❛ I had a feeling so peculiar, this pain
wouldn't be for 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆. ❜
⎯⎯ ⠀ㅤִㅤ ୨⠀♡⠀୧ ㅤִ⠀⠀ ⎯⎯
𝓗wang eunji, who also goes by iana, felt her world stop. it stopped the day she le...
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↳ chapter sixteen ₊˚.༄ [# you're on my mind]
IANA HADN'T SPOKEN MUCH KOREAN WHEN SHE WAS AT THE WILDERNESS school, but the string of curses that left her mouth when she woke up cold and shivering sounded far from foreign to her.
"Ssi bal." Her teeth chattered as she swore, making her sound less irritated. A familiar pair of arms immediately wrapped around her shoulders, tearing open the wound in her heart she so desperately tried to seal shut.
"EJ! Thank gods, you're okay." Piper let out a sigh of relief before tucking a blanket around her shoulders. Iana muttered a small 'thank you' before taking in her surroundings.
Next to her, a campfire blazed, turning the air sharp with smoke. Firelight flickered against rock walls. They were in a shallow cave, but it didn't offer much protection from the howling winds outside. Snow blew sideways. It might've been day or night, the storm made it too dark to tell.
"Leo, you okay?" she managed.
"Present and un-gold-ified." Leo was also wrapped in blankets. He didn't look great, but definitely better than Iana felt. "I got the precious metal treatment too," he said. "But I came out of it faster. Dunno why. We had to dunk you in the river to get you back completely. Tried to dry you off, but... it's really, really cold."
"You've got hypothermia," Jason said from across the fire. "We risked as much nectar as we could. Coach Hedge did a little nature magic—"
"Sports medicine." The coach's face loomed over her. "Kind of a hobby of mine. Your breath might smell like wild mushrooms and Gatorade for a few days, but it'll pass. You probably won't die. Probably."
Iana offered him a tight lipped smile in thanks before turning to Jason. "So, how did you manage to beat Midas?"
Jason told her the story, putting most of it down to luck.
The coach snorted. "Kid's being modest. You should've seen him. Hiyah! Slice! Boom with the lightning!"
"Coach, you didn't even see it," Jason said. "You were outside eating the lawn."
But the satyr was just warming up. "Then I came in with my club, and we dominated that room. Afterward, I told him, 'Kid, I'm proud of you! If you could just work on your upper body strength—'"
"Coach," said Jason.
"Yeah?"
"Shut up, please."
"Sure." The coach sat down at the fire and started chewing his cudgel.
Piper put her hand on Iana's forehead and frowned at her temperature. "Leo, could you stoke the fire?"
