Vivian

We’re returning to the boarding school in a *Mana-car. It's 10:00 p.m. right now and darkness has enveloped us, save for the trail ahead illuminated by the car’s front lights.

Lino’s driving. Amel’s by the seat near the window. He’s looking out in a reverie. The vehicle jerks here and there as it traverses on the bumpy terrain but he’s unfazed; his countenance pensive.

There are times when I find solace in silence, times when it’s unbearable and drives me frantic. Tonight’s silence is the latter.

I want to see Dalia, I need to, I must. The acrid stillness is distasteful, it stifles me, my head spins incessantly and makes me nauseous. Ten more minutes. Then I won’t have to endure this painstaking solitude.

I brave through the unpleasantness. Ten minutes flow slow. I try to imagine spilt honey dripping down from a table, little by little and count the drops hitting the floor to track time. I can’t find a better way to keep my mental state intact in this quietude.

I wonder what Dalia might be up to. If she’s asleep, I’ll have to defer any interaction to tomorrow. More hours of melancholy for me.

I hope Noah’s okay. He was pretty shaken after the first mission and also by his dream. I didn’t think I’d become close enough to care for him when I heard of a new boarder at our school. I thought he’d end up as another person who I’d consider only an acquaintance, but now that I’ve been getting to know him, I think I can consider him as someone who’s more than a mere acquaintance.

The Magus Boarding School’s gate can be seen from a distance. The car stops. We’ve reached the school.

Amel, Lino and I wish each other good night and head to our respective rooms.

The lights on Dalia and my shared room aren’t closed. She must have been waiting for me.

I open the door. Dalia hops off from her bed. Her face lightens up.

“Welcome back, Vivi!” she exclaims, her arms wide open and inviting me into their tender embrace.

I sink into the cradle of her arms and we hug like we always do after a prolonged period of missing each other. We’ve been doing it ever since we realized what she meant to me and what I meant to her.

It's a cathartic routine. Stress relief is not the only reason we do it though.

When I hold Dalia, I get a generous whiff of her sweet scented hair. I run my hands through her hair, soft and silky. Her warmth safeguards me. I can feel her faint breath, slow and serene. And I get lost in her safe haven.

I look into her affectionate eyes and whisper into her ear, “I’m back, Dales.”

We hold our dreamy gaze. I feel her lush lips on mine. I close my eyes and immerse myself in the moment.

[*Mana-car: Vehicles which use Mana as fuel. Mana-cars are preferred over beast-drawn carriages for long distance travel]

**********

Amel

I’ve reached my room. With discretion, I open the door so as not to wake up Noah, if he’s asleep.

The lights are closed. I’m tiptoeing in the dark and struggling to navigate my way with one hand against the wall and the other examining for obstacles when my right foot knocks my study table’s leg. My prized antique lamp gets displaced from its ideal spot and falls. I manage to catch it mid-air. But in the process of saving the lamp, my right elbow unintentionally shoves the towering pile of books on my table and the books all come tumbling down, tumbling down, tumbling down.

The falling of the books disrupts the continuity of the still night.

“Amel, is that you?” Noah mumbles, half asleep.

“Sorry, I was hoping to get to bed without waking you up,” I extend my arm, reach for the switch and turn it on, “But I hit my foot on the table and chaos ensued.” I chuckle, my precious lamp wrapped in my arms.

“You must love that lamp a lot.” Noah looks at me with a mellow smile, “Aight,  let me help you with that mess and go back to sleep.”

He jumps out of bed and starts to arrange the books.

Keeping the lamp on the table, I begin to reorganize the clutter.

Our hands reach for the same book and my hand brushes against his. I feel a tingle on my skin. His eyes meet mine and I’m drawn in by them.

“You gonna pick the book up?” Noah interrupts.

“Oh right… Yeah,” I look away, “Erm.” I bump my head on the tabletop. Ouch.

Noah gives out a short laugh, “You’ve got to start being more careful.” He nudges me at my shoulder.

“I’m going back to bed now, be careful,” he yawns, “Good night.”

“Good night to you too.” I switch off the lights.

I’m in bed now underneath my maroon double-layered blanket. Incessant thoughts haunt my mind and I’m unable to fall asleep. The quaint patterns in our room’s ceiling keep me distracted.

Amidst the placidness, I can hear Noah tossing and turning about in his bed across the room, in the other corner.

“Noah, you awake?”

“Yeah, can’t fall asleep.” He sighs.

“Me neither.”

“Late night snack?”

“That sounds great!”

Noah gets off his bed, turns on the lights. He opens his table’s drawer and fishes out a bag of potato chips.

I signal him to sit next to me on my bed and he droops. We sit there, relishing the chips and serenity. Noah breaks the silence.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure thing, go on.”

“When we were by the pond at the hills,” Noah brings up, “You mentioned another reason for enrolling in the boarding school. Do you mind telling me about it?” He asks me with an eager tone.

“Okay, but it’s a kind of a long story. Hope you don’t get bored, haha.”

**********