The Radiants Chronicons : Vol. I & II Of The Radiants Duology Series

Radiant (Vol. I) - Chapter twelve

Chapter 12

"So how was your first day training with Levi?" Oge spoke in her chirpy voice. Hands under her chin, in anticipation of what I had to say.

"First of all, how come you never gave me the complete tour? You tricked me."

"I got tired. Sorry. You have no idea how huge this place is. Now seriously, how was the training?"

I couldn't imagine telling her about my pointless sexual tension around Levi, so instead I said. "Surprisingly fun. A bit stressful but I'm getting a hang of it. Levi's a pretty good teacher. I'm just glad he decided to help me."

"Everyone in this place is just as surprised as I am, that Levi chose you as his new trainee. He vowed to avoid having any other after Arnold's death. Arnold was his only trainee so it took quite a toll on him. It's just a huge surprise he did so."

"I was shocked just as much. The council members' eyes literarily popped open in shock when he said it."

"His decision seemed to inspire a few number of people to become fighters now. After Arnold's death, no one considered doing something so dangerous and Arnold meant a lot to people, especially Levi. So Levi, agreeing to train someone again, has helped people to move on. People are trying out again and more veteran fighters are getting new trainees. It's like a miracle."

I smirked. Or a well thought out plan from a strategic leader. I was impressed by him already. "It's good that people are trying out, instead of living in fear. Anyway, since I only spend 6 hours in a whole day training, Levi told me to join another "domain" to keep myself busy for the next three months and I don't know which one to join."

Oge offered. "You can join me here, in the hospital and be my medical assistant. It would be fun."

My nose crinkled. "No offence but I can't imagine myself spending hours in this place. I hate the smell of hospitals."

"And here you are, having all your meals, every single day in this make-shift hospital."

I sighed softly. Yes, I admit it. I always had my meals in the hospital with Oge around. Even right now, I was in the hospital since I just finished with lunch and I had a good reason for that. Okay, it may seem like a lame reason but I always had trouble making friends. I hated being around people and always found it hard opening up to people. Being friends with Oge was easy, only because she had an outgoing and friendly personality. Not everyone's like that and I doubted if I could be outgoing, just as well.

Oge paused, from what she was doing and gave me a somber look. "I love having you around. God knows I do, but I worry about you. You need more friends. The Clandestine may be a hiding place for our kind but it's also designed to bring us together and become each other's family. You can't hide in here forever."

I grumbled. "I'm not hiding. Besides, you have your meals here too. How are you any different?"

"Only because I work here. I have breaks and spend time with other people. I eat here because I need to. The Chief healthcare practitioner needs to always be around. You eat here because you're antisocial."

"I'm not. I just don't know how to make friends with radiants. I've never had the chance to."

"Have you tried? Have you actually tried befriending one radiant? And I'm not included in this. Or what about Laurena? You two stay in the same room. Do you guys even talk to each other?"

"Occasionally, but she's a lot worse than I am when it comes to being friendly. She's just so cold."

"She can't help it. If you knew how she grew up, you'd understand why."

That honestly caught my attention. "How did she grow up?"

Shifting uncomfortably under her weight, Oge answered. "She grew up in a home where her parents were ashamed of having a radiant daughter. She was born in Nicé, France and it's still one of the many countries that are hostile to Radiants. Most people didn't even know she existed because her parents kept her identity a secret. They turned the attic to her room and locked her inside every single day. She had no friends and hardly ever met guests at her house. Her trauma kind of made her turn off her emotions. She was home-schooled and only had her dog for a friend. Finally fed up with everything, she ran away from home and eventually made her way to England, where she met Dame Josie, who took her in as her own."

I couldn't find the words to say anything. She really had quite the tragic life. No wonder, she was cold. I couldn't imagine living like that. I felt grateful having loving parents and caring siblings that made every difficult day I had, seem easier.

Oge continued. "She only much more colder because her only friend, Evelyn Mugabe just graduated a month ago and joined the adult district. Evelyn was the former African representative and now her position is left open. Right now, the only person she's sweet to, is Red and that's because they're dating."

I already knew about that part. I had seen Laurena and Red together, laughing about God-knows-what, yesterday. It was easy to tell that they were together, considering how relaxed she looked and how much fun she was having with him. Knowing her story now, I couldn't help but feel happy that she had someone in her life. "I'm glad she has Red. They're completely different in personalities, but when I saw them yesterday, I couldn't think of a better couple."

"I can. Me and T.J. Only difference is that we aren't dating, but I wish we were. I can't believe I'm telling you this."

I searched my mind to remember who T.j was and snapped my finger when I did. He was the Asian rep. from the council. I could see why she liked him. He was very attractive, but I didn't know him well enough to determine what his personality was like. "The Asian rep? He's good looking. How long have you been crushing on him?"

Oge blushed. "No. No. No. We're not talking about this. How did we go from talking about your training to talking about my feelings for T.J? I'm going to put that conversation to halt because I remember you asking me what domain you would join while you're training and I know the best fit for you."

I really wanted to hear her tell me about her crush on T.J. Talking about feelings with a friend was all new to me. I never really had a friend that I could have a conversation about that. Even back in school, Raheemat and I never spoke about boys and crushes. She was my only real friend, but we weren't close. I wished I could hear more about it, but I let her change the subject when she did. "What would be the best bet?"

"The mechanics domain. Stop squeezing your face and hear me out. They build almost everything here and your powerful brain can help with stuff."

Despite her protest, I still wasn't interested in that. "Any OTHER domains to choose from?"

"Cooking? Or cleaning? What about Home management? That's a complex domain. They take care of the younger kids here. That's a huge domain that does a lot of things from teaching to special care for the young ones. You could try that."

"I'm a terrible cook. I'm not good with little kids and I'd hate to clean for hours. Any other domain?"

"Just join the mechanics. It's your safest bet. I have a friend that can take you under his wing right now. Has no trainee and he's a completely cool person. I can introduce you to him after dinner. Are you cool with that?"

I mumbled. "Fine. But I better enjoy working there". But a part of me knew I'd end up enjoying my time there, even if I couldn't tell Oge that.

......
Tamar's going to join the mechanics domain. How exciting. Let's see how that goes
Xoxo
Jasmine