Nova sat at an empty seat behind Wolfe and leaned forward as the two spoke.
"You seriously didn't know he was the king's grandson?" Nova asked in response to Wolfe's shocked expression.
Wolfe laughed nervously at his obliviousness. Since he hadn't had any education to begin with, he didn't know the names of any important figures in Zodia. He knew that 12 royals, a king and a queen existed, due to the basic knowledge he had obtained from the streets. But their names were foreign to him.
Nova, not knowing what expression to put on after witnessing Wolfe's foolishness, just smiled. To her, Wolfe was just someone who maybe didn't pay attention in the early years of his education. She still had no clue, unlike many other students, that Wolfe was someone from an economically backwards class.
"Obviously someone like him wouldn't know that." Ray, who hadn't said a word since the start of the class, said scornfully.
"What do you mean by that, Ray?" Nova asked sternfully, almost offended on Wolfe's behalf. Her grim body language suggested that Ray was a stranger, but the way she spoke to him was like they were familiar with each other.
"What I mean is that you shouldn't hang around someone like him if you care about surviving for the next 4 years without being isolated. Someone like him would just drag you down."
Ray, for whatever reason, couldn't get himself to call Wolfe a servant. Because calling him a servant even at Zychs would imply that a royal such as himself is at equal standing with a measly commoner.
"Ugh." Nova grunted in disgust as she grabbed Wolfe by the hand and dragged him out of the classroom. A lot of students latched their gaze onto the pair, their mouths wide open at the spectacle.
Wolfe reluctantly followed, blushing all the way through as Nova tightened her grasp. His face turned blue with fear as he turned back to face a furious Ray one last time before following Nova. His fear regarding the Vilhorms would probably never leave his mind, no matter how hard he tried.
Nova left his arm as they reached the doors leading to the hallway, her face almost as red as his.
She bent down and cupped her head in her palms as realisation hit her and her face reddened even further. A squeal of excitement almost left her mouth as she stayed in the position.
Students passing by the blushing pair jumped to conclusions instantly. The students in the class whispered amongst each other in excitement, constantly looking back and forth between the pair and Ray
It was only the second day since they had arrived at Zychs and things had already taken an unexpected turn. Bashful rumours would fly around as the day continued and everyone, like most kids their age, would believe them without a second thought.
"Ummm…" Wolfe began, but no constructive words came out of his mouth. After a few minutes of judgemental looks from the other students, Nova gathered up her will to stand back up and speak. "Let's go outside. We have a lot of time before the next class so it shouldn't be a problem."
Wolfe, having no reason to go back inside, followed Nova to the gardens outside. They sat at a distance from each other, not speaking for a while due to the awkward tension that hung between them.
"How can I possibly explain why Ray was speaking about me like that without revealing that I worked for his family?" Wolfe thought in those moments of silence.
"He probably thinks I'm weird for just pulling him out like that." Nova thought, a rare lack of self-confidence coming over her. The only times she had been unsure of her actions was when they were in regards to people she considered her friends.
"Maybe I should just be honest." The two of them thought simultaneously as they examined the situation.
They both spoke at the same time, stopping as the other interrupted them. "Go ahead," they said in unison, almost as if it was planned.
They laughed it off and Nova spoke first since Wolfe insisted on it.
"Ray and I have been friends since we were 5. The Emblazes and Vilhorms have a tight-knit relationship lasting for several generations despite being polar opposites in many regards.
"I obviously don't have any right to speak badly about the Vilhorms. But from what I've gathered through first hand experience and from the testimonies of many other people I've spoken to, the Vilhorms are rather disliked.
"Ray is my childhood friend, yes. But I still can't come to terms with how he treats others. He's inherently a good person, but sometimes I feel like this vile, disruptive side of his takes over him."
"Ray? A good person?" Wolfe wanted to laugh at her statement, but knew it would hurt her. If his experiences had taught him anything, it was that Ray and all the other Vilhorms were the absolute worst.
"What I'm trying to say here is that Ray isn't always like this. So please forgive him for how he spoke about you. I know he was wrong to do so, but I was hoping you could give him another chance" Nova looked straight at Wolfe in an apologetic fashion, but Wolfe's face was frozen in an expression of pure disgust.
A lump formed in Nova's throat as she saw the horrified expression he portrayed. She felt betrayed in a way, despite knowing nothing about Wolfe's side of the story.
"Nova. I can't do that." Wolfe said. He tried to keep his sentences concise since he didn't want to offend Nova in any way. Letting himself talk freely about the Vilhorms would only breed further conflict.
"I'm sorry but...I can't forgive him." His voice was soft and gentle, just like Nova's when she apologised on Ray's behalf. Wolfe wanted to tread carefully on the topic, but his aggression was starting to get the better of him.
"All I can tell you is that Ray isn't the type of person you think he is." He did not elaborate any further and made his way back to class before Nova could register the statement. He understood that it was selfish of him to not explain the situation to Nova, but he couldn't bring himself to.
He didn't want to see Nova's reaction to learning that he was a servant. He was sure she would abandon him and distance herself as soon as she learnt about it, and so he wished dearly to shelter that fact for as long as possible. A bitter taste rose in his mouth as he walked off the grass and onto the hard footpath.
The grass under Nova was no longer comfortable, it pricked at her relentlessly but she couldn't get off it. She sulked with her arms around her knees, looking back at Wolfe to see if he turned around. But all she saw was Wolfe's cold, unfazed back walking away.
All she saw was the back of a person harmed beyond repair.