"What's your name?" Speaking in a calm, harmonious voice, Arthur asked the small girl who was walking nervously beside him.
"A-Aline! You can call me Aline... what's yours?" Still a little nervous, the images of this person beside her easily lifting someone by the neck still made her a little scared.
"Arthur. Besides, you don't need to be scared or anything. I'm not a needlessly aggressive person, so relax!" Slapping his hand lightly on Aline's head, Arthur spoke while laughing a little.
Aline's head quickly shrank to Arthur's pounding, but then relaxed. Despite not having enough intimacy for Arthur to do this, the girl didn't complain at all, and even liked it a little. It was as if that hand held something warm and cozy...
"Which course are you enrolled in? There are a lot of rooms here and it's easy to get lost..." Feeling calmer at Arthur's gesture, Aline calmly asked him.
"I signed up for Logistics, how about you?" Arthur spoke calmly. As the school he was at was also a Technical School, a course integrated with high school would obviously exist. The courses available were Logistics, Buildings and Systems Development. As he didn't really care which course to pursue, Arthur chose a random one and dropped into Logistics.
"I signed up for Logistics too!" The girl's eyes lit up a little as she spoke. He seemed to be happy with the fact that he was studying in the same room as Arthur. "That way it's easier! The room is this way."
The two then started walking together while they talked about school things, making the girl's fear for Arthur vanish completely and only a slight agitation and excitement remained.
With just this conversation he had with her, Arthur more or less understood how the school works. Yesterday was just an introduction and the duration was only until noon, but as a integral school, classes last until late afternoon, starting at 7:30 am until 5:00 pm. There are three breaks for recreation and snacking: Breakfast, Lunch and Afternoon Snack. The class schedule would be set by the end of the day, so no one knew which class would be the first of the day.
"I've never had the opportunity to study at such a large and prestigious school... it will be interesting to stay here!" Arthur spoke in a low voice while a lush smile formed on his face slightly, exposing his perfect teeth.
Aline, seeing that beautiful image forming, stared a little and then looked away. In her heart, a few words reverberating: 'So beautiful...'
As they walked along, many people also entered the school and went to their respective classrooms. It was clear that Arthur was one of the few, if not the only one, who did not know which one was his. Most of the people who entered were veterans and they were in small groups. The new students were together in larger groups and had a more shy behavior.
As he took in the view and breathed lightly, Arthur's gaze flickered over the gate for a moment, but he quickly fixed there and couldn't pull away. Because a snow white girl with beautiful blue eyes was coming through the gate. She was dressed simply and neatly, but all Arthur could see was a flowered dress, like a ghost image.
As soon as his gaze fell on this graceful figure, Arthur's heart beat a little faster… passion, yearning, love?… no, it was definitely disgust and anger. But as these emotions began to form in his heart and face, they completely disappeared. An unprecedented calm enveloped him again the more he got used to dealing with his own feelings.
'Do I really have to thank for the opportunity the heavens give me? I guess so...' A smile formed on Arthur's face again, but this one was barely recognizable and had a mischievous edge to it.
His heart returned to its usual calm and his face normalized. He turned to Aline beside him who was walking calmly and said to her: "Aline, can I ask you a favor? As classmates."
"Of course! As long as it's no big deal... hehe! What is it?" While the words out of her mouth, she didn't notice that her last sentence came out even a little ambiguous and showed a curious expression.
"Could you take my bag to the classroom? I swear I'll make it up to you later, no matter what you ask. You have my word!" Arthur looked pleadingly at Aline and put a hand to his chest.
"Okay, I can! But do you know where the room is?" A little taken aback by the request, Aline felt hesitant to refuse after looking at Arthur's expression.
"I'll find a way to find it later. Also, everyone will be together during the Anthem, so I just go with the flow. Thanks now and anything you ask me in the future, don't hesitate to ask!" As soon as he finished speaking, Arthur had already taken the backpack from his shoulders and handed it to Aline. Before leaving, he even said: "Put it in the back of the class, please!" And went towards the gate.
"OK!" Still a little confused by everything that had happened, Aline felt a little lost. Only after a few moments did she start walking in a certain direction. 'Even though it's weird, since we just met, I got a favor in exchange for something silly!'
