There was also that unreasonable hostility. With just one glance, I could tell Liona had feelings for Halley, and by now she had definitely marked me as a rival in love. Sigh… someone like that was better left untouched and unprovoked. I turned away and found a random empty seat to sit down. I had barely settled when someone poked my back with a pen.
"What are you doing?" I turned around and came face-to-face with Halley's bright, clear eyes. His gaze held a sunny sort of smile completely different from the gloomy aura Captian carried. Only then did I realize the seat I had casually chosen was right in front of Halley, while Liona sat at an angle across from us, glaring daggers at me.
"It's your first day here, so you probably don't have a textbook yet."
Halley handed me a literature textbook. "The literature teacher is extremely strict and also really fierce. Borrow this for now."
"What?" I glanced at the book and, slightly embarrassed, accepted it.
"Then what about you?" Earlier, when I went to register, the homeroom teacher told me to go to class first and that he'd bring my textbooks later, treating me as though I were some honored guest but I knew that was because of Captian.
"I don't really like that subject anyway. Listening to it makes me sleepy." Halley rubbed his head, smiling sheepishly.
Hearing that made me even more embarrassed. If he didn't like it, why choose that academic track? "It's fine, I'll have my textbooks soon. You should use yours." I absolutely didn't dare take it, especially with Liona's oppressive stare boring holes into my back. Terrifying.
Halley looked regretful. "You really don't need it?"
I shook my head firmly. "It's fine, take it back."
He sighed dramatically. "Haizz, I only wanted to repay the Bailey family's lifesaving grace a little."
I let out a dry laugh. "Thanks for the thought," I said inwardly. I seriously didn't want to be treated as someone's romantic rival, especially not by that petty and narrow-minded woman.
"Your name is Rosy, right? You know how to do acupuncture?" A sweet-looking girl approached me. Her eyes were big, her skin was porcelain-pale, and when she smiled, dimples appeared she was the kind of girl people naturally liked.
I blinked, still processing, when she immediately slid into the seat on my left.
"My name's Hezze. I heard people talking about you just now." She casually wrapped her arm around my shoulders. "You know acupuncture and even revived Halley from heatstroke."
I frowned slightly at her sudden closeness, but I didn't dislike it. "Mm. I do. I learned when I was very little."
Hezze's eyes sparkled with genuine interest. "If you know acupuncture, then you also know pulse diagnosis and those traditional techniques, right?"
Because she was so warm and persistent, I couldn't refuse. "I do know them, I learned them when I was young."
Hezze raised a thumbs-up, admiration shining openly in her eyes. "Amazing. You're so young and you already know all that. My family owns a hospital, but I have zero interest in medicine, so I'm here studying literature instead."
"As long as it's something you like, it's worth studying," I replied, not sure what else to say, so I ended up saying something that sounded stiff and generic.
"You're totally right. I need to stick to my dreams!" She clenched her fists, her eyes blazing with determination. "Oh right, since you don't have a textbook, you can share mine. The literature teacher is terrifying—strict and serious!"
I froze. "Huh… is that okay?"
Hezze didn't even wait for my answer. She tugged our desks together, opened her book, and positioned it so both of us could read. "Of course. Come on, scoot closer so we can share."
Warm sunlight seemed to radiate off her; I could genuinely feel her kindness. That warmth was so different from the people in the mansion.
"Thank you." I smiled, a real smile.
It was the first genuine smile I had shown since arriving in Alchimie City. Not once inside that mansion had I been able to truly smile.
Seeing it, Hezze froze for a second. When I smiled, she seemed mesmerized—especially by the teardrop mole under my eye. "Wow, Rosy, you're really pretty when you smile."
I blinked. It was the first time a girl had ever complimented me. Back in the countryside, the old ladies all disliked me, no one ever praised me because I was a child born out of wedlock, something the old generation saw as bad luck.
I smiled faintly and read the textbook with Hezze.
The bell rang. A bald, stern-looking teacher walked in. His demeanor was dry and humorless, and his lessons were so dull they made everyone sleepy. I had to prop my chin up to stop myself from falling asleep too. Only when class finally ended did I feel like I'd revived.
"I told you, right? Isn't he terrifying?" Hezze threw her arm over my shoulder again.
Having already gotten used to her enthusiasm, I smiled. "Super strict. I even felt like he was glaring at me earlier, maybe because I didn't have a textbook."
"He hates it when students don't bring their books! If he catches one, he'll drag them out to stand in the hallway. Luckily, you had me." She puffed up proudly.
I laughed. "Thank you."
Classes ended quickly, and within just one day, Hezze and I had grown incredibly close to the point of sticking together everywhere, even to the bathroom.
"Rosy, I need to go buy some stationery later. Come with me, okay?"
I was about to agree when I suddenly remembered the madman in the mansion. Sometimes he didn't come home, but what if today he did? If he found out I didn't return on time, wouldn't that mean disaster for me?
My eyes widened as I hastily searched for an excuse. Someone like him, cruel, dangerous, unpredictable, I wasn't ready to die yet.
"Hezze, my family has something going on today, so I can't go with you. Next time, okay?" I said, rubbing my nose awkwardly. I felt oddly responsible just saying it.
She looked disappointed. "Aw… okay, next time then."
After school, we walked out of the gates chatting and laughing.
But after just a few steps, I spotted a Rolls-Royce parked across the street. It sat there arrogantly, impossible to miss.
My face instantly changed. It was Captian's car.
Of course, they were here to drag me back to the mansion.
Luxury cars were common around the elite school, so Hezze didn't feel anything strange about the Rolls-Royce. She waved at me. "Rosy, I'm going to buy stationery. See you tomorrow!"