Zandro's brows furrowed in confusion. "Who exactly do you want to meet? Is it Andrei?"
"The fuck?! No!" Rahiya exclaimed, immediately disgusted. She wanted that bastard dead. "Besides, that pest is nowhere near as charming as the guy I'm talking about."
Zandro and Wyndel exchanged glances.
"Wait, wait—then who is it?" Wyndel asked, his eyes wide like a pleading puppy, already preparing to sulk. His Queen was single, and he wasn't about to let some other guy swoop in and take his place—again.
"You don't need to know," Rahiya said, sighing dreamily as her thoughts drifted to her knight once more.
She pictured him effortlessly catching her in his arms, saving her from the hideous ghoul. And with a soft smile, she says—"You came."
Then he would look down at her—mesmerized by her beauty, "It's because you called me, M'lady."
She let out a small squeal at the thought. Of course, the scene would end with them kissing under the moonlight.
Pure perfection.
"Earth to Rahiya!"
She snapped out of her fantasy as Zandro called her name sharply.
"How do we even know this guy isn't some scumbag?" he asked, folding his arms. He then glanced at Wyndel, who was now sulking in a corner, heartbroken. Seeing his Queen fantasizing about another man shattered his heart. Again.
"You'll regret this. And then you'll end up plotting his downfall if he dumps you," Zandro pointed out.
Rahiya placed her hands on her hips, determination burning in her eyes. "No, he's different."
Zandro raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "You always say that."
"But he's a knight, not a prince." She argued as if that made a world of difference.
Zandro blinked. "What the fuck are you talking about?"
Before Rahiya could answer, Wyndel dramatically threw himself into the conversation.
"What about me, Queen?" He pointed at himself with desperation.
Rahiya hesitated. "Uh…you're like…my little brother?"
Silence.
Then, with a dramatic gasp, Wyndel collapsed onto the floor, sobbing as he whispered chants, "Little brother…little brother…little brother…!"
~~~
They didn't ask Rahiya any further, since they knew she'd spill everything eventually—especially if she kept talking about the guy she wanted to meet.
The weekend passed quickly, and soon, Monday arrived—the day both Rahiya and Wyndel dreaded the most.
Zandro is still in the hospital, his wounds not fully healed yet. The doctors warned that if he was discharged too soon, his injuries might reopen. His absence, however, was not helping the two troublemakers. Without him, they had no one to copy answers from during quizzes. Unfortunately for them, Zandro was the only one among them with an actual brain.
Meanwhile, Rahiya found herself the center of attention at the campus.
Whispers and curious glances followed her everywhere as students waited to see what she would do next. After all, Andrei had dumped her last Friday. And everyone at Mauve Roux High knew what would happen when she got dumped—especially since Andrei had done it publicly.
It was a reckless move.
A dangerous one.
There was a reason she was called the Queen.
The rumors spread like wildfire, twisting and growing with every passing second. And eventually, they reached the ears of a certain someone.
"Do you really think I'm afraid?"
A man with heterochromia eyes smirked from afar, watching a particular girl who was chatting with her childhood best friend.
Whispers started again.
"Look at him. He's insane, talking to himself."
"Maybe the Queen's already making her move, and now Andrei has schizophrenia."
Hearing them, Andrei shot a glare in their direction.
The students froze in terror, their faces paling. Without a second thought, they turned on their heels and ran.
~~~
"Can you just give it up?" Wyndel whined, pouting as he watched Rahiya furiously type on her laptop.
"No, I need this, Wyndel." She huffed, eyes locked on the screen. "My love life depends on it!"
Wyndel scoffed. "Are Zandro and I not enough?"
Rahiya froze and shot him a disgusted look. "What?"
"We love you, though."
She gagged. "Please stop being disgusting."
Rolling her eyes, she turned her attention back to her laptop, trying to ignore the dramatic whining from the ginger-haired childhood best friend of hers.
She was frustrated. Finding a church nearby that hired or trained new exorcists was proving to be a challenge to her. She's not good at this!
But then—an idea popped up in her head.
Her gaze flickered to Wyndel, who was now slumped over the table, sulking.
"Hey, Wyndel."
His head snapped up, with pitiful eyes looking at Rahiya.
"You said you love me, right?" Rahiya asked sweetly.
Wyndel nodded slowly, as if sensing a trap but will let her get in her way.
She beamed and reached out to pat his head. His eyes sparkled with joy as he gently grabbed her hand, wanting her to keep petting him.
And just like that—mission success.
Rahiya smoothly roped him into doing her work—finding the nearest church and helping her apply to become an exorcist.
To her delight, Wyndel didn't even complain much. He whined, sure, but that was manageable. Unlike Zandro, who would nag her to death over every questionable decision she made.
Finally, she found it.
A church not too far from town—Celestial Supreme Church.
She had no idea why it was named that. Probably something historical. Not that she cared.
With a triumphant smile, Rahiya stepped forward into the church.
This is it.
Her first step toward seeing her knight again.
To continue their love story.
However…
Her smile vanished.
Her excitement turned into disgust.
Because standing right in front of her was the last person she wanted to see.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she snapped, glaring at the man she despised the most—her fresh brand new ex, Andrei.