Chapter 12: Bubbles, Teddy Bear Pyjamas, and Forced Roommateship
It was long past midnight, but the magic lamp in Alicia's room was still burning.
Alicia sat on the hard chair of her study desk, isolated from the world.
She had tied her crimson hair, which usually cascaded over her shoulders, into a tight ponytail at the nape of her neck; this left her neck exposed, her facial features appearing more distinct and serious. A light bead of sweat glistened on her forehead.
The thick notebook in front of her was filled with complex geometric shapes and runes.
Her pen moved rapidly across the paper, drawing flawless copies of Basic Mana Circles.
"Close the circle. Center the triangle. Direct the flow to the north..." she muttered to herself.
Tomorrow was Professor Monica's class. She couldn't walk into that class carrying the weight of today's fiasco.
She wouldn't allow people to look at her with pity or mockery.
If she had failed at summoning, she would cover that gap by being the best in the class at theoretical magic.
She had to hide her weakness behind armor.
At the other end of the room, a stillness reigned that was the exact opposite of this intense work.
Abyss was sitting on the edge of the bed. His feet dangled in the void as they didn't reach the floor.
His hands were on his knees. He had fixed his pitch-black eyes on the girl studying at the desk.
Aside from the sound of breathing and the scratching of Alicia writing in the notebook, there wasn't a sound in the room, but Abyss's gaze felt like a physical weight on Alicia's back.
Yet, Alicia stubbornly refused to turn around. She was pressing the tip of her pen so hard against the paper that the lead was in danger of snapping several times.
About an hour later, Alicia let out a deep breath and put the pen down on the table.
She closed the notebook noisily. When she raised her arms to stretch, cracking sounds came from her joints. After tilting her neck left and right to relieve it, she spun her chair around.
And of course, she was met with those jet-black eyes.
The boy was exactly as she had left him. As if he were a statue and time did not flow for him.
Alicia forced a smile onto her face, trying to get used to this situation.
"Hey, Abyss," she said, her voice tired. "I need to ask you something."
The boy tilted his head slightly to the side. This was his way of saying 'I'm listening'.
"Other contracted monsters..." began Alicia, choosing her words carefully. "Can usually withdraw into their owner's spirit realm. That is, they don't need a physical space; they live directly within the summoner's mana. You... Can you do that?"
There wasn't the slightest sign of understanding on Abyss's face. He continued to look at Alicia with blank eyes.
Alicia leaned forward slightly, trying to explain with hand gestures. "I mean... Can you dissolve your current physical form and enter inside me, into my soul, like smoke or energy? That way you wouldn't take up space here."
Abyss remained silent for a while, as if Alicia were speaking a language he didn't know. Then he shrugged his shoulders slightly.
"I don't know," he said in a flat voice.
Alicia slumped her shoulders. "Great. Really great."
Sighing, she scanned her room. This was a standard student dorm room.
A single bed, a study desk, a tiny kitchenette, a wardrobe, and a small bathroom. That was all. It wasn't designed for two people to live in. Especially not if one was a 'contracted monster' who couldn't manage to withdraw to the spirit realm.
Her eyes drifted back to Abyss. She couldn't make him lie on the floor; the ground was cold and hard. Asking him to sleep on the chair would be cruel too.
After all, no matter how strange he was, his appearance was that of a frail eight or nine-year-old boy.
"I guess we have to share the bed," murmured Alicia, cursing her fate.
Then her eyes caught the clothes on Abyss.
The black rags on the boy seemed covered in a century of dust and dirt. Mud stains had dried, the fabric had hardened. He had an old and moldy presence that spoiled even the clean air of the room.
It was impossible for him to get into that bed in this state.
Alicia stood up with a determined expression. "We need to clean you first. I can't let you into my bed in those rags."
She headed to her wardrobe and took out a clean, soft towel. Then she went to Abyss and held out her hand.
"Come on. We're going to the bathroom."
Abyss got off the bed without objection and followed Alicia.
The bathroom was small but clean.
The white tiles gleamed. Alicia plugged the bathtub and turned on the tap.
As hot water gushed out, intense steam filled the bathroom. She poured some lavender-scented bubble bath into the water.
When the water reached a sufficient level, she turned off the tap and turned her back to Abyss.
"Um..." said Alicia, feeling her cheeks redden slightly. "Undress and get in the water. I'm not looking."
A rustling sound was heard behind her. Abyss paused. Undressing... This concept was foreign to him, but he understood the definitive tone in Alicia's voice.