***
Once through the gate, Patricia began to look everywhere for two familiar faces for her. After so much searching, she really wasn't able to find them. Giving up on the idea, she simply started walking towards her own living room.
'Those two said they would wait for me and I would be able to see them from the gate... Why aren't they here?' Her expression was a little irritated, but she soon calmed down again.
"Good morning, Patricia!" A soft, calm voice instantly entered her ears, as if it had been spoken nearby.
"Aah! Charles your-" Jumping forward in fright, Patricia immediately spun her body and was ready to complain to Charles, but as soon as she saw who the person who had spoken to her was, a confused expression came over her face, as she couldn't recognize who that person was.
"Aargh! How it hurts to be mistaken for that person, but I can forgive you for that..." With a movement as if he had been stabbed, Arthur grinned and cupped his chest. "Hasn't even been that long and you don't even recognize me?"
"No, I don't know who you are. But what do you want?" With a slightly irritated expression because of the fright, Patricia actually showed ignorance of Arthur's identity. She was a little shocked by the beauty of the person in front of her, but the irritation seemed to be greater and a bad impression began to form in her heart.
"So you really don't remember, right... Well, I'll give you two tips: First, my name starts with an A. Second, I shared a few moments with you on New Year's. So, remember me now?" With a calm smile, Arthur spoke as he approached her.
"It starts with A... wait... no, impossible! Are you Arthur? That Arthur?" With a really shocked expression, Patricia looked at the person in front of her and tried to compare with the one she had a "date" on New Year. And after making some similarities, it was a possibility, but the difference between the two was like heaven and earth.
The Arthur who had gone out with her was clumsy and had a half-innocent and half-silly look in his eyes. His clothes were old and worn and his body was far from being considered aesthetically beautiful, as his arms and legs were weak and slightly fat and his belly was also rounded. His face bore some puberty pimples and his hair was kind of disheveled.
In comparison, the person in front of her actually had similarities to him, but the difference was also big. The look of this person was calm and determined, and also carried a bit of arrogance. His clothes were new and looked expensive and they were clearly carrying an athletic, handsome body underneath. The rounded belly was nowhere to be seen, even though Patricia couldn't figure out what was underneath. The pimples on his face were also gone and his skin was incomparably soft and smooth, his eyebrows flawless and the hair cut and shiny.
"But it's just that..." While an even more confused look passed over Patricia's face, Arthur had already arrived in front of her.
"Well, it's me! It seems you finally recognized me, I was even scared!" Arthur's expression relaxed and he stared into Patricia's blue eyes.
Seeing those bright, intelligent green eyes, Patricia's world was suddenly sucked in color and she couldn't speak anymore and just stared at Arthur. Her heart also began to beat faster and her mind became more and more confused.
This situation lasted for a few seconds before Arthur approached his face until he almost touched his lips to Patricia's. The moment she saw this, Patricia unconsciously took a step back, but her body was stopped from going any farther when a large, strong hand grabbed her waist and stopped her. At that moment, Patricia was still looking into Arthur's bright eyes and her heart was beating so madly, and her white cheeks were immediately pink. But, in that state, her desire to finally make that final contact with Arthur's lips was growing more and more, as if it were an irresistible impulse.
Arthur's head then approached her ears and he spoke in a calm voice, but containing a hint of seduction.: "It's good to see you again. Let's get a chance to get to know each other better now that we're studying together!" After saying that, Arthur took a step back, gave a goodbye smile and walked away.
Patricia, who was motionless on the spot, simply had no reactions and her heart was pounding violently. Only after someone touched her body did she wake up.
"Hey, are you alright? Is that cute one over there your boyfriend?" A random girl touched Patricia and spoke lightly. In her voice there was even a hint of envy.
"What... what?? No, he's not... we only went out once, a while ago..." While still in shock, Patricia's voice suddenly became shy and a little subdued, as if she were talking inside.
But it was still enough for the girl who touched her to breathe a sigh of relief and speak softly: "Thanks God!"
Then, Patricia started walking back to her own room as images of the old Arthur and the current Arthur flitted through her mind and she tried to understand how such a big change had occurred in such a short time. Also, when that smile and look crossed her mind, her heart beat faster and she bit her lip.
Little did she know, her voice had been loud enough and countless girls who had seen their attitude breathed a sigh of relief and gratitude that such a perfect boy was still free.