"I'm sorry Fortis, I wasn't in a good mood yesterday..." Falice apologised the moment she approached me.
"You don't have to apologise Falice," I placed my hand on her arm and gave it a light, comforting squeeze. "I understand."
Her eyes widened a fraction. "You do?"
"Yeah, I heard..." I rubbed my forearm nervously. "About you and Ducan."
"Me and Ducan are just..."
"You don't have to explain yourself. I only see him as a good friend," I assured her.
"No Fortis..." Falice trailed off when Zander and Ducan approached us.
"Is there anything wrong?" Zander asked.
"No," Falice answered instantly.
Her face was bright red and she was looking down at her feet. She must be extremely awkward after the confession.
"Fortis..." Ducan started and I stepped over to Zander's side quickly.
"Zander, Gladion would be evaluating my combat skills soon. Can you help me do a quick assessment?"
"Okay."
"Great. Ducan can you pair up with Falice in the meantime? She can't train alone," I requested.
"I can help you with the assessment," Ducan proposed.
Falice's head bobbed up and down in silent agreement. More interactions with Ducan seemed like a bad idea to me. Besides, Falice and Ducan should use this opportunity to clear things up.
"Thanks Ducan, but it's Zander job to assess," I pointed out.
Before he could say anything else, I strode away with Zander right behind me.
"What do you want to be assessed on?" Zander asked.
"Everything I guess," I answered.
"Okay, let's start with the hip throw. Remember the pointers."
I nodded and got into position. Using my hip as pivot, I successfully threw Zander to the ground.
"How is it?" I asked when he got back up to his feet.
"Not bad. But you can be faster," he commented.
I smiled. Coming from Zander, a 'not bad' is better than nothing.
"Next try the double leg take down," he said after a few more hip throws.
In my peripheral vision, I noticed that Falice and Ducan were not training at all. In fact, they were staring in our direction. Will they be alright on their own?
"Pardon?" I asked absent-mindedly.
"Focus," Zander snapped his fingers in front of my face, reverting my eyes back to him.
However, my attention only lasted for mere seconds.
"Stop," Zander said and I skidded to a stop before him.
What now?
"You started with the wrong leg. Try again."
"Okay," I moved away from him to create the distance required for the take-down.
This time, I made sure to start off with the correct leg. When I made the move to lift Zander up for the take-down, my mind wandered back to Ducan and Falice. The next thing I know, Zander jerked to his right without warning and both of us crashed onto the ground forcefully.
My head collided with his jaw in the process and I groaned from the pain.
I sat up and Zander moved his jaw to make sure that it was not broken before doing the same.
"Why did you do that?" I complained, my hand moving up to my head automatically.
When he did not reply, I shifted myself to meet his eyes and I regretted it immediately. His eyes blazed with so much anger that I felt scorched simply by looking at it.
"Why did I do that, you asked?" he repeated my question in a frighteningly calm voice.
Not trusting my own voice, I nodded.
"If I did not do that, you would have broken your neck from twisting in the wrong direction."
I twisted in the wrong direction?
Zander stood up and I followed suit.
"Don't even make the request for me to assess you when you can't even focus on what you're doing. It's a waste of time and energy," Zander admonished.
"Don't vent your anger out on her," Ducan spoke up.
I whirled around to see both him and Falice. Did they come here after witnessing the fall?
"No Ducan, it's my fault. I was distracted," I admitted, shaking my head.
"Are you guys alright?" Falice asked in concern.
"Yup I'm fine," I smiled at her reassuringly.
"Fortis, you don't have to speak up for him. I can help you too you know," Ducan held my gaze as he said these, wanting his words to get through my head.
"But it's really my fault for not focusing," I told Ducan firmly. "Just go back and train with Falice. Don't make me feel even more guilty for taking up your training time too."
"...Alright," Ducan sighed at my resolve. "Um...Let's go Falice."
I turned back to face Zander after both Ducan and Falice had left. "I'm sorry for wasting your time and effort. I understand if you don't wish to continue..."
"Let's continue," Zander finalised.
I squinted my eyes at his face. Is he serious about it?
"What are you doing?" he asked warily.
"Just checking if you meant what you said."
"And did you arrive at an answer yet?" he raised a brow in curiosity.
"Yes you mean it," I nodded after a few seconds of observing him.
"Well, then we have no more time to waste."
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The rest of the assessment went relatively smoothly. I don't know whether Ducan and Falice were still staring at us after that and that just proved how focused I was on the assessment-which was a good thing.
*After lunch*
"Hi Fortis," Ryon stopped me the moment I stepped out of the dining hall.
"Oh hey Ryon," I greeted him.
I was kind of surprised that he even approached me.
"How's your injuries doing?"
He looked surprised by my question.
"I'm fine now, thanks for asking."
"That's good to hear. You were great you know? During the assessment. You didn't give up despite how much pain you were in."
He scratched his head at the compliment. "You think so?"
"Yup. Keep it up," I flashed him a genuine smile.
"I will," a single dimple appeared on his face. "You did not give up easily too."
I smiled at his words. "So you're here because...?"
He smacked his forehead out of the blue and I jumped at the suddenness.
"Sorry if I scared you," he sent me an apologetic smile. "I almost forgot my purpose."
"No it's nothing," I waved dismissively.
"Is your head better now?" he raised.
"Yup. It's fully healed."
"That great," he nodded with a smile.
"So...?" my eyes flickered to the stack of paper that he's holding onto.
