The Dragon Stone ↣ Riven ↢

08: Girls Aren't Really My Thing

'There's actually something I've been meaning to talk to you about.', he revealed as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck. 'I don't mean to meddle in your life, but I know you're a nice person and I feel like I just have to say something.'

Rose didn't know what he was talking about, but his words left her with an anxious feeling. 'Out with it Dane.', she said in a stern voice while folding her arms in front of her body.

'It's just that I've noticed you've been hanging out with Riven...', he trailed off.

Does he want to know if something is going on between Riven and her? She doesn't even know if there is something going on between Riven and her. Is there something going on between Riven and her?  Could Dane be against that? Why would Dane be against it? Does Dane have a thing for her? All those questions ran through Rose's brain and as she wasn't responding, Dane spoke up again.

'It's probably not what you're thinking right now.', he rushed out. 'I can tell you're pretty, but girls aren't really my thing.', he mumbled as he blushed slightly.

Okay, so that's clear, he wasn't into her, Rose thought to herself. 'Well, thank you for the compliment, I guess. But what is it then?'

'I just think you should know, and I don't know for sure, but he is a nice guy, though he can also be an arrogant dick...', Dane just kept rambling on, not making any sense.

'Just say it already, Dane.', Rose cut him off causing Dane to let out a sigh.

'I just think you should be careful. Riven is never serious when it comes to girls, he enjoys sleeping around too much. I wanted to tell you that in case you weren't aware.', Dane concluded with a concerned look on his face.

The information he shared with her wasn't new but Rose started to wonder if she might have shoved it back into a far corner of her mind as she did feel a little pang of disappointment. The warning, however, wasn't the first one she had received.

'You too?', Rose grumbled while waving her hands in the air. 'Musa has been up my butt for the last few weeks telling me to keep my distance from him as he has a bad vibe around him.', she air quoted the last part.

'Well, Musa is a mind fairy, so she probably has her reasons. Look, I don't want to trash talk him, he is my friend, but last year he used to treat girls like shit. Every interaction was like a game.', Dane responded, his voice soft with a sad undertone.

It made Rose think. It's not like Riven and her hung out on a daily basis. They had had lunch together a few times and she would visit the specialists training area with Bloom from time to time but it was still just the same little cheeky remarks. Nothing had really happened. However, Rose knew deep down that she had gotten her hopes up that something more could be there, especially after their sparring session a few weeks ago.

Even though his words left her with a confused feeling, she forced a smile onto her face. 'Thank you for telling me, Dane. I appreciate it. You don't have to worry though, we're not really hanging out, we just talk from time to time, that's it.', Rose explained trying to sound as convincing as possible.

She noticed the sceptical look on Dane's face but as he opened his mouth to say something, Rose quickly cast her eyes down at the ground and prayed he was not going to lecture her any further. He seemed to read her body language as he refrained from saying anything more about the subject.

'Yeah, of course, no problem.', he replied before they parted ways and Rose continued her way over to her dorm.

-

'Thanks, dad.' Rose could hear Terra say to her father as she closed the car door. Terra's father was professor Harvey and he had offered to drop the girls off at the restaurant. The restaurant was a cute little cottage surrounded by trees and with vines sneaking up the side of the building. The windows were round with curtains hanging on both sides, tied back with rope. A short flight of stairs led up to the restaurant and a welcome sign was hung on the door. As she walked up the stairs, Rose's mind wandered off again to the conversation she had had with Dane, causing her to miss a step. She let out a shriek while trying to stabilize herself and was lucky that Musa caught her arm, preventing her from falling face first onto the floor.