The Afterlife Academy Saga

Chapter 5

5

With a lot of pulling and pushing, Ryoko and I managed to pull Ryuga from underneath the rubble without causing too much disturbance to the pile of debris.

Now that he was freed from the collapsed ceiling, there was no denying he was really dead.

After a silent prayer from Ryoko, I helped wrap his head in her blazer. Supposedly, it was to keep his soul inside of his body until she was ready to release it in the moonlight. That way, his spirit would find peace and leave the world of the living alone. And while I didn’t know anything about this, I was on board. The last thing I wanted was him haunting me.

“Thank you for helping me.” My roommate bowed her head, her hair cascading down her shoulders.

I shrugged. “No problem.”

“I really appreciate your help.” She looked up at me, her eyes sparkling once again. She reached out to me, briefly touching my wrist in a way she hadn’t in a good while. “I won’t forget it.”

The same warmth engulfed me like a tight hug. Constricting but comfortable at the same time. Not really knowing what to do with that, I used my shirt to clean my hands. “Thanks?”

“Why are you thanking me?” she chuckled.

“I don’t know,” I admitted sheepishly. Something about her just made me lose my bearings and while it was great if we could mend our… whatever it was between us, it wouldn’t be fun to have to hide it from the others. Surely, they wouldn’t take kindly to me shacking up with a Dragon.

Although… There seemed to be something strange going on between Sim and Flavia. They certainly had history, but I couldn’t imagine her having a relationship with an Elf. Maybe frenemies?

A shriek from back in the main area broke the bubble Ryoko and I were in. A little dazed, we returned to the lounge.

“Bloom is back!” Astrid cheered, clapping her hands so loud it made the dusk wolf snarl at her.

“Be quiet,” Flavia commanded, immediately shutting up my classmate.

“What’s all the noise for?” Sim grumbled as he exited the left bedroom, still rubbing his eyes. His hair was all messy from his nap and he had wrinkles pressed into his cheek.

“Awrrooo!” Bloom dropped the envelope she was carrying as she dashed towards the Reaper, her excitement unparalleled.

“Hello, beautiful girl.” Sim cracked a smile as he cuddled and fussed the dusk wolf.

Her red eyes sparkled as she licked his face in a fond greeting. She pushed herself into his arms, whining and whimpering for his attention.

“Why does she like him so much?” Astrid asked, voicing my thoughts.

Flavia glared at her. “I’m more interested in what her note says.”

“Of course,” she quickly replied, shuffling back to get out of the way.

With a sigh, Flavia fished the note from the floor and opened it. The tearing paper sounded loudly in the anticipating silence.

“What does it say?” Sim asked.

“Tssk! Let me read it first,” she scolded, smoothing out the note. “Brynhild gathered volunteer teachers and students to clear the rubble away. She estimates it’ll take about three days.”

“Three days?” I echoed. That was a long time to be trapped in a bunker with these people. While I liked Ryoko’s company, I’d have to hide just how much I enjoyed it. I still carried guilt from Flavia, even though we talked about it. It didn’t stop the churning in my stomach that constantly haunted me. And with Astrid, who’d clearly gone back to disliking me, this wasn’t exactly a fun situation.

“At the least,” Flavia replied. “I suggest everyone gets comfortable. We’ll be here for a while.”

“Oh my,” Ryoko sighed.

Astrid sat down on one of the green couches, her nose up in the air. “I don’t like that. Especially not with Ylva.”

“I don’t like it any more than you,” I countered. “What are we even supposed to do for three days?”

“Drink.” Sim rose from cuddling Bloom and returned to his seat in the lounge. “I got vodka and rum. Who wants some?”

“It is Friday night, so why not? I saw some canteens and cups when we were searching for coffee.” Flavia gestured to the storage room. “I’ll go grab them.”

“Are we seriously getting drunk?” I asked.

She shrugged. “What else do you suggest we do?”

“I guess?” I exchanged a look with Ryoko, who seemed just as unsure as I was. “What do you think?”

“I don’t want to inconvenience anyone,” she replied, picking at her torn shirt.

Sim clapped his hands. “Too much talking. I want to drink and I don’t care if you join me or not.”

“Yes, yes. Just be patient. I’ll get the cups.” Flavia sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I could do with a shower though.”

Astrid quickly jumped up. “I’ll get the cups!”

There really was no limit to her bootlicking. Why was she even this obsessed with Flavia? While she was the most popular Valkyrie girl, she was also a third-year. She’d graduate soon and then the entire hierarchy would change anyway. Especially with all her friends graduating too. And while she was an Heir, she belonged to the East Wind. She would never be more important than our own Heir.

And for all her faults, Astrid was loyal to the West Wind. She’d never betray our own for another district. So why was she buddying up to Flavia like that?

While I wanted to be her friend too, I didn’t try as desperately to gain her favour.

“Let’s play some drinking games,” Sim suggested, waving the bottles around as if we were having a party instead of being trapped.

I looked at Ryoko. “Should we…?”

“I suppose…” She didn’t seem too excited about drinking, but she sat down anyway. “Is there anything else than vodka and rum?”

“Nope.” The Reaper waved at Astrid returning with the mugs and poured a generous amount in them. He pushed the cups along the metal table and heaved his own in the air. “Cheers, guys. To our survival.”

I reached across for two mugs and gave one to Ryoko. At least she’d voluntarily sat down next to me this time.

“Thanks.” She raised hers in response to Sim. “Kanpai.”

Astrid and Flavia joined their own cups in the toast. “Skol.”

All four looked expectantly at me so I held up mine. “Skol. To our survival.”

For just a moment, we all shared a second of silence. A brief thought about the misery of our situation, before we drowned our worries and sorrow.

The bitter vodka hit my tongue and my entire face cringed. Gods, that was gnarly.

I never drank much in my life and I’d never been black-out drunk like some of my peers. But I certainly wasn’t going to admit that out loud and be the wuss of the group.

No. I would try and keep up. After all, what was the worst that could happen?