"So what?" he had a clueless look on his face.
"Your purpose?" I reminded him.
"Oh I almost forgot it again. Here take this," he handed me one piece of paper.
"It's the new cleaning schedule for the Weapon Room. There will be a rotation of duties." He paused here. "You're scheduled today. I hope you don't mind starting today right after dinner."
"Of course," I nodded instantly. "Though, I don't really know what I'm supposed to do."
"Oh, don't worry about that. Since you're new to this, I've modified the schedule such that two people would be assigned for each day. There will be someone there to assist you."
"That good. Thanks for the consideration," I nodded in appreciation.
"You're welcome," he answered cherrily.
"Now...who have I not handed these out to?" he pondered as he walked away.
"Ryon!" I called out after him.
"Huh?"
"Maybe you should write down who you have already given the new schedule out to, so that it'll be easier for you."
"Okay, thanks for the advice! By the way the pairings are permanent," He chirped before rushing away.
A smile stretched across my face. Secretly, I wondered if he would succeed in distributing the new schedules out to everyone. I scanned the schedule in my hands, hoping that I was paired up with someone helpful. I gulped when I read the two-syllabus name right next to mine.Is the person helpful? Yes. And are we awkward? Yes but more for me. There goes my plan of having lesser interactions with him.
Maybe I could request for a change of partners...but that would mean more trouble for Ryon, who already had enough on his plate. I can't imagine him making another round to inform everyone of the change in schedule. Forget it. I'll just busy myself with the cleaning and only speak to him when necessary.
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Ducan's POV.
I hopped to my feet in a flash when the door to my room was slammed open adruptly. Do the person not know the concept of knocking?
I was not at all surprised when I saw Ryon standing there. He was not supposed to come up here but this was not the first time he had broken a rule set by Gladion. When questioned, he would apologize but do the same thing all over again the next time round. He was the only person who was let off the hook after breaking the rules. However, the mistakes that he has made so far were just minor mistakes so it's understandable. I would hate to think what would happen if he were to commit a major mistake. Something is seriously wrong with this guy's memory, I swear. Gladion had already given up on summoning to see him and instead placed him in charge of the cleaning roster for the Weapon Room.
"Do you have anything with me, Ryon?" I asked.
"Oh yes. I've came up with a new cleaning schedule for the Weapon Room. From today onwards, two people would be assigned to each day."
"Why the sudden change?"
"Um..." his eyes flew in all directions before meeting mine. "I don't know. I forgot."
"Er...it's alright. Then can I have the schedule?" I requested.
"That's the thing," he laughed nervously. "I forgot how many people there were so I printed less."
"Well..."
"Don't worry though!" he added hastily with a smile. "I remembered that you are scheduled today."
"Oh. Who am I with?" I asked hopefully.
Inside, I wish that I am with Fortis. I could tell that what I did had caused an invisible barrier to form between us and it's affecting me greatly. I really regret being so impulsive. I'm not usually like that. I am always a person who treads carefully but it really sets me off when I saw Fortis and Zander together. So far, she was the only one who has managed to throw me off balance. I had never mentioned my past to anyone before. However, it just flowed out of my mouth naturally when I was with her. It was scary to admit, but I really like her. Not in a friend kind of way, but more. Yet, I could have expressed my feelings in a better way. I really screwed up. However, I am never one to give up. I want the barrier to be broken down and fast. I am confident that we would go back to how we were or even closer. It's just a matter of time.
"You're with F..."
My heart raced in hopefulness.
"Falice," Ryon finished.
My face fell. "Can you replace me with someone else for today?"
That day, Falice had somehow ended up in my room right before lunch. When I was about to flick on the light switch, she hugged me from behind and confessed her feelings for me. I was shocked beyond words. And just when I thought that it was awkwardness at its highest level, Zander entered and witnessed everything. Falice then high-tailed out of my room in the speed of lightning. I had left these details out when I admitted Falice's confession to me in fear that Fortis would develop the wrong idea.
"I'm afraid that is not possible. I've already given the schedule out to everyone else. And the pairings are permanent."
I sighed in exasperation.
"But I guess you can do an internal swap with someone if they are willing to," he grinned.
Upon hearing his words, I felt like giving him a hug but I decided against it. I guess his 'do not go by the book' attitude is helpful in some ways.
"Thanks man," I nodded gratefully.
"No problem!" He beamed before skipping away.
As I slid the door back close, a question popped up in my head. Who can I do an internal swap with?
A ghostly smile found it's way to my face as I thought of the ideal candidate to do a swap with. Call me selfish, but this would ensure that he would not have an opportunity to spend more time with Fortis.
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Messenger from Idris: You have a message from the author.
*Unrolls scroll*
Hoorays to those who have reached this far!;)
How are you doing, my dear readers? This chapter is special due to the added Ducan's POV. I've decided to include the POVs. of different characters in the book every once in awhile in order to ensure that you have a better grasp of what is happening. Now, you definitely know more than what the main protagonist knows. Do you feel honored? Hehe^^
I hope that you've enjoyed the story so far. I had a real fun time writing all these chapters and I'm afraid that I've caught the writer's syndrome-smiling and talking to myself while going through those possible scenarios in my head.
Still, it's worth it! This is my first real attempt at writing a book so pardon any mistakes! I'll take my leave now since I need to finish my others chapters quickly for you hungry readers ^^ Ja ne for now. And it's a promise that you won't be seeing/hearing the last of me. Mhwahahahaha ;)
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