This time, it was Gloxinia's turn to retort with a sharp tone. She was feeling a bit peevish because of her negative thinking. She pursed her lips unknowingly.

"I heard them talking. They didn't say anything about being scared of you," Vincent said. His eyes were fixed on the boy he was watching. That boy was still sitting on the bench lifelessly as usual.

"Really?" Gloxinia muttered. She couldn't believe it right away but seeing how Vincent had always been truthful with her all this time, she also saw no reason for him to lie. "What were they talking about then?"

"I…" Vincent halted. In his absentmindedness, he was about to say it was about how we look good together, but he realized how weird that would sound coming from him.

"They were talking about how they want to talk to you but don't know how to," Vincent said. Technically, he wasn't lying. They did want to get close to her. He just omitted some other details, like how he was actually involved.

Gloxinia knitted her eyebrows. She wasn't a hundred percent convinced, but she gave him the benefit of the doubt.

"... Are you sure?" Gloxinia asked with a careful tone.

"Yeah."

"Then should I try to strike a conversation with them?" Gloxinia asked again, this time her voice started to get chirpier.

Vincent rolled his eyes.

"That's what you should've done from the start."

Hearing that, Gloxinia nodded firmly to herself and clenched her fist. Vincent was right, if no one would approach her then she should've just approached them first. She started to think up so many scenarios on how she would approach them.

There was a brief silence between them as Gloxinia was immersed in her thoughts and Vincent was just… quiet.

In his mind, he was questioning about the reason why Gloxinia would think other people found her scary. It was probably because of her powers. He knew that she could probe into minds and scan things, but what other things could she do? She was the first spirit he had ever met, so he didn't know if she was normal or not.

"What power do you have as the spirit of the lake?" Vincent asked with a loud voice. It brought Gloxinia back to reality.

"Uhm… I guess strength and absorbing information from my hand," Gloxinia said as she raised her hand and stared at the back of her hand.

Vincent raised an eyebrow.

"And that helps a spirit how?" he said in disbelief. He knew about the strength she had since he saw it firsthand, but he honestly thought she would also have power over water since she was a spirit of the lake.

Then he remembered about how she said she scanned the entire school to find him before.

"I don't know, I've had this power since forever," Gloxinia said as she tapped the floor with her fingers.

"Nothing water-related?" Vincent asked again. He was really interested in that the most. He crossed his leg as he watched the boy on the bench standing up for a moment before sitting back down.

He was getting bored with just watching the boy.

"Mhm. I'm not the protector of the lake or anything like that, so I don't have power over it. I'm just an embodiment of the lake," Gloxinia said, raising her head and unconsciously leaning it against Vincent's back. It startled him a bit.

"Come to think of it, how did I come to be…" Gloxinia mumbled to herself in a small voice. That just hit her mind as she was answering Vincent's question. Vincent heard her mumble and decided that he shouldn't press it further.

It seemed like she had her shares of trouble too.

The first school bell rang then, indicating that class was restarting for them.

"Get up. I can't move with you leaning on my back," Vincent said. The boy he was watching had also walked back into the building.

Gloxinia stood up from her position and gave Vincent some space so he could get up from his seat. She was about to turn around to face him but he held her by her shoulders, stopping her from doing so.

"Don't turn around. Just walk ahead," Vincent said before he let go of her shoulders and walked ahead of her into the building.

Gloxinia blinked in confusion before she shrugged and followed Vincent inside.

Both of them arrived in class just in time before the second bell would ring. As they entered the class, Gloxinia could feel the stares aimed at her again.

Is he sure that they aren't scared of me? Gloxinia thought to herself as she made her way to her desk. When she arrived at her desk and took a seat, two girls suddenly approached her.

Startled with the sudden approach, Gloxinia straightened her back as she looked at the two girls. Her eyes were widened with surprise.

"Uhm, Gloxinia," one of the girls spoke up. She fidgeted every so often while the girl beside her had her face flushed red.

After being told by Vincent that they weren't scared of her, Gloxinia could see a situation like this from another angle. They were… nervous? Antsy?

But why?

"Would you, uhm… Would you like to eat lunch together with us later today?" the girl said.

"Oh? Of course!" Gloxinia replied. Her mind was a mess. It was as if someone set a firework inside her head, and she just couldn't think of how to react. She was determined to talk to them first before, but being talked to for real actually puzzled her. In her panic, she peeked at Vincent, who was already sitting behind her, through the corners of her eyes.

What else?

It was as if she was saying that to him with her eyes.

Vincent could see how elated she was. Her cheeks were starting to turn red and her pupils got bigger. Seeing her awkward gesture, Vincent decided he should help her.

Smile, he mouthed.

Gloxinia saw that and she smiled, as if the weight on her back was lifted.

Her smile reached her eyes. She looked soft and delicate, unlike the cold beauty she usually looked like. It was just as if a flower was blooming.

Everyone in the class who saw that either gasped or held their breath. Even the people outside who were passing by the class stopped in their tracks because they were mesmerized. It was the first time they had ever seen Gloxinia smiling, and it was magical.

"Thank you," Gloxinia said to the two girls, a giddy feeling in her heart. Vincent wasn't lying to her. She could feel it now that her classmates weren't scared of her. And he was also right about smiling. The smile did come naturally for her when she felt happy.

Seeing her, Vincent sighed and looked outside the window. Hidden from anyone else's sight, the corners of his lips slightly perked up.

---

The second bell rang. In another class, some students entered the classroom while excitedly talking about what happened just now.

"Did you see that?" a girl said.

"Yeah! She looks even more beautiful, smiling like that!" another girl gushed.

A group of girls that were forming a circle in the corner of the class turned their heads to them in curiosity.

"What is it? What is it?" one of the girls in the group asked.

"Oh, you know the famous Ice Princess in Class A? She smiled just now!" the first girl said with such excitement.

"Oh, I know. What was her name again… Gloxinia! Wasn't it?"

The girls who just arrived in class nodded repeatedly.

Everyone in the group didn't really show much of a reaction, except for one. The girl with thick-rimmed glasses and a long dark hair tied up in a ponytail looked up.

"... Gloxinia?"