Ethereal Paradigm: Arcadia of Darkness 19 A Secret Known

-Oscar Wilde

━━━━━━━━┓ ✠ ┏━━━━━━━━

What? The Prima Donna inviting me? I pray it's not out of pity or anything, yeah I'll definitely go. But worse is that another senseless stigma is again gonna be formed. Well, its better than staying here and gaining unnecessary lonesome attention while sulking, revealing my introvert side.

"It's not out of pity or anything right?"

"I'll leave that to your imagination."

"Ok then. It can't be helped. Guess I'll be the Prima Donna's tour guide for a bit."

"I already told you, right? Celes is the name."

"Ok, then Celes. Thanks for the offer."

The moment, I stood up from my seat while taking my bag, I know for the fact that there's nothing good that might come out of this, but I also know that it is rather unproductive if I were to sit here all day, regardless of the slight chance that someone might actually talk to me. I'll just make this stroll a sort of review of the map I memorized before the class started earlier. Besides, being accompanied by someone is very new to me.

And just like that, we took our leave while the class was destructed from their friend making session version 2.0.

We then walked around the long hallways and through several ground pavements while silence followed us. So, to break through the awkward atmosphere I know that I must be the one to pursue a topic. It could also bring several revelations to me and could serve as a practical training as to how to communicate with a beautiful and overachieving girl.

"So, did you spend your childhood like that?"

"Like what?"

"I know, you already know what I'm talking to..."

"You're a sharp one Jaiden maybe you'll make of a good rival for this year."

"Sorry. I am not that sharp as you expect me to be. I am more of a logical person, but not that highly intellectual. "

"Hmmmmmm. Sounds pretty questionable to me...but, the answer to that question would be no. I was not always like this. Not until, I won an international award for my contribution of a certain scientific study at the age of 14, won national contests such as feature journalism, Math olympiad, and several others. before that, I get to have friends and be with people normally. But soon after my dad's business came booming in our region, I was forced to transfer schools and from there everything changed. Upon knowing my achievements, my new classmates would not even dare to talk to me. It's also partly my fault for indulging myself reading books every free time we have, my classmates back then literally think of me as an academic nerd who built this kind of impregnable barrier around her ... but yeah, the cascade of fortunate events was every bit a disadvantage to my social life."

"A tough life you have there."

"Yeah, but I already adapted to it fundamentally. How about you? I cant also see or imagine you making friends."

"While having friends and someone to rely on is a better option, I always was bad at communicating with people you know. Same as to how our conversation earlier stirred up the false stigma of us already know each other. It seems like, every time I inspire myself to make ties with someone, my mouth retaliates." I exclaimed, which is somehow not entirely false.

"That's unfortunate."

"Yeah, but same as you, I already am acquainted with it. So it doesn't bother me anymore. "

"I guess, we are pretty similar in some ways."

"You could say that again, although I'm nowhere close on winning any international award."

"How humble. Hey, do you think we can make a good couple?"

"Say what now?"

The moment she uttered those lines, I stopped and cringed for a bit, but I know... I know deep inside that she is unscrupulously kidding. Imagine, a prodigy in academics talking all about love, it's clearly implausible.

"You'll probably make a good girlfriend, but me? Nah! I'm an anti-romantic misanthropist. Trust me, you wouldn't want me to be what other calls your 'boyfriend'".

"Oy vey! What a horrible self-pity "she responded with a chuckle.

To fiend off the pink vision I am seeing, I suggested something entirely.

"Want to go to the cafeteria?"

"Sure" she replied with a pure smile. Seeing her from this little distance makes her even more beautiful, but I know I must maintain the confident composure. And no... Early illogical romance is by far, not also in the radars.

The moment we got to the luxurious cafeteria, I bought my all-time favorite, hamburger while Celes ordered something which should not be in a university cafeteria's menu. A healthy bowl of salad.

While we were to sit down, the place is filling up with an en masse of the crowd who just finished their first day of class. Not a good sign actually, and as I was about to suggest something., Celes prompted first otherwise.

"I think it is better off eating at the top floor," she suggested which is a normal reaction for almost anyone who spent their teenage in a conserved environment.

"Yeah. It's probably windy there, but I think it's better." I responded.

We got out of the cafeteria without anyone noticing us...

As we were on the way to the top floor, whilst holding the paper bags of food we ordered, the silence was there. But, unlike the first countenance, I don't think I am hell-bent to always be the leader of a meaningful conversation. It's time for her to take the lead this time...

But that, never came to be... as she suddenly took a little detour on the topic unprecedentedly, shifting it from meaningful to detrimental.

"Jaiden. How long are you going to hide it?" she asked, with a very serious look in her face.

"What? The only thing that I'm hiding in my di-... (No, I take that back)"

"You can't make a fool out of me you know that. You are a Herrscher aren't you?"

"Huh, what are you talking about? "I responded.

Honestly, as much as I know that I really can't make a fool out of her the more I knew nothing of which she spoke of. Herrschers? What the hell is that supposed to be? And then the intercontinental ballistic missile...

"Lacrimosa. She's your deity isn't she?"

What? How does she know about Lacrimosa?. For all I am worth, I was the only one who knew of her existence!

From that point on... I extrapolated that the gray and mundane high school life I expected to have in this artificially-made city, turns out to be not that "gray" at all. It's probably something that exceeds the extraordinary and the more I think of it, the vaguer the subject becomes.

How the hell does she know her?

Chapter end