Zarion notices something peculiar about Roan in the coming days. There are these small moments where his reflexes allow him to catch stuff that should be impossible for someone who moves as slow as he does on a regular bases.
So Zarion secretly started testing Roan, dropping things near him which escalated to him hurtling small objects like tennis balls. Roan caught on quickly and being the stubborn guy he is, would catch the objects and then pretend like everything was fine.
This game of theirs quickly grows into little competition, finally reaching the boiling point when Zarion threw one of the chairs at Roan who simply grabbed it out of the air and placed it on the ground before propping his foot on the seat and tying his shoelaces.
"Alright, fine, you're fast." Zarion raises his arms in defeat. "What else can you do?"
Roan sits down and waits for Zarion to warm him up with something new for him to eat. "I guess I can breathe fire...but only when I'm a dragon."
"Why didn't you tell me that before I threw the chair at you?" Zarion notices Roan tapping his feet on the floor, which he only does when he feels sad.
"You don't have to worry...I haven't shifted in years." he states.
"What do you mean you haven't shifted in years?"
"The last time I shifted I was five."
Zarion finds that hard to believe since Lycans that do not shift for even a few months often break a bone or two when their body forces them to shift. If Roan has not shifted for thirteen years, then his next shift could be fatal.
The news deeply troubles Zarion, who starts frowning.
"Is everything okay?"
Zarion turns to face Roan. "I'm good." he lies.
"Oh, come on, you're tapping your finger on the table like you're playing connect the dots and you have that stupid look in your eyes."
Zarion smirks. "What look?"
"Your pupils shrink whenever you're thinking about something whilst still being present enough to respond. You do it to me all the time." Roan tells him.
"And what are they doing now?" Zarion leans in so that Roan can get a better look, his pupils dilating.
"You're thinking about me again, aren't you?"
Zarion leans back in his seat. "How did you know?"
"I'm good at reading people."
+/+
"So?" Heather sits opposite Roan in the school dining room with a half-eaten salad sitting in front of her.
"What?"
"You have a crush on somebody." Before Roan can even protest Heather jumps in. "Don't even try to lie to me, okay, I know you better than you think."
Roan finds that hard to believe. "If only you knew." he hums to himself.
"What was that?"
"Nothing." Roan lowers his eyes to his food after lying.
"So... who is it? Tell me!"
"If I promise to tell you, you have to promise the conversation will end and you won't make a big deal out of it."
Heather shrugs her shoulders. "That depends, who is it?"
Roan rolls his eyes but gives in. "It's Zarion..." he mumbles.
"You are going to have to speak louder than that Roan, I can't hear you." she sings.
"It's Zarion okay." he repeats.
Zarion appears behind Roan with his tray in his hand. "What's Zarion?"
Roan looks like a deer in headlights so Heather swoops in to save him from disaster. "Oh nothing, I was just asking who number ten was at the game the other day. I thought he did really well for his first game."
Zarion grins. "Why thank you."
Roan watches Heather flash one of her famous smiles. "Are you going to sit with us?"
"Oh." Zarion looks down at Roan who has not acknowledged his existence at all during the entire exchange. "I don't want to intrude." he starts.
"You're not intruding, the table is empty and there are a lot of seats for you to choose from." Roan can practically see the birds flying down from the sky with a tiara made of golden leaves who carefully place it on top of her shiny head of hair.
"Is that okay Roan?"
"Sure, sit." Roan moves his stuff, giving room for Zarion to sit down next to him.
"I'm just going to be honest; I have no idea how the game works, or any sport for that matter." Heather jokes.
Zarion laughs politely. "It's not that hard if you have a good teacher."
"Well then maybe, you can teach me some time." Heather tilts her head, looking around a quiet Roan.
"Whenever you're free."
Suddenly, a Space elf used his powers to trip another student over, he drops on top of his tray.
Heather and Zarion jump up to help. "God, people can be such jerks." Heather shakes her head, pulling out a clean cloth.
Zarion hands the other Elf his tray back. "The food is kind of ruined but it's still edible...sort of."
Heather stops the elf from rubbing the stains on his shirt. "Here, let me do it." Heather, being a Time elf, uses the energy of time to revert his shirt to the time before it had food smeared across it which also reverts his food back to the way it was.
"Thank you..." The elf takes the tray from Zarion and fixes his glasses. "Both of you."
Roan looks at how well the two of them just mesh. The athlete and the princess, it only makes logical sense for them to attract one another.
Clichés were once fact and if that is indeed true, then that would make Roan the outcast and no one wants the outcast.
When they sit back down on the table, Heather asks Zarion if he wants to go to a party with the two of them. "I mean...I have practise on that day...but I'll try to swing by if I can."
Heather smiles with her eyes, the clouds parting to let sunlight beam down on her. "Excellent."