Radiance - The Alight Archives Book #1

41. Intruder

At first glance, Elaine thought they might spill onto the plate and make a mess on the table, however, they were frozen in place, no more an ornament than the sprinkles. And...and there was also a diversified collection of bizarre fruits cut into bite-sized portions littered on top; Elaine had never seen anyone put fruits on a cake before, but then again, she had never laid her eyes upon a pastry this extravagant either.

"Wow, you really went all out, didn't you?" Custas smirked, shuffling beside her.

Casey blushed, scratching the back of her head. "Oh, don't think too much about it. I was originally planning on giving you this when you four first joined, but then those Student Council sulmos had to go pokin' their noses in our business." Casey started as she noticed the rising anger in her tone; just thinking about the Council, so it seemed, made her frustrated. "Eh, let's stop talking about them; they'll only sour the mood. Well, then, my dearest members and friends, help yourself to your heart's content."

Kliff leaned over the table with crossed arms, staring at the cake with a grin on his face. "This looks like the kind of cake they'd serve in the Capital. Must have fetched a pretty token, no?"

"Oh, it wasn't that big of a—"

"If you must know," Raine said, cutting Casey off as he stood behind her, "we've already drained a majority of the club's annual funds throwing this "party" alone. We'll have to spend our resources wisely and make do with what we have until the next rotation."

"You don't say," Custas sighed. "Sunder me, Casey. You didn't have to go that far for us."

"Raine's over-exaggerating, and of course I did! Today's special. Not only is the Aire Club fine and well, but now we have a fighting chance! That's more than enough reason to celebrate if you ask me. Sure, theirs bound to be complications every now and again, but we're a sturdy bunch, aren't we? We'll figure it out."

Custas shrugged. "Eh, I suppose..."

"Anyway, enough talk!" Casey smiled encouragingly. "Grab a plate and have fun!"

"Yeah, you two. You heard Casey; these are our leader's orders." Elaine hardly acknowledged the startled look she was getting from Custas and the cock of the head Kliff paid her with. The source of her newfound addiction was that cake, untouched, gleaming in all of its glory. Without thinking, she pounced forward, arms lashing out in front of her, her gaze blinded by gluttony. "I just got to have a bite of that delicious treasure!"

"Whoa, Elaine. Calm down," Custas said, catching her by her arms before she could grab two scoops of it with her bare hands. 

With a blink and hasted puff, Elaine returned to her senses, and as she did, a blush turned her cheeks pink. "Aah! Sorry, so sorry!" she stammered, hopping from him with flailing hands. "I didn't mean it! I just got carried away!"

In spite of the absurdity of it all, Casey only laughed. "Ha! Where the heck did that come from? You some kind of foodie, Harwood?"

Elaine brushed the hair out of her face. "No, not really..."

"Jeez, Elaine, you gotta get that sweet tooth of yours under control," Custas sighed, palming his forehead. "Fearne told me how you got a stomach ache on the first day of school cause you ate some sweets too fast at the Feast Hall. I get it if you're hungry but don't eat yourself to death."

Elaine blushed some more. "I can't help it, all right?! We didn't have the most diversified palette in Page, so excuse me if I want to try my hand at something different."

Casey's laughter grew louder, her shoulders bobbing up and down. "There's no shame in it, Harwood. Everyone gets a little crazy about something or other."