Draeyer Academy (Rewrite)

Chapter 25-Smile

"Okay. Take a long deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and exhale slowly."

Alec did as he asked, although a bit slow to respond. He then asked him to continue the breathing exercise, gently speaking to him throughout the process. Eventually, Alec's pulse began to slow down. Alec's tense shoulders also visibly eased as he leaned further back into his pillow. His hand still held on tightly to Gael's, but he did not comment.

Gael waited a few more minutes until Alec spoke. "I'm...sorry-"

He immediately cut him off. "It's okay, kiddo," he said. "I'm the one who is sorry for not noticing sooner. I should've waited until you felt better enough to drop the news of you being a Sentire. You have been dealing with a lot the past few weeks, and I should've known better than to add more on your plate."

Alec looked up at him in surprise, before immediately looking down at the sheets. His hold on his hand became even tighter after he did. Gael took a deep breath and placed his other hand on top of Alec's, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Remember what I said a few days ago? I'm always ready to listen if you want to talk."

The young man slowly nodded with a bit of reluctance. Gael waited, watching carefully as Alec contemplated something before slowly lying back on the bed. "My power...can I really 'control' draes? Can I...force them to do something against their will? Like the red crystal?"

Gael was right. Alec was really thinking about how his ability sounded similar to the power of the red crystal device that they encountered so far. He was starting to grow afraid of his power too. Gael was glad that he caught this sooner. Sentires that were afraid of their own powers never had a good ending.

"It's similar, yes," Gael told part of the truth. He would not deny what he saw. Alec visibly flinched, but Gael immediately continued. "But what makes you different from the red crystal is that you are a sentient being."

He then reached out and ran his hand over Alec's hand, marveling at how quickly he relaxed at the gesture. Alec was an adult the same size as Gael, but he seemed so small and childlike in his eyes. "Like the crystal, you might be able to forcefully make draes do what you want. But unlike the crystal, you have the option to not do it. You can go about it differently, like befriending draes and forming a close connection. I think you can politely ask them for favors, and give them the choice to follow you or not."

"My power sounds like it makes them amiable to me in the first place, so is it really giving them a choice?"

"Maybe, Alec," Gael said. Doubt appeared in the young man's eyes, and he knew that he would never believe him with just words alone. "When you're all better, we'll perform a sentiral stone binding ritual. It will give you the choice to seal away your power whenever you want. We can check by then if the draes are really being amiable just because of your sentiral power or because they really like you as a person."

"You don't seem so sure yourself."

"Because there are no records of any sentiral power that is similar to yours. You're going to have a difficult time trying to figure things out, but I'll be here to help when you need me."

Alec let go of his hand slowly, before turning away from him. Gael had just a moment to see the back of his ears turning red before it was covered up by the blanket. "Thank you, Gael," Alec said, voice small but filled with sincerity.

Gael suppressed his smile at how adorable he was being. He stood and placed his hand on Alec's head over the blanket, giving him a gentle pat. "You're welcome, kiddo," he said. "Rest up and call me if you need anything."

"...You look like...shit, so rest up as well."

Gael paused before a chuckle escaped his mouth. With a wide smile, he gave one last pat on Alec's head before leaving. "Sure, Alec. I'll make sure to rest too."

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Me: Are you okay?

Alec: No.

Me: Oh...

Alec: Why do you look disappointed?

Me: I can't tease and mess with you when you're like this.

Alec:...you're the worst.

Me: *shrugs*

Gael: *barges through the door* *looks at me with a glare* *proceeds to pick me off the ground like a sack of potatoes*

Me: I didn't even do anything. This overprotectiveness is a bit much.

Gael: *throws me out the door* *slams it closed*

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Just an idea I got from another webnovel. Are you guys interested in me making "Peeks". Like short scenes about stuff you're curious about that are not directly part of the main story?