Pas de Deux

1o

⊱ ✿ ⊰

Click.

Clack.

Click.

Clack.

The sound of stiletto heels pacing back and forth echoed eerily in the low temperatures of the headmistress' office, as the three delinquents sat stiffly in a row before the grand mahogany desk. This office was the only room in the entire seven-story academy that utilised darker colours and woods, deeply contrasting the almost futuristic and minimalistic decor that the rest of the school had. It was fitting, since being sent to the headmistress' office never ended well. 

Shen Yuxing sat with her back straight, eyes trained downward, not staring at anything in particular as she sat between Wang Chengrui and Cao Zihan. She figured the other two didn't want to be in close proximity right now. They both looked irritated with scrunched eyebrows, but it probably couldn't even compare to the irritation Yuxing felt. She hated being dragged into other people's issues. She wasn't even the one fighting, and they were all old enough to give honest recountings of the events. There were even security cameras if it came down to it, so she didn't understand why she had to be here. 

The headmistress finally turned around from where she had briefly paused in her step to gaze out the window just as Yuxing's thoughts were starting to become increasingly pessimistic, and slid into her plush office chair. Yuxing dares to look up and make eye contact—she'd once read that looking down when speaking to others was a sign of low self-esteem—and the headmistress takes this as a sign to begin speaking.

"I heard from Mr. Zhou that you got yourselves into a little fight," when Headmistress Quan finally speaks, she does so in a soft-spoken manner, but even so, her words send a chill down Yuxing's spine. She's an intimidating woman by nature, with sharp eyes and her hair pulled back into a tight bun. 

When no one replies, she continues, "It's very disappointing that three students at such a prestigious academy would resort to such violent and animalistic instincts. Especially one of our top first-years." She looks right at Shen Yuxing as she said this, to which she gently raised her hand. She didn't actually know what Mr. Zhou told her, but she couldn't just sit there and be so drastically mischaracterised. 

"Yes, Miss Shen?" Headmistress Quan smiled ever so slightly as she gave her permission to speak, but there was no warmth behind it. It was as if she was challenging her.

"I'm not sure how Mr. Zhou reported the situation to you, but it seems there's been a misunderstanding," Yuxing starts.

"And what may that be?" the headmistress responds, smile fading. 

"Yuxing didn't actually fight, she just happened to be there," Zihan cut in. He couldn't stand the tension in the room. It was thick and made every word that much harder to push out. His hair was still messy from earlier, and he had a tissue pressed to his nose in an attempt to stop blood from gushing out. 

"Yeah, but isn't she technically the reason you hit me?" Chengrui shot back, leaning back in his seat. Though he wasn't bleeding, a deep maroon was beginning to bloom along his jawline. 

"No, the reason was that you were being an ass—"

"Gentlemen."

Both of them shut up when Headmistress Quan rose her voice just slightly. 

A beat of silence passed before she spoke again, looking at both Chengrui and Zihan in turn, "I believe you were sent here to resolve your issues, not create more." She folded her hands on the desk and looked back to Yuxing.