I tried to suppress my laughter. The way her body tensed and the way her teeth bit her bottom lip were so amusing.
Finally, she calmed down and regained her composure. With a quick glance towards Ravus, she let out a soft sigh and smiled. "Sorry. That's just something I do sometimes, you understand. I hope you weren't offended."
"Of course not, Wyn," he said with a smile. "Just give me a second or two to catch my breath."
I couldn't help but chuckle again.
Wyn's eyes widened for a second, and then she burst out laughing. "He laughed! Ravus, beloved laughed at my joke!"
Ravus put his arm around her shoulder. "Only because it wasn't very funny. And besides, I think you do this all the time when I'm dealing with our income."
Ding!
I checked my phone, and a smirk spread across my face. "Looks like it was finalized a lot earlier than expected. We've got our cut; check yours."
Wyn reached into her little bag and pulled out her phone.
"Wyn, a little less pressure, please," I cautioned. "The screen will break. How about you try to own a phone for more than two months?"
She stopped squeezing her phone so hard and turned towards me. "Thank you for saying that. I always forget how fragile these talking devices are these days. My own fault though. I should know better by now." She took another look at her phone. "It says here that we're getting seventy percent of the profits."
Ravus chuckled. "Even better, I see. That would mean boss here, got an extra bonus of ten percent. This means more money for everyone!"
"So, what do you say we celebrate with dinner somewhere nice tonight? Somewhere fancy?" Ravus asked.
Wyn's expression brightened immediately. "Yes, yes! Yes, I can already smell the meat. A new restaurant opened up downtown last week. You must have heard of them."
Ravus nodded. "Sure. They're called 'Nirvana'. Nice name, isn't it? Their chef has won multiple awards over the years. Their menu consists mainly of exotic meats from all corners of Althyra."
I shook my head. "No, I haven't heard of them."
"Well, that's probably for the best," Ravus said in an amused tone. "They don't open until seven o'clock sharp, which is when they start serving. It's not a buffet either; they serve each dish individually."
"Sounds good," I replied.
"Perfect!" Wyn clapped her hands together excitedly. "I'll call ahead and make reservations. Should I tell them to expect us?"
"Way ahead of you." Ravus answered before I could even speak. "You should go get changed first, Arsol. Then, come meet us downstairs." He looked at me with a serious expression. "And if you want to eat, wear some clothes other than your pajamas."
"Right!" I exclaimed. "That sounds perfect." I walked away without giving him any chance to reply.
–––––––––––
I sat at a table near the window overlooking the city. The sun had set completely by now, and I found myself lost in thought while sipping on my drink.
I had been sitting there for almost twenty minutes, lost in my thoughts again.
I had unintentionally used my ability without thinking about the promise I made to myself.
"Stupid, stupid!" I muttered to myself as I brought the glass to my lips. "No one speaks ill of my show—"
"Dare,"
This was an unspoken rule: whenever we were out in public, Ravus would call me by my last name instead of using my actual name. He never failed to forget this rule every single time we went out together.
Wyn didn't need such a rule; with her over the top name, it would be near impossible to hear my name coming from her mouth anyway. But I needed the reminder.
I gulped down half the drink and set the glass back down onto the table.
"You're speaking to yourself like a crazy person again." Ravus' voice broke through my inner monologue.
Even though I was staring at him, I could only force a smile onto my face.
He had taken his seat across from me and leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. "You okay, buddy? You seem... sad, or something."
I looked down at my glass. "Yeah, I guess I am. Just... thinking."
He smiled softly. "About what? Or who?"
I raised an eyebrow. "You really want to know?"
"Of course I do. Wyn's preoccupied by her heaps of meat right now, so she doesn't care much about our conversation. So yeah, why don't you tell me everything?"
I sighed deeply. This was going to take a little bit of explaining. "Remember the time I shared with you the story of a close family that split from me eighteen years ago?"
"You were close to someone other than Wyn and me? Shocking." He grinned.
"Don't tease him; he was always vague about it; give him time," Wyn chimed in and took another bite of her steak.
"Hey, I'm just joking around. You two are too serious all the time." Ravus winked at her.
She glared at him. "Shut up, Ravus." She turned her attention to me. "So what happened to that family of yours?"
I picked up my glass and drained the rest of my chewed steak in one gulp. "Well, I never got a chance to find out."
I set the empty glass back on the table.
The three of us fell silent and stared into the distance. We could feel the awkwardness between us, and we patiently waited for me to continue.
"He was sold off to work in a mine."
Ravus and Wyn both gasped.
"A mining town?" Wyn asked, clearly confused.
I nodded.
"Why didn't you try to save him?" Ravus asked.
"It wasn't possible. What could a helpless child who had looked up to one person ever hope to accomplish against the adults?"
"But..." Ravus stopped himself. He knew very well how hopeless I sounded right now. "What did they do to him?"
"From what I heard, they tried to break his mind. They wanted him to believe he was worthless. That no one cared about him or loved him."
"Those who are considered weak and cheap have the least value in society. That is how these things usually go." Wyn added.
"How can you say that so carelessly?!" Ravus stood up and slammed his fist down onto the table.
My head shot up towards him.
"Oh, shut up!" Wyn snapped. Her eyes flashed red, but then she calmed down once more. "There's no use talking to you when you get emotional. Now stop complaining, and let's hear him finish telling us about this."