The cold wind persisted through the Spring air, but Lukas didn’t care. After a long day, Lukas would spend time with the campus dogs once more. In petting them both, he would produce a piece of beef jerky. Both dogs seemed to appreciate the treat as he spoke softly to them.

It did little to still his growing nerves. The things he had learned about Lord Alik in the past few days, while they were complicated, had other implications. Lukas should have said something. He should have made a call to the man. But with the growing pressure of his class, he would find himself sitting back, thinking about his life, and utilizing the affection of the dogs to help him.

He would have his first full academic essay soon–for which he would have to start working on that night. He should have gone straight to the dining hall, but in lieu of how things were, he decided to skip dinner. He didn’t need food that night; he needed to keep studying. But before he would walk away, he would find a stranger masked by a cloak and rags.

Lukas stood, recognizing him instantly, before glancing around. Lord Alik had disguised himself, but there was something odd about it. Lukas turned to a nearby rose bush, revived three roses, and gave them to Lord Alik. The roses had turned out to be white, signifying new love. As Lukas handed them over, his fingers trembled.

Lord Alik gave him a kind smile before taking them. “Thank you. I was just wondering if you would like to find dinner sometime. I will pay for it.”

“As long as we don’t get caught,” Lukas whispered. “I also have a paper due tonight. But maybe over the weekend?”

“I can work with that,” Lord Alik said. “Good luck with the paper. And thank you for the flowers.”

Lukas blushed. His interaction with the masked man had only lasted a few seconds, but it had set his heart racing all the same. The way Lord Alik had taken the flowers, and the way he had invited Lukas to dinner.

Lukas would look at a small piece of paper the nobleman gave him. It had been for one of the restaurants in town, and but it was meant to be a less expensive version.

Dear Lukas,

I would love to meet you at The Chicken’s Feed. Please come on the weekend after work. I will be waiting for you there.

Boris

Lukas took the letter and pocketed it. He would save this information for later, while he went back to his dorm, thinking about his interactions. He then noticed all of the materials Lord Alik had given him. He hadn’t known what to do with them, and the guilt ate away at him. He wanted to paint, or do something with it. But there was something holding him back. Hiding a painting for the materials he wasn’t supposed to have would be complicated.

The fact that Lord Alik had come up with a fake identity, just to see him and keep him safe had left his stomach doing somersaults.

He would attempt to get some work done on his paper, going between a small book they were reading, as well as his own notes. The history given throughout had been from something else. As Lukas wrote things down, he found the silence to be deafening. And as he burned through an entire candle that night, he would soon go to bed, hoping he hadn’t made any huge mistakes.

Of course, when he woke up the next morning, he would grab his fresh paper and he would make his way to class. As he handed his essay over to the professor, he would then turn and sit back down once more. The lecture droned on, and he would do what he could to keep writing. At the end of the lecture, one of the teacher’s assistants would come up to him, handing back his essay.

8.5/10. Good job on the subject material, but some of your grammar could be more refined. 

Lukas took the grade in, and he crumpled his paper. With the rest of the grades in the class, he was still passing. But was it enough for him to remain on top of the class, or was he starting to slip?

In leaving the class, feeling the afternoon sunlight afterward. The cold and the sunlight seemed to displace each other. Meanwhile, a bird sat in the nearby tree, calling out. He caught himself smiling, even though there was some risk behind it. He didn’t know how to feel about his situation. Even his friendship with Lord Alik, while he could appreciate the beginnings, felt off in ways he couldn’t quite understand.

He should have said no to the man, as he had resolved to earlier. It was too risky for him to be in a relationship which could cause so much strife. But he had given the man some flowers, trying to signify he wanted the man. But as he went back to his room, he sat back. In pulling out the sketchbook and the rest of his art supplies, he would begin working on his canvas. Closing his eyes, he planned to say he bought it himself back in his old world.

As he continued working on his painting, he would sketch his old city. The entire village had seemed so familiar once, but now, he found himself forgetting certain portions of it. In that sense, he would rely on an old painting in his sketchbook.

When he finished the drawing, he would paint the background orange, even if it were a lighter color. He would then set it aside for the night, attempting to go back to his schoolwork. He had studied for every day of the week, and his quizzes at the beginning had all been marked with high grades. He had consistently earned a 5/5, or 4 out of 5 points. At this point, he was through the first week, and he had earned the following grades:

Paper 1: 8/10

Quiz 1: 4/5

Quiz 2: 5/5

Quiz 3: 4/5

Quiz 4: 5/5

Total Class Grade: 86%

Lukas should have felt grateful for his progress. But with his life outside of school, he was certain he had left more to be desired.

He would have an exam at the end of next week, and that would be worth fifty percent of his grade. After he finished his date with Lord Alik, or Boris, he would have to focus on studying. He did not have time to finish his painting, either.

He hadn’t forgotten that tomorrow, he would start his new job. Nor had he forgotten about the rest of his commitments. But somehow, Lukas wanted to finish his painting anyway. This time, the painting would be a gift to Lord Alik, showing the nobleman what his old city was like. Hopefully the man would appreciate it. Lord Alik had already shown quite an interest in his artworks. But was it enough for him?

The new job should be quite exciting. It has been such a busy week here, I am starting to feel like it was a month. But here’s to giving Irvin the finger. I have begun to find a life here, and he’s not even here to try and stop it.