Assana has been walking down the long passageways for about three minutes and she has yet to find her classroom. The first class she took was an English class. Although it is quite boring, she wasn't going to be given a lot of heavy material early in the morning.
Unfortunately, the hallways were completely empty and void of life, meaning that she wouldn't be able to ask someone for help. This is what she gets when she doesn't fully pay attention to what others say to her.
Despite walking for a few more minutes and being extremely observant of her surroundings, she still wasn't able to find her class. Thankfully, she was able to spot Joash making his way down the hall, his head looking towards the floor.
"Hey! I really need your help," Assana pleaded as she startled the poor boy, making him look up with big eyes. This action made him look really cute and innocent.
Still feeling a little bit surprised, his voice sounded a little bit shaky, "S-sure."
"Thank you! Do you know where Ms. Chaucer's classroom is at? I'm supposed to be with her right now,"
Assana smiled sheepishly and covered herself with her hand. This little action didn't go unnoticed by Joash, making him smile a little. Why was she hiding such a cute smile behind her hand?
Joash's hand began to move towards her unconsciously, grabbing her hand and guiding it away from her face.
"You look prettier when you show your smile."
Seeing Joash smile so genuinely made Assana's heart skip a beat. Such a smile shouldn't be hidden from the rest of the world, even if Assana didn't want to share such a discovery. She would gladly accept the fact that she is shameless to just think about hiding such a beautiful sight.
Not really thinking of what he might've caused Assana, he walked forward and urged her to follow him. Assana complied quietly as she tried to calm down her racing thoughts.
Is Joash wasn't there to help her, she would've gotten even more lost than what she already was. Assana was heading in the wrong direction. This explained why she wasn't able to find the classroom in the first place.
Assana wasn't actually that far away from Ms. Chaucer's class. She was extremely glad that she was able to spot him before he went to his class.
"Joash, aren't you supposed to be in class?"
This thought made her feel extremely guilty. He sacrificed part of his own time to help her find her class. Not only that but he could also get into trouble.
Joash's warm attitude had completely disappeared once he was in front of the door. He took a deep breath and looked at Assana.
"No need to worry. This is my class, too."
After saying this, he pushed open the doors and stared blankly at everyone inside. Where did the kind and genuine Joash go to?
Ms. Chaucer glanced at them before smiling and pointing them to sit at the back of the only seats available that were right next to each other. Joash confidently walked between the other student's seats while Assana lowered her head and stared at the floor.
Someone decided that it would be funny to see one of the students that arrived late fall to the ground, so they purposely dropped their pencil and put their foot to try and guide it back to him. Joash was able to successfully walk past his foot, but Assana was barely paying any attention to her surroundings. She stumbled for a moment before Joash helped her stabilize herself.
"Oops, sorry," said the boy as he laughed alongside his friends, receiving a glare from the class. Why were they chosen to come here? They could've seriously hurt the girl if Joash wasn't there to help her!
"Julien, apologize to Assana right now!"
The teacher wore a serious look on her face as she stared at the teen apparently names Julien. However, the reaction of his new teacher and classmates truly shocked him. He was above everyone in his old school. Julien held a lot of power not because of fear, but because people loved his inappropriate jokes, gestures and how he treated certain people.
The faculty and pupils of Ataelarth seemed to be much more mature than other places. This fact greatly intimidated him. He tried salvaging his situation, but he only managed to make it worse.
"Assana? More like Ass-ana, am I right?"
The room was dead silent. Julien looked over at his friends with a nervous smile, expecting them to smile or laugh like they always do. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Ms. Chancer's patience was slowly running out as she narrowed her eyes at Julien, still expecting him to apologize.
Regardless of what Julien had just called her, Assana simply smiled at him. Or rather smiled at the joke. She was already used to being called names, but it still hurt. It was simply the first day of school and she had already made quite a few enemies.
Why is this whole situation so cliché? The protagonist would simply just smile at the person that had just insulted them and then get their revenge for hurting them. Assana wasn't like these protagonists. She doesn't have the courage to prove people wrong. The only thing she is able to do is to sit back and listen.
Trying to forget about the whole situation, Assana urged Joash to move forward. The only thing she wanted right now was to sit down and rest. The day hasn't even started yet and she was already tired from what had just happened.
Ms. Chaucer had no other option but to forget about the incident and give class. She was planning on making the students introduce themselves, but it seems that they will be unable to do so. These students needed to get their act together if they wanted a chance to be inside the real organization.
This school is just a mask hiding what's underneath. Only the students that push themselves the most while also being respectful towards others will be the ones that will actually be enrolled in this school. This is all just a huge façade waiting to be revealed.