Black Academy

Chapter 4 - Part 5

"What? Oh, look. Here they come." Rapunzel dug her in the ribs. The chattering throng of students in the marble hall quietened, parting nervously. Through them came the missing students from their chemistry class, together with another six or seven others, equally beautiful. Some of them - Anaiis, a blonde girl at her side, and the Irish boy, Nathan - called to friends and peeled off from the haughty group. The others stalked past their fellow students as if no existed but themselves. "They must have finished their Congress. You see? Sir Pitch's favourites cannot even have meetings like anyone else. They have to have a Congress." Elsa got the impression Rapunzel wanted to spit, but her air of mischief was quickly restored. "Elsa, come! I must introduce you to Jack!" 

Oh, God.

Why the bolt of sheer terror? Elsa shook her head. He was only a boy. Kind of a beautiful one, though, and even nicer up close. Fanciable. And he had style too. His blue jacket was as sharp as anything she'd seen., but he wore it  with a casual confidence that Elsa had never seen in someone her own age. She felt her mind drain of all intelligent thought as Rapunzel dragged her up to him. "Jack!"

He turned, and Elsa took a breath. He was standing right beneath one of the more stunning statues. God, thought Elsa, he makes Achilles look like a slob . . . It was hard to believe those gentle blue eyes had seemed so frightening last night. Jack nodded. "Rapunzel." The Italian girl kissed him briskly. Elsa hoped she wasn't going to cut herself on his cheek bones. "Jack, this is Elsa Song. She is new here. Say hello!" "Hello," he said, "Elizabeth Song." She managed to smile. Or something. More of a grimace, really. She'd never heard sch a low and beautiful voice, and it made her insides mush. God Almighty. The only word that popped into her head - apart from wow - was unattainable.

"Elizabeth Song," he repeated. "You're the -" "Scholarship girl," she said tightly. Jack made an odd face that was half-smile, half-frown. "I was going to say, you're the clever one." "Oh," said Elsa lamely. "Right." "So, what do you think of the place so far?" Blimey. He sounded genuinely interested. Perhaps not so unattainable after all. "Well, it's very different -" she began, but Jack's gaze was already slipping past her. "I'm sure," he interrupted brusquely, his focus now somewhere over her left shoulder. "Well, excuse me." And with that he turned away and vanished into the crowd.

Ouch. Elsa had never felt so comprehensively snubbed. Not so interested, then. "Oh." Coming to a halt beside them, Caroline pouted. "Always rushing off. Poor Jack. So hard-working." Tyler was at Caroline's shoulder, and he murmured in her ear, "Didn't you have something to discuss with him?" "I did indeed." Smiling, Caroline kissed him on the cheek and slipped away. Now she'd had a moment to recover, Elsa's empty feeling of shock was rapidly being filled up with anger. Poor Jack, indeed. Who did the stuck-up tosser think he was? If anyone in this place deserved sympathy, it was Flynn.

Just about every boy in the hall was surreptitiously ogling Caroline, but the American, belatedly arriving after his scolding from Bunnymund, was hypnotized. Even when the German had disappeared from sight, he still stared after her.  Oh, he had it bad all right. But the boy wearing his heart on his sleeve this morning was the same boy who was prowling the corridors last night. What was he up to? "Elsa Song, you're quite the star." Elsa jumped back into reality as Tyler took hold of her arms and kissed her cheek before she had time to jerk away. 

She gave him a suspicious look. "Oh, yeah?" "Bunnymund's new golden girl - the chemistry whiz. You'll put me to shame." "Really?" she said coolly. "I thought the rest of us had to cram to keep up with you." "Touché!" He winked. "Not the rest of you. Just the one." He leaned closer to whisper in her ear. "Actually, me and Flynn? It's pure jealousy on my part. Those hawkish eyes, that grim jaw, the shaven hair. He's so all-American, they could carve him on Mount Rushmore, couldn't they?"