Chapter3
1021 Words
My heart pounded as Ravien Voss started walking towards me. Everybody seemed to hold their breath..
Every step he took echoed through the silent auditorium. Beside me, Zephyra sat unnaturally still, nobody dared to talk and that alone was terrifying.
My pulse quickened. Is he looking at me?
Had I done something wrong?
The closer he got, the harder it became to breathe. Then he walked right past me.
I blinked.
My shoulders immediately relaxed. I hadn't even realised I was holding my breath.
Ravien stopped beside a male student sitting directly behind me.
The student looked pale instantly.
"Stand up," he said with a cold voice.
The student swallowed and stood up slowly.
"What is in your pocket?"
The boy's face was drained of colour. "Nothing."
"Wrong answer." Ravien's expression never changed.
The boy trembled. Finally, he pulled out a small packet.
Gasps erupted in the hall.
I frowned.
I had no idea what it was, apparently, everyone else did.
Ravien took the packet. Looked at it, then looked back at the student.
"You thought bringing this to school grounds was a good idea?"
The boy couldn't answer.
Ravien smiled, and somehow the smile was worse than his cold expression.
"You'll spend the next month cleaning every training hall on campus."
The student's jaw dropped.
"A month?"
Ravien raised an eyebrow. "Would you prefer expulsion?"
The student immediately lowered his head. "No."
"Good."
Ravien tossed the packet to a staff member. "Remove him."
Two security officers appeared almost immediately. The boy was escorted out while everyone watched.
Nobody spoke or moved.
When Ravien finally turned away, the tension remained.
He returned to where Malrik and Kaelor were standing and continued walking to their seat.
"Was that really why you stopped?" Kaelor asked.
“No” Ravien answered.
Malrik continued looking at his phone completely uninterested.
"Then what is it?" Kaelor frowned.
"Nothing," Ravien said.
I didn't know why but something told me it definitely wasn't nothing.
A few minutes later, the school dean stepped to the stage.
The hall erupted into applause.
The woman smiled warmly. "Welcome back, students."
The room quieted.
"To our returning students, welcome home."
More applause.
"To our new students, welcome to Hawthorne University."
My stomach twisted. This was really happening, I was finally here.
The dean continued speaking about excellence, responsibility, and university traditions.
I listened.
Zephyra whispered commentary beside me every few seconds.
"She's been using that same speech for years."
I laughed.
"You've heard it before?"
"My sister graduated from here."
"Ah."
The dean finally reached the end.
"Now." She smiled. "I'd like our new students to introduce themselves."
My smile disappeared immediately.
No.
No.
No.
No.
People turned toward the freshmen section. My heart sank.
One by one, students stood, walked to the front, introduced themselves, received polite applause and then returned to their seats.
The line slowly grew shorter.
"You'll be fine." Zephyra nudged me.
Easy for her to say because she wasn't the one about to embarrass herself.
Then my turn came and I somehow made it to the stage.
"Go ahead." The dean smiled encouragingly.
Hundreds of eyes watched me.
"My name is Nyxara."
Silence.
I frowned.
Had they heard me? Then whispers erupted everywhere.
"Who is she?"
"She's gorgeous."
"Oh my God."
"I've never seen anyone that beautiful."
"Is she a model?"
"She's stunning."
"How is she even real?"
Heat rushed into my cheeks, and my face burned. I wanted the floor to open and swallow me whole.
But the whispers only grew louder.
I looked toward my seat and that was a big mistake. Because that's when I noticed Malrik had finally looked up from his phone. Kaelor and Ravien were looking directly at me.
My heart nearly stopped.
The dean thanked me and I ran off the stage.
The moment I dropped into my seat, Zephyra grabbed my arm. "Oh my moon."
"No." I groaned.
"Oh yes. You broke half the male population."
"Please stop." I covered my face.
She laughed.
The orientation ended shortly afterwards. Students immediately flooded toward the exits.
The cafeteria was enormous. The smell of food filled the air.
For once, I was grateful that at least food wouldn't stare at me.
Zephyra piled enough food on her tray to feed a village.
I stared. "Are you feeding the entire university?"
"Mind your business."
We found a table near the window, and for a while, everything felt normal. Then someone crashed into me.
My drink nearly spilt.
"Oh!" I looked up.
A boy stood there, tall with Messy brown hair.
"I'm so sorry," he said with a friendly smile.
"It's okay."
His eyes widened suddenly."Oh."
"Oh?" I frowned.
"You're her."
"Her?" I blinked
"The beautiful new girl."
I nearly groaned, not again.
Zephyra burst out laughing.
"See? It is her." The boy pointed excitedly.
I wanted to disappear.
"I'm Nolan."
"Nyxara."
"It's nice meeting you." Then he lowered his voice dramatically."Half the school is talking about you."
My soul left my body while Zephyra laughed even harder.
"Stop encouraging them."
"I can't."
"You're famous already." Nolan grinned.
The conversation continued until I left the cafeteria later that evening, walking alone back to the dorm. Zephyra left early to see a friend. Then a voice spoke behind me.
"You."
I froze, the voice sounded familiar. I turned around slowly and my blood turned cold.
It was the same guy from my first night. The one who had tried to bite me.
He looked terrified, looking around nervously like he was afraid someone might see him.
Before I could speak, he grabbed my wrist and moved to a corner.
"You need to leave."
"What?"
His face had gone completely pale."You need to leave this school."
"Why?"
He looked around again in fear. "Because if they find out you're here..." His voice shook.
"Who?" I was confused.
The guy took a step backwards as if what he was about to say was a crime.
Finally, he whispered, "The Graves."
And then he ran, leaving me frozen where I stood.
Staring after him, wondering why a guy seemed more afraid of Malrik Graves than death itself.
- Writer
