Red In The Rain

Ailith, Algebra, and an Unwanted Investigation

Ailith dropped her head onto her desk, her fingers gripping the sides as she let out a silent groan.

"Did that really happen? Did I just walk under the same umbrella with Tavian Caius Gomez? Did he actually invite me to watch him play? And… did he seriously call me cute?"

She squeezed her eyes shut, as if doing so would erase the memory—or at least stop the rush of emotions flooding her system.

"Get a grip, Ailith. You’re acting like one of those girls in romance dramas who overanalyze every interaction. It was just a conversation. A normal, casual, totally non-life-altering conversation."

She inhaled deeply, trying to steady herself. But before she could compose her thoughts, she felt a sharp tug on her sleeve.

“Psst.”

Ailith glanced up, only to meet the scrutinizing gaze of Nara Ortiz—her classmate, the embodiment of "brains and beauty," and, most importantly, the girl who made it very clear to everyone that she liked Tavian.

Ailith stiffened.

"Oh no. No, no, no. This is bad."

Nara leaned in, her dark eyes glinting with curiosity. “Ailith.”

Ailith swallowed. “Uh… yeah?”

“I saw you,” Nara said, voice laced with suspicion.

Ailith blinked. “Saw me…?”

Nara’s lips curled into a knowing smirk. “With Tavian. Under his umbrella. Walking together. Talking. Laughing.”

"Oh, crap. She saw everything."

Ailith forced out a nervous laugh. “Oh, that? That was nothing. Just, you know, coincidence. I was stuck in the rain. He happened to be there. He offered his umbrella—like the gentleman he is! Nothing unusual, really!”

Nara’s expression remained unimpressed. She tapped her fingers on Ailith’s desk, as if assessing her every word. “Nothing unusual, huh?”

“Right! Exactly!” Ailith nodded rapidly. “Nothing to see here. Just two classmates who happened to—uh—walk in the same direction.”

Nara tilted her head. “Are you sure?”

“Very sure.”

A slow, almost playful smile spread across Nara’s face. “Hmm. Interesting. Because it sure didn’t look like ‘nothing’ to me.”

Ailith’s stomach twisted. “W-What do you mean?”

Nara leaned in closer, whispering, “I saw the way he looked at you, Ailith.”

Ailith’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest. “Wha—What?”

Nara smirked. “And you looked flustered. Very flustered.”

"She’s onto me. Abort mission. Abort mission!"

Ailith waved her hands dramatically. “That’s just my face! I always look flustered! It’s a—uh—natural condition!”

Nara raised an eyebrow. “Uh-huh. Right.”

Ailith could feel the sweat forming on the back of her neck.

Then, Nara’s playful demeanor shifted slightly, and she crossed her arms. “You know I like him, right?”

Ailith bit her lip. “I mean… yeah. Everyone knows.”

“Good,” Nara said smoothly. “Just so we’re clear—I’ll be watching you.”

"Oh, great. Just what I needed. A personal investigator."

Ailith forced out a weak laugh. “Haha. No need to watch me. Nothing to see here! Totally, totally nothing going on.”

Nara hummed, clearly unconvinced. Before she could say more, the classroom door opened.

Ms. Jane walked in, right on time as the bell rang.

Saved by the bell—literally.

Nara shot Ailith one last suspicious glance before turning away, focusing on class. Ailith, meanwhile, exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

"Crisis averted… for now."

She shook her head, deciding to focus on the lesson.

---

For the next 30 minutes, Ailith tried her best to stay attentive.

Tried.

But her mind kept replaying everything from earlier—the way Tavian had laughed, the way he had looked at her, the way he had invited her to watch him play.

"Ugh, focus, Ailith! Forget Tavian for now and—"

“Ailith.”

She froze.

Ms. Jane was looking directly at her.

Uh-oh.

“Yes, Ms. Jane?” Ailith asked cautiously.

The teacher adjusted her glasses. “Did you complete last night’s assignment?”

Ailith’s stomach sank.

"Oh. Crap. The assignment."

A nervous laugh bubbled up. “Uh… define ‘complete’?”

Ms. Jane raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

Ailith groaned internally.

Ms. Jane sighed. “I see. In that case, I’ll give you a chance to redeem yourself. Come up to the board and solve this equation.”

Ailith’s blood turned cold.

The teacher turned to the whiteboard and wrote down a horrifyingly complicated algebra equation.

3x² + 5x - 7 = 0

Ailith’s soul nearly left her body.

"Oh no. I’m dead. I am so dead."

Her classmates were whispering. Some were clearly waiting for her to fail.

Even Nara smirked, arms crossed as if saying, Let’s see what you got.

Slowly, Ailith got up and walked to the board, feeling like she was approaching the execution block.

She picked up the marker.

"Okay. Think, Ailith. Think. You’ve seen equations like this before. It’s quadratic… which means… quadratic formula? Right?!"

She bit her lip, her mind racing.

Then, almost instinctively, she started writing.

x = (-b ± √(b² - 4ac)) / 2a

She plugged in the numbers.

x = (-5 ± √(5² - 4(3)(-7))) / 2(3)

x = (-5 ± √(25 + 84)) / 6

x = (-5 ± √109) / 6

When she finished, she stepped back, staring at the answer.

Ailith turned slowly, expecting to see Ms. Jane shaking her head in disappointment.

Instead, she saw… shock.

Complete silence filled the room.

Then—

“Well,” Ms. Jane said, adjusting her glasses. “That is… correct.”

Ailith blinked. “Wait. What?”

The room erupted.

“No way!”

“She actually got it?!”

“She didn’t even do the homework—how?!”

Ms. Jane, still looking slightly surprised, crossed her arms. “I’ll admit, Ailith, I wasn’t expecting that. But just because you have the capability doesn’t mean you get to ignore your assignments. Understood?”

Ailith nodded so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash. “Yes! Definitely! I will take homework very seriously from now on!”

The teacher smirked slightly. “Good. Now take your seat.”

Ailith practically ran back to her desk.

As she sat down, she felt a nudge.

Nara.

She was eyeing Ailith with something between amusement and curiosity. “So… secretly a genius, huh?”

Ailith scoffed. “That was just… luck.”

Nara smirked. “Right. Just like walking with Tavian was ‘nothing’?”

Ailith groaned. “Are we seriously bringing that up again?”

“Oh, I’m definitely bringing it up again.” Nara leaned closer, whispering, “I told you—I’m watching you.”

Ailith slumped in her seat.

"This day cannot get any worse."

Little did she know… it was only the beginning.