I scoffed at her.
"Whatever", I turned around and got out of the dressing room under the shocked stares of the rest of the team.
Vanessia didn't have the time to react before I was already far away. Wandering in the hallways, I ignored the mocking gazes thrown at me by the numerous students recognizing "Ziracity". The Academy defined the term luxury.
Marble floors, golden chandeliers encrusted with diamonds, decorations that should just be put into a vault, not to mention the expensive carpet everyone's walking on.
I honestly didn't know where I was going as I was looking around and stumbled into a beautiful garden with benches all around.
The wide expanse of green filled my view. Colorful birds flew freely from tree to tree, the sunshine putting a beauty filter on the scene only made everything reassemble a fairy tail. Leaves twirled with the wind, contouring the huge fountain that was a surprisingly simple stone statue of a dragon.
Eyeing it, I sat down exploring my options. I knew the book for sure, but not by heart. Only the big plotlines could be certain for me.
Getting comfortable on the bench I let the breeze ruffle my raven like hair breathing in the mana filled air. Drowning in the slightly sweet scent around me, I closed my eyes.
Images started flashing in my mind in a rapid motion. It was dizzying and hard to follow, like watching a sped up movie while being on a roller-coaster. I couldn't open my eyes no matter what and could only take the humongous amount of information without flinching.
I could see the southern Emperor in the visions, his strict but well entionned eyes when teaching Ziracity, the melancholic one he had gazing at his late wife's paintings. All the training she endured, the transformation of a clever, timid girl into a stern and cold princess.
I witnessed as much as a 1st point of view as a 3rd point of view. And I paid particular attention to the day of her accident. How could such an impressive being be injured by a Xioxue? A powerful magic user who probably had defensive magic spells in her mind on loop like it was her favorite song couldn't have been implicated that deeply.
Feeling the cold droplets of sweat falling from my neck, I opened my tightly closed eyes. My breaths labored. I gasped for air trying to alleviate the piercing pain in my brain.
It took me a few minutes to completely calm down and analyze the newly added knowledge. And at the same time, realize that all this is real. Not a dream.
My thoughts became frenetic. Like a machine gun, impossible to stop.
What happened to my body? If my soul is here, where's Ziracity's? How is my family doing? Who will provide for them? Were all questions running through my head.
I felt scared, suffocated and incredibly homesick. I watched the trees, the stone dragon, the plants doubling, tripling around making me dizzy.
I couldn't focus, couldn't breathe, couldn't understand. I clenched the fabric of my shirt to try getting some air. My eyes kept shaking as I fought to see clearer.
I felt drunk, vision blurred by tears, I felt like a fish out of water trying to desperately gulp oxygen with all my pores. I clung to the bench, as if touching the turning floor would suck me into an endless vortex.
I almost fainted, when a warm sensation flooded my veins. This warmth was the oxygen I was searching for. I grabbed it with all my might and crashed my head into it.
It was moving with a certain rhythm. Pulsating like a heart, surrounding me like a blanket. I pressed my head into what seemed to be a hard chest, pouring air inside my lungs.
I took deep respirations, inhaling at the same time a slightly fruity odor mixed with his pine tree perfume. My shoulders then stopped shaking, soaking as much warmth as I could.
Wait, chest?!
My eyes blink open, just like my mouth, utterly flabbergasted. In front of me was a creature sent from heaven even though his characteristics couldn't deviate more than the ones of an angel.
His dark purple eyes, short black hair and the scar on his lips made him look more like a seductive demon than anything else. I only came back to my senses when he removed his arms from around me, taking his warmth with him.
My cheeks darken more than they already were as red added itself to my chocolate skin.
"Better?" he says using his deep melodious voice.
I try to stop myself from hitting my forehead to make me focus on the situation and not his perfectly fine body.
"Yes, I really apologize. I had to bother you with my tantrum. And thank you." I frankly didn't feel it was a mere tantrum, but I did want to say sorry.
He stared at me silently before speaking up again.
"Don't minimize what you feel. A stupid tantrum wouldn't leave someone hyperventilating."
I looked at him, finding him better the more he talked. I returned to the situation at hand and then realized how close we were. Even with his arms back to himself, I was pretty much leaning on him.
I jerkily backed up, guiltily ignoring the way his lavender eyes widened in surprise before settling back to their normal calm. I could barely focus with him around as I totally forgot to respond.
"...It seems like it's a personal subject. Maybe talk about it to someone you trust. Keeping pressure inside is a malicious time bomb." He stood up, verifying that I was truly alright, washing my body with the gems he had for eyes.
His voice basically sings to me and the sun showering him with golden light only poisoned my IQ further.
"W-what's your name?". My remaining intelligence couldn't stop my stutter but at least got my question across.
He paused, and the wind with criminal intent brushed his hair to show his forehead. I was acting like a pervert and blamed it all on the breakdown I just had.
"Arvada." He didn't wait for my name, nodded and walked away.
I could finally calm my beating heart. The sunset put an orange glow to the fountain I was staring at.
"Shit, I'm fucked."
My face finally went back to its original color. My first crush ever was a book character, worse, his first impression of me was absolutely embarrassing.
I groaned, hiding my face in my hands and stayed like that until my resolve to go back to my cool self came back.