Under the Oak Tree Book 2 "Conquering hearts" ( Fan fiction)

Chapter 22 - Maximillian

The next class was ironically all about language. The ins and outs of basic phrases, and pure translation of common terms. This class, yet again, housed the majority of the same mages from mana 101. This was one of the five one-hour classes that were on my schedule. The instructor was a man dressed in a rich burgundy and black accented robe. He had dark slicked back hair and a slightly tanned complexion with piercing brown eyes.

His brown eyes were nowhere close to Riftan's! Riftan's had hints of gold scattered around the center, that only those close enough could see in the sunlight. While I was daydreaming about my husband, something I found myself doing often, I caught a slight movement directly to my left. Curiosity getting the better of me, I glanced in that direction, watching as Liam took a seat directly behind me. Of course, he was not alone. His group of burly friends were in tow right behind him.

Blaire and Makta, sensing my discomfort attempted to close the small gap of distance between us. Liam cleared his throat, causing us to divert our attention back to him. As we locked our eyes for a moment, a brief glimpse of surprise was evident in his expression. The brief surprise in his expression was short lived as Liam proceeded to give me a wink, followed by a smirk that slowly stretched across his face. Not wanting to give him the impression that I cared or that he could rile me up, I swiftly directed my attention back to the front of the class.

Alec, having made his way to the front of the room, was in a heated discussion with the instructor. Both of them turned their heads toward me, signifying that the discussion was most likely involving me. Inwardly groaning, I busied myself with my notebook, trying to avoid the awkward glances from both the instructors and other students.

After a few moments of blissful distraction, a slight tingle ran up and down my spine, caused by a rush of warm air on the back of my neck. The tingling sensation left my anxiety on edge, causing me to straighten up and square my shoulders, which in turn caused my head to jerk backward slightly. I stifled a yelp as my head collided with someone else's. It did not take a genius to figure out that the warm rush of air on the back of my neck was from Liam. Rubbing the back of my head, Liam chuckled.

"Oh, I forgot how clumsy you are. It is a good thing your father was not here for that one!"

Liam, grabbing a fist full of my hair, yanked my head back far enough for him to lean in and whisper in my ear. "I am sure he wouldn't mind if I taught you a lesson on his behalf."

He moved the hand that had yanked my hair and held my head back from my hair to my face, slowly tracing the edge of my jawline. As he traced my jaw, I could hear him mutter under his breath, "you should have been mine". Liam then planted a swift kiss under my ear. Mortified, I fought the overwhelming desire to vomit. Luckily no one else was able to see the swift peck due to my hair being in the way. Liam, slightly amused, busted out in laughter as his hold on my hair loosened. I did not need to turn around to see the big smile that no doubt was plastered on his face.

Frustrated, and sickened by the audacity of this man, I did my best to imitate one of Riftan's famous death glares. I ensured that my face was void of any other emotions and flexed my jaw, showing my displeasure. Makta having beaten me to the punch was already staring daggers at him when I turned to address the men laughing behind me. The moment I turned towards them; their laughter stopped.

In its place was shock. They had never seen me angry. In my time at Cryoso, I never had the courage to stand up for myself, and in turn, everyone took it upon themselves to treat me as they wished. These men were no different. The only time it ceased was when my father was present, and he typically had other things, dare I say, lessons in mind to take their place.