He gave a grateful bow, then ran off to join his friends, who were disposing of their garbage. Only Fenix and Mirror witnessed it since Aura was already inside.
Fenix rushed up behind her, giving her a giant hug and lifting her off her feet.
"Hey! Get off!" she yelled in protest, but he only held her tighter. Even though he was being affectionate, Aura noticed how careful he was not to touch her skin. He was still scared to hurt her again, and she wanted nothing more than to put him at ease.
So she stopped trying to pry his arms off. Plus, he had no intention of letting her go. Aura closed the door and sat on the carpet, dragging Fenix down with her.
Mirror studied them.
Aura sat stiffly, an indifferent, borderline annoyed expression etched on her face,
while Fenix, who was cuddling her, looked completely ecstatic.
"You two might as well start fucking if you're already acting like that." She commented to agitate both of them.
"What?"
"We—"
"I—"
"Are—"
"Don't—"
"Just—"
"Know—"
"Friends!"
"What are you talking about, Mirror?! Shut your stupid face!"
Fenix and Aura spoke over each other, nearly incomprehensible, as they scrambled apart, both blushing.
Mirror laughed, enjoying their reactions, then she asked,
"Anyway… what do you two even do together?"
Fenix raised his hand, as if he needed permission to answer. Mirror pointed to him and said,
"Go ahead,"
"I usually sleep." His answer made Mirror roll her eyes and stand up.
"Aren't you bored, just sleeping and talking?" She asked, placing a hand on her hip, and looking down at both of them.
"No. As long as Aura is in the room, I'm completely satisfied."
Aura blushed brightly at his straightforward statement, but he didn't notice. He meant what he said and almost expected Aura to be disgusted with him for it. So he avoided looking at her face, sparing himself the sting of rejection.
Mirror grinned mischievously, tapping a finger against her glossy lip.
"Oh, really? Hmm…"
A knock at the door interrupted her before she could continue. Aura opened it, and Vision entered with Veil, his brother, and the boy Aura had battled in the Nationals only a month and a half earlier.
"Hey, guys. We heard everyone was hanging out in Aura's room, so we decided to drop by," Vision said as they both entered. Aura sat back down at Fenix's side, and Vision wedged into the gap between them on the floor.
Word must have spread after the scene they made in the hall earlier.
Mirror groaned, plopping down onto Aura's bed. (There was no division between the living room and bedroom, so she was still near everyone.)
"If the three of us count as everyone, then yes," Mirror explained, a hint of irritation in her tone and a hidden suggestion for Vision to "Get lost."
"I've never been to your room before, Aura… " It's cleaner than I expected," Vision added, ignoring Mirror and subtly moving closer to her.
"Why does everyone say that?!" Aura threw up her hands, then let her head drop.
Vision opened his mouth to respond, but his collar was suddenly tugged, forcing him to turn toward Fenix—who was smiling, as usual.
"Do you want to die?" Fenix asked in the sweetest voice imaginable.
His tone was so cheerful that it was, quite frankly, unsettling. Because it was clear that the threat wasn't a joke.
"Is something bothering you?" Vision asked, tilting his head. He somehow did not notice the warning signs that everyone else in the room had.
"Yes. The fact that you're still breathing."
Fenix's tone didn't change—in fact, his smile grew sweeter. But as the seconds passed, it began to look more sinister, and the room's temperature steadily rose to an almost unbearable level.
Aura quickly wedged herself between them.
"He's mad… because you took his seat," she explained.
The temperature instantly returned to normal. Fenix leaned his shoulder against Aura's and relaxed back against the wall.
"Ah… he's just immature, huh?" Vision said, sounding slightly shaken. Fenix glared at him, but Vision regained his composure to say, "We have a few days off soon, so… Aura… I was wondering—"
"If you'll hang out with me for a while." Veil finished Vision's statement, speaking for the first time.
When all eyes turned to him, his face slightly flushed red, and he covered it with his hands.
"Vision was getting ahead of himself, speaking on my behalf." He muttered, "I told him I wanted to get to know you better. It's not fair that we don't have any classes together… so I
what do you say?"
Everyone was preparing for Vision to ask her out, so it was a surprise coming from Veil. But Aura smiled and politely said,
"Thank you, but I'm taking extra classes during that time, so I won't be free."
"That's so boring! You stupid overachiever. Veil was really looking forward to us all getting together during the Festival," Vision said, folding his arms. "You should make time for your friends," he added.
Aura blinked.
"We're friends?" She sounded genuinely shocked, which unnerved Vision.
He looked at her incredulously,
"We've known each other for three years! What did you think we were?!" His voice was heavy with confusion.
Aura stared at him, pondering his question, when an extremely warm hand turned her face toward its owner.
