The Afterlife Academy Saga

Chapter 2

2

“I have an idea, but I don’t know if it’ll work,” Flavia said. She rose from the couch, a strange expression on her face. “I can call my dusk wolf and get her to deliver a message to a teacher.”

“Oooh, smart,” Astrid quipped in, as always, quick to lick Flavia’s heels. Even being stuck in a bunker didn’t change that then.

She was right though. It was a smart idea and not one I’d ever think of, simply because Hyde couldn’t do it.

“I like it,” I agreed, eager to get out of this situation.

Sim nodded. “Me too. And you two have a familiar as well, right? You can call them too.”

“We haven’t been taught how to call them,” Astrid replied, glaring at me. “They were stolen before we could really bond with them because of a certain someone.”

I clicked my tongue. “Hey, that was not my fault.”

“I beg to differ.”

Flavia clapped her hands. “Guys. Not right now. If I’m going to call my wolf, I need to focus. Actually, I need some privacy too. I’ll go use one of the bedrooms.”

Without waiting for anyone’s approval, she crossed through the rubble and pushed one of the heavy doors open. With a shriek, the metal thudded against the wall and the blonde third-year disappeared, leaving just the four of us hanging awkwardly in the lounge.

I shot a look at the others and received an underwhelming response. Ryoko was avoiding me all together. Astrid didn’t deem any of us worthy to communicate with, and Sim seemed rather emotional. He was playing with a couple of rocks, throwing them up in the air and letting them hover for a brief moment.

Just as I was about to ask him if he was alright, he swung his legs from the table and rose from the green seat. “I’m going to find some booze.”

He left the main area of the bunker, holding his poorly bandaged arm. The one that got damaged from his fight with Ryuga. His courage in facing the Moon Dragon was admirable and had put me to shame. He saved my life and I wanted to thank him for it.

“I’m just going to, ummm… help him,” I lied. Not that anyone was really listening.

I pushed myself up from the dingy couch and followed the Elf to the storage room. I could use a drink, or five.

I crossed through the main area, leaving the living room and pile of rubble behind me. The digging we did earlier hadn’t made any difference to it and there were some big rocks that weren’t going anywhere. Any attempts to move it were futile and I was long past the first wave of panic.

It would be fine. Someone had to have noticed the earth displacement and if Flavia could send her dusk wolf, we’d be fine. Surely, the teachers would be able to dig us up by the end of the day. They just had to…

I arrived at the storage room and with a little push, the door clunked open to reveal a small room with rows of shelves stacked with boxes and crates.

Where was Sim?

I pushed further into the room, finding a crouched figure at the back.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

Sim jumped and quickly pulled his hood back up. “Oh, shit.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“What do you want?” He said, quickly running a hand through his tear-stained eyes.

“I wanted to thank you for saving my life,” I said, not mentioning the crying. If he was hiding it, then he probably felt embarrassed by it.

The Elf shrugged. “No sweat.”

To avoid looking at me, he grabbed a hold of one of the bottles and fidgeted with the label. But the sound of the label tearing couldn’t stifle his sniffles.

“Still. Thank you,” I tried, but he wasn’t engaging with me. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Just deciding what to drink first. Vodka or rum.” He cleared his throat and shook the bottles. “You know what, let’s do both.”

“But—”

Sim pushed a bottle in my hand as he walked past me. “I’m fine. Party time, Ylva. Drink up.”

Alright then. If he didn’t want to talk, then we wouldn’t. No skin off my nose. I expressed my gratitude, he acknowledged it, and that was that. For now. No matter what he said or how he acted, I owed him. And I’d repay that debt one way or another.