs, my eyes locked on a guy sitting four tables away from us. Something inside my stomach twirled as I gawked at him playing absentmindedly with a soda can. He sat with a group of six other guys, though he clearly stood out. His coal black hair was in perfect accord with his sun-kissed skin. A strange feeling that I had never felt before began to boil inside my gut. I would soon learn that staring at him was the biggest mistake of my life.
Chapter Five
Carefully, I released my lower lip when I realized I was chewing on it.
He looked up, spoke to the guy opposite him and then smiled. My heart skipped a beat. He had the same smile as Dad; a smile that lit up his face and reached all the way to his eyes, creating vertical dimples in his cheeks. The one I loved and missed so much. His peacock blue eyes made me feel as if I was falling straight into a rabbit hole─ one that I could never find my way out of, not that I would want to.
Suddenly, a middle finger jumped right in front of his face, blocking my view. It belonged to a girl with short snow-white hair. She was a stunner with light blue eyes and a long oval face. It was no miracle how they had ended up together.
Becky laughed as she saw who I was staring at. “Don't pay her any attention, she's a bitch. You're not the only one who stares at him with googly eyes and a drooling mouth.”
“Who's he?”
“His name is Blake Leaf.” She left out a small lustful sigh. “He's verautiful, but such a dick.” She started picking at her vegetables again.
“Verautiful?”
“Mixture between very and beautiful.”
I giggled.
“The girl's Tabitha. She’s always had a thing for Blake. I'm still not sure if they're an item or not. Blake has this phobia of being spoken for,” she explained.
“He doesn’t want a girlfriend?” I asked, stunned.
She shrugged. “Something along those lines.”
I looked up at the sky once more. I must have done it a million times today and saw Becky following my gaze.
“Elena, what is with you? Why do you keep looking up at the sky?”
“It's stupid, you'll laugh.” I nervously tried to make her drop the subject.
“I might, but I can't help it. You're hilarious.
“I keep waiting to see ... a dragon.”
She looked at me with a raised eyebrow as if I was crazy.
“Forget it,” I said when an extremely loud laugh pierced my ears. I glanced over my shoulder. A girl with long auburn hair and hazelnut eyes plummeted onto the seat right next to me. “She's hilarious!”
“I know, right,” Becky said, in an agreeing tone.
I wished for the earth to open up and swallow me whole.
“How many times has she looked up today?”
“Like a million.”
I felt stupid as they made jokes.
“Elena, this is Sammy.” Becky introduced me to the girl.
“Short for Samantha.” She reached out her hand for a shake. “I'm one of the roomies.” She was a tiny little thing, even more petite than I was. Her dimples were definitely her main attraction.
I took her hand and shook it gently.
“She really doesn't know?”