Fenix.
"I liked it better when it was just you and me," he muttered, reminding everyone just how tactless he was. "If you make time for anyone during the festival, it'll be me," Fenix stated, looking only at Aura. Her eyes widened upon hearing his declaration, leaving her frozen in place. Her lips parted. She desperately wanted to reply, say anything, but she was at a loss for words.
"I thought you said you weren't her boyfriend," Vision pointed out, lightly tugging Aura away from Fenix and knocking her out of her trance.
"I'm not," Fenix replied coolly. His eyes darted down at Vision's hand as it touched her shoulder.
That answer clearly didn't satisfy Vision.
"Then what right do you have to monopolize her time?" he asked, his voice growing testier as the seconds passed.
"I'm only saying what I want to say," Fenix answered with a shrug.
Vision glared at Fenix, who, uncharacteristically, showed no expression. But the air around him still felt heavy, as if he could snap at any moment. It looked like Vision was getting ready to say more, but then Mirror clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention, and said,
"Alright! Let's play a game or something."
"Yay! A game!" Fenix said, instantly brightening. Veil and Mirror joined the others on the floor. Then, Mirror pulled a deck of cards from her purse and began shuffling them while going over the game's rules.
Hours passed, and it was late when Aura finally got fed up and kicked everyone out so she could sleep. No one had really wanted to leave, so they all complained, begging to play another round, but she was more than happy to shut the door behind them.
A few minutes later, before she could even change into her pajamas, there was a knock.
"GRAAH… who is it now?!" she snapped, yanking the door open.
Veil stood there.
"I'm sorry… just… tomorrow, is it okay if I walk with you to class?" he asked shyly, staring at his feet.
"I don't care. Do whatever the hell you want," Aura muttered, slamming the door. Sleepiness had stolen what little sensitivity she had left, so she went straight to bed.
It wasn't until the next morning that she realized how rude she'd been, so she was surprised to see him waiting outside—along with Fenix.
"Good morning," Veil said with a soft, innocent smile.
"Hey, Aura," Fenix added, grinning, though there was irritation hidden beneath it.
"Hi," she replied with a sigh, slinging her bag over her shoulder.
They walked beside her with Fenix on the right, Veil on the left.
The air around them felt tense.
When Veil edged a little closer, Fenix leaned in slightly in response, barely giving Aura any breathing room.
"If you touch her, I'll kill you," Fenix warned cheerfully.
"Ah… but why would you? You're not dating," Veil replied.
Fenix's smile vanished, and his eyes turned cold.
"I'll still kill you." This time, his voice was deep and eerily serious.
Veil quickly put some space between them.
Aura sighed again, annoyed with both of them.
Veil had to separate from them once they reached their class, so he waved to Aura and said,
"I'll see you at lunch." She nodded in agreement and waved bye to him.
Later, when lunchtime came, Fenix took Aura's wrist gently.
"Let's eat out today," He pleaded. Aura studied his expression. She didn't know why, but it seemed like this was something he wanted desperately, so she replied,
"Okay, let's do that."
The two hurriedly left the school grounds for the only Restaurant within the school's Containment Barrier.
Once inside and seated, he scanned the menu with visible excitement.
"Why did you want to eat out?" Aura asked.
"The lunchroom is... noisy," he replied, his grin faltering as if he was remembering something unpleasant.
Aura sighed. "Fine… I actually wanted to ask you something, anyway."
"Really? What is it?"
She fidgeted with her fingers.
"I… want to know why you're so unhappy."
Fenix blinked.
"You think… I'm sad?"
"Yes," Aura said quietly. "You're the saddest person I think I've ever seen. I understand if it's not something you want to talk about... I just want to understand you better."
He leaned back in his chair. Fenix stayed silent until the waitress came over and asked for their orders.
"I would like the barbecue chicken," Aura said, handing over her menu, eyes still fixed on Fenix.
"I would like the vegetable soup with cheddar cheese, please." He said, sitting upright and handing over his menu.
"And for drinks?" The waitress asked, looking from Aura to Fenix.
"Sweet tea." They said in unison. That made them both smile despite the tension.
The waitress wrote everything down, then bowed politely, saying,
"It will be just a moment. I'll be back soon with your order." Once she was out of earshot, Fenix began speaking in a hushed tone.
"When… I was younger… I accidentally set fire to my hometown."
Aura didn't flinch, and her expression didn't change as Fenix spoke.
"I… didn't know I had powers until I was eight. My parents were arguing, and because of this, I became very upset… They fought a lot, but this time it was worse than the others. Before I knew it, both my hands were engulfed in flames. This freaked me out, so I panicked and fell to the floor, starting a fire in my room.