A few seconds later came the sound of fabric hitting the floor. Followed by the sound of splashing water.
Alicia stole a glance over her shoulder. Abyss was sitting in the water.
The bubbles came up to his shoulders; only his head and neck were visible.
Alicia took a breath of relief and turned fully toward him. She took a plastic pitcher in her hand and knelt by the edge of the tub.
"Close your eyes, the shampoo might sting," she warned.
Abyss closed his eyes. Alicia poured warm water over the boy's head with the pitcher.
When the black, dirty hair met the water, it stuck to his face. Alicia took some shampoo in her hand and began to lather the boy's hair.
It felt strange when her fingers touched Abyss's scalp.
Although his hair looked coarse, it was as soft as silk under the water. And his head... was warmer than she expected. This boy, whom she called 'corpse-like', actually had a living warmth.
While Alicia rubbed his hair with gentle movements, Abyss stood like a statue. He neither smiled nor seemed uncomfortable.
He simply allowed the movement of Alicia's fingers. The foam sat like white clouds atop that pitch-black hair.
"You know," said Alicia to break the silence. "You actually don't look bad when you're cleaned up."
When the washing was done, Alicia opened the large, fluffy towel.
"Okay, you can come out."
When Abyss came out of the water, Alicia wrapped him quickly in the towel, taking care to keep her gaze on the boy's face. He was a child, yes. But he was still a male, and Alicia was embarrassed by the situation.
After drying him thoroughly, she brought him back to the room.
She rummaged through her own wardrobe. Of course, she didn't have any clothes suitable for him. Finally, she found an old grey t-shirt that was a few sizes too big for her.
When she put the t-shirt on Abyss, the fabric went down to the boy's knees, becoming like a dress. The sleeves were so long that Abyss's hands were lost inside them.
"You look a bit funny, but it will do," said Alicia, giggling slightly.
She sat Abyss, who was now clean, smelling like fresh shampoo, and lost inside the loose t-shirt, onto the bed. She fluffed the pillow and said, "Lie down."
Abyss lay down on the bed. Alicia pulled the quilt over him.
However, Abyss did that familiar thing again. He opened his eyes wide and started looking at Alicia standing above him.
Alicia put her hands on her hips. "Look, let's make a deal, Abyss. We need to sleep. I have to get up early in the morning, I can't be late for class. And..."
She wagged her finger. "Please don't look at me like that when we sleep. I don't think I can sleep while someone is watching me. Close your eyes."
Obeying the command, Abyss closed those bottomless black eyes. His long lashes fell onto his cheeks. When his eyes closed, the eeriness was gone, replaced by an innocent expression.
"Good. Don't open them," whispered Alicia.
She didn't know if he was really sleeping or just closing his eyes, but she was too tired to question it.
Grabbling her own pyjamas from the closet, she ran to the bathroom.
She locked the door, leaned her back against it, and let out a deep breath. The fatigue of the day had now settled on her shoulders.
She took off her uniform. Skirt, shirt, socks... She threw them all into the laundry basket. When she got under the shower, she felt her muscles relax as the hot water glided down her body.
She closed her eyes and wished for the water to take away the humiliation, the fear, and the stress she had experienced during the day.
After a short shower, she dried off.
She took off her bathrobe and put on her favorite pyjamas. This was a set diametrically opposed to the 'cold and distant Alicia' image at school.
On the white satin fabric, there were small pink teddy bear patterns. The collars of the pyjamas were frilly, giving her an air of being younger and more vulnerable than she was.
She combed her hair and left it down. She looked at her reflection in the mirror one last time. The redness in her eyes had diminished.
When she left the bathroom and returned to the room, she turned off the light. Only the pale moonlight filtering through the window illuminated the room.
She stood at the bedside and looked at the bed with hesitation.
Abyss was just as she had left him. His eyes closed, his breathing was so quiet it wasn't even clear he was there.
When the moonlight hit his face, his skin looked smooth and white, as if carved from marble.
"What a strange thing you are..." whispered Alicia.
She had no strength left to stand. She gently lifted the quilt and glided into the empty part of the bed.
The bed shook for a moment, but Abyss didn't move.
Alicia pulled the quilt up to her chin. Then she turned her back to Abyss and curled up in the fetal position. She had made sure to leave a pillow's worth of distance between them.
She was sleeping in her bed with an entity from the void, something she didn't even know what it was.
If someone had told her this yesterday morning, she would have laughed out loud. But now, she felt that entity's silent breath on the back of her neck.
She closed her eyes and tried to drift into sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a hard day. A very hard one.