The brown-haired boy entered a daze and lost touch with his surroundings. The walls seemed to cave in, and his brain fixated on a single point more important than the rest.
Annie, the girl he had accidentally bumped into and tried to save from a nefarious individual… turned out to be royalty.
'No way. There's just no way my luck can be that bad, right?'
Recalling how he had decided to stop Helian from getting to her, a furious blush crept up Nico's neck. His hands trembled, while his already pale face lost all its colour.
'I'm dead meat… I'm dead meat… I'm dead meat…'
Those few words reverberated endlessly in his mind.
How could he, a commoner, and a person with no affiliation to Annie declare that she was his lover? How could he have the gall to touch her?
Both were crimes worthy of execution!
Nico cringed and buried his face in his hands.
What had he done?!
Too absorbed in his daze, the brown-haired failed to see the shy glance the blue-haired girl sent his way as she left the corridor with her entourage.
***
A while later, in the bathroom, Nico splashed his face with some water. Having calmed down a little, his mind wasn't as chaotic as before. However, every time he recalled what had just transpired, his heart threatened to beat at a million miles an hour again!
A pit formed in his stomach; one he was desperately trying to ignore.
Drying his face with a towel, Nico's hands gripped the edges of the sink.
So far, no one had come to fetch him. No guards or members of Annie's court had come to imprison him, either.
Surely that had to be a good sign, right?
'That's a little relieving, but what about the rumours?'
Nico felt like sobbing.
What if Helian fed the rumour mill and told everyone in the great hall what had happened?
Nico's knuckles turned white as he gritted his teeth.
He desperately wished to flee and go back home. But, Leon, Isaac and Oliver were still in there, and he would feel bad if he suddenly left without a single word.
'Curse my conscience!'
Sighing haggardly, the brown-haired boy left the lavatory and headed back to the great hall. His steps were heavy, a shadow of doom ready to fall on his heart at any moment. Nico took a shaky breath as he approached the wide double doors. He steeled his mind and quietly slipped into the room.
Bracing himself, the boy waited for the dark looks to manifest… the screams and shouts… him being apprehended.
But strangely none of that came.
The sound of music only registered in his mind just then. It filled the hall like a magical wave, sweeping Nico in its joyful rhythm.
As he peeked one eye open cautiously, Nico found that his peers were way too absorbed with dancing to pay him any attention. The long buffet tables had been moved to the side to allow some extra room in the centre. Near the dais where the Saintess had conducted her speech, an orchestra had set up and its members were currently playing their instruments softly.
Nico's mind gradually lost all its tension. He marvelled at his peers as they glided across the dance floor, hand in hand, twirling and spinning to the slow beat. This looked like a ball out of a fairytale. Nico broke out of his stupor and headed to find his friends.
Only a few people had noticed his arrival, his chaotic aura doing him no favours there.
'Come on, come on. Where are they?'
After a few moments of frantic searching, the boy relaxed. He'd found them.
Leon was standing to the side doing his best to mind his own business. He stirred some sort of punch in his hands, trying not to look awkward. Nico smiled, watching the half-blood avoid making eye contact with anyone.
Nearby, a horde of young girls surrounded Oliver. They were each fawning over him, desiring to go and dance with the charming boy. From what he could see, the older elf was making every effort to reject their advances, but with so many of them, he was bound to lose from the get-go.
Nico sniggered inwardly watching the defeated expression on Oliver's face as one of the girls led him by the hand to the dance floor.
'Hm? Where's Isaac then?'
Shifting his gaze to the whirling crowd in the centre, he found the younger elf after a minute or two of searching. Nico's eyebrows rose, a twinkle appearing in his eyes.
There, amongst the numerous elegant nobles and graceful students alike, Isaac danced with an extraordinarily beautiful maiden. Her golden locks fell like waves behind her shoulders, and her skin glowed much like Isaac's did.
'Could it be?'
Nico laughed heartily, startling a few of his peers nearby. The brown-haired boy paid them no attention, for he had an inkling of the identity of the girl Isaac was dancing with.
'I'll be damned! Looks like he managed to reunite with her here.'
Nico was almost a hundred per cent certain that Lady Sabrina was the one currently in the younger elf's embrace. He smirked, his grin widening as he observed both of them sway with flushed cheeks.
'Ah, young love…'
Walking up to Leon, Nico tapped him on the shoulder. The half-blood flinched and almost spilled his drink.
Nico's lips twitched, amusement and mirth flooding his eyes.
A relieved expression appeared on Leon's face once he saw Nico. The brown-haired boy felt a little bad for making him worry so much but consoled himself that he would make it up to the half-blood after they left.
"Want to leave?" He whispered into the burly boy's ears.
As much as the infectious joy of the music helped him relax a little, Nico was still on edge. He just wanted to get out of the hall as fast as possible. He would figure out what to do tomorrow.
Leon nodded.
However, before the half-blood could open his mouth, he froze.
An ominous premonition flooded Nico's mind. A tap on his shoulder occurred right after that, almost as if in sync.
That touch sent a jolt of electricity throughout his body…
He stiffened.
Like a door with a rusted hinge, Nico turned around agonisingly slowly. And when he did, his face lost all its colour once more.
There, standing right next to him was the glamorous form of Annie. Her shimmering blue eyes reflected his pale face, while her mouth held a shy smile.
"Would you do me the honour of a dance?"