"On the bright side… once they smelled smoke, my parents stopped arguing. They both rushed out of the house—forgetting about me completely… they just didn't care about me.
"I was in my room, panicking, and the more I did, the bigger and more intense the fire got. It was then that I realized... I was the cause. I could no longer feel the heat or smell the smoke… even though I was completely surrounded by it.
"The fire burned everything—bricks, glass… It even burned across water. It was inextinguishable until I managed to calm down..."
Fenix looked up into Aura's eyes.
"Both of my parents died, dozens of other people died as well, and I was arrested… My body was experimented on until recently. They created devices capable of controlling me, and because of that, I was allowed to attend this school. So, if I seem sad… that's probably why. I can't escape the memories of that day."
Catching him off guard, Aura reached across the table and took his hand. Fenix's temperature rose sharply, but Aura didn't seem fazed at all.
"I can't say I know how you feel, but… when I was born, my village declared me a cursed child. It was a very traditional, strict, old-fashioned place.
"When they told my parents to kill Mirror and me, of course, they refused. Most of the villagers felt it would weigh too heavily on their conscience to kill babies themselves, so they allowed us to live. Mirror is older than me by a year, by the way.
"Her power is less noticeable, so she wasn't bothered much. But wherever I stayed for too long, things became very… green. Flowers would bloom, grass stayed lush even in winter, dead trees came back to life… things like that.
"The villagers called my power evil and ordered me to stop using it—but I couldn't control how plants reacted to me.
"Eventually, they found out about the laws regarding people like us. So, Mirror and I were forced to attend this school until we could fully control our abilities—or graduate and serve in the military.
"My parents tried to take us back, and because of that, they were arrested. They'll only be released if one of us graduates and joins ALPHA… I want that to be me. So, Mirror and our parents can finally live a peaceful, happy life."
Fenix had been listening intently. When she finished, he lifted her hand and kissed her fingertips.
"You're… really something, Aura."
She flushed and quickly pulled her hand away. Fenix laughed and added,
"It's hard to stay sad, now that you're in my life." She met his eyes, ready to say something in reply, but, right on cue, their food arrived, and they ate in silence.
On the way back to the dorms, Fenix glanced up at the sky.
"I heard that once you join ALPHA, you can never retire."
Aura lightly bit her lip.
"That's true… but don't worry, I do get vacations. And as long as my family is okay, I don't mind."
She looked down at the pavement as they walked.
"Well… if you join, I'm going with you. I don't want you getting lonely… You hate being alone more than anyone."
Aura's heart fluttered. She squeezed her eyes shut.
She had always pretended to like being alone. That way, when she and Mirror eventually separated, Mirror wouldn't feel guilty for not joining ALPHA herself. It was… unsettling that he had seen through that.
"How did you know?"
Fenix held out his hand. After a moment, she reluctantly took it.
"I knew for the same reason you knew I was sad… Because we're friends, right? Because we care about each other."
He swung their joined hands as they walked. Aura grumbled, her face turning red.
"Just… don't tell Mirror," she muttered, squeezing his hand.
Fenix laughed.
"I don't know. When you tell me not to do something, it just makes me want to do it more."
"Stop being so rebellious!" Aura argued, playfully nudging him with her shoulder.
"But I had three bottles of rebellion juice this morning. I have to rebel." Fenix replied sarcastically.
"That's not even a thing!"
He chuckled, then wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into a tight hug.
"Alright, I won't tell her," he murmured, resting his cheek on top of her head.
Aura hesitated—then hugged him back, gripping his jacket tightly.
"Good," she said softly.
Two seconds later, she shoved him away, flustered.
"You've held on long enough!" She shouted. He laughed again, but there was a hint of disappointment in his voice, as if he wished to hold her longer.
Fenix walked Aura to her room before they parted ways. Mirror was waiting inside on the couch. Noticing they had spent the evening together, she smirked and said,
"So, were you on a date?"
Aura frowned.
"Don't be ridiculous."
Aura barely had time for friendship, much less romance. She sat down on the floor and crossed her legs, appearing to be very focused.
"What are you doing?" Mirror asked, watching her curiously.
"I'm… infusing botanical traits into my DNA."
Mirror tilted her head, clearly confused.
"Certain plants, like cacti, coneflowers, and celosia spicata, are resistant to heat. I'm using traits like those to strengthen my own resistance."
Mirror's eyes widened, then she grinned.
"I didn't know you could do something that useful. I thought all you could do was those thorny attacks and healing."
Aura ignored her and focused.
She exhaled slowly, feeling the swelling in her blistered hands begin to subside. The pain dulled, little by little.
If she wanted to stay close to Fenix… she had to make sure she wouldn't hurt him...
By being hurt by him.
She would do whatever it took to protect him from that.